Why do I keep attracting Villainesses?

Chapter 47: THIRD POV [Bonus Chapter for the 100 Powerstones]

Artria was busy pacing back and forth in her room. The sand on the floor had been kicked up so many times by her tail that the water was slightly cloudy.

She couldn’t sit still, and she couldn’t find anything to distract her mind. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the dark, open ocean and the shadows of a hundred sharks circling.

It had been a few days now since Jacob hadn’t returned.

After the initial battle at the reef, Garin and the others had made it back with the manatee, but they were alone.

After listening to Garin’s explanation about how Jacob had stayed behind to lead the pack away, the village leaders had decided to wait. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

They argued that Jacob was fast and strong, and that rushing out in the middle of a feeding frenzy would only cause more deaths.

But even after several hours of waiting, the horizon remained empty. He still didn’t come back.

Under her persistence, the village finally decided to send people out on occasion to look for him.

Artria had practically cornered the village elders, refusing to leave them alone until they agreed to organize search parties.

But even then, he still wasn’t found after several days.

They checked throughout the reef and the open blue water, but there was no sign of the shark-man.

No scales, no blood, nor a single trace of him could be found.

Artria herself had gone out on several occasions, just to look for him herself.

Fortunately for her and the rest of the searchers, the shark crisis everyone had been so worried about seemed to have vanished over the days.

The massive packs that had been terrorizing the borders were gone. It was as if someone had wiped them off the map.

While everyone else in the village was happy and relieved that the danger had passed, she, on the other hand, felt more worried.

An ominous feeling plagued her for several days.

Sharks didn’t just leave a territory once they had tasted blood, especially not a pack that large.

The only reason they would disappear so completely was if something, or someone, had drawn them far away.

Or if something even more dangerous had moved in.

"Just where could he be?" Artria gnashed her teeth, her tail flicking with nervous energy.

She felt responsible for his sudden disappearance.

She was the one who had brought him here.

Perhaps if she’d payed more attention to him, he wouldn’t have left without her notice, she though to herself.

"Just why did he go..." She bit her lower lip, thinking to herself that if only she’d been there that day, she would’ve been able to bring him back safely.

She might not be a fighter than Garin, but she did know the reef better than anyone.

If she had been part of that hunting party, she would have forced him to retreat with the rest of them. She wouldn’t have let him play the hero and would’ve been able to find a way for them to the village that would’ve allowed them to lose those sharks.

Now she had no idea whether he was even still alive.

The ocean was a vast place, and as strong as Jacob was, she still felt that with his personality, it wouldn’t be long before he ran into trouble again.

After so many days spent together, it looked like the mermaid beauty had grown a bit attached.

She didn’t want to admit it out loud, of course.

She liked to act tough and independent, but the silence in her home was becoming deafening.

Perhaps several days of coming back without his familiar presence in the room had done a lot to help her realize how much space he actually took up in her life.

When Jacob was here, the place was more lively and fun. He was always asking strange questions about the world, complimenting her cooking while eating every bite, or telling stories that sounded too weird to be true.

He was a "villain" who didn’t know how to be mean, a shark who was afraid of blood.

He was annoying, sure, but he was also the most interesting thing that had happened to her in years.

And even though she still had her friends and even the rest of the villagers to talk to, whenever she came home, it just didn’t feel the same.

The nest felt too big. The air felt too quiet.

She found herself looking at the spot where he used to sleep, half-expecting him to be there, making some sarcastic remark.

"Huh?"

Artria suddenly heard a commotion outside. It wasn’t the sound of a panic or a fight; it was a loud, buzzing noise of many voices talking at once.

It sounded like a celebration, or at least a very big surprise.

’ It can’t be.’

She blinked in surprise, her heart skipping a beat, and then she quickly went out.

She swam through the village, her movements hurried.

As she reached the main square, she saw the villagers gathered in a large crowd.

Some looked surprised, their eyes wide and mouths open.

Others looked happy, cheering and waving their hands.

But none of that caught her attention. What did was when she laid her eyes on the figure standing in the center of the circle.

’Jacob?’

Artria blinked her eyes in disbelief, her breath catching in her throat.

As if she wasn’t thinking at all, She quickly swam over, cutting through the water like a dart.

