Chapter 108
Then came a tail, slithering out like a reptile’s, followed by gills that quivered as they emerged.
‘The fastest way to turn a weakness into something that isn’t one… is to reveal it boldly before everyone.’
The people, frozen in utter confusion, were reflected in her piercingly clear eyes.
Fear spread like wildfire.
They were afraid because they didn’t understand.
Because they didn’t know, they were frightened, shocked, and bewildered.
But that same emotion—given time—could turn into reverence for the divine.
“Yasamin.”
At her quiet call, Yasamin stepped toward her.
“Are you Aquafuran right now? Or are you Siren?”
“Both. Whichever you prefer to see.”
“……So in the end, you are Aquafuran after all.”
“Yes. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? My beast, whom I abandoned.”
Thud.
Yasamin dropped to one knee.
It was almost as if he were collapsing, yet there was a tragic beauty in his posture.
Or perhaps—one could call it madness.
Something dark and tumultuous stirred deep within his emerald eyes.
The dangerous glint in them was as if he could seize her at any moment and drag her into the abyss.
“How shameless. You’re admitting it so easily?”
“It’s better than lying. Besides… I can’t say I’m completely Aquafuran. The memories of Siren remain as well.”
“Hah.”
Yasamin let out a cold laugh.
But from behind, the people could not see his expression.
All they saw was that ‘the king had bowed.’
And Yasamin knew this.
That was why he took such a low stance—because right now, it was necessary.
Even if inwardly, he was grinding his teeth.
‘Thank you.’
Siren wiped the rain trickling down her face and turned in a circle.
Then, she danced once more.
This time, even the musicians were too stunned to play.
But the sound of the rain itself was a melody sweeter than any music.
Amidst the cascading miracle, Siren slowly reclaimed her divinity.
Little by little. Bit by bit.
The power she had left behind in this land was returning.
The water’s raksha clung to her scales and seeped through the gaps.
As if she had never once found her own form repulsive, she stood tall, unashamed. And then, she shed.
Tuk. Tuk.
Scales fell at her feet, piling up.
The raksha that took their place had always belonged to her, and so it seeped in naturally.
Her skin grew glossier, clearer than before, and radiated a luminous glow. Her eyes, too, gleamed with light—their depths deepening, imbued with an ancient wisdom.
“…….”
And Yasamin, he simply stared at his master, scrutinizing her.
The Siren before him overlapped with the one from a past so distant, it could no longer be called history but rather antiquity itself.
Was she a different person now, or the same being as before?
She was infuriatingly cunning—making it impossible for him to fully surrender to his hatred. Siren was Aquafuran, and at the same time, she was Siren.
Watching the two existences coexist so seamlessly, Yasamin let out another hollow chuckle.
That damn goddess.
Even now, she was too much.
And the maddening thing was… he loved it to death.
He didn’t resent her return. Not one bit.
His tail kept swaying. No matter how much he bared his teeth, trying to suppress it, it was useless.
‘Stupid beast.’
Cursing himself, Yasamin slowly rose to his feet.
The fully-reborn goddess had grown taller, her hair lengthening as well.
Black hair as deep as the abyss, blue eyes like the sea, lips with a striking shape, and a presence so effortlessly elegant.
Perfectly sculpted grace gazed back at him.
One eye held an apology.
The other did not.
Instead, it seemed to say—wasn’t it enough that she had come at all?
‘She really does exist in both forms.’
Just as ‘Yasamin’ and [this] coexisted, so did she.
He understood.
And because he understood, he couldn’t hate her entirely.
But that didn’t mean he wasn’t filled with resentment.
With a complicated expression, Yasamin stepped toward Siren.
Behind him, silence flowed like a river.
Everyone was watching—to see what he would do in the face of this astonishing moment.
‘Tell them to throw it all away.’
But right now, Yasamin was neither a king nor a man.
Right now, he was nothing more than a stray dog that had wandered in search of its master for centuries.
A drifter who had found his master again after a thousand years.
A mere man who had reclaimed the one he loved.
“……Hah.”
And so, he pulled Siren into a tight embrace.
There was no other choice.
For just a moment, he had to suppress the raging storm within him. Just for an instant, he had to hold her.
To trap her in his arms, even if only once.
Surely, that much was allowed.
And as his trembling arms drew her in, Siren let herself be embraced without resistance.
Because if anyone had the right to do so—it was him.
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