"My name is Captain Jeon Jungkook. I'm here to kidnap you."
The Eros is said to be the most powerful jewel of the seven seas, able to control the spirits of the water. Though many scoff at the legend, there are those who will do anything for its pow...
"I can't believe you threw me overboard, Taehyung."
Now that you had somewhat recovered from Seokjin's attack and the deaths that had followed it, you felt revitalized enough to yell at Taehyung the way he deserved.
Taehyung stopped stirring the soup as he looked over at you, pulling his lips to the side in innocent amusement.
"I told you that you were perfectly safe, didn't I?" he replied, not as guilty as you wanted him to be. "You bobbed right up. Just like I said."
"I didn't bob up! I was thrown in the air! By some..."
You stopped. You hadn't told anyone what you'd seen in the water that day. You had spent the last few days processing all the events that had unfolded on the day of Seokjin's attack , and quite frankly, you had no idea how to tell anyone what you had seen.
"Taehyung," you said, tugging on his sleeve. "I saw something. Something in the water that day."
He put down his spoon, turning to face you with focused eyes. "What was it?"
You ticked your head back and forth as you tried to remember. "Some sort of water creature. It was made of - what? - bubbles and pearls?"
Taehyung smiled. "The merfolk. They're back in the water."
"Merfolk? Aren't they supposed to be half-fish?"
"In full form, yes."
He said it like you were supposed to know the difference between full form merfolk and whatever the alternative to that was.
"What does that mean?" you asked.
He chuckled darkly and went back to his soup. "It means all the bad eggs need to stay on board."
You grabbed his sleeve and shook it again. "I'm serious, Taehyung."
"So am I."
"Why didn't it hurt me?" you asked. "It only... stared at me."
Taehyung wiped his hands on his apron, staring deeply into his pot. He licked his lips, turning his head over to look at you again, his eyes narrowed.
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"What is it?" you asked, unnerved by his gaze.
With a breath, he shook his head and went on to slice some vegetables.
"If the merfolk looks at a human and doesn't try to take them, it means they have a pure heart. You have nothing to worry about."
"Take me? Take me where?"
"To the Den of Sirens to be tried."
You were genuinely confused. "There's a siren den? And a trial? You mean, sirens don't just kill people?"
"The spirit world is hardly so disorganized. There's always a system of balances."
You held your head, the information hurting your brain. "This is too much to understand this early in the morning."
