As Henry was climbing up the stairs, he couldn't help but feel a silent buzz in his ears.
'Why does it seem so quiet all of a sudden? I hear some rowdy noise upstairs earlier…' Henry's brows creased in suspicion.
By the time they arrived at the second floor, he turned to the crew and gestured for them to stay in their place and be quiet.
Albeit confused, they all nodded frantically, especially after seeing Henry's hands coated in flames, which could only mean that the situation is dire. At least, for them.
As Henry slowly crept up around the 2nd floor's hallway, searching for room 23, according to the Innkeeper downstairs.
'There.' Henry's eyes squinted he finally found the room. As he neared it, Henry planted his ear on the doors, trying to get a brief insight into what was happening behind closed doors.
Just as Henry was about to twist the doorknob, he immediately heard hurried footsteps from the inside, quickly approaching the door.
With widened eyes, Henry backed away just in time as the door opened and showed a man who appeared to be in a hurry, a testament to his sweaty face and contracted pupils.
When the man saw Henry, he blurted out, "H-Help me! Plea—" However, his cry for help was short-lived as a voice behind him interrupted.
"Come back here, dear~" That was it. Four words and yet, the man's eyes suddenly appeared as if he were in a trance. His previously contracted pupils dilated like a cat's.
His posture turned rigid and he turned around, walking back inside as if nothing happened.
Seeing this, Henry immediately pieces the puzzle together, 'Someone who can influence the mind through words? Magic perhaps?'
Henry doesn't know how to describe what he's feeling right now. He should be cautious and yet, something inside his heart felt excitement.
If this is the case of a supernatural entity, then this would be his first time fighting one for real. Elsa doesn't count since the intention was merely a spar.
With a determined expression on his face, Henry silently followed the man inside, making sure he remained unseen by whoever the sultry voice from earlier belonged to.
Even though he doesn't have any spells to protect himself, a certain blessing gives him an edge.
The Authority of Truth. All forms of mental and illusion powers would be weakened against him. Through it, combined with Henry's confidence in his will to break whatever control is cast upon him, he entered the room with no hesitation in his steps.
As soon as he arrived inside, the sight in front of him instantly made him freeze. A single woman stood in the middle of the room, surrounded by three men kneeling beside her, blood leaking from their orifices. However, what made it even scarier were the fanatical looks on their faces, along with the dilated pupils.
"My dear puppets. Maybe you can regret your decisions in your next pathetic lives." The woman spoke, finally shedding off the dark robe, revealing her seductive figure that is unfortunately, plastered with something distasteful.
Her legs were scaly, similar to a fish's tail. Along her wing-like hands, where feathers are attached from the back of her forearms, climbing up to her upper back until forming a pair of full feathered wings draped on her back.
Her eyes were slit, a smile forming on her face as she scanned the four individuals mesmerized by her beautiful voice, "Ah~ I missed this. I almost forgot how fun it is to play around with humans." She hugged herself and shivered, acting like she was having an orgasm.
Henry reeled back in disgust before lighting up his left hand in flames. He plans to sneak attack the woman and leave her barely alive, enough for questioning.
Or perhaps, kill her and dispel the control over the pirates around her, then ask the said pirates about Ariel.
However, before he could even proceed with the plans, the woman suddenly stopped in her place and her neck twisted until her head was facing Henry's hidden position.
"When are you planning to come out, little dear?~" She smiled gleefully, waiting for Henry to come out.
'Must've been the wind. Surely, she wasn't referring to me, right?' Henry's lips quivered as he feigned ignorance and stayed in his place, irritating the woman.
Her face turned into a scowl as her sharp nails elongated and with a wave of her hand, she swiped the direction of Henry's location.
'Ah shit!' Henry's eyes widened in surprise as he quickly jumped out of the way, watching mid-air as the woman's sharp elongated nails came in contact with the wall he had been hiding from, it sliced through it like a hot knife through butter.
Thank the heavens he reacted fast enough to dodge. If he stayed any longer, he might have been sliced into pieces.
Now that he was revealed, Henry rolled on the ground and stood back up, his front facing against the woman.
'Scaly legs, wings, and a human-like figure. She must be some sort of monster from a myth. A Siren perhaps? I heard they were first known as half-human half-bird before settling in as the evil version of mermaids…' Henry mentally rubbed his chin. Her appearance combined with her unusual ability to influence the mind of a human through words alone confirms this theory.
"Oh? You survived that? Competent for a human, I see." There was a grin on the siren's face as she continued but this time, her voice carried a hint of sultry tone, "Come to me, dear~"
Henry's eyes instantly turned dilated as he lost control over his body. It felt like being trapped in his own mind, he's still able to see through his eyes, smell through his nose, and hear through his ears.
And yet, he was no longer in control of his body. It was a complete surrender.
The siren allowed herself to grin in triumph as she gestured for Henry to come closer to her. To which he did.
Just as she stretched her hand to touch him, there was a sudden glint of metal that flashed between them.
Swoosh!
Henry, who was in a trance, suddenly grabbed a dagger hidden on his waist, with an upward strike, he cleanly sliced the siren's wrist.
