(Moka's POV)
Moka couldn't take it anymore.
She'd tried. She'd really, really tried. Inner had told her to watch, to wait and above all else to trust in Tsukune's plan. He might be reckless and sometimes an idiot, but when he was serious he showed a maturity a teenager shouldn't have.
This way for twenty minutes, she'd done absolutely nothing but boil in her own anguish just by sitting on this stupid sunbed, wrapped in this stupid towel, watching that stupid mermaid press herself against her stupid boyfriend.
'No, wait, he's not my boyfriend here. Soon, if he accepts my heart… Until then… Urgh, I'll call him my boyfriend in my heart.'
But watching was one thing. Watching while Tamao pulled Tsukune against her chest, cradling his head like he belonged there, whispering things Moka couldn't hear but could definitely imagine—that was something else entirely.
Her hands clenched in her lap, nails digging into her palms and a thought that normally wouldn't even surface her mind escaped.
'I want to kill her.'
[I know.]
Inner reconfirmed my anger.
'I want to tear her away from him and throw her out of her own pool.'
[I know.]
'I want to—'
[I KNOW.]
[But you can't do that. It will destroy all the progress Tsukune has made.]
Moka's eyes burned with frustration so intense it felt like fire in her veins, it reached the point even herself wasn't sure about these new emotions.
'Then what am I supposed to do? Just sit here and watch her play around with him in my face? Watch her—'
[No.] Inner's voice turned thoughtful. [But I have an idea.]
'What kind of idea?'
[It's not much, just a passing idea that is worth pursuing. They are not acting against Tsukune because of our presence. So, to get things moving we need to be proactive.]
[We'll have to take a step back to set things in motion for Tsukune. This way, I will not have to watch this pathetic display of seduction.]
'Wait. You want me to leave?'
[Temporarily. Yes.]
'But Tsukune—'
[Will be fine.] The words were absolute, brooking no argument. [He's not the weak human he used to be. You know this. I know this. The question is whether those goldfish know it.]
Moka frowned, confusion cutting through her jealousy.
'What do you mean?'
[I mean,] Inner said slowly, [that they haven't attacked yet. Why? They've had him in their pool for twenty minutes. They could have drained him dry by now. But they haven't.]
Because... because we're here?
[Exactly. They're waiting for us to leave. They fear our presence, and can't think of a better way to remove us from the picture. In a way, they are more pathetic than Kurumu's attempt at stealing Tsukune from us.]
Moka's eyes widened as the pieces fell into place. 'So if we go—'
[They'll act. And when they act, Tsukune will have justification to fight back.]
'But what if he loses?'
[I have confidence in Tsukune that he'll not lose to a bunch of goldfish.]
[Worse case scenario, I'll handle it myself.] The words were simple, matter-of-fact, utterly confident. [I've been waiting for an excuse to teach these fish some manners.]
[This is why, you have to still be around the proximity of the pools, in case Tsukune even loses so he can remove the Rosario Cross.]
Moka sat with that for a moment, the weight of the decision pressing down on her. The idea of leaving Tsukune alone with these predators went against every instinct she had. Every fiber of her being screamed at her to stay, to protect him, to fight the mermaids herself.
But Inner was right. She knew it, even if she hated it.
'Alright, I have to calm down.'
She took a deep breath, steadying herself.
'Tell me Inner, what do I do?'
[Make a scene. If you don't know how… Hmmm, let's start with this. Throw a fit—I know you're good at those.]
[Touch the water, just a little, to make it convincing. Then storm off. Find somewhere hidden nearby where you can watch without being seen.]
'And you?'
[I'll be ready. Whenever that moment will come, if ever.]
'Inner, have I told you before? You're really smart. You know?'
[Hmph, of course. I could read their plans like the back of my hand.]
Moka nodded, more to herself than to Inner, and stood from the sunbed and decided to take things in her own hand by getting to the pool's side.
The walk to the pool's edge felt like walking to her own execution, this feeling intesified when she got closer to the moist ground where people dried the water off.
Every step brought her closer to the water—that horrible, burning, nasty water—and closer to Tsukune, who was still tangled up with that mermaid in a way that made her stomach turn.
Tamao noticed her approach first. Those yellow eyes slid toward Moka with something like amusement, and she tightened her grip on Tsukune deliberately, possessively, pulling him closer against her chest.
