✨ An intense, high-stakes high-society fantasy romance and ultimate comeback short drama about ancient mystics, accidental contracts, and absolute karmic retribution. 💔 After enduring years of calculated public humiliation and cruel emotional abuse from her toxic, elitist corporate family who treated her like a powerless underdog, a resilient young woman reaches her breaking point. 📉 Her arrogant relatives believe they have successfully stripped her of her dignity and can cast her aside as a penniless outcast, completely blind to the cosmic reality check about to explode across the metropolis because she declared: compré al rey sirena por accidente. 🏰⚡ The entire high-society arena trembles in absolute shock when she shatters her modest civilian disguise, revealing her true nature as the sole, untouchable multi-billion-dollar global oceanic syndicate heiress. 🔥 Aligning forces with the sea's most feared, fiercely protective legendary sovereign and alpha billionaire tycoon, she steps into the corporate spotlight to unleash flawless instant karma, leaving her treacherous abusers begging for mercy in utter ruin. 👑💥
#comprealreysirenaporaccidente #shortdrama #miniseries #verticaldrama #ultimatecomeback #fantasyromance #hiddenidentity #shortfilm #clips #reelshort
#comprealreysirenaporaccidente #shortdrama #miniseries #verticaldrama #ultimatecomeback #fantasyromance #hiddenidentity #shortfilm #clips #reelshort
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00When I was to tell him about our baby, my merman cut my heart open.
00:03Serafina needs your blood.
00:04No!
00:05See this as your payment for tearing us apart.
00:09When I woke up again, I was at the auction with Serafina.
00:12The mate claim is our clan's law.
00:14A woman standing rises and falls entirely with the merman she's bonded to.
00:18So last life, when I was maneuvered into taking Serafina's leftover,
00:22a merman whose tail hung in broken scales, I had no choice.
00:25I bled my heart essence for 49 days before he was barely healed.
00:29I hunted abyssal cores at every turn, pouring them into him to elevate his bloodline.
00:33Yet the first thing he became the Siren King was to kill me, his mate, as well as our unborn
00:38baby.
00:38This is my second chance, I won't make the same mistake.
00:41I want this one.
00:42Serafina's voice cut me back to the present.
00:44She pointed towards the enormous tank in front of us.
00:47She chose Silas?
00:49My eyes found Silas instantly, cowering at the very back of the holding tank.
00:54A merman's greatest pride is his tail.
00:56Every other tail in that water prison shimmered, rippling like silk ribbons in a dark current.
01:02Silas's tail was stripped nearly bare, scales shed down to raw, ragged flesh.
01:07Serafina, pack heiress and eldest daughter, exactly as she had in our last life,
01:12gestured lazily toward the two mermen at the back.
01:19Alara, let's just take those, too, shall we?
01:24Side fast before someone else snaps up the good one.
01:28In my last life, I had believed every word.
01:32Mermen didn't come cheap, and I had assumed even Serafina wouldn't deliberately choose the most broken creature in the tank.
01:38But she had.
01:39She had actually purchased the barely breathing Silas.
01:42Our father had erupted in fury over it.
01:46Father, Alara picked him herself.
01:48You know how she is.
01:49I only paid.
01:51I chose the strong one.
01:53I'm taking mine now.
01:55And just like that, the half-dead wreck called Silas had been handed to me.
01:59This life, I would not fall for a single word.
02:01And called my bid before she could speak.
02:03Take what you want, Serafina.
02:06I pointed at the stone-faced merman in the corner.
02:09I want that one.
02:17It didn't matter who I chose.
02:19If I'd turned the broken, helpless Silas into a siren king, I could do it with anyone.
02:23Every creature in this tank would surpass him with the right hand guiding them.
02:27This time, I just wanted one who would be loyal.
02:29Serafina's smile thinned when she realized the hook hadn't landed.
02:33Alara, you gave us a fixed amount.
02:34If you use it all, what's left for me?
02:36I gave her a single flat look.
02:37How had I spent an entire lifetime missing how well she could perform?
02:41She had engineered this from the start.
02:42Pushed the broken merman onto me.
02:44Keep me weak.
02:44Keep herself on top.
02:45Her trap had been set the moment we walked through these auction doors.
02:49I stared straight at Silas, who was pressing himself against the tank wall,
02:52performing desperately for any buyer.
02:54That one doesn't look bad.
02:56Feed him right, and he might amount to something.
02:58If you really can't afford your pick, buy him.
03:01Serafina laughed, sharp and incredulous.
03:03I wouldn't want him to warm my bed.
03:05I smiled, but there was nothing warm in it.
03:07Poor Silas.
03:08In our last life, he had actually believed I was the one who separated them.
03:11He had never known that Serafina wouldn't have had him on a bet.
03:14As in our last life, Serafina claimed her merman Jace without hesitation.
03:18But as I walked out with my merman Kaylin,
03:20something slammed against the walls of the holding tank.
03:22Silas, thrashing.
03:24Is he trying to get someone's attention?
03:26Broken thing like that.
03:27I glanced at Silas' frantic movement.
03:29Then at Serafina, who had gone very still.
03:32Had Silas also been reborn?
