Chapter 109: Thetis (3)
The battle at sea was more complex than fighting on land, making it a pretty tough situation for our hero.
Naturally, facing off against the smoothly swimming sea serpent in the cold, hard-to-move waters was no walk in the park.
But against all odds, the hero was holding his own even better than expected!
With no solid footing to swing his sword properly, he still managed to bat away the sea serpent’s teeth and tail, finding openings to leave marks on its scales.
Thanks to that, the leviathan dragon’s body was now adorned with both big and small wounds. This had to be a first for the sea serpent, considering it usually swam without a scratch.
Even with no breathing constraints, if it had been a weaker monster, it probably would have been done in no time.
Let’s put the hard-fighting hero aside for a moment.
“You’re not going to help directly, are you?”
“Huh?”
“I’m talking about the mermaids.”
I turned to look at the mermaids who had darted away from the sea serpent and were now watching the hero fight from a distance.
Considering how quickly they had fled the moment the sea serpent showed its face, they were probably used to bolting in risky situations.
It seemed Thetis didn’t bother to protect those mermaids.
“Well… since both the mermaids and the sea serpents are simply creatures of the sea, I can’t exactly pick a side.”
Hmm. Is that the case? To Thetis, both the mermaids and sea serpents are just fellow sea dwellers.
I’m torn on whether to call that fair or heartless.
“The sea serpent hunts to survive, and the mermaids have eaten other fish before… Just because they have a human form and can sing my praises doesn’t mean I should protect them. It’s all about the hunt and being hunted. It’s the circle of life, after all.”
“I think that’s a pretty good reason… Anyway, isn’t that just ignoring the situation?”
“Yep, spot on. But instead of unfairly helping one side, it might be better to simply let it be.”
Hmm. Could it be smarter to step back rather than play favorites?
Honestly, I’m not sure which approach is the right one.
So, let’s pivot and ask another question.
“Then why did you save the humans who fell into the water?”
“The humans?”
If they won’t save the mermaids for that reason, then why did they save the humans?
Isn’t the line between saving and not saving a little blurry here?
“Well, humans are land creatures, right? They’re not born in the sea and don’t live in it. So I figured they weren’t under my jurisdiction, hence why I saved them.”
Hmm. That makes sense.
Yes, indeed, humans do seem to be outsiders from Thetis’ perspective.
Essentially, she manages the creatures of the sea while giving land creatures a lift back to the surface.
What a strong “stay out” vibe that gives off.
“Well, I’m still letting land creatures catch sea creatures. They have to eat to live, after all.”
“Oh, so you’re lenient on hunting for survival, huh?”
“Exactly. That’s just how nature works, right? Who else would harm others for fun or some other reason?”
“Hmm…”
I couldn’t come up with a solid comeback to Thetis’ words because, honestly, plenty of creatures do harm others just for kicks.
I should probably educate humanity to only catch sea creatures to eat, not just for fun or whatever.
If Thetis finds out, let’s just say the aftermath wouldn’t be pretty.
And when it comes to mermaids… I mean, surely humans wouldn’t eat mermaids, right? Sure, their heads are a tad fishy, but they’re practically subhuman.
Let’s hope it stays that way because, well, humans are known for questionable choices.
Onward to the next topic!
“Then, why did you give the hero the ability to breathe underwater and ask him to save the mermaids?”
“Ah, there are two reasons for that! First, I want to see my carefully raised hero in action!”
Of course, since they’re my children, I’d totally want to see how that kid’s been doing.
“I wanted to see how strong he really is compared to the sea serpent, the toughest critter in these waters.”
“Hmm? Did you summon that sea serpent, then?”
“The second reason is that if this hero, who came from the land with my mother, just sits and watches those human-like mermaids get hunted, he might start thinking badly of me.”
Thetis didn’t respond but kept chatting away.
This girl… so she did summon it on purpose.
For some reason, she seems a bit darker than in the past. She definitely wasn’t like this before… Or was she?
Hmm. Did I neglect her for too long, and this is the consequence? Not sure on that one.
Well, nothing I can do now but take the blame for putting this kid on the backburner for so long.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
The sea serpent fought the hero tooth and nail with its teeth, claws, and tail. Sadly for it, the hero’s sword just sent everything flying.