There was a splash of dark blue liquid mid-air, followed by Henry's shaking eyes that quickly turned from dilated to constricted.
At first, it stared at nothing and then slowly but surely, his pupils drifted towards the siren's eyes, much to the latter's chilling surprise.
'This human…broke through my charm!?' The siren felt a shiver in her spine as the pain in her wrist disappeared and was replaced by the sizzling pain all over her face.
Henry has cast a fireball spell! And not just any fireball but the blue kind!
Half of the siren's face instantly turned into charred meat, her pretty face becoming hideous just like her body.
"So that's how being controlled feels." She heard the human mutter, his tone filled with satisfied curiosity.
'This human purposely used me!?' The siren's face turned ugly and combined with half of her face burnt to a crisp, she unleashed the maximum output of her inherent ability.
"You! How dare you! Kneel this instant!" The tone of her voice vibrated, a proof of her undeniable charming power through her voice.
Henry's focused eyes turned dilated in an instant, bringing him into her influence. However, just as quickly as he got charmed, his pupils turned back to normal as fast, much to the siren's horror.
Followed by a spell that will haunt her forever.
'Flame Tsunami.' Inflating his cheeks, Henry quickly spewed a torrent of blue flames, consuming everything in its path. Everywhere the flame touched was quickly turned into smithereens where only dust remained.
"H-How are you doing this!?" The siren cried as the entire room exploded into blue flames, damaging everything inside the room.
Outside, everyone would only hear the sound of the explosion along with the sight that they would remember forever. The entire window belonging to the room immediately burst into blue flames, which slowly spread throughout the entire inn.
Back inside the room, Henry coldly stared at the lit flames in front of him before turning his head to the side, where a man on the ground stared at him with extreme fear on his face.
"All it takes is for her to lose focus…" Henry murmured to himself. Right exactly as he threw the fireball at the siren's face, her control over the four humans faded away, letting one of them move away just in time as Henry pulled the Flame Tsunami spell move.
"You must be Regor, am I right?" He approached the man and crouched, his blue eyes matching the color of the flames behind him, making his stare more intimidating.
The man, now known as Regor, repeatedly nodded his head, unable to properly form any words from the shock.
Henry continued with an eerie smile, "Good. I just need you to nod your head for Yes and shake for No. Understood?" Regor nodded his head.
"Is Ariel here on this island?"
He nodded his head.
"Is she safe?" Another nod and finally, the last question came after.
"Will you take me to her?" Even though it was a question, to the pirate captain's ears, it's the opposite.
"Good. Then lead the way. Or do you want me to carry you?" Regor shook his head and shakily stood on his two feet, his legs wobbling as he slowly made his way out of the room, with Henry following closely behind him.
A few seconds after they left the room, there was a brief movement among the destruction. The burning remains of the room suddenly moved and a hand emerged—burnt but sharp familiar nails.
———
Outside the room, Henry and the shivering Regor descended from the stairs, followed by Henry's crew whom he already instructed to go back to the ship.
Knowing that things are about to get hectic, Henry doesn't want to involve the innocents. Especially now that he decided to bring down every single pirate on the island, and save all the enslaved humans and animals.
"S-She's here!" Arriving at the back of the inn, Regor hurriedly pointed at one of the cages. What's shocking is how many cages, big and small, there are all over the place. Some were covered in tarps while others were openly exposed, letting the sunlight hit them inside indefinitely.
Removing the tarp on a certain cage, Regor backed away as he revealed the person inside.
It was Ariel, but she was curled up with tear stains on her cheeks, four days of imprisonment had caused so many changes in her that she looked malnourished and dry.
In an instant, Henry's eyes turned bloodshot as his hand unconsciously shot towards the pirate captain. His palm grabbed his entire face.
"W-What are you do—!?" Before he could finish his sentence, a fiery spitting blue flame engulfed his entire head, burning him in no time, "GUAAAHHHhhh…!~"
His scream tore through the area until it died down. However, it still woke Ariel and everyone up.
From the cage, Ariel slowly pushed herself up, rubbing her eyes in the process as she tried to fight off the sunlight from kissing her.
"H-Henry?" The moment she gained clarity, the first thing she saw was Henry beside a burning figure, smiling at her.
"Ariel, it's me. Are you okay?" As soon as she heard those words, her eyes quickly turned red as she sniffed hard.
Her voice croaked and she uttered the words that would make Henry's blood turn cold on the spot, "H-Henry…I-I was so scared…" Tears were threatening to form in her eyes as she stretched her arms to him, looking for warmth and solace.
Seeing the dead and almost rotting fish beside her along with her malnourished look, is enough for Henry to deduce what she's been through.
With a clenched fist, he grabbed the bars of the cage and snapped the door open from its hinges.
Bam!
Clang!
"It'll be okay, Ariel. I'm here now. Don't worry." He kneeled in front of her and before he could even lean forward, she already pulled him into a hug.
"Huwaahhh!"
Her cry reverberated amidst the burning inn beside them, and while Henry was hugging her, his eyes flashed a sheer coldness that greatly complements his blue eyes.
His gaze wandered around the other cages, some were women, others were children while the majority were poor exotic animals.
'I'll make them pay…' Henry clenched his fists.