Moka's jaw clenched so hard her teeth ached, and unlike Tsukune who was in his 'business as usual' face, she couldn't mask her emotions. Just looking at his face and the way he didn't fight back, pushing that stupid fish, made her want to sink her fangs deep into Tsukune's neck to the point it hurt him, just like how Inner was doing it.
'Ahhh, I'm so glad I asked for that pay. I'll make you wish you didn't get tangled with these ugly fishes.'
She reached the edge of the pool, close enough that the water lapped at the tile inches from her feet, close enough that she began sensing that instinctive response to dangers.
"Tsukune." Her voice came out steadier than she felt. "I need to talk to you."
Before he could respond, Mizuki appeared at Moka's side—the turquoise-haired mermaid from earlier, the one she'd shoved across the courtyard. Her expression was all mock-concern, but her eyes glittered with malice.
"Ohh, if you want to talk to Tsukune-kun," Mizuki said sweetly, "you have to get in the water."
As she spoke, her hand flicked—casual, almost invisible—and a spray of droplets arced toward Moka.
They landed on her arm.
The pain was immediate and intense—like acid, like fire, like a thousand needles stabbing into her skin all at once. Moka gasped, stumbling back, clutching her arm where angry red marks bloomed like flowers of agony.
Mizuki's smile widened.
"Otherwise," she continued, as if nothing had happened, "if you're not going to join us in the pool, maybe you should just leave. Your presence is distracting the boys."
Another flick. More droplets.
Moka's vision swam with pain, but beneath the pain, something else was building. Something hot and fierce and utterly furious.
'You. Goldfish. Are going to regret that.'
But she had a role to play and wouldn't squabble on Tsukune's chance, so, to be helpful for once at least in her heart, instead of being the damsels in distress, she had to do it. What to do, you might ask? That was a scene that would speed things up and end her own suffering (out of jealousy).
"Tsukune! Just stop it already!" Her voice came out sharper than she'd intended, cracking with genuine emotion.
"I've had enough! You wanted to come to the Swimming Club because you wanted to get closer to the girls, didn't you? That's all any of you care about!"
She wasn't sure who she was yelling at anymore—the mermaids, the boys, Tsukune, herself. It didn't matter. The words poured out anyway, a flood of frustration that had been building for weeks.
At that moment Tsukune couldn't help but be dumbfounded by whatever Moka was doing, and overlooking such an incident from his careful planning, he felt his mind hurting, thinking of all possibilities at a speed that would make any human scientist envious.
'What is she doing?? Have I asked her previously to endanger herself by triggering the aggro of the Mermaids?'
'I am as sure as I am in my heart that I will never put Moka-chan in danger. I gave my word that I will protect her, and I am going to keep myself to that promise.'
'My mind… hurts so badly after going over all the possibilities.'
'But even then, I don't know…'
'Should I respond? What if it triggers Tamao and her click?'
Silence was also a response to her, and seeing his expression from that natural calm of his, shift to a troubled one, almost pained, she continued.
"Fine! If you don't want my presence here, I'm better off leaving!"
She turned to go—
"Wait, Moka-chan!"
Tsukune's voice stopped her cold.
He'd extracted himself from Tamao's grip somehow, displaying a moment of strength the Mermaid hadn't expected and there even was a trace of Yoki that became more visible, which by itself troubled her. It sent her own scheming mind into overdrive because she was now 80% sure that Tsukune was a human, somehow connected with the supernatural, maybe like a Wizard, the equivalent of Witches.
She focused her senses on Tsukune's swimming back, and that Yoki evaporated to nothing, giving her the impression someone was teasing her mind from the sidelines.
Meanwhile, Tsukune's expression turned urgent in a way that made Moka's heart clench, because she could tell that he was overthinking her own intentions, hurting himself in the process.
Water streamed from his hair, his shoulders, his chest—that stupid, beautiful chest she has watched be built day by day—and for a moment, Moka forgot to breathe.
"Please understand me, Moka. I'm not doing it to spite you or make you jealous." he said, reaching the edge and looking up at her. "I really wanted to swim with you. I really do. But if it's not possible now, I'll make sure that in the future you'll be able to swim. I promise you that Moka-chan."
His eyes met hers, and for a moment, just a moment she saw something there. Not the casual flirtation he'd been showing the mermaids. Not the strategic calm of someone playing a role.
It was his real emotion that she was receiving, something real.
"In truth, I—"
A wave of water crashed over him.