03:35His panic made sense.
03:36The woman he had spent his whole life loving had just walked away without him.
03:40I caught the fractured blue of his eyes through the water and smiled.
03:43When a dream you've chased for a lifetime shatters in an instant, that has to hurt.
03:47This life, no one punished me for leaving Silas behind.
03:50Kaylin stood before me, his tail slapping the floor in slow, rhythmic strikes.
03:54Can you shift to human form?
03:57He pressed his lips together and pulled the tail in.
04:00Obedient but clearly reluctant.
04:03Unlike the others, there was no relief on his face.
04:06No gratitude for being purchased.
04:08Looking closer, his blue eyes held something else entirely.
04:11Cold detachment and a pride that hadn't been broken yet.
04:14You don't want to come home with me?
04:15Kaylin glanced at me once and said nothing.
04:17As far as I know, the holding tanks run on hierarchy.
04:20Without a buyer, you fight every day just to hold your rank.
04:23I can protect that rank, right now.
04:25He moved to the chair farthest from me and sat.
04:28I'm not the wreck who got his tail beaten to pieces.
04:31One sentence and I was already smiling.
04:33He was right.
04:33For a merman to have his tail destroyed like that, what was that if not useless?
04:37If you don't want to stay, the door is open.
04:44Something flickered in Kaylin's blue eyes.
04:46He was tempted, I could see it.
04:47Before he could act on it, I stood up.
04:50What are you doing?
04:52Since you don't want to be here, I'll go select a different merman.
04:55I'm building a Siren King.
04:57I have no room for someone with a divided heart.
04:59In my peripheral vision, Kaylin looked at me with something new on his face.
05:03Becoming the Siren King was every merman's deepest ambition.
05:06He had the raw power, but raw power could be cultivated in anyone.
05:09A backstabber like Silas wasn't worth the investment.
05:12The auction is over!
05:13I turned and smiled at him.
05:15A family that can afford a merman a senelmest in the first place?
05:19You think we worry about finding another one?
05:24The next several days I left early and returned late.
05:28Kaylin hadn't left, but I needed my own contingency plans.
05:31What I didn't expect.
05:33The moment I stepped onto the street that afternoon,
05:36Silas came staggering toward me.
05:38Lara!
05:40Why didn't you take me?
05:42He threw his arms around my legs.
05:44Take me with you, please.
05:46You were always supposed to choose me.
05:49My heartbeat stuttered exactly once.
05:51What did you just say?
05:53Lara, look at me.
05:55Are you really not choosing me?
05:57Silas gripped my legs tightly with both hands.
06:00That confirmed it.
06:02Silas had been reborn too.
06:03But if he got a second life,
06:04why was he coming to me instead of running straight to Serafina?
06:07I shook him off without expression.
06:09What are you rambling about?
06:10Who is your owner?
06:12Don't come grabbing at strangers in the street.
06:14I turned to walk away,
06:16but Silas chased after me recklessly,
06:18following closely in haste.
06:20I was half a second from losing my composure.
06:23Then I caught sight of Kaylin,
06:24following at a distance behind me.
06:26My eyes shifted, calculating.
06:34Your tail is badly damaged.
06:37Did the other mare shifters in the tank do this to you?
06:42Silas blinked, then nodded quickly.
06:45In my peripheral vision,
06:47Kaylin had drawn several steps closer.
06:49I ran my fingers along Silas' damaged tail,
06:52the same way I had in our last life.
06:54Every wound on his body had been healed by my hand.
06:56I knew exactly where the pressure felt good,
06:58and where it burned.
06:59So when I pressed just right,
07:01a shudder rolled through Silas' entire body.
07:03He kept leaning into me, breathless.
07:06Master,
07:07will you take me home?
07:09I curved my lips.
07:10Of course, I...
07:13Before I could finish,
07:14Kaylin launched forward,
07:15smashed Silas away with its tail.
07:17He slammed him violently onto the street,
07:19five meters away.
07:20He planted himself in front of me,
07:22jaw set.
07:23I haven't left yet.
07:25Silas hit the pavement and couldn't get back up.
07:29Several failed attempts,
07:30then stillness.
07:33I blinked at Kaylin with wide eyes.
07:37Was that really necessary?
07:40Didn't you say you were leaving?
07:43Why stop me from finding another merman?
07:45The hands hanging at Kaylin's side,
07:47it's curled into slow fists.
07:49I'm not leaving.
07:50Satisfaction curved my mouth upward.
07:53Mermen had their own will.
07:55Every one of them needed to be won,
07:56not forced.
07:58He had taken the first step.
07:59I would accept the olive branch.
08:02As for Silas,
08:04he dragged himself upright
08:06and crept forward again.
08:08Master,
08:09you agreed just now.
08:12You were going to take me.
08:14I slung my arm over Kaylin's shoulder
08:16and gave Silas a bright little wave.
08:18Sorry.
08:19I changed my mind.
08:20Silas opened his mouth to protest
08:22and moved one step forward.
08:24Kaylin's tail cracked down onto the pavement
08:26directly in front of him.
08:28One more step
08:29and the next thing that breaks
08:30will be your bones.
