25 - Shark’s Test

The next morning, Krahs wasted no time. As soon as Nexha woke up, he found the old shark standing in front of Nalu, arms crossed, his gaze as cold as ever.

— "Cub, wake your sister. We're settling this now."

Nexha rubbed his eyes, feeling his stomach twist. Something in Krahs’ tone made him realize this wasn’t an ordinary conversation.

Lilay woke up in a bad mood, grumbling about it being too early. But when he saw Krahs and Nalu facing each other, his expression changed.

— "What's going on?" he asked quietly.

— "A test," Krahs replied, not taking his eyes off the prisoner. "I want to know if this sea wolf is truly harmless or if she's just waiting for the right moment to go back and tell the orcas where we are."

Nalu swallowed hard.

— "H-how are you going to test me?"

— "I’m going to release you."

Silence spread between them like a deep dive into the ocean.

— "Seriously?" Nexha asked, incredulous.

— "Yes," Krahs confirmed. "If she’s a threat, she’ll try to escape. And if she does… I’ll hunt her down."

A shiver ran down Nexha’s spine immediately. He looked at Nalu, trying to decipher what was going through her mind. Would she run? Would she try to attack them?

But when Krahs untied her, Nalu simply stayed still. She massaged her wrists, took a deep breath, and then looked at them, hesitant.

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Then, she walked over to where Nexha had left his improvised tools and picked up the bone knife with obsidian.

— "What is she doing?" Lilay asked suspiciously.

— "Fixing this," Nalu replied, frowning. "It's poorly tied. If you use it in a real fight, this stone will come loose on the first hit."

She grabbed a piece of sturdy seaweed, pulled out some fibers, and started retying the bindings as if it were second nature to her.

Nexha blinked, confused.

— "You know how to do that?"

— "My clan…" she hesitated. "We made weapons for hunting. If they broke in the middle of a battle, we would die."

Krahs watched in silence, his expression unreadable.

Nalu finished reinforcing the knife and handed it back to Nexha.

— "Now it's better."

He held the weapon and realized it was indeed much sturdier.

Krahs sighed.

— "Interesting. If she tries to run, use the knife, Nexha."

He stepped closer to Nalu, his presence still imposing. She flinched instinctively but didn't try to flee.

— "I'll be watching you."

— "I know," she replied, her voice slightly trembling.

She hesitated. Then, she looked at Nexha.

Krahs’ eyes narrowed, but he said nothing. He simply turned his back and started swimming out of the nest to patrol.

— "Let’s see how long this lasts."

As soon as he was gone, Nexha moved closer to Nalu.

— "You don’t want to run?"

She shrugged.

— "I do, but where would I go? My clan is gone. I have no home anymore. And the food you make is the best I’ve ever had."

Nexha felt a pang in his chest.

— "So… you want to stay?"

She gave a small smile, shy but genuine.

— "If you’ll have me, yes."

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Krahs swam slowly around the nest, his senses always sharp. The ocean was vast, but he knew dangers could appear at any moment. His instincts never failed him, and something told him he shouldn’t lower his guard.

— "The sea wolf… Nalu."

She was still an enigma to him. The way she acted after being freed left him thoughtful. If she were a spy, she would have tried to escape. If she were foolish, she would have attacked them. But instead, she chose to stay and help, reinforcing Nexha’s fragile blade. Why? What did she gain from this?

— "My cubs trust too easily," he muttered to himself.

The shark clenched his teeth. Experience had taught him not to trust so easily. In his life, he had seen many hunters pretend to be weak to get what they wanted. And in the end, they always came back to attack. The thought of losing everything again was intolerable.

He stayed nearby while tending to the barrier Nexha had planned—using moray seaweed, forming a wall of golden spears strong enough to protect them.