Chapter 1041: The Mermaid the Sea Delivered

The gigantic squid continued advancing slowly across the expanse of Black Ice, leaving behind a wide, irregular path where the raging ocean was beginning to appear once again.

Its tentacles latched onto the frozen plates and forced them apart with astonishing strength, breaking through a structure that had withstood without difficulty the colossal waves that had threatened Asgard only minutes earlier.

Xyn remained suspended in the air, her enormous Black Phoenix wings spread wide while small dark flames moved across her feathers.

She still hadn’t attacked because, despite the creature’s monstrous size and the frightening ease with which it destroyed Strax’s ice, she couldn’t sense any hostile intent coming from it.

Then the squid stopped.

One of its enormous tentacles slowly rose until it was only a few centimeters away from Xyn, but it made no attempt to touch her.

The creature’s massive eyes remained fixed on her while a strange sensation began passing through the Phoenix’s consciousness.

Xyn tilted her head slightly.

Because of her very nature, understanding nonhuman creatures had never been particularly difficult.

Animals rarely communicated through organized thoughts the way people did, but feelings, images, desires, and intentions could be interpreted by her almost instinctively.

And that creature was desperately trying to communicate something.

Xyn lowered her gaze toward the second tentacle.

That was when she saw the body.

"Strax, we have a visitor."

The mental message immediately crossed the connection between them, carrying with it the concern Xyn felt about the unexpected situation.

She descended several meters and carefully approached the body being carried by the creature.

The shorter the distance became, the more obvious it was that this was definitely not an ordinary human woman.

"A mermaid..."

Xyn murmured almost to herself as she landed on an intact section of Black Ice and finally got a proper look at the stranger.

The young woman possessed long red hair that spread across the tentacle like strands of wet silk.

Some locks clung to her delicate face, while others were mixed among countless marine ornaments, pearls, small blue jewels, and crystalline structures forming something resembling an elegant crown.

Her skin was fair and delicate, almost luminous beneath the bluish reflection of the ice around them.

Her clothing was predominantly white and blue, made from light, translucent fabrics decorated with crystals, pearls, and details resembling tiny gleaming scales.

But the feature that removed any doubt began below her waist.

Instead of legs, she possessed a long tail covered in bluish scales, shifting between deep blue, silver, and white depending on how the light struck them.

Near the end, large translucent fins opened like delicate veils, giving her an almost ethereal appearance.

Xyn moved closer and watched her chest.

She was breathing.

Slowly.

But breathing.

"Strax, come here. I can understand animals because I’m a Phoenix, and this squid seems to want to speak directly with whoever is responsible for Asgard."

Xyn sent another mental message while keeping her eyes on the creature, clearly sensing concepts of urgency, protection, and authority being transmitted into her mind.

It didn’t even take a few seconds.

A presence appeared beside her without warning.

A hand landed on her shoulder.

"Good work. Thanks for noticing this coming."

Strax spoke calmly while standing beside Xyn, completely indifferent to the small jump she made when someone suddenly appeared behind her.

Xyn quickly turned her head and shot him an irritated look, but decided not to complain at that moment.

There was a colossal squid in front of them, an unconscious mermaid being carried by it, and an entire ocean that had just gone insane.

Strax removed his hand from Xyn’s shoulder and walked several steps across the Black Ice.

The squid showed no aggression toward his approach.

Quite the opposite.

One of its tentacles slowly lowered, bringing the unconscious woman closer to him.

Strax narrowed his eyes.

The Gauntlet of Darkness immediately vibrated.

It was only a small reaction because of the exhausted state it was still in, but it was strong enough for Strax to realize that there was something about that woman drawing its attention.

He ignored it for now.

"Did this happen because of the tidal waves?"

Strax questioned the squid directly while watching its enormous eyes, paying attention to the instinctive response that immediately reached his consciousness.

Xyn opened her mouth, ready to translate what she had understood, but stopped when she realized Strax had nodded on his own.

"Wait... you understood her?"