08:31When the tail lifted,
08:33I looked at the cracked stone beneath it.
08:34Kaylin was, without question,
08:36in another league from Silas.
08:38To prevent another betrayal,
08:40I forced Kaylin through the blood bond ritual.
08:42You can actually make me Siren King?
08:44I said nothing.
08:45A master speaks,
08:46she doesn't explain herself.
08:47In my last life,
08:48I had poured everything into making Silas a king
08:51and forgotten to make myself stronger first.
08:53If Kaylin performed,
08:54the title was his.
08:55If he showed one flicker of divided loyalty,
08:58he would spend this lifetime
08:59as nothing but a bed warmer.
09:00If you don't want to walk out,
09:02then don't.
09:02I turned to leave,
09:03but before I'd taken a single step,
09:05Kaylin drew a blade across his own tail
09:07and pressed the blood from it.
09:09I'll do it.
09:10After the bond sealed,
09:12Kaylin stood beside me,
09:13stiff and stilted.
09:14I'm your merman now.
09:15Up close,
09:16a faint flush had crept across his pale face.
09:20Oddly endearing,
09:21I tilted my chin toward the bed,
09:23go lie down,
09:24just to watch his reaction.
09:28Kaylin's face went a deeper red.
09:30He shuffled to the bed,
09:31one careful step at a time,
09:33and let his bleeding tail hang off the edge
09:35so it wouldn't stay in the sheets.
09:36What are you doing?
09:37The crimson flooding his face nearly made me laugh.
09:40All that menace,
09:41and this was what was underneath it?
09:43I ran a deliberate hand along his tail.
09:45You know the custom,
09:46when our family brings home a mermond,
09:48there's a mate claim,
09:49which means,
09:50technically,
09:51you're my husband now.
09:52Kaylin said nothing,
09:53but the moment my fingers made contact,
09:55his tail gave a small,
09:56involuntary shiver.
09:57Our eyes met,
09:58and something in his expression shifted,
10:00a quiet resignation,
10:01and he closed his eyes.
10:02A soft laugh escaped me,
10:04as I turned and reached for the medical kit.
10:06With his eyes still shut,
10:07I leaned in,
10:08and blew a gentle breath across his bleeding wound.
10:11Does it hurt?
10:12Kaylin's tail began to sway side to side,
10:15in small,
10:15helpless arcs.
10:16In merman body language,
10:18that meant only one thing,
10:19pleasure.
10:21I packed the wound,
10:22and settled back into my chair.
10:23Stay out of water for a few days,
10:25it'll heal.
10:26Less painful now?
10:26The flesh hadn't left Kaylin's face,
10:28he darted one glance at me,
10:30and turned to look pointedly at the wall.
10:32Hyrus doesn't belong on my tail.
10:34Hmm.
10:35Then why was it still swaying?
10:36Once his tail healed,
10:38we fell into a daily training rhythm.
10:39Unlike my last life,
10:41this time I trained too.
10:42What kind of woman builds a siren king,
10:44and leaves herself defenseless?
10:46We hadn't been at it long,
10:48when Serafina arrived with her merman,
10:50Jace.
10:50My little sister,
10:51so committed you've thrown yourself into the sparring too.
10:53You spent so long choosing at the auction,
10:54I expected something impressive,
10:56but honestly,
10:56he's not even half of what my Jace is.
10:58I stopped,
10:59and looked at Serafina and Jace without expression.
11:01Jace was built impressively, yes,
11:03but in our last life,
11:04he had been thoroughly ordinary,
11:06and Serafina was no handler.
11:07After her mate claim,
11:09our father had handed house authority to me instead.
11:11I said nothing,
11:12but Kaylin stepped in front of me.
11:13Huh, a mermane, challenging me?
11:17Let me make this clear.
11:19I am this family's pack heiress,
11:21and when the time comes,
11:23I run this house.
11:25Jace, teach him.
11:27Jace lunged.
11:27Kaylin moved without urgency.
11:29He even had time to guide me to a clear position
11:32before turning to face the attack.
11:34Good.
11:34I wanted to see what he could actually do.
11:36The two of them clashed hard,
11:38but within a handful of exchanges,
11:40it was obvious Jace was losing ground.
11:42Serafina,
11:43who had opened with absolute confidence.
11:45Kill him!
11:46Just kill him!
11:47Why are you holding back?
11:48Finish him,
11:49and I'll take the blame!
11:49Jace showed no visible improvement,
11:51but Kaylin had stopped pulling his strikes.
11:54He was half a second away
11:55from crushing Jace's shoulder completely.
11:57No.
11:57Serafina screamed.
11:59How dare you!
12:01Alara!
12:01Look at what your pet did to my merchant!
12:03I smiled.
12:05Serafina,
12:06weren't you the one who let Jake start it?
12:08You were screaming at him to kill Kaylin.
12:10Everyone present heard you.
12:11Serafina couldn't win the argument,
12:12so she crossed the floor
12:13and put herself in my face.
12:15If Jace is injured,
12:16I will have father come down on you so hard!
12:18You cost a fortune.