Mizuki had done it deliberately—Moka saw her hand move, saw the malicious gleam in her eyes, saw the water rise and fall and drench Tsukune completely.
But some of it splashed Moka too.
The pain was excruciating. Her vision went white. Her knees buckled. She would have collapsed if not for the wall she'd been standing near, catching herself at the last moment with a sob that tore from her throat.
Through the haze, she heard Tamao's voice, dripping with mockery and disdain, as she had her own fun watching Mizuki make a mess out of Moka, and it was nothing but fair revenge for the shove.
"You look so childish, Moka-san. Also quite petty! Between a man and a woman, the important part is finding out if you've had your heart stolen—or vice versa!"
Moka's vision cleared just enough to see Tamao's triumphant smile, to see the other mermaids watching with amusement, to see Tsukune's expression shift from concern to something darker.
It was a face she only saw in that dream of hers when Tsukune sliced Saizo's neck with cold ruthlessness.
"Urghh, I can't!" The words tore from her throat, raw and real. "Tsukune! Wait there!"
She ran.
Not toward the exit—that's what they'd expect. Instead, she ducked around a corner, into a shadowed alcove behind a row of lockers, out of sight of the pool. The moment she was hidden, her legs gave out and she collapsed to her knees, clutching her burning arm, her chest heaving with sobs she couldn't hold back.
[Fool.] The word was harsh, but the voice behind it wasn't. [The first splash should have been enough. You stayed longer than required.]
I know. Moka's mental voice trembled.
'I know, I just—I couldn't—'
[It hurts, doesn't it?] Softer now. Much softer. [I can feel it too. Your body is my body. Your pain is my pain.]
'Inner, I-I…' Moka's thoughts fragmented, unable to form complete sentences through the haze of pain and frustration. 'I'm sick of this body. Why can't I be like everyone else? Why do I have to be so WEIRD?'
She pressed her burning arm against her chest, rocking slightly, trying to find some comfort that wouldn't come.
'When I heard what Tsukune said…about wanting to swim with me, about making it possible in the future…I almost jumped in.'
'I wanted to so badly. I wanted to be with him. To feel his arms around me without water burning me. To be NORMAL.'
A sob escaped her, pained and broken.
'Why can't I just be normal? Why can't I be with Tsukune like everyone else?'
The silence stretched. Then, quietly Inner voice remarked, almost like the Onee-san she was viewing herself in the relationship between herself and her other personality.
[This is the curse of being a vampire, weakling. We learn to live with the things we can't have. The things we can't do. The things that hurt just because of what we are.]
'But I don't want to just live with it! I want—'
[I know.] Inner's voice held something Moka had rarely heard from her—gentleness. Actual, unguarded gentleness. [I know what you want. And I know you heard him, didn't you? That last part. Before the splash.]
Moka's tears slowed. She nodded, even though Inner couldn't see her.
"He said 'in truth, I—'" She whispered it aloud, the words a prayer in the darkness. "What was he going to say?"
[It doesn't matter what he was going to say. Probably something to appease your feelings. What matters is that he is still awake even after being soiled by those nasty Mermaids, and that in the end he only looked at you.]
'You think he meant it?'
[I tend to not be led around by that Silver-tongue of his, but, I felt it,] Inner said simply. [Through you. Through our bond. He wasn't playing with your emotions.]
Moka pressed her hand to her chest, over the rosary, feeling Inner's presence warm against her palm despite everything.
'What do I do now?'
[Now?] A pause. Then, with something almost like anticipation: [Now we wait. You will know when to show yourself. That is when Tsukune reveals his true colors and stops acting like the weak human he was.]
(Tsukune's POV)
Back at the poolside.
I watched Moka flee, and something inside me twisted in my heart. Seeing her being hurt, crying, displaying those raw emotions to me, put me into a dark state of mind.
'Damn it, I made her cry… It makes me feel so bad inside, just seeing her cry makes me want to kill these Mermaids.'
'Sigh, calm yourself. I shouldn't allow my impulses to make crucial decisions for me.'
I didn't know what happened with Moka to act like this, what got into her to act like this since I told her to not think too much into anything the Mermaids would do.
Then she had to do such a reckless act, endangering herself.
'I have underestimated the length of a woman's passiveness when it comes to their lover and how much they are willing to bitterly swallow without exploding.'
'I am a smartass. I haven't even taken this much of her emotions into consideration. Apart from being a narcissistic asshole, I am also selfish.'
