3 days later.
Jace came out of the captain's cabin and walked straight to the bow of the ship.
The environment was eerily silent except for the occasional rumbling sounds of thunder from far away; the water was calm as well.
Jace didn't know if it was morning or evening, but he was sure it wasn't night or day.
It was difficult to tell, as everything around him was covered by a faint layer of humid fog, which was even denser far away.
But Jace knew he was at the right place; this was the periphery of the 'Sea of Ruins'.
A little far ahead of the ship, he could faintly see black and jagged rocky reefs through the fog.
The captain had slowed the ship right here because going any further would be dangerous. As for the mermaids? They would have to wait for the sound of their singing.
Jace, meanwhile, pulled out a silver pendant from his wrist and performed a divination.
"There are mermaids around," he muttered seven times in ancient Hermes.
The pendant moved clockwise with a slow speed, meaning 'yes,' there were.
Jace immediately went into his assigned cabin and pulled out all his potion ingredients.
He carefully brewed the Sequence 5 potion with an excited heart, stored it in a small glass bottle, and sealed it.
He calmed himself, came out of the cabin, and waited for an hour or two.
...."S~...".....
Everyone on the deck turned their heads in a particular direction, including Jace. It came from ahead of the ship, slightly to the left side.
The sound was distant and faint but melodic and pleasant to hear, keeping the men wanting to hear more...
"Stuff your ears!!" the captain shouted from behind.
Everyone did as he said and pulled out pieces of cotton prepared beforehand, stuffing their ears.
Jace stuffed his ears as well.
He pulled out a coin and performed a coin-toss divination to confirm whether the sound of singing was from mermaids; the result was positive!
Jace turned his head and looked at the captain with a meaningful gaze. The middle-aged captain sighed.
The captain gestured to a couple of members of the crew, and soon the guys were lowering a wooden dinghy from the side of the ship onto the water.
Jace got down from the ship with the help of knotted ropes and got onto the dinghy.
He settled in. Of course, Nyx was there with him as well, just resting in the leather bag he carried. Jace looked up and waved his hand to the captain and the crew.
It was their agreement that they would only wait for him to come back for 2 hours, and Jace had agreed to that.
He had already paid them half the money in advance; the rest of the money would be paid when they returned to Bayam.
But this place was scary and dangerous, so the captain would always prioritize his and his crew's lives. If push came to shove, he would abandon jace with half the money and keep himself alive.
Jace didn't mind it that much. He was a Sequence 6 and had artifacts that made his power equal to that of a Sequence 5, so even if he did encounter a problem or was left behind by the captain, he would still be able to make it back in one piece.
Nonetheless, he kept his thoughts aside and rowed the wooden paddle, pushing the dinghy forward.
After a few minutes, he stopped rowing and looked back. He couldn't see the ship, perhaps it was too far away or maybe he couldn't see it due to the heavy fog; he did not know.
By now, Nyx had come out of the bag and sat at the edge, looking down into the water. "The environment here is scary," she said softly in her childish voice.
"It is," Jace said as he pulled the cotton from his ears. Now that no one was around, Jace reverted back to his original appearance.
The environment here indeed was scary and very creepy; he himself had been getting a strange feeling ever since he came near the periphery of the 'Sea of Ruins'.
And it was perhaps even more scary for Nyx, as she was a cat and inherently afraid of water, but she was a Sequence 6 Beyonder of the Spectator pathway nonetheless, so she was holding up just fine.
While thinking, Jace again listened to the singing. It was slightly louder now but still far away. He stuffed his ears with cotton again.
He put on the Polymath Ring and used imitated 'Wind-blessed' powers to make the dinghy move forward fast with the wind.
While on the way, he said to Nyx, "When we get there, hide yourself with 'Psychological Invisibility' from the mermaids, and also hypnotize yourself to be deaf so as to not be affected by their singing."
Nyx meowed in agreement and asked, "What about you?"
Jace smiled and showed an iron locket that was around his neck. "This is a charm that will make creatures of the sea not attack me. As for the mermaids' singing... well, that's the ritual. I have to hear mermaids singing while I consume the potion."
Jace explained, and the black cat nodded thoughtfully.
Jace had bought—well, more like stolen—the charm around his neck from a pirate. It would last for 3 more days, which should be enough so that when Jace goes near the mermaids, they would not directly attack him.
The sound of singing got louder and clearer as they went forward.
Jace could not tell what they were singing, as the language or whatever it was was inconceivable to him, but whatever it was, it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.
Of course, Jace wasn't affected by it in the slightest, as he was a Sequence 6 and he was also wearing the Polymath Ring, which enhanced his mental capabilities and strength.
He also knew what the singing truly was (an element to attract humans or other creatures for them to eat), but it was beautiful nonetheless.
As Jace felt he was closer, he slowed the boat down and signaled Nyx to be alert.
As he got nearer, the sound became even more beautiful and louder, but he continued.
Through the fog, he saw the silhouette of a jagged rock around a meter high, and the figures of two women—or rather, mermaids—sitting atop. They were the singers.
Jace quickly pulled out the 'lucky' stopwatch, which was fully charged with 15 minutes of really good luck, and turned it on.
He continued slightly ahead. He stopped about 10 meters away from the stone; now he could see the mermaids a little clearer.
There were 2 of them looking ahead and singing, showing their shapely, beautiful backs to him—one with green hair and scales and one with red hair and scales.
The red-headed mermaid seemed to have noticed his presence. She turned back slightly while singing, looking at Jace with her clear blue eyes, and then turned back to continue singing.
Jace didn't waste any time. He removed the Polymath Ring from his hand, pulled out the bottle of potion, and unscrewed the cap.
With a single gulp, he downed the potion!
The effect was immediate. His body turned rigid and his joints stiff; his skin and flesh felt like there were thousands of worms wriggling and boring holes in it.
His consciousness was becoming duller every moment; he couldn't think.
That's where the mermaids' singing came in. It was attractive and infatuating voice, and it affected Jace's dull mind, invoking all kinds of emotions within him. He gained his sentience again.
The stiffness in his body and joints began to lessen as he heard intense ravings of "Hornacic Flegrea... Hornacic Flegrea..."
He started cogitation.
A few minutes later, the ravings became whispers.
The knowledge of his Sequence 5 came into his mind.
Jace opened his eyes and looked around. He could see threads flying around everywhere, extending from the water around him, from his body, from Nyx's, and from the mermaids as well.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Jace was now a Sequence 5 Marionettist.