In a time long past, the Sea Witch Queen unexpectedly saved a mortal prince.
The two experienced much together and finally broke through the barriers of taboo to be together.
They fell in love.
However, their love was not accepted by others.
The mortals saw the prince as a vile Fallen, and, banished from his realm, he was forced to set sail to sea to find his beloved.
The Sea Siren subjects also viewed the Queen's actions as a betrayal to their race, attacking the mortal prince's ship in an attempt to send him to his watery grave.
In a moment of crisis, to save her lover, the Sea Witch Queen made a wish:
"May my blessing gently caress your face like the sea breeze, granting you fearless courage, to be with the sea, to dance with storms."
"May the stars guide your journey, may the moonlight guard your soul, until the tides ultimately bring you back to me."
She sang softly at the ocean's abyss, with sorrow, yet with hope.
"May you never be harmed by the ocean."
"May you never lose yourself."
"May you never be lost along the way."
"May you..."
"Love me forever."
...
Splash.
Herbert suddenly opened his eyes, staring blankly ahead.
Just now, it seemed he had heard an ancient story, witnessed a love unrecognized by others.
Later, he felt as if he had fallen into a warm embrace, slowly being drawn into the unending depths of the sea by a pair of slippery hands.
The sweet song resounded in his ears, urging him to make a decision, as if trying to keep him there forever.
Afterwards, he awoke.
"..."
Herbert raised his hand to touch his lips, feeling as if there was still some lingering warmth.
What's going on?
Did someone forcibly kiss me again in a dream?
Uh...
Why am I saying again?
When was the last time... ugh!
Herbert gagged slightly, unable to recall specific details, yet decided for his mental health's sake not to delve further into it.
"Nenasha, what did I just see?"
Was that ancient memory fictional? What connection does it have to that Fremay's Seven-Colored Scale?
"Oh? You actually woke up through sheer willpower?"
Nenasha exclaimed in surprise, clicking her tongue in wonder: "I was just about to wake you up after you succumbed, your willpower is stronger than I thought!"
"Rest assured, it's nothing bad, it's just the 'little help' I mentioned before!"
"A Forbidden Magic exclusive to the Sea Demon Royal Family, an Epic Curse—the Sea Witch Queen's Affection."
The Evil God laughed, explaining the curse's effects on her dumbfounded ally:
"From now on, you will not suffocate in water, nor be mentally bewitched, nor lose your way. You will be a favored child of the Water Element, and any sea creature will naturally like you."
"The only small issue is, you will gradually become more like a Sea Siren, developing webbing between your fingers, and your legs will slowly transform into a fish tail..."
"However, thanks to the Purity Protection and my blessing, you are completely immune to the curse's negative effects! Rest assured, you will not gradually become more like a Sea Siren, and your appearance will not change~"
The Evil God, intentionally trying to elicit a reaction, did not see the expected panic nor the grateful relief produce from Herbert.
Instead, Herbert even raised a question: "Wait, isn't this wrong?"
"Hmm?"
"Isn't this a blessing? How could it be a curse?"
She loves me so much, even wanting to turn me into a mermaid, where is there any sign of a curse?
Nenasha: Hmm? Something's not right with you!
The Evil God hesitated for a moment, deciding to skip over this issue, addressing: "My ally, do you not understand?"
"Love has always been this world's most twisted curse."
Nenasha chuckled, her words tinged with sarcasm, speaking softly:
"Because of love, Divine Spirits mingled with mortals, becoming the fuse for the gods' conflicts."
"Because of love, Demons clashed with the Human Race, plundering each other and resulting in mutual slaughter."
"Because of love, kin turned their blades upon one another, shedding blood for someone else's favor."
"The source of all calamities, all sufferings in this world, is love."
She said:
"Love is a curse."
As Nenasha spoke of that seemingly fallen notion, Herbert did not interrupt, lifting an eyebrow while listening quietly.
When she finished, he remained silent for a while then shook his head, saying, "Perhaps your words aren't entirely wrong, but I still think your view is somewhat extreme."
"Emotions are very complex and shouldn't be blamed solely on love."
If all sins could be attributed to love.
Then the world would be too childish.
In this world, there surely exist many actions not stemming from love, yet surpassing love.
"Hehe, perhaps."
The topic stopped there, and neither tried to argue over the perspective.
Though their time together was short, they both understood it wasn't easy to change each other's minds.
No need for more words.
"By the way, with this talent, you could try learning some magic related to the Water Element, it's likely you could achieve quite a bit without much effort."
Even Nenasha felt a bit emotional as she said this.
Even she didn't expect Herbert would start with the Legendary Sea Siren's scale possessing royal bloodline.
Placed upon a Mage, this talent amounted to a future Water Mage in this world.
But unfortunately, he was a Paladin, at most able to learn some Water Attribute Combat Skills.
What a waste!
Herbert didn't mind much about it.
The more skills, the better, who would dislike having more talent!
Whether or not the talent would be useful in the future wasn't important, the key was to first acquire it.
What if it comes in handy, right?
"Wait!"
Reflecting on that, Herbert suddenly thought of something, his pupils contracting swiftly.
"If collecting Demon Material really proved to be useful, that also means..."
Herbert's expression changes subtly, recalling the agreement he forced with Valentina, his mouth twitching.
"Do I really have to eat her hair!!?"
Honestly.
This is a bit too perverse, isn't it?
.
.
The next day.
As Herbert entered the prison with a heavy heart, the oblivious Giant Dragon Miss was still lost in her sweet dreams.
"..."
Herbert looked at the peacefully sleeping Valentina, licking his slightly dry lips, then slowly knelt on one knee in front of the bars.
He took a deep breath, eyes full of resolve, reaching his sinful little hand towards her—
And placed a chicken leg in front of her nose, shaking it left and right.
"Chomp, chomp, chomp, chomp..."
Awoken by the sound, Valentina suddenly opened her eyes from her slumber.
"Hmm... hmm!!?"