Jacob was in the midst of talking with Garin and some of the other hunters, laughing at something Garin said when he was suddenly caught off guard.

Artria slammed into him with the force of a small tidal wave.

"You idiot! What took you so long!"

The impact knocked him back a bit, but he stabilized himself with his tail.

’ This girl almost gave me heart attack.’ Jacob said helplessly.

His arms were raised at his sides in surprise as he stared down at Artria.

Her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist, her head pressed against his chest. She was shaking slightly, the relief washing over her so fast it made her feel dizzy.

Jacob looked down at her with a look of amusement, a slow grin spreading across his face.

He didn’t push her away. Instead, he let out a soft sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a laugh.

"I didn’t know you missed me this much," Jacob chuckled. His voice was warm and familiar, exactly how she remembered it.

"If I knew that, maybe I would’ve waited a bit more before coming back, just to see how much more you’d worry."

"Hmph!"

Artria scoffed, the sound muffled by his chest.

The moment she realized she was hugging him in front of the entire village, her face turned a bright shade of pink.

She quickly let go and pushed him back, glaring at him in annoyance to cover her embarrassment.

"Do you have any idea how worried we all were?" she said, her hands crossed over her chest.

She tried to make her voice sound stern, but there was still a bit of a wobble in it. "The elders were ready to hold a funeral service for you! You can’t just disappear for days without a word!"

Garin, who was watching from the side along with a few others, couldn’t help but chuckle at the scene.

He exchanged a knowing look with the other merfolk, It was obvious to everyone that Artria had been a wreck while Jacob was gone, no matter how much she tried to deny it now.

"That I do, and for that, I’m really sorry," Jacob offered an awkward smile, rubbing the back of his neck.

He looked around at the crowd, seeing the genuine smiles on the faces of the mermen and mermaids.

It seemed he had made more of an impact on this place than he thought. "But if it makes you feel any better, I got you a gift on my way back."

"Huh? What gift?" Artria’s annoyance was replaced by confusion.

She stared at him, her eyes scanning his body.

He didn’t seem to have anything on him. No bags, no shells, no rare plants. His hands were empty. "Did you hide it in a cave somewhere?"

Jacob merely smiled, a mysterious glint in his eyes.

He didn’t answer her directly. Instead, he gestured with his gaze in a certain direction toward the edge of the square, where most of the crowd had gathered in a tight, jolly circle.

Artria followed his gaze, her brow furrowed. She pushed through a few of the slower villagers to see what the fuss was about.

She expected to see a rare fish or maybe some treasure he’d found in the deep.

But when she saw the person standing there, surrounded by the friendly villagers who all seemed so attentive and curious toward her, Artria’s expression froze.

Her heart didn’t just skip a beat this time; it felt like it stopped entirely.

There, sitting on a rock and looking incredibly uncomfortable but surprisingly calm, was Persephone.

’W-What’s she doing here....’ Artria said to herself, her voice a tiny whisper of dread.

She knew that tail. She knew that face. It was the face that had haunted her dreams and the face that her parents had died for.

Artria turned back to Jacob, her eyes wide with shock and a growing sense of panic.

This wasn’t a gift. This was a disaster. She looked at Jacob, who was still smiling, looking like he had just brought home a stray kitten instead of the most feared being in the reef.

"Y-You..." Artria hissed, her voice trembling. "Tell me you didn’t."

Jacob offered a pained smile. "I know it’s a lot to take in, but I was hoping she could stay with us from now on?"

" It’s been awhile since she last lived in the village... I know the both of you have a past between you, but, don’t you think its time she came home?"

Artria looked back at the crowd. The villagers didn’t seem to realize the danger she saw.They were treating Persephone like a long-lost cousin.

But Artria knew better.

She believed she knew exactly who Persephone was, and she knew that the peace they had worked so hard to build was now hanging by a very thin thread.

The "gift" Jacob had brought back was the one thing Artria had spent her whole life trying to run away from. And now, thanks to the shark-man she had grown so attached to, her sister was back and right in the middle of their home.

AN: Damn I’m beat. You guys really know how to push a guy huh, well I’m up for any challenge, so feel free to keep supporting the novel anyway you can.