A crew of four fishermen rode on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. They were a few miles away from Charlestown, Rhode Island.

One of the men looked at the dark skies and clicked his tongue. "It’s been months. I’ve grown sick of not seeing the sun."

"You can take a vacation to a Blue Gate dungeon. It’s normal in those places," a younger man in his mid-twenties replied as his hair swooped about in the wind.

"I hate those dungeons. There’s no way I’m taking a vacation in a place where beasts could just storm in at any moment."

"Why are you fishing then?"

"I was born for the sea, boy."

The others chuckled while the young man scoffed. Because of the Mana Eclipse, Earth was in perpetual darkness, so they had to use lights while moving through the sea, even though it was daytime.

"A great catch," a balding man chuckled as he watched their catch squirming frantically in the net. Some had grown weak.

"It can’t be..." the younger man suddenly said, forcing everyone to look in his direction. They saw him staring out into the darkness, at a faint figure by a rock.

A rock? They’d gone through the route several times and had never seen it, and that slender figure resting on it... could that be?

"A mermaid?!" The balding man’s pitch rose by several levels. He held the railing, squinting along with the other men, except the unfortunate driver, who desperately wanted to see as all the other guys went wild when they confirmed that slender figure might actually be a mermaid.

The driver finally couldn’t resist the urge and glanced in their direction. There, on a smooth rock protruding from the ocean surface, lay a feminine figure.

Her long, silky black hair was more delicate than anything he had ever seen. Maybe the darkness affected his vision.

But the light allowed him to make out her figure. Her waist was in the water, and she wore a bra made from clamshells. Those clamshells were quite big enough to hold her bust.

The balding man whistled while the younger man rushed at the driver. "What are you doing? Turn around! We’ve got to check this out."

"You heard him!" the balding man said.

"What in the world is that?" The first man looked apprehensive. The creature was lying facing the sky. Her hair spread out, covering a major portion of the rock and floating on the water.

The driver turned the fishing boat but stopped a safe distance away. However, their bright light shone right on the resting creature.

It spun, holding the rock and staring at them with a frightened face. When the four men saw the creature’s face, there was a moment of silence.

The bald man tapped the apprehensive man. "You’re seeing this." He whistled. "We’re making headlines. The first natural Humanoid Beast in our own world." He leaned on the railing.

"What a delicate thing."

The creature, with the delicate features of a woman whose looks could entrap a man, cocked her head in confusion and curiosity.

The first man, who was once apprehensive, recoiled in disgust when he noticed his thoughts of her looks.

"What fish turned into this?"

The balding man looked at him in disappointment. The younger one slapped the first man’s shoulder. "I say we capture it. It’s not even running. What a naive creature."

"Go closer!" The balding man gestured to the driver.

"Wait! What sea creature did this thing grow from?" The first man asked, taking a few steps back. A strange fear mixed with disgust rose in his chest. His heart began to beat a little faster.

To him, this thing was an abomination.

Yes, people might see him as strange and dislike him heavily, but he wasn’t getting close to any strangely shaped creature.

Fish and man.

A big no, thanks.

Seeing this, the balding man sighed heavily. "Send your dolphin down there.... If—!" He paused, then frowned. Wait. If this thing indeed grew here, doesn’t that mean it evolved from something? It wouldn’t exactly look like the mermaids in pictures and movies or the ones those Humanoid Summoners have.

Those ones were pretty, so was this one.

Or was it a beast from a dungeon that had opened underwater? If that was true, then it would have long since attacked them.

The youngest man summoned a huge dolphin with thick, carapace-like armour that dropped headfirst into the water. Upon activating Resonance, his eyes gleamed, and he could see through his dolphin’s eyes.

His vision changed, and he saw the underwater. What extended below the rock was the mermaid’s tail, but it spread out into a much bigger bulbous part with eight thick tentacles, each with hundreds of suckers.

A chill crept up the young man’s spine. His radiant expression froze, then it died out, and he snapped his head toward the driver and retrieved his dolphin at that same moment.

"Get us out of here!" His voice wasn’t just urgent, it contained terror.

In a heartbeat, the boat was quickly heading away from the strange creature, and its innocent and curious expression faded the further they went.

Then it sank into the water.

The young man grabbed his head. "We’re dead! We’re dead!" His voice was soft as he whispered to himself in gasps.

"What did you see?" The balding man grabbed the young man.

"Whatever he saw isn’t what you want to set your eyes on, especially when it puts him in that state. And I have a feeling that thing is following us."

At that moment, the fishing boat stopped. It almost turned upside down due to the force of what suddenly held it in place.

"Get us out of here!" The balding man yelled frantically, cold sweat decorating his bald head as his eyes danced about.

"What tier is it? For God’s sake, what is that thing?!" He screamed at the young man, who had no need to answer as two tentacles latched onto the boat.

When the balding man saw the tentacles, he almost fainted.

The driver kept trying to move the boat, but it wasn’t possible. "Move... Move, you stupid boat!!" He cursed a boat he always held dear, even giving it the name Darling.

The balding man struggled to regain his courage. "We can—!"

He turned and saw the first man was already off the boat. He only saw the tentacles flinging him into the distance.

The beautiful woman rose out of the water, this time with a scowl.

"Enough." A soft voice rang, and a bright blue light flashed underwater. In the next moment, the monster noticed an enormous, no, colossal snake-like creature swirling around them.

Droplets of cold water fell from the sky, splattering on her face.

Her eyes settled on a silhouette in the distance. As he approached, the waves rose and fell, welcoming him.