Nature Chose Me

Through the Waterway

“Open the gate!” Shouted one of the Mer on the top side of the wall. Staas and Gytha who were completely steady on their boat glared at those things that are about to behold before them.

*Craaaank…*

The gate which was made out of solid iron bars was slowly raised, all the way till it’s fully hidden inside the stone wall, away from the wetness of the waterway under it.

“Praise the All-father! That’s— that's gorgeous…” Gytha was fully mesmerized by the view presented beyond her eyes. It was a sight to behold, a city inhabited by the noblest of all mer.

The glorious giant fountain of Songmire was the first thing that caught their eyes. It was located at the center of this city, and behind it is the enchanted palace, covered by streams of water dancing around its walls. While the building itself is huge and towering onto the sky.

Neither of them could see its peak from where they sat.

“Why are you praising me, Gytha?” Asked Staas, a bit confused and not used to knowing that he’s the all-powerful creator who always comes out of Gytha’s praises and prayers.

“Hm? Aren’t you the one who created all of this?” But the girl somehow looked as confused as he was.

“I don’t know… my memories are very… not clear.” The boy tried his hardest to remember after hearing her question.

“Well, why don’t we meet the Naiad then, I’m sure she can tell us more about it, she’s one of the first beings who’s been alive since the start of the humanoid era after all.” Gytha then grabbed both of the paddles and offered one of them to Staas.

“What do you want me to do with this?” Said Staas as he took the offer.

“Just follow me.”

Actually, none of them ever row a boat before. But with how much knowledge Gytha possessed from books she read and news she heard, she at least got the gist of how to paddle.

The girl tried to row the boat with just one paddle, and that very boat began to turn instead of moving forward. The gatekeeper saw how amateur they both are when it came to rowing, and he immediately gave them proper instruction on what to do.

It was clear and easy to understand. Didn’t take long until they were both able to drive the boat they were given.

“All right! Thank you, sir! We’ll head off now~” Gytha waved at the gatekeeper as she and Staas row away into the city.

“Don’t cause any trouble, okay?” That mer was worried till he sweat-drenched. He kind of guessed that Staas is the reincarnation of the All-father, or maybe he just awake from a long slumber. But one thing that he’s certain, Staas doesn’t know much about the current world.

Now, their journey inside the city finally begins. They were rowing uniformly with each other, coursing through the waterway among the crowdedness of the city’s society.

Around them were many mer, minding their day-to-day business. Some were carrying loads on their boats, some went trading on the side shops, some just casually chatting with their mates. It’s a lively city, filled with inhabitant who walks on two legs on land and transform their lower half into fishtail to swim on water.

Mer skin is a bit scally, they look fish-like. And unlike nymphs, they do wear things to cover their embarrassment. Although, unlike humans or faeries, the male mer wore skirts just like the female. It’s just convenient with the nature of their lower half.

“Uhm, Gytha… why do all the girl fishes wear the same colors?” Staas pointed at the mermaids for using a black and white outfit. “Each of them also looks similar.”

“Well, there’s a history on that.” Gytha’s interest peaked when Staas asked about that question. “You see… the folks here is called as ‘Mer’. The male mer is called a merman, and the female one is called a mermaid.”

“Maid?” His mind wanders to one of the books he borrowed from her.

“Yup. You see… a maid always wore a uniform, and it’s classically colored black and white. They also have a curly pattern to their design.”

Both of them glared at the passing mermaid, to look closely at what she was wearing. Poor mermaid quickly turned red from those stares, troubled to handle all the attention she suddenly received.

She wore a black string bikini bra and a short skirt with half apron attached to it. On her neck is a choker and on both her upper arms are armbands, all of which are sewed out of ruffled laces.

Mer doesn’t really cover much of their skin unless they are one of the soldiers who wore fully plated armor. Mer’s clothes also seem to be coated with water magic that made them unable to get wet.

“I see… then why didn’t the male one called the merbutler?”