12:19I held her gaze for a long moment,
12:21then told Kaylin to let Jace go.
12:23Smart girl.
12:25Eldest is eldest.
12:26No matter what,
12:27this house will never be yours to run.
12:29She snatched Jace by the arm
12:30and swept out.
12:31Erling curses the entire way.
12:33I should have finished him.
12:34What's the rush?
12:35Serafina had taken her first loss.
12:37She would come back with real hatred now.
12:39Let her rage.
12:40Let her spiral.
12:41The one who goes mad first loses everything.
12:44Serafina began watching me
12:46the way a predator watches an open wound.
12:48I had expected her to undermine me
12:49in front of our father.
12:51What I hadn't expected,
12:52she had brought Silas home
12:54and put into work as a house servant.
12:55The moment he blocked my path
12:57in the corridor and begged,
12:58my step stuttered.
12:59How are you here?
13:00Serafina stepped out from around the corner,
13:03smiling,
13:03with our father right behind her.
13:05So the rumors are true.
13:07I stared at her.
13:09What rumors?
13:10Father's expression was stoned.
13:12Elora, you already have a mate claim.
13:14Why are you still tangled up with him?
13:16Your sister was fortunate enough
13:17to run into him today.
13:18She brought him here to keep him quiet.
13:20Otherwise, your reputation would be ruined.
13:22I had no words.
13:24Serafina strolled toward me
13:25with pure delight on her face,
13:27hooking Silas' chin up
13:28with the toe of her shoe.
13:30Little sister,
13:30he's been asking around outside,
13:31trying every connection he has
13:32to get through our gates to reach you.
13:34You should have said something.
13:36If there was something between you two,
13:37you could have just bought him at the auction.
13:39Why bother bringing Kaelin home?
13:42The more she talked,
13:43the darker father's face became.
13:44Elora, clean this up
13:46or get out of this house.
13:48He turned and left without another word.
13:50Serafina beamed at me.
13:52My capable little sister.
13:54Take your time sorting it out.
14:00Silas knelt half on the floor.
14:02His face tilted up toward mine.
14:04His eyes full of naked wanting.
14:07You love being near me that much?
14:10Then stay.
14:11Better to keep him where I could watch him
14:13than to throw him out blind.
14:14In this life,
14:15without my heart essence,
14:16Silas surviving it all
14:17was already uncertain.
14:19He started drifting through
14:20every room I occupied.
14:21Kaelin, on the other hand,
14:22had gone cold on me again.
14:24When I cornered him
14:24in the back garden one morning,
14:26You're coming to me right now?
14:27Shouldn't you be with
14:28that pathetic Silas?
14:29That whole scene on the street
14:30was staged.
14:31You two tricked me
14:33into the blood bond.
14:34Kaelin's tail hit the ground
14:35in sharp, irritated slaps.
14:36I watched him
14:37with genuine interest.
14:38You already bonded.
14:39There's no running from that.
14:41The real question is,
14:44do you still want
14:45to be Siren King?
14:46He gave me a flat,
14:47suspicious look,
14:48like I was setting another trap.
14:49There's a Merman tournament
14:50in two months.
14:51Whether you become
14:52Siren King depends entirely
14:53on what you do
14:54with that time.
14:55Really?
14:56There's truly nothing
14:57between you and that Merman?
14:59I was half a breath
15:00from swearing on it.
15:01Kaelin finally let out
15:02a grudging huff
15:03and fell into step beside me.
15:04We drilled repeatedly
15:05in the draining field
15:06while Silas kept finding
15:08reasons to wander past.
15:11Let me break his tail.
15:12See how he walks after that.
15:14Kaelin!
15:16I have plans for him.
15:18All that heart essence
15:19I'd fed him in our last life
15:21was not going to be wasted.
15:22He walked right up to us.
15:24What happened next
15:25was on him.
15:27That evening I had Silas
15:28called to my room
15:29to serve.
15:30The Siren King of my last life
15:31was now on his knees
15:32at my feet,
15:33cradling a basin of water.
15:34His injuries were severe enough
15:36that he swayed
15:36every few minutes,
15:37barely holding himself upright.
15:39You're not well?
15:40I kept my voice casual,
15:41almost bored.
15:42The annual Merman tournament
15:44was weeks away.
15:45Silas had to be crawling
15:46out of his skin.
15:47In our last life,
15:48with my help,
15:49he had claimed
15:49the Siren King's title.
15:50A man who had sat
15:51at the top of the world
15:52does not quietly accept
15:54kneeling on someone's floor.
15:55So no matter what it cost him,
15:57he would endure.
15:57Because he still needed
15:58my heart essence.
15:59Silas sad sideways
16:01onto the floor,
16:02his voice thin.
16:03My tail was damaged
16:05in the holding tank.
16:06It never healed properly.
16:08Hmm.
16:09What would it take to fix it?
16:10This house doesn't keep
16:11idle staff.
16:12Silas looked at me,
16:13testing the water.
16:14A human's heart essence.
16:1649 days of it.
16:18Taken in doses.
16:20Only then will I heal.
16:23I said nothing.
16:24Right now,
16:25he was nothing but a servant.
