Chapter 1

You were a graduate student specializing in deep-sea biology, accompanying a research vessel to the Puerto Rico Trench for sampling.

That night, you were alone in the laboratory, organizing specimens.

The ship suddenly shuddered and groaned with violence.

An undersea earthquake. A landslide. A rogue current.

Before you could even react, a massive wave crashed onto the deck—

You were swept overboard.

Seawater flooded your mask, icy and biting to the bone.

You fought desperately to swim upward, but your body continued to sink.

Deeper and deeper.

Darker and darker.

The crushing pressure made your eardrums throb with agonizing pain.

This is it, you thought. I’m dead.

In the final moment before your consciousness faded into the void, you saw a light from below.

A spectral blue glow, rising from the deepest, most unreachable depths.

Ribbons of light drifted through the water as if they were alive.

In the center of that radiance, a pair of eyes snapped open.

Golden.

Slit pupils.

Staring directly at you.

Then, you were caught by something soft.

Warmth coiled around your waist, your legs, and your arms.

A voice resonated directly inside your mind:

"...Alive?"

You tried to answer, but darkness claimed you as you lost consciousness.

Chapter 2

When you woke, you were lying inside a colossal shell.

The inner walls of the shell shimmered with a pearlescent luster, casting a soft, warm light over you.

You bolted upright.

Breath—you were breathing.

No mask, no oxygen tank, yet you were deep underwater.

You looked down to find yourself dressed in a garment as thin as a cicada's wing; it wasn't yours.

Who had changed your clothes?

You climbed out of the shell.

Beneath your feet was fine, soft sand, and the space was decorated with coral and shipwreck remains, meticulously arranged to resemble a room.

Ancient runes were carved into the walls, flickering with light occasionally.

Bioluminescent schools of fish swam overhead, and a few jellyfish drifted in the corners like lanterns.

This wasn't a natural formation.

It was more like... a home?

You spotted an exit—a circular tunnel glowing with an eerie blue light.

After a moment of hesitation, you swam toward it.

Moving through the water felt surreal, like floating, yet you were truly breathing.

The tunnel was long, illuminated by glowing organisms on both sides.

You swam for about five minutes until a brighter light appeared ahead—the exit.

You quickened your pace.

Just as you were about to swim out—

A grip tightened around your ankle.

You looked down.

A spectral blue shadow had stretched out from the darkness, coiling around your ankle.

It was soft and slick, like some kind of tentacle. It didn't hurt, but it tightened firmly.

You froze.

A voice resonated directly inside your brain:

Don't leave.

Your heart nearly stopped beating.

You opened your mouth, but no sound came out.

In the darkness, more ribbons of blue light emerged, slowly gathering and merging into a silhouette.

He stepped forward.

Long silver hair drifted in the water like silk woven from moonlight.

His pale blue skin was covered in fine scales that shimmered with a pearlescent glow.

His features were impossibly handsome—a high bridge of the nose, thin lips, and golden slit pupils.

His upper body was bare, his muscle lines flowing and powerful.

His lower half was hidden in the shadows, but you could see those ghostly blue tentacles extending from behind his waist, one of which was still wrapped around your ankle.

He stopped a meter away.

He didn't speak; he just watched you.

Only then did you realize how tall he was.

Standing before him, the top of your head barely reached his chest. His shoulders were as broad as a wall, blocking out the light behind him.

Your face was reflected in those golden slit pupils.

You forgot to be afraid, simply staring at him in a daze.

He reached out, his fingertips brushing against your cheek.

It was cool, but the movement was as gentle as if he were afraid of breaking something.

His fingertips moved to your lips, pressing lightly.

He tilted his head slightly, as if studying something fascinating.

Subconsciously, you took a step back.

The tentacle wrapped around your ankle immediately tightened, pulling you back to your original spot.

He still didn't speak.

But those slit pupils stared at you, and the meaning was crystal clear:

Don't even think about running.

Chapter 3

He brought you back to the shell chamber.

Along the way, those tentacles remained wrapped around your waist, neither too tight nor too loose, like a living belt.

You tried to struggle once. They immediately tightened a fraction.

He shot a glance back at you.

Just one look.

You didn't dare move again.

Back at the giant shell, he released his hold and gestured toward the interior with a tilt of his chin.

You stood still, unmoving.

He watched you for a while, then suddenly reached out—you thought he was going to seize you, but he simply ruffled your hair.

His hand was massive. Covering the crown of your head, his five fingers spread out just enough to encompass your entire skull.

The movement was incredibly gentle.

Then he turned and swam toward the darkness.

The tentacles followed behind him like obedient pets.

He vanished at the end of the tunnel, leaving you alone.

You sat down by the edge of the shell.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do, you comforted yourself. At least he hadn't eaten you, right?

You began to observe this "room."

The coral had been pruned, the shipwreck remains were arranged as decor, and there was even an area carpeted with tiny glowing pebbles, resembling a starry sky.