'I need to make up for all the tears. I also need to try to fight the impulses of this rotten personality otherwise, what dreams of a Harem? I'll just return to owning cats and call it quits.'
'I guess this is why my previous relations haven't lasted long. Once they saw me for the bastard I was, they jumped ships, monkey branching to someone who could satisfy them better.'
When I turned back to the pool, my expression must have shifted, because Mizuki actually flinched . The smile slid off her face like water off glass, but my face wasn't much better either, especially with the memories I thought I let go resurfacing.
"That was unnecessary." My voice came out flat. Cold. The kind of tone that made people reconsider their life choices. "If you know she's a vampire—and you clearly do, since you're exploiting her weakness to have your 'fun', there is no reason to go that far with the cruelty."
'Is there any other reasons to stay here and fool myself with the mermaids?'
'No, none since that incident with Moka-chan. I even got my mind ready for the Ghoul transformation and whatever pain comes my way, I will endure it.'
'Having to experience the skeletal structure changing, or my muscles reaping and tearing themselves apart before regenerating, couldn't happen to a nicer guy…'
'Let's just end this farce already.'
Mizuki's eyes darted toward Tamao, seeking support, but Tamao was watching me with a new expression—one I couldn't quite read.
"Hahhh." I let out a breath that was almost a laugh, though there was no humor in it, instead there were my frustrations trying to escape my mind. "At least I had my fun today. So, umm..."
I turned to Tamao, meeting her yellow eyes directly for the first time since we'd entered the water.
"Tamao-senpai, thanks for being, sort of, enjoyable company and an eye candy. Really. The sensation of your flesh and the views were nice."
Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn't interrupt.
"But my mind hasn't changed. I still don't want to join the Swimming Club."
The words hung in the air between us, heavy with implication.
Behind me, I heard the other mermaids shift position. Felt the water currents change as they moved, encircling me, except for the mermaids who weren't part of Tamao's plans, and surprisingly, Rin wasn't there.
Tamao's smile returned—but it was different now, sharper, akin to a shark's. The mask of the charming club president was gone, replaced by something that had been lurking beneath the surface all along.
"What are you even talking about, Tsukune-kun?"
She drifted closer, close enough to touch, close enough that I could see the predatory satisfaction in her yellow eyes. The water around her seemed to darken, to grow colder, as her yoki began to manifest.
"Just when I finally chased off that bothersome vampire..." Her voice dropped, losing all pretense of seduction. "...isn't the fun just beginning?"
Her body began to change. It was subtle at first—a shift in her skin, scales rippling into visibility along her arms, her shoulders, the sides of her neck. Her eyes grew larger, more liquid, more inhuman. Her hair floated around her like it had a life of its own, and when she opened her mouth to speak again, I caught a glimpse of teeth that were just slightly too sharp.
"Didn't I say it clearly?" Her voice resonated with a deeper, monstrous and hungry nuances. "Either you have your heart stolen, or you steal theirs!"
[Hostile intent detected from multiple sources]
"Funny," I said. "You think you waited for your chance at me? Then, I'm sorry to break it to you, but I'm in a foul mood."
As if receiving a signal from Tamao, the other mermaids in the pool began to transform.
It was like watching a nature documentary about predators, if that documentary was also a horror film. Scales rippled across their skin while their eyes shifted to a vertical predatory slits, their teeth lengthened into rows of needle-sharp point.
Akin to a mirrage, the beautiful girls who'd been playing volleyball moments ago became something else entirely, removing their human masks to express their inner self, the Mermaid who belonged in the depths of the ocean and seas.
Clearly, they were out of their element in the restraining swimming pool.
The screams started immediately.
"Waaaaaahhh! Stop it!" One of the boys—the shy one who'd been hanging back—found himself surrounded by three transformed mermaids, their clawed hands reaching for him from every direction.
"Why are you suddenly coming after me, senpai!?" Another boy tried to swim away, but the mermaids were faster. They were always faster in the water.
They caught him quickly. He was in their element, after all—fish in water, prey in a hunting ground. Two of them grabbed his arms while a third pressed close, her sharp teeth finding the soft flesh of his neck.
He screamed with all he had, as if he was being murdered.
My first impulse when I heard that type of despairing scream was to jump in and rescue him, but knowing the truth of their feeding practices, only targeting their vitality enough to not kill them, I knew, that in fact they were safe.