16:26When I didn't react,
16:28he coughed twice.
16:29I know I'm useless.
16:32All I ask in this life
16:33is to stay near you.
16:35I would never dare
16:36dream of your heart essence.
16:38Why are you so set on
16:40staying near me?
16:42Silas studied my face,
16:43searching for the lie.
16:44My expression was open,
16:45guileless.
16:46There was nothing for him to find.
16:47Once he was certain
16:48I wasn't performing,
16:49he shook his head
16:50with a face full of grief.
16:51You really don't remember me.
16:53You saved my life once.
16:55Mermen repay their debts
16:57and that is why I stay.
16:58Even knowing that you and Kaylin,
17:02as long as I can see you live well,
17:04I have no regrets.
17:05I dug my fingernail
17:07into my own palm,
17:08hard enough to leave a mark,
17:09and I did not slap him.
17:10Gratitude and loyalty.
17:11He had taken my trust
17:13and stabbed me with a knife.
17:15And here he was,
17:16performing it with shining eyes
17:18and a breaking voice.
17:20If I didn't still carry
17:21every memory from our last life,
17:23I might have believed him.
17:24I ranged my face
17:25into something soft and moved.
17:27Just 49 days of heart essence?
17:29And you'd be fully healed?
17:31Silas's eyes lit up.
17:34The hunger behind his eyes
17:36was obvious,
17:36but he was working hard
17:38to swallow it.
17:40Yes.
17:42But Alara, it hurts
17:43to draw heart essence.
17:46I let a pause stretch,
17:48then spoke carefully.
17:50I can save your life,
17:53but once you're healed,
17:55you will not come near me again.
17:57Something flickered
17:58across Silas's face,
18:00a flash of injury,
18:01but he agreed almost immediately.
18:04Agreed.
18:05I won't come near you.
18:07He bowed his head,
18:08and behind his back,
18:10I finally allowed myself to smile.
18:12My heart essence
18:13is not so easily given.
18:15Starting the next morning,
18:16I sent Kalen out each day
18:18to buy fresh chicken blood
18:19from the market.
18:21Diluted with water,
18:22the smell was manageable.
18:23To make sure he couldn't
18:24detect the switch,
18:25I dissolved several herbs
18:27into the mixture.
18:28He needed to see results,
18:29or he wouldn't keep believing.
18:30Silas drained bowl after bowl,
18:32his brow creasing tighter
18:33every time.
18:34Alara,
18:35this heart essence
18:36tastes strain.
18:37I immediately let hurt
18:38flood my expression.
18:39Blood is never going
18:40to taste good.
18:41I cut open my own chest
18:42for you.
18:43If you don't like it,
18:44I'll just throw it out.
18:45Silas did not dare.
18:46He tilted the bowl back
18:47and licked it clean.
18:48Alara,
18:48this kindness is something
18:49I'll carry forever.
18:50I wish I were the one
18:51you'd chosen.
18:52I could spend my life
18:52at your side repaying this.
18:54I pulled my face
18:55into something pained
18:55and troubled.
18:56It was already
18:56a significant problem for me.
18:58You heard what father
18:59and Serafina said that day.
19:01I kept talking,
19:01watching him
19:02in my peripheral vision.
19:03When I mentioned Serafina,
19:05not a trace of longing
19:06crossed his face.
19:07What appeared instead
19:07was something close to hatred.
19:09I had died in our last life
19:11before seeing what came after.
19:13But judging by his face now,
19:14the Siren King's reign
19:15had not ended well
19:16for him either.
19:17Still,
19:18none of that is your fault.
19:20Serafina has always
19:21had it out for me.
19:22She's simply using
19:23your situation
19:24to make me look bad.
19:25The hand Silas
19:26had rested on the table
19:27tightened into a fist
19:28without him noticing.
19:29Looking at the locked muscle
19:30in his jaw,
19:31I knew I'd guessed right.
19:34Alara,
19:35don't worry.
19:36I won't be a burden to you.
19:37Good.
19:37Because in this life,
19:38he didn't come close
19:39to deserving to be my problem.
19:41Silas stopped haunting
19:41my rooms as much.
19:43Lately,
19:43he'd been gravitating
19:44towards Serafina's wing instead.
19:45He had taken what I said to heart.
19:47If he could be a blade,
19:48I aimed at her.
19:49That was at least
19:49partial penance
19:50for the last life.
19:51To keep him from noticing
19:52anything off,
19:53Kaelin and I had shifted
19:54our training sessions
19:55to my room at night.
19:57Faster.
19:59Every merman
20:00in that tournament
20:01fights to kill.
20:03If your speed isn't there,
20:04you'll walk in
20:05and get carried out.
20:06I finished
20:07and waved him over.
20:10Come on.
20:11Spa with me.
20:13Kaelin smiled
20:14and it was absolutely
20:15contemptuous.
20:16Get over here.
20:18Before the words
20:19finished leaving my mouth,
20:20he was already
20:21in front of me,
20:22fast enough
20:23that I couldn't track
20:24how he'd moved.
20:25How did you...
20:26Before I could finish,
20:27he pressed the attack.