Amid their conversation, he realized that rowing the boats held them down from being more free looking around. So he took Gytha’s paddle, then grew two strong vines the size of his arm to row for them.

“You know about butler, Staas?” Gytha was a bit shocked hearing his word.

“I read them in one of your weird books.”

“Weird…?” She’s highly concerned, knowing well the nature of some of her books. “Well, I don’t quite know how to answer that. I mean, most of earlier knowledge in this world is from you, which you get from the Goddess herself.”

"Hmm..."

While they’re busy chattering to one another. One of the mermaids swam towards them through the depth of the waterway. Before they knew it, she already nested her arms at the backside of their boat.

“So you’re the All-father? You look really cute for an all-mighty being~” Without any warning, she struck a chatter with both of them.

“You know me?” Staas was quite surprised, especially with the fact that they’re no longer in his territory.

“Only from stories. There is news about the All-father smiting his wrath upon our city and spawned a gigantic enchanted forest outside the wall.” She said with an excited smile. “And of course, with you being this eye-catchy…”

Hearing her speak, both of them can quite get the gist of what’s happening. A weak sweat was dripping from Gytha’s forehead, as she remembered how it went with the gatekeeper.

“Aren’t you afraid?” Gytha asked.

Staas might think that what the mermaid means by eye-catchy is his way of rowing with thick plant vines. But Gytha fully knew that it was Staas terrifying aura that attracts the mermaid.

“Nah. If you’re really the All-father, then you won’t go all your way to hurt us, your creations.” The mermaid seemed pretty confident with her statement.

“I’ve just killed hundreds of knights yesterday though…” Staas went brutally honest with her regarding his brutality.

“Huh!?” The girl glared at him for a while, and his expression tells that he wasn’t lying at all. “I—I see…” She stuttered as her face turned grim.

“The knights were invaders, so you won’t need to worry about it. He won’t cause any trouble in this city.”  Gytha put up a warm smile, trying to calm the girl down.

“I—Is that so...?” The mermaid was slightly relieved hearing that. Yea… only slightly.

“By the way, what’s your name, miss mermaid?” Gytha asked her a question to distract her from this topic about mass murder.

“Leena. And it’s missus. I’m married.” She answered, a bit calmer than she was before.

“No way! But you look so young!” Gytha was stood in shock. Well, to be honest, it was mostly jealousy, since she’s been a virgin for more than a thousand years. Yet so do most of the Nymph in the Fatherwood forest, and a huge portion of those who are not are widows.

“Since when did this world ever uses appearance as an indication of age?” The mermaid smiled sarcastically, she was almost laughing. “Our Naiad is the oldest being on this city, yet she looks like she just hit the age to start drinking, and our All-father over here has the appearance of a teeny weeny, while he himself is as old as the first life.”

“Hey, that’s not nice!”

Staas isn’t happy with how she described him. His face went sour and so does his aura. The mermaid went trembled in fear because of it, even the other mer around them started having shivers coursing down their spine.

“Ahahaha…” Gytha awkwardly laughs. She honestly didn’t expect anyone to insult Staas after knowing fully he’s the All-father, let alone genocidal.

“Speaking of your Naiad Mrs. Leena, can you take us to her? I know the castle is just up ahead, but we don’t know the location of any of the entrances.” That girl was trying her best to restore the mood.

“Ah— yes— of course. Let me lead you the way!”

The mermaid quickly jumped back into the water. Not long after, the water surrounding them began to glow with the color of enchanted blue. Glimmer and sparkle shone around it, as it slowly raised the boat and created its own waves.

Staas stopped his vines from paddling since he was curious to see how the mermaid's magic will handle the thing they were riding. However, a little fear of being wet started to emerge in his heart.

“Let's on aboard, shall we?”

The mermaid gloriously jumped from one side of the boat to the other, with a proud smile carved on her face. As she splashed back into the water, the waves began to move and shooked the boat heavily. High on haste, she carried them at a speed that forced them to hold on to their dear lives.

“I—It’s just up ahead— oh, Father…” Gytha regretted ever asking that mermaid for help.