Then his scream faded to a whimper, and his whimper faded to silence, and when the mermaids released him, he looked fifty years older. His skin was pale. His eyes were sunken. His vitality had been drained in seconds.
"Huhu~" Mizuki's voice carried across the pool, light and musical despite her Yokai form. "Don't think badly of us, Tsukune-kun. Luring men into deep waters and sucking their life energy... this is simply our natural way of life."
She smiled, and her teeth caught the light.
"Isn't it wonderful!?"
Around me, the water churned with the chaos of the hunt. Boys screamed and fled. Mermaids laughed and pursued. The pool that had been a paradise moments ago was now a feeding ground.
And through it all, Tamao completed her transformation.
Her form was more impressive than the others—larger, the passive Yoki of a peak B-tier Yokai could be felt around her as she carried herself with a proud posture. Her shimmered like precious gems and eyes that held the cold wisdom of the deep. When she began moving, the water itself seemed to part for her, acknowledging her dominance.
She charged.
Her jaws opened wide—wider than should have been possible—revealing rows upon rows of teeth designed to tear and consume. She lunged at me with the speed of a striking serpent, aiming for my throat, and my heart stopped for a second from the fear of being caught.
I moved like life depended on it.
Her jaws closed on empty water. I'd twisted aside at the last moment, using my enhanced half-baked vampire reflexes to slip past her attack. For a single heartbeat, I was airborne, looking down at her transformed form.
She was beautiful, I had no way to deny that, but just because you were beautiful doesn't skip you from getting a beating. Who do you think you are, Boa Hancock?
I landed on the pool deck, water streaming from my body, and took in the scene with a more serious expression on my face.
All around me, the screams continued. Boys who'd come here seeking beautiful girls were now fleeing for their lives, their vitality drained, their bodies aged. The mermaids chased them with the relentless efficiency of sharks in a feeding frenzy.
This scene made me shake my head with distaste, for how much I wanted to help these bros, I was only a single man who also got dragged in the deep waters by the Mermaids. In a way, I could only pray in my heart that they wouldn't do something silly to endanger their lives further.
Maybe not putting too much resistance would end things smoothly between them and the Mermaids? But who am I to talk about it. It feel hypocritical to act from the high ground when my life was also on the line.
"All of you should let us suck your life energy, all right!" one of them called out, her voice carrying that hypnotic melody even in the chaos.
"It's useless to resist! We're invincible in the water!" another added, dragging a struggling boy toward the deep end.
"Don't worry~ we won't suck your entire life away!" A third laughed, her voice bright and cruel. "Just enough to make us stronger!"
"WAHHH!" The boys' screams filled the air.
"Run! Save yourselves, guys!"
One of them actually tried to rally the others, but it was useless. They were prey, and they knew it.
"Treating prospective members as fish food." I muttered the words to myself, watching the chaos with cold eyes. "I don't remember the exact scene since the anime episode was more of a ecchi fest, with Kurumu and Yukari going acapela."
"Still, I never thought this one would be like this."
Tamao surfaced behind me, and I turned to face her. The other six mermaids—her inner circle, except for Rin, I couldn't see that red-headed mermaid, rose from the water around us, their transformed forms blocking any escape.
"You're special, Tsukune-kun." Tamao's voice was different now—layered, harmonic, like multiple voices speaking at once. "In truth, I've had my eyes set on you since the Entrance Ceremony. Ever since then, I've spent all my time dreaming about you."
She drifted closer, and the other mermaids adjusted their positions to keep me surrounded.
"It's just, you see..." Her yellow eyes fixed on me with an intensity that was almost worshipful. "...when I tasted that human smell on you, I couldn't resist myself."
Her smile widened, revealing those rows of teeth.
"I've always wanted to eat you up!"
[Terrain disadvantage: Water environment]
I looked at them. Looked at the chaos around us. Looked at the boys being drained, the mermaids feeding, there wasn't any blood painting the clear pool water, as in fact, the mermaids didn't intend on killing other Yokais, they just used them to feed off their vitality.
However, my situation was different from the other Yokais since Tamao had certainty that I was a human, so she had this thing in her mind to devour me fully, I guess, leading to extracting all my vitality and maybe even my soul.
Shifting my focus back at Tamao, I told her with a calm voice, despite everything going on around me.
"Since we're revealing little secrets, why not tell you one of mine?"
The words hung in the air. Tamao paused mid-approach, her predatory momentum broken by simple curiosity.