20:29I dodged twice,
20:30barely,
20:31and then my footing slipped
20:32and I went backwards.
20:34Kaelin's
20:34sharp inhale,
20:35his hand caught my waist.
20:37I was fairly certain
20:38he did it on purpose.
20:39The momentum carried us
20:40both down onto the bed together.
20:42Pinned beneath him,
20:42my heartbeat stopped
20:43being something
20:44I could control.
20:45Those blue eyes flickered
20:46and without a word,
20:47he locked both my wrists
20:48above my head.
20:49Silas gets to come
20:50to your room at night.
20:51Why don't I?
20:53He had found out
20:54about Silas
20:55coming every night
20:56to drink.
20:59Silas has business!
21:01Kaelin didn't move,
21:02the heat of his breath
21:03spreading across my neck.
21:05His tail reached out
21:06and drew the bed curtain closed.
21:08He said,
21:08low and certain,
21:10Master,
21:11you're the one
21:12who said I'd be your husband.
21:13By the time my legs
21:15had gone completely weak,
21:16Kaelin was still murmuring
21:18in my ear,
21:19asking whether I wanted him
21:21or Silas.
21:22I gave some incoherent answer
21:24while internally screaming
21:25about how unfair it was
21:27that this infuriating merman
21:28had a body like that.
21:31A month later,
21:32Jace's tail collapsed.
21:34Serafina tore through the house
21:36like something feral.
21:38Jace lay on the bed,
21:39the color of ash.
21:42How does something like this
21:43just happen?
21:45Jace,
21:46did you eat something?
21:47Where is your tail?
21:48How are you supposed
21:49to compete with no tail?
21:50Are you even a merman anymore?
21:52Father, please,
21:54find someone to look at him.
21:56The tournament troll
21:56is almost here
21:57and I've put everything
21:58into him.
22:00Father's brow furrowed,
22:01but he nodded.
22:02The merman physician
22:03examined Jace,
22:04set down his wrist,
22:05and left shaking his head.
22:07The tail looks intact
22:08from the outside,
22:09but they've already begun
22:10to dissolve.
22:11Within three days,
22:12his skeleton will be
22:13nothing but fluid.
22:14Jace threw himself
22:15at the physician in a frenzy,
22:16so violent he rolled
22:17off the bed.
22:18Serafina stared at the wall,
22:20repeating impossible
22:21to no one.
22:22After she sent
22:23the physician out,
22:26she lunged straight at me
22:28and Kaelin stepped between us
22:29before she got close.
22:32Alotta,
22:33this was you, wasn't it?
22:35You've always been jealous
22:36of Jace's talent.
22:37Terrified he'd become
22:38Siren King
22:39and you'd never get above me,
22:40so you did this to him.
22:41You destroyed my merman!
22:43I will ruin you!
22:44You can die!
22:45Father walked in
22:46on those exact words.
22:47Enough!
22:48Enough!
22:49Father's voice cracked
22:50like a whip
22:50and Serafina went silent.
22:52Serafana,
22:52I genuinely have no reason
22:54to hurt your merman.
22:55Whoever ends up
22:56as Siren King,
22:57Kaelin outwells Jace
22:58so completely
22:59that Jake was never
23:00a competitor
23:01we even considered,
23:02so why would I bother?
23:04Serafina tried
23:04to erupt again
23:05and father
23:06shut her down.
23:08What's done is done.
23:09Stay in your rooms
23:10and rest.
23:10You're not competing
23:11in the tournament.
23:13As for that useless mermaid,
23:15that's your problem
23:16to solve.
23:17Both Jace and Serafina
23:18went white.
23:19A merman without a tail
23:21turned out of this house.
23:22What were the odds
23:23of survival?
23:25And Serafina,
23:26without a merman,
23:27had just lost
23:28every card she held.
23:31When Silas came
23:32to drink that evening,
23:33the good mood
23:33was written all over him.
23:35He looked at me
23:35like he was offering something.
23:37Serafina won't be able
23:38to take anything
23:38from you anymore.
23:39I handed him the bowl.
23:40He was nearly through
23:41the full course now.
23:42I had increased
23:43the herbal dose recently
23:44and Silas did look
23:45genuinely better,
23:46visibly stronger.
23:47But it was all surface.
23:48The herbs were keeping
23:49a thread of life taught.
23:50The moment he exerted himself
23:52past a certain point,
23:53the crisis would hit
23:54without warning.
23:55When it did,
23:56a hundred days
23:56of true heart essence
23:57wouldn't save him.
23:58That business with Jace,
24:00that wasn't you,
24:01was it?
24:01I let my eyes go wide
24:03with something
24:03that looked like awe.
24:04How did you manage
24:05it so cleanly?
24:06He just fell apart.
24:07I asked.
24:08He turned coy.
24:09For your sake,
24:10there's nothing
24:11I wouldn't do.
24:12I turned away
24:13and let out a quiet,
24:14cold laugh.
24:15The only reason
24:15he knew how to do
24:16any of this
24:16was because he had
24:17been Siren King
24:18once before.
24:19His body was a wreck,
24:20but the dirty knowledge
24:21that had stayed.
