Chapter 4
“I once watched a horror movie about a man-eating shark. It was so aggressive it would bite and tear apart any human it saw…”
“That’s all stupid nonsense. I don’t go around biting every land-dweller I see. Fish, maybe.”
At that moment, Sharkrof cut in. With his sharp hearing, he seemed to have understood every word we said.
We froze in embarrassment. We hadn’t thought anyone could hear us at that volume.
“How did you hear that?”
I asked.
“Sharks naturally have keen senses. Anyway, I have no intention of becoming a dangerous person… for the most part. I only came to repay Miss Marina for her kindness.”
“And how exactly do you explain what you did to me? You suddenly rushed at me, threw me to the ground, and growled that you’d kill me if I didn’t shut up.”
Phineas grumbled.
“You’re not Miss Marina. I don’t care what happens to any land-dweller who isn’t her.”
Sharkrof replied in a completely dry tone.
“You heard that, right? He’s definitely dangerous…”
Phineas whispered in a frightened voice, rubbing the goosebumps on his arm.
Honestly, I agreed with him.
It felt like I should somehow tame Sharkrof a little.
“Sharkrof, Phineas is my friend. If you want to win my favor, please treat Phineas kindly too.”
I said.
“Does a shark even understand the concept of friendship?”
Phineas muttered quietly.
Once again, Sharkrof heard him perfectly.
“I know what the word ‘friend’ means. It’s someone you hunt with.”
He said this with complete seriousness.
“Hunt? No, I think you’re misunderstanding the meaning…”
“And knowing that you and Miss Marina are that kind of relationship makes me depressed. I’ve been planning that once I grew up and could transform into a human, I would immediately run to Miss Marina. I swore I would become her hunting partner before anyone else. But why did you get there first? It feels too late now. It’s frustrating.”
“You don’t need to feel frustrated for such a reason. Miss Marina and I have never hunted together. On land, no one uses the word ‘friend’ to mean someone they hunt with.”
Phineas said, exasperated.
“Anyway, now that I know about your close relationship with Miss Marina, I really dislike you. Of all the land-dwellers I know, I dislike you the most. Though the only land-dwellers I know are you and Miss Marina. Still, I dislike you the most. If Miss Marina hadn’t told me to treat you kindly…”
Sharkrof trailed off ominously, baring his teeth.
If he kept his mouth shut, Sharkrof could almost be called a strikingly handsome man, albeit with a cold air about him.
But the moment he revealed his shark teeth, that impression changed entirely.
Baring teeth and growling had never once been a friendly gesture. And when a shark-man with blade-like teeth did it, the sense of menace was on a completely different level.
Fortunately, Sharkrof soon returned to his usual indifferent and composed expression.
“I suppose it can’t be helped. I am a shark who knows gratitude. I’ve decided to obey whatever my lifesaver says.”
He turned to me.
“Now that we’re back at the shop, I’ll continue what I was doing. Where should I put this table?”
“Please place it at the edge of the front yard.”
“Here?”
“Yes.”
“No. Not here.”
“Why?”
Instead of answering immediately, Sharkrof looked briefly at the gentle waves rolling in from afar.
“The waves will reach this spot. Probably tonight. If you leave anything here, it’ll just get swept away again.”
“How can you know that? The sea has never come this far before.”
“You can tell by the feel of the waves.”
“Yesterday’s weather forecast didn’t say anything like that. Though lately, forecasts haven’t predicted these strange waves at all.”
“Forecasts are useless. But any sea person could tell at a glance. In any case, don’t put it here. Yes… about here should be safe.”
With firm certainty, Sharkrof placed the table far from the spot I had indicated.
“I’m not sure what you mean by ‘the feel of the waves,’ but that’s certainly a useful ability.”
I continued.
“Now that I think about it, the waves really have been strange lately. Even people who’ve lived here their entire lives say they’ve never seen such unpredictable tides. Since you seem to know a lot about the sea, I wanted to ask—have you felt that something is wrong with the ocean lately?”
“Of course. In fact, all sea people are worried about the strange waves.”
He nodded.
“Still, I’m a little surprised. I didn’t expect land-dwellers to notice the changes in the currents. That means it’s more serious than I thought. But as for the cause of the sudden change… even as a sea person, I’m not certain—”
He suddenly stopped speaking, his face tightening slightly.
He rubbed the back of his neck and licked his dry lips.
“I suppose I should go now.”
“Now? Is something wrong?”
“Sea people can travel freely between land and sea, but we can’t stay on land forever. Our gills dry out. We have to return to the water regularly.”
That reminded me of what he had muttered while lying on the beach earlier.
A bad premonition crept in.
“What happens if your gills dry out?”
“I die.”
“Oh.”
Just as I thought. An awkward silence followed. Sharkrof, however, looked perfectly calm.
“Don’t worry. As long as I return to the sea, there’s no problem. Anyway, I must go now. I’ll leave for the moment, but I will definitely return. And…”
His expression hardened with determination.
“From now on, I will learn about the courtship methods of land-dwellers. Then I will capture Miss Marina’s heart. I can’t leave someone with such a moist sea-like soul as Miss Marina in this dry, sun-scorched land.”
“I don’t really mind staying here…”
“Wait for me. I will surely claim Miss Marina’s heart.”
With an affectionate gesture, Sharkrof took my hand and pressed it against his cheek.
I was startled again. His skin was warm, but unexpectedly rough, reminiscent of shark scales.
Then he dove into the blue sea in one flawless motion.
Within the shifting waters, his figure quickly disappeared.
In its place, a massive shadow resembling a great fish’s fin flickered where he had entered the water.
That, too, soon vanished into the deeper sea.
Before my eyes, I had witnessed Sharkrof’s silhouette transform from human to shark.
It felt as though I had been hypnotized.
For a long while, we stood staring at the horizon.
I asked, “Phineas, did you see that?”
“Yes.”
“This isn’t a dream, right?”
“Probably not. It’s the same thing I saw this morning—except that he transformed from shark to human instead of the other way around.”
Phineas turned to me.
“Miss Marina, considering that creature is a shark that craves blood and raw flesh… when he says he’ll capture your heart, what if it’s not a romantic metaphor at all? What if he means it literally?”
“Don’t say something so frightening.”
I shuddered.
“By the way… do you think he’ll really come back?”
Phineas asked.
“I think so… probably.”
Remembering his firm tone, I was certain his promise was not empty.
Back in the café, Phineas grumbled uneasily.
“I’m really worried. He seems hostile toward land-dwellers for no reason. I have a bad feeling about letting him wander around the village. Shouldn’t we stop him from ever coming back? Maybe we should just tell everyone what he really is.”
“That feels too cruel. He asked us repeatedly not to reveal it… and he doesn’t seem entirely dangerous.”
“What? Are you serious?”
Phineas stared at me in disbelief.
“He seems strangely kind in certain ways. He helped clean the shop before he left, didn’t he? And he warned us in advance about where the waves would reach tomorrow. We did receive help from him.”
“Miss Marina… you trust the words of a sea monster like that?”
At the mention of the waves, Phineas still looked deeply skeptical.
