Then Seojun pushed off the cage.
With one powerful kick, he swam upward toward the surface.
Below him, left alone inside the cage, the stranger's panic exploded.
His tail slammed violently against the metal bars, striking every corner.
His shoulders collided with the frame, his head hitting the metal as he twisted desperately.
The strange thing strapped to his face made everything worse.
Each breath came with an unfamiliar pull of air through the device, cold and dry against his throat.
He didn't understand it.
He tried to shake it off, clawing weakly at the straps, but they were tightened too firmly.
The harder he struggled, the harder it became to breathe calmly.
Instinct took over.
He couldn't leave the water. He would die.
All his life he had only gone near the surface for brief moments—lifting his head into the air before returning to the safety of the deep ocean.
This was different.
The cage dragged him higher.
He clawed at the bars, trying to force his body between them. The metal scraped across his skin.
His arms, chest, and back tore against the rough edges until thin lines of blood spread across his body.
The waves tossed the cage violently with each swell, sending it rocking and slamming him unpredictably against the metal bars.
Cold seawater splashed over him, soaking the mask and making it even harder to breathe.
Still he struggled. Still he fought.
But the effort drained him.
His movements slowed, his breathing heavy through the mask, until finally his strength failed.
His body sagged against the floor of the cage as darkness threatened to pull him under.
For the first time, he allowed himself to see the ocean properly, to look at the reeds, the shadows, the water that had always been his world.
And now it was fading into black. Every glance downward made it vanish more, leaving only emptiness.
He felt a grief so deep it pressed against his chest—this was the last time he would see it, and he knew it.
Then something worse happened.
Sunlight.
The warm light of the surface touched his skin.
At first it was only a faint warmth across his shoulders. Then it spread.
The merman stirred weakly. His body trembled as a strange sensation crawled through his tail.
He couldn't feel it properly anymore.
Confused, terrified, he reached down and touched it.
Something was wrong.
The strong weight of his tail was… changing.
Inside his mind, in the language of his own world, he screamed silently to himself: No… Haejun… no
He tried to move his tail again—but it didn't obey.
The familiar strength was fading, shifting into something he didn't understand.
Meanwhile, above the water, Seojun finally broke through the surface.
He barely had the strength left to grab the side of the boat.
The captain rushed forward and pulled him aboard.
The moment Seojun collapsed onto the deck, the captain froze.
Seojun's hand was still bleeding badly, his body scraped and bruised from the dive.
"What the hell happened down there?" the captain demanded.
Seojun pushed himself up slightly, still gasping for breath.
"I'll tell you later," he said hoarsely.
"Just pull the cage up. Fast. There's an injured man down there."
The captain didn't ask anything else. He rushed to the controls and started hauling the cage up faster.
Below them, sunlight poured into the water.
With every second, Haejun's transformation continued.
The powerful tail that had once moved easily through the ocean slowly disappeared, reshaping itself as he rose closer to the surface.
By the time the cage finally broke through the water beside the boat, the stranger no longer had a tail. Two human legs replaced it.
As the cage swung toward the deck, he thrashed wildly inside, smashing his body against the bars in desperate attempts to escape.
Something was wrong.
The limbs that replaced his tail felt heavy and unfamiliar.
When he tried to move, they dragged uselessly against the metal floor.
He didn't understand them.
Ignoring them, he dragged himself across the floor using only his arms, shoulders straining against the bars, breathing uneven through the mask.
Blood streaked down his skin.
When the cage finally landed on the deck with a heavy thud, he curled into himself immediately.
Head lowered, arms wrapped tightly around his body.
Seojun looked at him for only a second before turning to the captain.
"Blanket," he said quickly. "Bring a blanket."
The captain hurried to grab one.
Seojun stepped closer to the cage, ready to cover the terrified stranger.
He resisted again, but the blood loss was betraying him.
His movements slowed further, his body growing heavier.
Seojun noticed immediately.
The stranger suddenly collapsed inside the cage, his strength giving out as darkness overtook him.
For a second his body went limp, barely moving.
"Hey—!"
Seojun rushed forward and quickly pulled the mask from his head.