In a corner lay a pile of radiant pearls.

There were also several strange fruits placed atop a flat stone.

You were hungry.

You picked up a fruit and sniffed it; it had a faint scent of seaweed.

Taking a small bite—it was sweet and crisp, like a hybrid of jelly and coconut flesh.

You finished it in a few bites and reached for another.

After eating your fill, drowsiness set in. You climbed back into the shell and curled up.

The inner walls were as smooth as silk, maintained at a consistently comfortable temperature.

You closed your eyes, thinking that perhaps this was all a dream and you would wake up tomorrow.

After an unknown amount of time, you felt something coiling around your wrist in your dazed state.

Soft, slick, and gently stroking you.

You opened your eyes.

In the darkness, a pair of golden slit pupils were watching you silently.

You nearly screamed.

In the next instant, those tentacles gathered around you softly, covering you like a blanket.

It wasn't cold; instead, it carried a slight warmth.

He lay on his side next to you, propping his head up with one hand, just watching you.

Even lying down, he appeared significantly larger than you. The tentacles draped down, the thickest one wider than your waist.

You opened your mouth, wanting to ask something.

He raised a hand, pressing a fingertip against your lips.

Sleep.

That voice resonated in your brain once more.

You looked into his slit pupils.

Those tentacles gently patted your back.

Whether you were too exhausted or the warmth of the tentacles was too comforting, you actually fell asleep again.

When you woke once more, he was gone.

But a faint mark remained on your wrist—the place where he had held you.

Chapter 4

Over the next few days, you slowly grew accustomed to life here.

He would visit several times a day.

Sometimes he brought glowing pearls, other times he brought that strange fruit.

He never spoke aloud, simply sitting to one side, watching you eat, watching you daydream, or watching you try to talk to the bioluminescent fish.

His tentacles were always near you.

Sometimes they coiled around your ankle, sometimes around your waist, and sometimes they just swayed gently within your reach.

You discovered that those tentacles seemed to have a consciousness of their own—

When you were afraid, they would encircle you protectively.

When you were bored, they would offer you a pearl to play with.

When you tried to swim away, they would block your path—never hurting you, just remaining persistent.

He never explained why you were able to breathe.

You had asked, but he only watched you in silence.

Until the fourth day.

That day, he arrived earlier than usual.

You were sitting by the shell, lost in thought, when he suddenly reached out and pressed his palm against your chest.

You froze.

His palm was cool, but a wave of warmth surged through, penetrating your skin and reaching straight to your lungs.

That sensation was cozy and warm, like being soaked in tempered water.

You looked up at him.

He watched you.

After a long silence, the voice finally resonated in your mind:

What you breathe is my essence.

Your eyes widened.

Leave me, and you will die.

Your heart sank instantly.

You opened your mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say.

He had saved you, but he had also trapped you in this way.

Observing your expression, he reached out and ruffled your hair, just as he had done before.

It is safe here.

You looked up at him.

The silver hair, the blue skin, the golden slit pupils.

This face was so beautiful, yet it made you feel afraid.

You wanted to ask, "Will you hurt me?"

But before the words could leave your lips, you saw his tentacles quietly coiling around your wrist, stroking you gently as if confirming your existence.

You looked down at those ghostly blue tentacles.

The strength of the coil was very light, so light it almost felt like a caress.

A question suddenly crossed your mind.

"How long... have you been here alone?"

His movements paused for a moment.

A long time passed before the voice answered:

A long time.

"Is there no one else?"

No.

Looking at his downcast eyelashes, your heart suddenly softened.

To stay alone in the depths of the ocean for thousands of years—how lonely must that be?

Before you could speak, he suddenly raised his head and looked at you.

Your face was reflected in those golden slit pupils.

You stay.

It wasn't a request.

It was a declaration.

You looked into his slit pupils and didn't answer.

The tentacles tightened slightly.

He was still waiting.

You didn't know what to say.

Then, a tentacle suddenly tickled your waist gently.

You were so ticklish that you couldn't help but laugh out loud.

His eyes brightened instantly.

More tentacles crowded closer, softly rubbing against your arms, neck, and cheeks; it was so ticklish you kept trying to dodge them.

"Stop it..." you laughed, trying to push him away.

But he was as immovable as a rock, and the tentacles only became more playful.

As you laughed, you suddenly realized—

You weren't that afraid anymore.

That night, you curled up in the shell. He lay beside you as usual, with his tentacles draped over you like a blanket.

You closed your eyes, thinking about what he had said.

Leave me, and you will die.

It was a threat, but it was also a fact.

But you were already here.

By his side, within his essence, and entwined in his tentacles.

You could feel his gaze constantly resting on your face.

Those tentacles gently stroked your wrist.

You didn't know what the future would hold.

But at this moment, in this abyss ten thousand meters deep, within these ancient ruins, under the watch of those golden slit pupils—

You fell asleep.

You slept more peacefully than ever before.