In the end, after agreeing to Helektra's offer to visit her home, Lucian, with her as his guide, immediately followed her there without hesitation.
After a sustained stretch of swimming through the tranquil depths, the two of them passed through a radiant, flowing, fluorescent canyon whose softly glowing walls pulsed with shifting light, casting rippling colors across the water around them, and as they emerged from its narrowing passage, the view ahead suddenly opened up, widening into a vast and seemingly boundless expanse that stretched far beyond the limits of his sight.
In that instant, he beheld a magnificent sight, one that unfolded before him in breathtaking scale and silent grandeur.
Huge coral reefs of all shapes, emitting a soft, steady glow, were layered upon one another and spread across the seafloor as far as the eye could see, forming a natural, luminous landscape.
Pink like drifting clouds at sunset.
Blue like ice.
Green like jade.
Orange like flames.
All of them breathed silently, their light pulsing gently with the slow movement of the water, as though alive, and around them, countless tiny bioluminescent plankton drifted in loose groups, unhurried and slow, like scattered stars suspended in the deep.
Surprisingly, the deep sea that was supposedly filled with gloom and darkness was now illuminated with a hazy, dreamlike light, as if wrapped in a quiet, glowing veil.
Beneath his feet stretched a path paved with countless smooth, rounded pearl shells of different sizes and colors, fitted together into a gently winding trail.
Seeing it, Lucian gently floated down and stepped on them, and then felt that they were all really comfortable to step on, each step soft and faintly yielding beneath his weight.
*Whoosh—*
Just then, a giant sea turtle swam past at an unhurried, almost leisurely pace, its massive shadow gliding silently over the seabed, and on its broad, timeworn shell rested a miniature garden of softly glowing coral, their delicate branches swaying faintly with the current as if alive.
A school of jellyfish drifted by next like a cluster of transparent parachutes, their bell-shaped bodies pulsing faintly as they moved, their long trailing tentacles shimmering with deep blue or pale violet light, swaying gently with the slow, rhythmic motion of the waves.
Seeing this scene, he had to admit that everything here was so peaceful, so beautiful, so unreal, like a fairyland forgotten by time and untouched by the passage of ages.
"Look! We're home!"
Helektra excitedly pulled Lucian by the hand, her slender fingers tightening around his as her fish tail swayed lightly behind her, guiding him forward as she glided smoothly along the pearl-shell path that curved through the seafloor like a luminous trail.
"We're on the outskirts of the Sea Siren Kingdom. Pretty, right?"
Helektra's tone was full of pride as she spoke, her voice bright and lively, sounding like a child eager for praise and approval after showing off something she cherished.
Lucian nodded with a gentle, quiet smile in response, his gaze still lingering on the surrounding scenery.
Under Helektra's guidance, he soon saw an underwater city that resembled a human city-state, its vast silhouette gradually revealing itself in the distance, grand and imposing in scale, with towering coral structures and intricately carved shell formations rising like buildings beneath the sea.
'Earth's Atlantis probably looked something like this...'
Lucian couldn't help but sigh softly in wonder as he gazed at the magnificent underwater city before him, his eyes tracing its outline with quiet amazement.
Very soon, the moment they reached the outer edge of the city, they immediately attracted attention from those nearby.
A sea siren who was carefully arranging strands of glowing seagrass beside the pearl path lifted her head and saw Helektra, but just as she was about to greet her with a smile, her gaze froze the instant it landed on the figure of Lucian standing at Helektra's side.
At first, she paused, blinking her eyes in confusion as if doubting what she was seeing, then her eyes slowly widened in disbelief, and the glowing seagrass slipped quietly from her hands without her noticing, drifting downward with the current.
"Wow..."
As a small gasp left her mouth, from behind the massive coral trees nearby, from beneath drifting schools of jellyfish, and from clusters of faintly glowing seagrass, many beautiful figures quietly stirred, as though awakened by the gasp.
In the next second, they peeked out one after another, then swam over toward Helektra and Lucian in gentle, fluid motions.
All of them were sea sirens like Helektra, with beautiful human upper bodies and fish lower bodies of many colors, their fish tails covered in lovely, shimmering scales that caught and scattered the surrounding light.
Just like their fish tails, their hair came in all kinds of colors as well, drifting and swaying softly in the water, shimmering brilliantly beneath the light of glowing coral and drifting plankton.
When they arrived before the two, their gazes focused curiously on Lucian without exception, as if he were something entirely novel to them.
"Helektra! Who is he?"
"H-He's so beautiful!"
"You mean handsome? He's a man, right?"
"How can he breathe in the sea? And without a fish tail!"
"Hey, his eyes look like the Dawn Device—beautiful gold!"
Chattering voices immediately rose like a flock of curious birds, crisp and lively, breaking the serene quiet of the sea.
They carefully gathered around Lucian, keeping just a little distance, as if afraid of startling him, yet the joy and curiosity in their eyes were almost overflowing, impossible to conceal.
Among them, one slightly bolder sea siren, looking very young and with a pale pink fish tail, timidly swam a little closer before slowly reaching out a small arm like a tender lotus root, her slender fingers trembling faintly, as if she wanted to touch the hem of Lucian's clothes.
However, she hesitated at the last moment, then looked up, her big eyes blinking as she looked at him, filled with a mixture of curiosity and nervous anticipation.
"Do... Do you like singing?"
Gazing timidly at Lucian, the young sea siren asked softly, her voice tinged with anticipation and a faint, hopeful tremble.
"Yeah, yeah! We can sing lots and lots of songs! Want us to sing for you?"
Another sea siren with a blue fish tail immediately chimed in, her voice clear and bright, brimming with enthusiasm.
"I sing the best!"