24:22He drained the bowl
24:23and licked his lips
24:24with slow satisfaction.
24:25Behind him,
24:26his tail flicked out
24:27in a slow arc.
24:28Showing off.
24:29After he left,
24:30Kaelin stepped out
24:30of the shadows.
24:31His expression was set
24:32and watchful.
24:33Alara,
24:34he's dangerous.
24:36Why are you helping him?
24:38I stared at the red stained bowl
24:39and let the question hang
24:40before I turned it back on him.
24:43What makes you think
24:44I'm helping him?
24:46Kaelin paused
24:47and I pressed immediately.
24:48The tournament is in three days.
24:50Do you believe
24:50you can take the crown?
24:51He reached back
24:52and closed his hand over mine.
24:53If my master wants it this badly,
24:55I'll throw my life
24:56on the line to win it.
24:57That, genuinely,
24:58inconveniently,
24:59made my face go red.
25:00I had assessed
25:00every merman in that tournament.
25:02As long as Kaelin fought
25:03at his actual level,
25:04this was already decided.
25:06On the day of the tournament,
25:07father came with us,
25:08along with Serafina.
25:09I hadn't seen Silas
25:10at the house
25:11since the day before.
25:12He had entered,
25:12then,
25:13he had to have.
25:14Kaelin.
25:14This match carries
25:15the family's name and standing.
25:17Give everything you have.
25:18Understood?
25:19Father's voice
25:20was low and firm.
25:21Serafina twisted her mouth
25:22to the side.
25:23But,
25:23unusually,
25:24she said nothing.
25:25I glanced at her sideways
25:26with the particular unease
25:27of someone who knows
25:28a quiet snake
25:29is worse than a loud one.
25:32Right before Kaelin
25:33was called to the arena floor,
25:34Serafina pulled a handkerchief
25:36from her bodice
25:36and moved to wipe his face.
25:38Kaelin never allowed
25:39strangers close to him.
25:40He stepped back immediately.
25:42Serafina's hand
25:43hung in empty air,
25:44the moment crystallizing
25:45into something awkward
25:46and ugly.
25:47Little sister,
25:47look at this merman of yours.
25:51I'm just
25:52wiping some sweat.
25:54If he becomes Siren King,
25:56it reflects on all of us,
25:58doesn't it?
25:59How petty.
26:02Huh?
26:02Helpful?
26:03I laughed,
26:04hollow and bright,
26:05and took the handkerchief
26:06out of her hand
26:07and dragged it
26:07across Father's face.
26:09What?
26:09Stop!
26:10The way Serafina's words
26:11failed completely confirmed
26:12what I already suspected
26:14about that cloth,
26:14so I scrubbed harder.
26:16What's wrong?
26:16The tournament matters,
26:18but Father has been
26:19standing in the heat for us.
26:20It's only right
26:21that I take care of him.
26:21While I was still talking,
26:23I pushed Kaelin
26:23toward the arena entrance.
26:25Two months of work.
26:26No one was going
26:26to dismantle it
26:27in the final seconds.
26:28Serafina began
26:29shifting her weight,
26:30watching.
26:31Her eyes kept
26:32cutting to Father.
26:33When he started to sway,
26:34I understood.
26:35A sedative.
26:36She'd laced it
26:36with a sedative.
26:38Father,
26:38are you alright?
26:39Father pressed a hand
26:40to his temple.
26:41Fine beads of sweat
26:42were already breaking out
26:43across his forehead.
26:44You were fine
26:46a moment ago.
26:47One wipe of a handkerchief
26:48and now this?
26:49I was still asking
26:50when Serafina's
26:50composure cracked.
26:54What are you insinuating?
26:57Father is just unwell.
26:59What does my handkerchief
27:00have to do with anything?
27:02Father was already
27:03too disoriented to speak.
27:04I turned to Serafina
27:05with a pleasant smile.
27:06Whether there's a problem
27:07or not,
27:08we'll find out
27:09when we test it.
27:10This time the drug
27:11had landed on Father.
27:12I couldn't see
27:13how he could look
27:13away from that.
27:14Serafina's goal
27:15was simple enough.
27:16Her own merman
27:17was finished.
27:17She simply refused
27:18to let Kaylin compete.
27:20But she had forgotten.
27:21As long as someone
27:21brought glory to the family,
27:23Father never cared
27:24who that person was.
27:26Once the tournament started,
27:27Kaylin tore through
27:28the brackets
27:28and into the final rounds
27:30without breaking a sweat.
27:31Father was barely conscious.
27:33Neither Serafina
27:34nor I had time
27:35to tend to him.
27:36When Silas appeared
27:37on the arena floor,
27:38Serafina's jaw dropped.
27:39His tail was ruined.
27:41He was a house servant.
27:43Why is he here?
27:44Then she seemed
27:44to grab hold of something.
27:46His tail can heal.
27:47Does that mean
27:47Jake still has a chance?
27:49That was you,
27:50wasn't it?
27:51How did you heal him?
27:53I tilted my head.
27:54Want to know?
27:55Feed him your own
27:56heart essence.
27:57Every day
27:58for 49 days.
27:59I told her the method
28:00with complete sincerity.