The Phoenix asked as she turned completely toward Strax, too surprised to hide the disbelief on her face.

Strax gave her a brief glance.

"I’ve always been able to do that."

The answer came so naturally that Xyn stared at him for several seconds, trying to decide whether he was joking or genuinely considered that perfectly ordinary information.

"Why did you never tell me you could talk to animals?"

Xyn questioned while one of her wings twitched behind her, involuntarily revealing her irritation at yet another strange ability Strax had apparently never considered important enough to mention.

Strax shrugged.

"When Zi Bai was still an ordinary horse, I could already understand her."

He answered as a brief memory of the former Apocalypse passed through his mind, long before she had taken on the refined form she possessed now.

Xyn blinked several times.

"You could understand Zi Bai when she was literally still a horse?"

The question came out slowly as Xyn seemed to reconsider several old interactions between Strax and his former mount that suddenly made much more sense.

Strax nodded.

"After I truly obtained my Dragon form, things like that became even easier."

He explained without showing any particular concern about the ability before simply returning his attention to the gigantic creature before them.

Xyn remained silent for several seconds.

There were definitely too many questions to ask later.

Strax approached again.

"You want us to take care of this woman until she wakes up?"

The question was directed straight at the squid, which immediately moved its tentacles and transmitted a much clearer sequence of intentions to him.

Protection.

Rest.

Recovery.

Return to the ocean.

Strax understood.

"You want us to protect her until she recovers and can return to the ocean."

He confirmed aloud while watching the creature’s reaction, immediately receiving an affirmative sensation in response.

Even so, Strax didn’t agree immediately.

His eyes returned to the mermaid.

She was a stranger.

And Asgard had just survived a maritime catastrophe that could have destroyed a significant portion of the city.

"Is she important enough for you to cross kilometers of my ice just to ask me to take care of her?"

Strax asked seriously while crossing his arms, making it clear through the change in his expression that this information would determine whether or not he allowed the stranger to be brought into Asgard.

The answer came immediately.

Yes.

Not merely important.

Very important.

The squid didn’t possess enough human words or concepts to explain the woman’s exact position, but Strax received images and feelings associated with respect, protection, responsibility, and something very close to authority.

He narrowed his eyes.

"Are there pursuers after her? Anyone who might follow you to my city?"

Strax asked another question before accepting any responsibility.

He had no intention of putting Asgard at risk for someone whose identity he didn’t even know.

The squid immediately denied it.

Then transmitted other images.

Strax saw the ocean.

He saw an explosion of energy tearing through the depths.

He saw the mermaid struck directly by that force.

Her body had been violently thrown through the water before crashing into a vast coral formation.

After that, she simply hadn’t awakened.

The squid’s concern became almost tangible.

"So she was hit by a wave of energy, crashed into the coral, and lost consciousness."

Strax slowly summarized while mentally reconstructing the images he had received, realizing that it matched perfectly with the moment the oceans had begun going insane.

The squid confirmed again.

Strax watched the mermaid for several more seconds.

"She hasn’t woken up since then."

He concluded, immediately receiving another confirmation accompanied by even greater concern from the enormous sea creature.

That at least eliminated one of the more dangerous possibilities.

There was no maritime army behind her.

No assassins.

No pursuit capable of turning Asgard into a battlefield.

Strax slowly exhaled.

"I’ll take care of her temporarily."

He finally declared as he uncrossed his arms, immediately noticing the tension disappear from the creature’s movements at the answer.

Even so, Strax raised one finger.

"But if anything connected to her puts Asgard in danger, my city takes priority."

His voice remained calm, but completely serious.

The squid seemed to perfectly understand the condition he had established.

Strax then raised one hand.

Demonic and draconic energy spread gently around the mermaid, surrounding her body without placing pressure on any injury.

The squid carefully loosened its tentacle.

The woman began to float.

Strax slowly brought her closer while examining the small cuts scattered across her arms, several damaged scales, and reddish marks probably caused by the collision with the coral.

Nothing looked immediately fatal.