After a battle with sharp blades, the sea serpent was left in tatters. It probably realized it couldn’t win and quickly curled its tail to flee.
The hero could only watch helplessly as the speedy sea serpent zigzagged away. Of course, that speed was all in the serpent’s favor. The hero simply couldn’t keep up.
Even if the enemy fled, it was still a victory! Our hero’s skills didn’t dull even in that treacherous terrain! He’s mastered land, sea, and air battles!
Witnessing all this, Thetis couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise.
I mean, there’s no way the hero I raised would be that weak! A mere dragon-like creature couldn’t possibly deal with my special hero!
“You did well.”
I said to the hero as he climbed back onto the ship, shaking off the seawater with a smile.
“It must have been your first sea battle, but you rocked it!”
“It wasn’t easy, though. I was just frantically blocking attacks from all sides. If I hadn’t been able to breathe underwater, I might have been the one beaten!”
The hero shared his struggles. Seeing him like that made Thetis chuckle.
“Still, the sea serpent is supposed to be one of the strongest creatures in this sea, and you managed to fight it like that. That’s impressive! There’s no way you’re just a normal human; you truly are the hero chosen by the Goddess of Life.”
Barely finished with her praise, the mermaids surrounding the ship erupted into loud cheers.
“Hero! Hooray!”
“Hero! Hero! Hero! Hero!!”
“Wow!!! Hero, you’re amazing!!! Please give us your children!!”
“Hey! That’s unfair! I want to have the hero’s child too!!!”
Uh… wow, those mermaids are super open-minded.
But do mermaids give birth or lay eggs? Curious minds need to know!
“Ah, children…”
The hero was super embarrassed and hurried into the cabin.
“Hmm. Seems this hero has a bit of a shy streak.”
“Isn’t it the mermaids who are too open?”
“Well, they may mimic human forms, but at their core, they’re fish. And one survival strategy for fish is to lay a ton of eggs, right? Especially if it’s strong males like the hero… The females must be all over that.”
Hmm. So even when they look human, their true nature is still fishy.
“Well, if the hero wants, he could sprinkle his special seeds into the eggs laid by the mermaids. I bet that would result in some strong little ones, given how powerful a human he is.”
“Umm… I’ll pass on that.”
Let’s be real, the hero is still a bit too weak to be responsible for that kind of pleasure.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
In the end, it wasn’t until the following day that the hero and I finally parted ways with Thetis. She did seem a tad disappointed.
Thanks to Thetis guiding us with ocean currents, our journey back was a breeze, which is a small detail, really.
[Ah, Mom! Are you coming back from meeting Thetis?]
“Sylphid.”
[Yes! Cutie and lovable Sylphid reporting in!]
From my perspective, she really is cute and lovely.
“That aside, what’s up?”
[Oh, nothing much. Just wanted to know if anything strange happened when you met with Thetis?]
“Anything strange?”
[Yes!]
“Strange, huh? Let me think…”
“There wasn’t anything too off.”
[Is that so? Hmm, well, she might have changed her mind, so that’s good!]
“Huh?”
I was curious enough to ask Sylphid for clarification.
“Changed her mind? What’s that supposed to mean?”
[Ah… um… I’m not sure if I should even be saying this. Hmmmm…]
“Spit it out quickly! Stop teasing me!”
Finally, Sylphid spilled the beans.
[Thetis mentioned that the longer it takes you to come visit her, the guiltier she feels and that she’s sorry about it.]
Well, I really did feel bad! If it wasn’t for the hero, I could have spent more time with Thetis!
“And?”
[She wants to use that guilt to keep you close for as long as possible. Especially since she’s all alone out there, she thinks it gives her the upper hand.]
Oh… well, that makes sense now.
[She planned to use every trick in the book to win you over while you were hanging out together, but I’m glad nothing wild happened! Looks like Thetis may have changed her mind!!!]
Whoosh… now I’m getting chills.
“Uh, isn’t it good that nothing strange happened?”
[Totally! Plus, Thetis finally got to see you again after a long time, so her pent-up feelings might have loosened up. I think it should be fine now!]
Still, just to be safe, I should keep my guard up when heading to meet Thetis.
So, what caused those kids to flip so suddenly? They used to be such good kids…
A soft sigh was all I could manage.
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