Chapter 96: THIRD POV.

Jacob quickly morphed into his merfolk form on splashing into the water in a flash of blue light.

The bright light lasted for only a split second before it faded away into the dark blue ocean, his human clothes conveniently vanished, as his legs joined together into a long, powerful black shark tail covered in glowing scales.

A perc of being a merfolk.

His gills opened up, his ears turning into fins, letting him breathe the salty water easily as if it were fresh air.

Once changed, his tail sped fast as he tore through the water. He was incredibly quick in this form, cutting through the heavy ocean currents like a sharp knife.

He didn’t have to struggle against unlike humans, instead, he felt completely at home in the deep.

It’d been long since he returned to this form after all.

His eyes were now more perceptible after changing forms. In his merfolk shape, his vision became much sharper and clearer under the water, allowing him to see through the murky darkness and the thick trails of black ash that were drifting down from the burning ship above.

’ I’ve got to hurry!’ Jacob felt urgent, who knew whether someone was drowning right this instant.

He swam around the sinking wreckages and down below, looking for any survivors.

He moved in wide circles around the falling debris, checking behind broken doors, shattered furniture, and torn pieces of sail.

The more destruction he saw, the more frustrated he felt, thinking to himself, how could someone do such a thing, to cause this much horror, were they even human at this point?

He continued to search and search, until.

’Found one!’ Jacob’s heart accelerated when he saw a figure sinking in the water.

The person was drifting downward slowly, their arms and legs moving limply with the current.

Jacob didn’t waste a single heartbeat. He kicked his powerful tail hard, sending a burst of bubbles behind him as he shot through the dark water.

Within seconds, he quickly sped over and grabbed the person in his arms, holding them tightly against his chest to stop them from sinking any deeper into the dark trenches below.

However, his expression turned disappointed on seeing the man’s lifeless eyes.

The man’s face was completely pale, and his chest wasn’t moving at all. The poor guy had been dead far too long already. There was no warmth left in him, and his spirit had already departed.

Jacob let out a heavy sigh beneath the waves, bubbles escaping his lips. But as he looked at the dead man, something caught his attention.

’Wait... Haven’t I seen this outfit before?’ Jacob wondered to himself, his eyebrows drawing together as he studied the clothes.

It wasn’t that he’d seen it, but he could roughly remember an outfit like this being described in the novel.

If only his memory was a steel trab, but after everything he’d endured so far, it wasn’t surprising he’d begin to forget a few things.

The man’s outfit was quite formal, like some kind of guard. It consisted of a dark blue jacket with silver buttons, and a specific emblem sewn into the collar.

Just judging by the outfit alone was enough to instill an air of high standing into one, clearly this wasn’t some normal guard.

In the end, he closed the poor fella’s eyes out of respect and gently let him go. He watched the man drift for a second before he swam away, looking for more survivors.

He couldn’t afford to waste time mourning when there might still be living people who needed his help right now.

Unfortunately, the search didn’t go well. Each time he found someone drifting in the currents, they were already dead due to severe blood loss or a serious injury.

The scene below the water was just as horrible as the one above. Some of the bodies had deep sword gashes across their chests, while some had severed limbs, courtesy of the wicked pirates. It was clear that the raiders hadn’t just sunk the ship; they had actively slaughtered everyone they could get their hands on, showing absolutely no mercy to those who begged for their lives.

The more Jacob searched, the more hopeless he felt. A heavy weight started to press down on his chest.

Was he too late? Had Priscilla and he arrived only to witness a graveyard?

The anger inside him was burning hotter and hotter with every dead body he passed.

The more he saw, the more he felt that those laughing pirates on the surface deserved whatever Priscilla was about to do to them.

CLANG! CLANG!

’What?’ Jacob’s fin ears suddenly twitched when he heard a sound in the water.

It was a sharp, metallic noise that echoed through the muffled silence of the sea.

It sounded like metal being struck, vibrating through the water and striking his sensitive ears.

His face turned stern, his eyes narrowing as he instantly locked onto the direction of the noise.

He didn’t hesitate for a fraction of a second; he turned his body and quickly swam over, his tail moving rapidly.

On reaching the place, his heart skipped a beat when he saw a little girl struggling within what looked like a metal cage.

The sight was enough to make his blood run cold. It was a small, heavy cage, the bars thick and sturdy, and it was sinking slowly into the depths.

Inside, a tiny child was trapped, her small hands gripping the cold metal bars.

The cage had a long, heavy chain attached to the top. Glancing up, the chain seemed to go upwards, out of the water, leading all the way up to one of the pirate ships floating on the surface.

AN: Hey everyone, hope you’re still enjoying the story so far. My what a mess, who’d expect Jacob to find such a scene at the bottom of the sea, what a messy reunion if ask me. Those pirates really are a nasty bunch. Also, please don’t forget to support with gems and tickets. I know it’s tough but any amount will suffice, I ain’t greedy, just want a treat from time to time.