The Siren's Cursed Compass
"Who are you? Who are you?"
"It has horns and a tail?"
"It can breathe, so is it one of us? No?"
As we followed the mermaid into the village, a bunch of other mermaids popped out to stare at us. They must find it fascinating that we can breathe underwater too.
"Ugh... H-have we... arrived...?"
"Yeah. We're here."
Hmm, should I turn on the stream? Oh, right—first things first.
Automatic Mosaic Mode
I gotta activate mosaic mode first. It's originally for covering up scantily clad monsters or gory scenes. It's usually off for that live feel, but... if I went on stream like this, I'd get hit with a broadcast ban real quick.
Ugh, the stream blew up the second I turned it on.
"I'm not totally sure myself, but it's a mermaid village? City? Something like that."
Designated zones, huh. Like how they set aside spots for the Elf Holy Kingdom?
"Magic can do pretty much anything. Though this one's a skill I ripped off a sea dragon back in the day."
"This way, please! The chieftain is over here!"
I nodded and followed, and she led me to the biggest, most massive crystal pillar. Looks like mermaids carve out the insides of these crystals and surrounding rocks to live in.
Knock knock.
"Chieftain! We've brought the hero you requested!"
"Come in."
A beautiful voice echoed from inside. Mermaids generally have nice voices, but... this one's even better than I expected?
The door creaked open, and there she was.
"A siren?"
It looked like a mermaid, but with wings instead of arms. A siren.
A siren as the mermaid chieftain? First time hearing about that.
"You recognized me right away. Who might you be?"
"That's pretty curt for someone handing out a commission."
"Hehe, it's just habit."
Oh right, sirens have that enchanting voice effect... Even through the screen, it's rough for folks without mental resistance. I muted the mic and switched to subtitles.
"What the hell are you? Why's a siren here?"
"I didn't want to be here either. These kids just got charmed and started following me on their own."
"You expect me to buy that?"
Sirens and mermaids are totally different creatures to begin with. Mermaids might be a bit dim, but they're fundamentally good-hearted. Sirens? Rotten to the core. They lure people into the sea, smash ships into rocks to sink 'em whole. Unless you run into some massive sea beast by bad luck, most maritime disasters are siren work. And the kicker? Unlike succubi sucking life force, they do it mostly for fun.
"Sadly, it's true. Sure, I had to settle here to survive, but that's it."
"Had to survive?"
"You think I could've survived alone in this strange place? They followed me, so I used them a little."
So basically mind-controlled them with charm. Shady as ever...
"You and that kid next to you must be pretty strong. Not even a wobble."
"Eh, I've seen plenty who use stronger mind control than you."
She curved her lips into a smile.
"It's been a while since I talked with someone who can hold a conversation."
"You sound thrilled."
"Of course. This place is full of mermaids who get charmed just looking at me—gets boring."
She kept talking while pulling out and eating the meat from a conch one of the mermaids brought.
"I'm Talasa. A child of the land. Will you help me?"
"I told the mermaid earlier—what exactly is the commission? And what's the pay?"
"Such a greedy one. That's why I like you more."
Talasa picked up one of the random trinkets beside her.
"Do you know what this is?"
"A compass."
"Yes, a compass. One that points to treasure. Perfect for someone as greedy as you, no?"
Just a glance shows it's an ornate thing, decked out with flashy decorations. And it points to treasure?
"What kind of treasure does it point to?"
"Anything. It'll show you what you desire."
"No way something's that convenient."
I've heard lines like that—exaggerating a bit, hundreds of times. Those things are always fakes or come with massive drawbacks.
"You don't believe me."
Of course not.
"I got this from a pirate ship in the past. Not as convenient as you think."
"Knew it."
"But it's not a lie either. This will guide you to what you want."
"So what's the catch? Gotta risk your life to use it?"
"It's cursed."
Pfft, called it. Cursed my ass... I don't collect junk like that. Even the best bread's no good once it's moldy. This is exactly that situation.
"Don't look at me like that."
"What, should I smile? For trying to pawn cursed crap on me?"
"Sharp tongue. Even though I haven't done anything to you."
I stared hard at Talasa. Come to think of it... why? I don't sense her doing or planning anything to me. But something feels off. This primal disgust welling up.
"That's the curse of this item. It makes people who see me irrationally angry. But that's mild—pretty good, actually."
"..."
"You're thinking it over. What's got you so curious?"
"If you give that to me, doesn't the curse transfer too?"
If just looking at me pisses people off, streaming's gonna be a mess. Trolls are already flooding in—imagine the crazies that'd swarm. Plus... Ha-eun's got weak mental defenses. If it can pierce mine, it's at least transcendent-level curse. No way she holds up.
"You say charm it away, but I'd have to cast skills every time—super annoying."
"I never said I'd just hand it over like this."
"Huh?"
"The curse can be lifted. I just had no reason to before. Think about it—with just these kids around, why bother?"
...Makes sense? Yeah, if it's all mermaids... probably fine...?
"What I want to entrust to you is this: the creature that keeps showing up in our habitat. Will you hunt it?"
"Pay's the compass?"
"Yes. Hunt it down and bring back the crystal that grows inside. Combine it with these kids' tears, and the curse lifts clean."
She had a mermaid hand me something.
"Th-the chieftain said to give you this..."
A small blue gem. Mermaid's tear?
"What's this for?"
These have purification effects, making them great for debuff potions—fetch a high price. But... these cheerful mermaids don't cry easy, and even if they do, they don't hand tears to outsiders. They see it as shameful. Giving it up like this means they're desperate.
"You said it's been attacking nonstop?"
"Yes."
"Got it. I'll help, so prep that compass. And no funny business."
"You think I'd do that?"
"I've seen plenty of sirens. Who knows if the next subjugation quest is on your head."
Talasa smiled.
"Talking with someone reasonable is so fun. Won't you chat with me sometime?"
"...Watch my stream then. Get a watch."
"What's your name? I'm curious."
"Goldie."
"So much in such a small body. Go on now. The kid will help with the rest."
With that, I glared at the mermaid and headed out. Something felt weird. A siren commission? Smells fishy from behind.
"Um, hey..."
"Call me Goldie."
"Goldie-unnie! Let me introduce our village first!"
"Uh... no need for th—"
"This way!"
The mermaid bolted ahead, ignoring me. I stared at the mermaid tears I'd gotten, pondering.
◈ Caution: Mermaids are a protected species.
These'd fetch decent cash. Sell 'em? My treasure hoarding mood hasn't been rising lately. Or... might need 'em later, so keep?
As I mulled it over and glanced at chat—
...Am I in deep shit? Never seen Ha-eun freak like that before...