The moment it was gone, the stranger stirred again, rolling onto himself instinctively.
He refused to lift his head
The sunlight above the deck was too bright.
He tried to cover himself, twisting away, body trembling as if the light itself would burn him.
The captain returned with the blanket.
Seojun climbed into the cage quickly.
The stranger was breathing hard, shallow and uneven, almost like someone dying.
"Easy… easy," Seojun muttered as he spread the blanket over him, covering his body.
Then he tried to lift him in his arms to carry him out.
The reaction was immediate.
The stranger's breathing broke apart, desperate and irregular.
His hands pushed violently against Seojun, trying to keep him away.
Seojun instantly let go.
The stranger rolled completely into the blanket, curling tightly, hiding his face. Only pale skin showed in brief flashes.
Seojun slowly reached a hand toward him. Immediately, the stranger shot out a trembling hand and pushed Seojun's away.
Head still lowered, he refused to look.
Seojun and the captain exchanged a glance.
The blanket shifted slightly, revealing more of the stranger's injuries.
Dark stains spread through the fabric where his wounds bled.
"We need to get him out of there," the captain muttered quietly. "He needs treatment."
"But how?" Seojun replied under his breath.
Every time they moved closer, the stranger became more aggressive, trembling constantly, heartbeat spiking.
He saw predators everywhere—the last creatures he would ever trust.
Seojun hesitated only a moment before making a decision.
"I'm getting him out."
"No—" the captain started, grabbing his arm. "Seojun, don't—"
But Seojun had already stepped toward the cage.
"I can't just leave him like this."
He climbed inside again carefully, speaking softly the entire time.
"Easy… it's okay… I'm not going to hurt you."
The stranger's body shook violently beneath the blanket.
Seojun could feel the cold radiating from him even through the fabric.
With blood loss, soaked hair, and skin, he had already lost too much body heat.
Thin trails of blood had already dripped onto the wet deck, spreading slowly across the floor as they mixed with the seawater.
Seojun frowned, glancing quickly at the captain.
"His body's getting cold," he said urgently. "He needs help now."
But the moment Seojun moved closer, the stranger reacted again.
He suddenly lunged forward, trying to bite him.
For the first time, the blanket slipped enough to see him clearly.
Both Seojun and the captain froze.
He was young—no more than his early twenties.
Black hair fell over his forehead, damp strands sticking to his skin.
His eyes barely opened—deep blue, wide with terror, squinting against the sunlight.
His expression was fierce with panic, but also raw, innocent fear.
Blood marked nearly every part of him—forehead, shoulders, chest, arms, and legs, but the worst injury lay across his back, dark stains spreading through the blanket.
Faint blue impressions from the mask pressed into his cheeks and nose, edges bruised from the tight straps.
Thin red lines streaked across his skin where he had slammed against the metal bars, small but sharp reminders of his desperate struggle.
And still he tried to look dangerous, trembling violently, as if it was the only way to survive.
Breathing shallow and fast, chest rising in small, rapid gasps.
Sunlight hit his pale skin, turning it faintly red in patches he had never exposed before.
Blood glistened in the light as he thrashed, smashing against the bars.
The captain shouted for Seojun to move back.
"He seems terrified—don't get too close!"
Seojun's eyes stayed on the thrashing figure.
"But—" he started.
"Seojun, stop," the captain cut him off sharply. "He's terrified. He doesn't understand you—he's trying to keep you away!"
Seojun froze, swallowing his words.
His instincts screamed to help, but he realized the captain was right.
The captain moved quickly.
"Seojun, keep an eye on him," he instructed.
"I'll be right back with the sedative."
Two minutes later, the captain returned.
"Seojun, hold him," he instructed.
Seojun hesitated, frowning.
"Wait… won't that hurt him?"
The captain shook his head.
"No. It'll calm him down. He needs it. He might sleep for the rest of the day."
Seojun held him tightly as the captain injected the sedative
"Done," he said.
From the bars, the stranger struggled, but the calming shot had already taken effect.
Movements slowed, resistance faded, until he finally collapsed, limp and exhausted.
Seojun held him carefully, surprised by how light and fragile he felt in his arms.