A tall sea siren with a silver fish tail puffed out her chest, her posture straightening as she spoke, carrying a hint of pride.
"Wait, does he even understand our words?"
Another sea siren immediately reminded the others, tilting her head as curiosity flickered across her face.
For a moment, seven or eight beautiful sea sirens surrounded Lucian, all talking at once, their voices overlapping in a lively, cheerful chorus.
No one was afraid, no one was wary—there was only the purest goodwill and a simple desire to grow close. In fact, their eyes sparkled brightly, filled with curiosity and a natural affection toward Lucian, the first human who could come to the deep sea.
As they spoke, they even spontaneously formed small, naturally multicolored bubbles around them, the bubbles shimmering with soft hues as they drifted upward, before being deftly woven together into a small, slowly rotating wreath that they gently guided toward him.
Surrounded by this sudden warmth, Lucian silently looked at the pure, innocent, joyful faces around him, his gaze lingering for a brief moment before a sincere smile finally broke across his face.
Feeling their unreserved kindness, a gentle softness slowly rose within his heart, spreading quietly through his chest.
All these sea sirens—their minds were as transparent as seawater, pure as fresh snow, untouched and unguarded.
"Thank you. Your singing must be beautiful."
Lucian spoke as he reached out and gently caught the small bubble wreath, the fragile ring rotating softly in his palm and catching faint glimmers of light.
"Oh~!"
"He understands us!"
"Then we'll sing for you!"
Seeing that Lucian understood their words and even praised them without hesitation, the sea sirens immediately grew excited, their voices overlapping in bright, melodic tones.
Seeing this, Helektra—knowing that her sisters would definitely take an interest in Lucian—smiled happily, a hint of quiet pride flickering across her expression.
Lucian was, after all, the first human ever to visit their home, a novelty none of them had ever experienced before.
Everywhere Lucian looked, the sea sirens around him were beautiful in appearance, graceful in figure, and snow-white in complexion.
Like Helektra, their silky hair drifted gently with the movement of the water, and they were also only covered by seafoam over their private areas, which gave him a constant, faint sense of something half-hidden and alluring, as though veiled yet deliberately revealed.
Of course, he had no improper thoughts toward them, as all his attention and focus were now firmly fixed on the script's protagonist, Helektra, leaving no room for distraction.
Lucian turned his gaze to Helektra beside him and saw her smiling gently, her expression soft and unguarded, looking nothing like the future Hysilens known as Dux Gladiorum.
"Hm? What's wrong? Do you want to hear me sing?"
Helektra noticed Lucian's gaze and asked with a light, teasing smile.
Just as the words left her lips, however—
*Hummm—*
A dull, low vibration suddenly rolled in from the western depths of the sea, making the entire radiant underwater city tremble slightly, as if stirred by some distant, unseen force.
At the same time, the glow of the luminous corals dimmed for an instant, their soft light flickering uncertainly as if startled, while the drifting bioluminescent plankton scattered in panic, breaking apart like disturbed stardust.
In an instant, the joyful atmosphere stopped abruptly, as though cut off at the source, and all the smiles on the faces of the sea sirens froze, turning into fear and unease!
"No way... the black tide is coming again!"
"Didn't the queen just absorb the black tide at the border? Why is it happening so soon..."
"What do we do?"
"Uhh, the queen is still recovering, right?"
"Anyway, send the good-looking human back to land first. It's dangerous here."
All the sea sirens spoke up one after another, their voices overlapping in growing alarm, and then all their eyes fell on Lucian again, as if he had suddenly become the most urgent priority.
"Human, you should hurry back to shore. We'll protect you."
One of the sea sirens hurried forward, holding onto Lucian's arms and speaking to him with unconcealed worry, her voice trembling slightly.
Helektra's expression changed, and her grip on Lucian's other hand tightened instinctively, her fingers curling around his as if reluctant to let go.
"Mm, that's right," Helektra said with a helpless smile. "You should go back quickly. I'll come find you to play next time, okay?"
Even though it was a pity, she did not want Lucian to suffer a senseless disaster either, especially not because of something beyond his control.
Lucian was soon pulled along by a group of sea sirens, all urging him to go home in hurried voices, when all of a sudden, a clear and distant singing echoed through the city, spreading across the waters like ripples.
It was none other than the queen's signal to gather all the sea sirens.
"Helektra, we'll go see the queen first. You take the good-looking human to shore."
"Goodbye, human. Next time we meet, we'll definitely sing for you."
"Let's meet again later~!"
Leaving these words behind, the sea sirens departed one after another, their slender forms swaying gracefully as they quickly swam toward the distant underwater city.
Watching their retreating figures gradually disappear into the deep blue, Lucian felt a bit helpless.
Yes, they were indeed kind, but they were extremely talkative, chattering among themselves without even giving him a chance to speak.
"Let's go. I'll take you back first. It's not safe here."
Helektra took Lucian's hand again, her cool, delicate fingers wrapping around his as she prepared to swim upward, but before they could move, he suddenly pulled her back slightly, the corner of his mouth lifting into a faint, knowing smile.
"Did you ever even think I could help you? I mean, I kinda have to respond to your sisters' enthusiasm, right?"
Without giving Helektra a chance to respond, he wrapped an arm firmly around her slender waist, drawing her closer, then, with a single thought, locked onto the underwater city's position and used Absolute Hit, crossing vast distances in an instant as the surrounding water seemed to blur past them.
Helektra, suddenly held by the waist without any warning, and then feeling Lucian's broad palm pressing firmly against her smooth lower belly through the thin fabric, couldn't help but blush uncontrollably, her body stiffening for a brief moment.
Still, for some reason, she did not resist.
Whether it was because of Lucian's confident words, the steady strength in his grasp, or because of something else entirely, only her quietly beating heart knew.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones.]
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