"You say you had your eyes on me ever since back then?" I continued. "Then I won't be shy. I'll tell you that I've also had my eyes on you."
Tamao's face flickered—surprise, confusion, then back to predatory satisfaction. "Ara~ ara~" Her features shifted back toward her human form, that seductive smile returning. "It's no use, Tsukune-kun. Sweet-talking me will not save you. I want your life essence!"
"And I also want to subjugate you." I let the words land. "So I won't hold back."
For a moment, she stared at me.
Then she laughed.
"Pfff, you want to subjugate me?" The laugh was genuine, surprised out of her. "You're too weak for that. Don't think I haven't researched you. Always last on the physical tests. A silly dummy who performs badly at exams. What could you possibly—"
"If I were you," I interrupted, "I'd check my information sources again."
Being in an obvious disadvantage, surrounded on all flanks by the Mermaids who started to gather more water at the pool deck, to turn their environment in their favor, I had no other choice but to start this fight on the strong hand.
Being arrogant or acting like an idiot by fighting them in my default state wouldn't prove anything, later on if I wanted to practice my skills in my human form I could seek out the Karate Club members for some sparings.
True, I might not get any stats when I defeat some of them because I doubt they will view me with hostility, but it was good enough to scratch that ich to my ego.
With no other options at hand, I decided to activate my new activable skill 'Ghoul Vampire Trigger'. Once activated, it felt as if someone, or myself, reached to pull onto the monster lurking inside my heart or from whatever crevices of my body it was hiding.
[Ghoul Vampire Transformation activation in progress...]
The change was different this time, it wasn't something that happened unconsciously, similar to what happened to me when I fought the Idiot Trio. My mind wasn't overwhelmed by the intrusive thoughts belonging to the Shinso Ghoul neither did I experience those nasty uncontrollable urges to kill someone and quench my bloodthirst with their blood.
However, I wasn't spared from the pain of feeling my schelethal structure shift and change, metamorphosis into something monstrous. This pain cleared any distractions, and it also strengthened my resolve to wrap things up efficiently and without killing any of the Mermaids.
I wasn't some mindless ghoul, a monster controlled by his bloodthirst. Deep down, regardless of whatever changes I might experience in this chaotic life I have to ground myself and remember that above all else, I have to be a human.
[Ghoul form activated]
[Safe duration: 8:00]
[Current: 0:11]
My yoki erupted from my body like a wave of crimson fire.
It spread outward from me in all directions, turning the water around me dark red—not with blood, but with presence. The pool lights, which had been casting their sapphire glow moments ago, now seemed to dim, overwhelmed by the crimson radiance emanating from my body. The water itself appeared to transform, becoming a sea of blood beneath a dark sky.
The mermaids flinched. All of them. Even Tamao.
My body changed.
I'd felt it before, but never like this. Never with such clarity. My skin paled to marble, taking on an almost luminous quality. My nails darkened and extended, becoming claws that could tear through steel. My fangs lengthened, pressing against my lower lip, and when I opened my eyes, I knew they weren't brown anymore.
They were crimson. Pure, burning crimson, with vertical slits like a predator's.
[Ghoul Vampire Form: ACTIVE]
---[Core Stats]---
[Strength: B (99/100)]
[Agility: B (99/100)]
[Vitality: B (99/100)]
[Intelligence: C (1/100)
---
[Supernatural Stats]---
[Mana: B (99/100)]
[Demonic Energy (Yoki): B (99/100)]
[Bloodline Purity: 38.01%]
[Bloodline Control: D (7/100)]
[Sacred Gear: 'Annihilation Maker' - Emergent]
[Threat Level: B]
[Safe duration: 8:00]
[Current: 0:11]
I looked at my hands—my claws—and felt the power coursing through me. It was intoxicating. Terrifying. Right.
When I looked up at Tamao, she actually drifted backward. All of them did.
"N-No..." one of the mermaids whispered. "That's not—that's not possible—"
Tamao's eyes were wide, her predatory confidence shattered. "You're—you're not human. You're a—a vampire? But the water—you shouldn't be able to—"
"Surprise," I said, and my voice was different too, it sounded darker and dignified.
I stepped forward and the water didn't even bother to burn me or slow me down, increasing the dreadful emotions Tamao was experiencing in real time.
All her careful planning, all the humiliation she had endured to lure me, was all but for nothing.