Chapter 157: 151: Feelings

Seraphina went to her side and looked at Ryu with her round liquid pool of ocean eyes. "Which one are you thinking more?"

".. ." Ryu was silent, couldn't comprehend why Seraphina was asking about it. 

But he answered in truth, "Ferris.

Seraphina's eyes rounded like a gawker who heard juicy gossip. "Not your mate?"

"There are certain circumstances that I'm thinking about Ferris more than Cecily." 

"Who is she in your life, by the way?"

"She's. .. she was the one who taught me everything there was to know in Septverden. She taught me to write and read. Taught me about magic and skills. I lost count on how many times she saved me. Without her, I wouldn't be here today."

Seraphina blinked slowly. There was something about Ryu's voice when he said Ferris's name. He might not know it, but Seraphina heard it. His usual clear and crisp voice was turning mellow, and the hard contours of his face softened as his eyelids dropped.

"She sounds really important to you."

".. ." Ryu nodded after a moment of silence.

There was a pang of jealousy in Seraphina's heart as well as gratefulness for this girl Ferris. And hope bud in her that maybe the mate's bond wasn't that hard to resist. That she too could like another even if it wasn't her mate. Being a half-beast and half-sprite, she might escape the mate bond.

"Where is she now?"

".. ." Ryu took to his side, back facing Seraphina. "Gone."

".. ." Seraphina's heart constricted at Ryu's desolate tone. "If you are happy with just being together and thinking about her, then your feelings aren't much. But if there comes a time that you keep thinking about her even if she's gone. . .  then, you must really have loved her."

Love? Ryu wasn't sure himself. Even his beast side was only obligated to love Cecily out of the mate bond. But Ryu was convinced that without it, he wouldn't feel a thing about Cecily.

He never thought about such a thing until he parted with Ferris with the thought of never meeting again. Even though they were separated before, he knew that she was mostly safe and because he knew that they would meet each other again, he never felt before what he was feeling now. 

Perhaps it always existed, but he never really realized it until she was gone. That tiny feeling within his heart grew more intense until it was irreversible. 

Whether that tiny feeling steamed from gratitude for all her help or for simply saving his life numerous times or because he was attracted to her personality. .. he didn't know. What he knew that while gratitude and attraction might sprout something. .. they weren't love at the end of the day.

Love was the mate bond. It was different. The grip of the bond of his heart to Cecily was overwhelming that with just the sight of her, he felt like drowning if he couldn't touch nor hear her voice.

And he knew that it was all thanks to his human half that he could still think about Ferris and felt something towards her even if it wasn't intense like he felt with Cecily.  He couldn't imagine if he was a purebred. .. how hard would that be to resist the mate bond?

But for now, he was focused on finding a cure for Ferris while also looking out for Cecily. 

"What about you?" Ryu changed the topic after the short silence. "Where were you raised?"

Seraphina closed her eyes and smiled. "Are we talking about me now?"

"It's only fair since I don't know anything about you except that you're a merc and you're finding a cure for your sick father."

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Seraphina huffed a laughed and faced Ryu's back. "My life isn't interesting. I don't know anything about my mother, and it was mostly my father who raised me. I was brought up in the sea, and my father was also mostly at sea, so I knew everything there was to know regarding the Ocean."

Ryu thought about the many sailors and fishers in the mortal realm, and maybe Seraphina was a daughter of a fisherman based on her story.

"My father taught me everything until I can walk on my own two feet. He taught me the knowledge of the sea. How to fight. How to use my magic. Even how to braid my hair so it won't get in the way when I hunt." 

Seraphina chuckled, but then the corners of her lips curved down a little. "But all those happy times became memories when I learned my father was sick."

".. . It must have been hard." Ryu didn't know how to offer sympathies, nor did he know what to do in this situation. He just faced Seraphina and patted her head like Ferris did to him in the past.

Seraphina forced a smile and wiped a tear from her eyes. "I'm not that sad anymore since I met you, though. You've become like a big brother at this point."

"I don't mind. I don't have siblings anyway."

Seraphina was stunned, and then a smile broke the sadness on her face. "Then it's decided." She grinned. "You're now officially my brother. If we get out of here alive, I'll introduce you to my father."

"Mm. . ." At this point, Ryu cared for Seraphina enough that he wanted to protect her at all times. So being a brother figure to her wasn't bad. He thought about Jane and Theodore's relationship, and he realized now that what he was feeling before was envy.

.. .

.. .

There was silence hung between them, but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. It was like they came to terms with their feelings, which put a smile on Ryu and Seraphina's faces.

"By the way," Ryu said after a period of time, "Do you know about the Horned Queens Mackerel?" 

Since Seraphina said that she knew the Ocean and assumed that she was a fisherman's daughter, Ryu thought that she might know about the fish.

Seraphina put a finger on her lips, and her eyes shot above her head. "Hmm. .. wait. If I remember correctly. .. I do have that fish."

Ryu shot to a sitting position. "What?" 

He was searching for the fish all this time only to be slapped on the face that Seraphina had one all along!

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