28:01But the moment
28:02Serafina heard the words
28:03your own,
28:04her entire face changed.
28:06For a merman?
28:07I'll just buy another one.
28:09But Alara,
28:11you healed Simus
28:12just to watch him
28:13fight Kaelin in the ring?
28:14Serafina looked at me
28:15like she was watching
28:16something too stupid
28:17to pity.
28:17I fixed my eyes
28:18on the arena
28:19and said nothing.
28:20Before we'd arrived,
28:21I had given Kaelin
28:22one instruction.
28:23If you face Silas
28:24in that ring,
28:25don't stop
28:26until he can't get up.
28:34All that chicken blood
28:36and herbs
28:36had been worth
28:37every drop.
28:38Silas and Kaelin
28:39finally stood
28:40face to face.
28:41Kaelin rolled his shoulders
28:42once
28:42and charged
28:43without a word.
28:44Silas had looked
28:45formidable
28:45against everyone else.
28:47But against Kaelin,
28:48he shattered instantly.
28:49Kaelin lifted Silas
28:50over his head
28:51and brought him down
28:52hard onto the arena floor.
28:53The scream that tore
28:55out of Silas
28:55squirted the air
28:56of the entire stadium.
28:58I was smiling.
28:59In my peripheral vision,
29:00Serafina had stopped
29:01being able to.
29:02How is Kaelin
29:03this strong?
29:04Less than a quarter
29:04of an hour
29:05into the match,
29:06Silas could barely crawl.
29:09Was still waiting.
29:11Waiting for the moment
29:12he pushed too hard
29:13and the blood came.
29:14He spent everything
29:15he had just dragging
29:16himself back upright.
29:18First thing he did
29:19when he was standing
29:20again was look
29:21for me in the crowd.
29:22I turned my gaze
29:23away, cold.
29:25That manufactured
29:26devotion in his eyes
29:27was nauseating.
29:28Silas threw his head
29:29back and gathered
29:30himself for one
29:31total all or nothing
29:32strike at Kaelin
29:33and then his hand
29:34flew to his own chest.
29:36A rush of blood
29:37spilled from his mouth.
29:39Kaelin didn't need
29:40to finish him.
29:41Silas put himself
29:42on the ground.
29:44Serafina.
29:45Kaelin won again.
29:47By the end
29:48of the final matches,
29:50his title as
29:51Siren King was absolute.
29:53Across the crowd,
29:54Kaelin found me
29:55and held my gaze.
29:56Serafina's back molars
29:58were going to crack
29:59under the pressure
29:59of her clenched jaw.
30:01Back at the house,
30:02it took until the
30:03following morning
30:04for father's head
30:05to clear.
30:06When he heard that
30:06Kaelin had won the
30:07tournament and claimed
30:08the Siren King title,
30:10father was overcome.
30:12He said good
30:13three times in a row.
30:15It seems I can
30:16rest easy
30:16leaving the family
30:17in your hands.
30:19Before I could respond,
30:21Serafina erupted.
30:22Father,
30:23I am the pack
30:24Hi-Ress.
30:25This house
30:25should pass to me.
30:26My merman
30:27was sabotaged.
30:28Otherwise,
30:29the Siren King
30:29would have been ours.
30:31Father delivered
30:32a few mild words
30:33of rebuke
30:34and seemed prepared
30:35to let the matter go.
30:36I reached into my bodice
30:38and drew out
30:38the handkerchief.
30:40Father,
30:41yesterday,
30:42before Kaelin's match,
30:43Serafina tried to
30:44wipe his face
30:45with this cloth.
30:46It contains a heavy sedative.
30:47You only came to yourself
30:48this morning because of it.
30:50This concerns
30:53the family's future.
30:56Serafina's intentions
30:57are unforgivable.
31:00Father's expression
31:01went still
31:01and then ignited.
31:03Thank God Kaelin
31:04stepped back.
31:05If that cloth
31:06had touched him,
31:06the Siren King's crown
31:07would have gone
31:07somewhere else entirely.
31:09You have spent
31:09your entire life
31:10competing with your sister
31:11and I have spent
31:11your entire life
31:12looking the other way.
31:13But it is clear to me
31:14now that this family
31:15cannot be given to you.
31:16Are you really
31:17fanning over Alara
31:18just because her merman
31:19won a tournament?
31:21How dare you!
31:24Get back to your room.
31:27Serafina,
31:28you are forbidden
31:29from keeping a merman
31:30from this day forward.
31:31Serafina was dragged out.
31:33That last sentence
31:34had sealed
31:34every exit she had left.
31:36Without a merman,
31:37what did she have left
31:38to use against me?
31:39Kaelin and I rose
31:40to a new position
31:40in the household,
31:42one that would hold.
31:43That night,
31:43Kaelin's tail moved
31:44in restless arcs
31:45across the bed.
31:46Are you going to sleep?
31:49Sleeping.
31:50Sleeping.
31:55What did you say
31:56to Simus
31:56after he went down?
31:59I told him
31:59he'd been drinking
32:00chicken blood
32:01the whole time.
32:01I was sorry.
32:03I told you
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