The ocean was never meant to be tamed. It swallowed ships, crushed empires, and raged against all who dared claim mastery over it.

Nerissa was never born. She simply existed.

One moment, there was nothing. Then, there was her—deep beneath the waves where the sunlight could not reach. She did not know how she came to be, only that the ocean was not just her home—it was hers. She moved, and the currents obeyed. She whispered, and the tides answered. The sea bent to her will without question.

But she was alone.

She did not know if she was a goddess or a monster—all she knew was that the sea was empty, and she had no name.

Then one day, she woke to find a boy floating on the surface above her.

She had seen humans before—small, fragile things that clung to their wooden cages and sank the moment they let go. But this one was different. He wasn't drowning. He wasn't struggling. He simply lay there, floating above her as if he belonged to the water itself.

She had never felt anything before—no hunger, no thirst, no exhaustion. But when she looked at him, she felt something new. Pity.

So, she fed him. Every day, she brought him food, watching as he ate, as he survived. She did not know why she did it. She did not know why she kept returning to him. But she did. And for the first time in her existence, she was not alone.

That was how she met you.

Your father was a pirate, but not a great one. He was reckless, a man who mistook arrogance for skill, and in the end, it cost him his life.

He had attacked the wrong ship—a naval vessel, not the defenseless merchant ship he believed it to be. The battle was over before it even started. His crew slaughtered, his ship in flames, and his fate sealed as he was dragged onto the gallows.

But before his capture, in the chaos of the fight, he made one final choice—one last act of desperation.

He threw you into a raft and pushed you into the water.

Maybe he believed you'd escape. Maybe he was just trying to save something of himself. But the sea did not care for human intentions. The sea devoured. You should have drowned that day. But you didn't.

Because she found you.

Years passed, and you, the boy on the raft became the most feared name on the sea. The Pirate King.

They whispered about how you controlled the waves, how entire fleets disappeared when they chased you, how storms seemed to rise and fall at your command. But you knew the truth.

It wasn't you.

It was Nerissa.

And she would drown the world for you if you asked.

Nerissa was practically melting against you now, clinging so tightly it was a miracle you could even breathe. Her arms were locked around your waist, her body pressed into your side as if she wanted to mold herself to you completely.

You were standing at the edge of the ship, watching the horizon where four naval vessels approached, their cannons loaded, their intentions clear. The bounty on your head had reached 5.6 billion berries—a number high enough to make entire nations tremble. And these fools thought they could take it.

"Husband~" Her voice was dreamy, dazed, like she was drunk off the simple fact that she was touching you. She sighed happily, nuzzling into your shoulder. Her fingers traced slow, lazy circles against your stomach, possessive in the way they curled against you.

The naval horns blared. They were moving into position, preparing for battle. Nerissa barely seemed to notice. Her world began and ended with you.

"They're so annoying." Her voice was breathy, full of a sickeningly sweet affection that didn't match the malice in her words. "I just want to be with you, but nooo, they just have to show up and ruin everything."