"Now I need to know where you intend to stay, because I’m going to have to freeze everything you destroyed to get here all over again."

Strax commented while glancing behind the creature, looking at the enormous path opened through kilometers of Black Ice.

The squid slowly turned its body toward the ocean.

The answer reached him.

It would remain at a distance.

It would wait.

When its mistress awakened, she would be able to call it.

Strax nodded.

"Then stay nearby. When your mistress wakes up, she can call you."

He answered as the creature slowly began retreating through the same path it had created, apparently satisfied to leave the woman in his care.

Before it moved too far away, Strax added one more thing.

"And try not to break any more of my ice."

He spoke while looking directly at one of the enormous tentacles, receiving a sensation surprisingly close to embarrassment from the creature.

Xyn let out a small laugh.

Strax partially released the magic supporting the mermaid and carefully slipped one arm behind her back.

The other went beneath her tail.

He lifted her into his arms like a princess.

Because the tail was too long to rest entirely across his arms, a thin layer of energy continued supporting its end, preventing the delicate fins from dragging across the ice.

The mermaid’s head gently fell against his chest.

She didn’t wake.

Strax turned toward Xyn.

"Go ahead and tell Frieren to prepare a bed. Also tell her we’re going to need to examine a marine creature."

He gave the order while carefully adjusting the mermaid’s position, taking particular care around the areas where her scales had been damaged.

Xyn nodded.

"I’ll tell her to have everything ready before you arrive."

The Phoenix answered while black flames began traveling over her wings again and her body prepared to take flight.

Strax immediately added:

"And stop Frieren from turning this into an opportunity to gather half the laboratory around her."

He knew the ancient elf well enough to imagine exactly how she would react to receiving an unknown intelligent species to examine.

Xyn smiled.

"That part will probably be harder."

She commented before fully opening her wings and shooting toward Asgard, leaving a trail of tiny black flames across the sky.

Strax remained alone on the Black Ice.

The squid had already begun disappearing into the distance, slowly returning toward the regions where the ocean remained free beneath the broken plates.

For several seconds, Strax simply looked at the mermaid in his arms.

Now that they were so close, he could examine her face more clearly.

Her long red hair was still wet and partially stuck to her shoulders, while tiny pearls and blue jewels remained perfectly fitted among the strands.

The delicate ornamentation around her head made her look like someone of elevated status even without considering what the squid had communicated.

She slept peacefully.

Perhaps too peacefully.

Her breathing was soft.

Her eyes remained closed.

No tension appeared on her face.

If not for the small injuries scattered across her body and her complete lack of reaction, she would simply look like someone resting comfortably.

Strax tilted his head slightly.

"How cute. You don’t even look like someone carrying all of Poseidon’s power and causing this entire mess."

He commented to himself while looking at her serene expression, finding an almost ridiculous contrast between the stranger’s delicate appearance and the chaos that had just struck the entire ocean.

The Gauntlet of Darkness immediately trembled.

Strax lowered his eyes.

One vibration.

Then another.

The violet lines remained almost completely dim due to the exhaustion suffered during the previous tests, but the black metal continued reacting with an intensity that couldn’t be mistaken.

It wasn’t the squid.

It never had been.

It was her.

Strax slowly returned his gaze to the mermaid.

The divine energy he had felt spread throughout the ocean was inside that woman.

It wasn’t merely similar.

It was the same presence.

And there was a lot of it.

An absurd amount.

Strax carefully adjusted the mermaid against his chest as his expression became more analytical.

The squid believed she had simply been struck by the wave of energy, but that didn’t completely explain what he was sensing.

Perhaps that energy had entered her during the impact.

Perhaps it had already been inside her beforehand.

Or perhaps the mermaid herself was directly connected to the phenomenon that had driven the oceans into chaos.

He still didn’t have enough information to decide.

For now, there was only one certainty.

That small sleeping mermaid, now resting peacefully in his arms as though nothing had happened, carried within her own body an enormous amount of the power Strax had associated with Poseidon.

And somehow, the sea had chosen to deliver her directly to Asgard.