Marella looked around the new place she had entered with Eldoris. She didn't expect that this place looked much more beautiful if she stepped a little out of Eldoris' room, featuring more clearly visible plants as well as unique sights that were unfamiliar to her. "Doris," Marella called out, making Eldoris turn her head towards her.
"What?" replied Eldoris shortly.
"Do you believe that I'm human?" asked Marella, making Eldoris stop her steps for a moment and look at her sharply.
"No," Eldoris replied matter-of-factly, then resumed his steps calmly, pulling Marella to follow him without hesitation.
Marella looked disappointed. She had hoped Eldoris would believe her so that she could ask for help to restore her legs to their original state and return to the mainland to live a normal life. Marella's stomach sounded quite loud, making her clutch her stomach due to the hunger pangs. She forgot to eat the night before because she was too distracted by something painful to fall into the sea.
Eldoris heard the sound of Marella's stomach being quite loud. "Are you hungry?" asked Eldoris, which was answered with a slow nod from Marella. Eldoris continued his steps towards a room. The door was opened by the guard in front of him, and they stepped inside. Marella's eyes lit up when she saw a large room with pillars patterned like leather and rough scales. In the center of the room, there was a large table of blue obsidian stone with chairs of the same material. The table was filled with various foods served on imperfectly shaped obsidian plates, different from the plates in the human world. Eldoris pulled Marella to sit on one of the chairs, then sat next to her.
The smile on Marella's face instantly faded at the sight of the dish before her. "You're giving me raw food?" she asked with a flat expression.
Eldoris frowned, looking confused. "What's wrong? Don't mermaids eat sea animals and seaweed? Or do you prefer to eat coral reefs?" he said, feeling nothing unusual about the dishes on the table.
Marella shook her head, refusing the food. Who would want to eat raw and half-living fish? Moreover, some of the fish on the table were fresh, fishy, and bloody. Eww, that's so disgusting.
Eldoris ignored Marella's protests. He casually picked up some fish and devoured them without a trace of disgust. The sight made Marella feel so sick that she almost vomited. She hurriedly covered her mouth with both hands, but an urgent hunger attacked her again, signaled by the sound of her stomach. With an amused expression, she examined the food on the table one by one until her gaze fell on a plate of seaweed. That dish seemed to make more sense to her. "At least it's not raw animals, just raw plants," she thought as she tried to calm her nausea.
"Well, let's just say it's CleanFood," she muttered, trying to convince herself. She lifted a pinch of seaweed hesitantly and tasted it slowly. However, after the first bite, her eyes widened in surprise. She quickly picked up all the seaweed on her plate and ate it with gusto. Marella had no idea that fresh seaweed could be so delicious, or perhaps it was because she was now a mermaid that her taste buds had changed.
Eldoris just chuckled at Marella's hasty eating when no one had any intention of snatching her food - yet. "You said you didn't want to," she commented as she casually took the seaweed container from Marella's hand with an innocent expression.
Marella looked at Eldoris with an exasperated expression. "Hey, give it back!" she exclaimed, her face scowling as Eldoris deliberately lifted the container higher, keeping it out of Marella's reach while grinning mockingly.
Eldoris raised one eyebrow. "Didn't you say you didn't like raw food?" he asked, with a tone that deliberately emphasized the last word.
Marella sighed in annoyance. "Yeah, I take that back. The seaweed was delicious, so give it to me," she replied in a firm tone, clearly not wanting to prolong the dispute. However, Eldoris did not give up so easily.
"On one condition," said Eldoris, making Marella look at her with raised eyebrows.
"What?" asked Marella, her voice full of caution.
"Your name," Eldoris replied briefly, yet meaningfully.
"My name?" repeated Marella in a wary tone. She had to remain cautious; who knows if she would fall prey like the fish before her.
"Well, I'd better finish this meal," said Eldoris, pretending to want to devour all the seaweed in front of her. Marella quickly restrained his hand.
"My name is Marella! Don't! I'm hungry you know!" cried Marella pleadingly. Eldoris smiled faintly, then placed the pile of seaweed in front of Marella, bringing her face close to the side of the girl's face.
"Don't be too greedy, you might choke," Eldoris warned in a low voice in Marella's ear, making the girl shudder slightly. Was this the so-called siren's seduction of humans? Marella steeled herself; she would not be trapped or charmed. Eldoris returned to her seat and continued eating.
Marella savored the seaweed again which she found very delicious, while occasionally glancing at Eldoris who seemed to be engrossed in his food. Eldoris really attracted attention with his extraordinary good looks. Oh God.
After finishing the meal, Eldoris deliberately took Marella out of the palace. Marella was mesmerized by the beauty of the underwater world, although she thought the atmosphere there was quite dark, unlike the children's fairy tales filled with coral reefs and colorful fish in clear bright blue water. "Hey, why is it dark here?" Marella asked Eldoris as she walked.
"Because you're in the deep sea, in a giant trough we call Siharan. However, this Siharan is different, because the siren settlements here are known as Darchole," Eldoris replied, making Marella startle and widen her eyes.
Although Marella sometimes seems less than bright, she still remembers the geography lesson she learned about the deep ocean. She realized how terrifying the depths were, and now she was actually in them. More surprisingly, she was in a huge trough. However, one question nagged at her: how did this creature understand the term "trough," just as humans do? "Why do you know it's called a trough?" asked Marella curiously.
Eldoris looked around warily, his movements reflecting caution. He brought his face closer to Marella's and whispered softly, "Because I read an object that wrote that. No one knew I had it."
Marella frowned. "So why are you telling me?" she asked with a suspicious tone.
Eldoris only gave a faint smile. "Because the writer is the Mermaid Queen," he replied shortly.
"Then, what does that have to do with me?" Marella asked again.
"Never mind, you ask too many questions," Eldoris said in his typical flat tone and haughty manner. She immediately moved her tail faster, swimming away without the slightest interest in continuing the conversation.
Darkness dominated these waters due to the lack of sunlight penetrating the depths. Many sirens watched Marella with curious eyes. Her appearance was striking, with blonde hair, blue eyes, fair skin, but her tail was covered by an unusually long black skirt. "Do I look strange?" asked Marella, uncomfortable with the attention she was getting.
"Yes," Eldoris replied briefly, without the slightest attempt to calm Marella's worries, making the girl even more annoyed that her question was being taken lightly.
Marella hesitantly took hold of Eldoris' hand that had been around her waist. "Let go of me." However, the moment the grip was released, her body began to sink slowly. "Eh- hey hey, don't let go of me, I'm falling!" she cried out in panic.
Quickly, Eldoris caught Marella's body and carried her swimming away from the crowd of sirens who were still watching them.
...Eyes Of The Sea...
...Happy Reading...