As the group stared at the lights in the distance, Korre repeated her question softly, "Are they humans?"

Her voice carried a hint of hope, though even she herself didn’t sound very convinced.

Theo squinted his eyes for a few moments before shaking his head.

"Doesn’t seem like it," he replied uncertainly. "They are floating above the water...I think."

Oliver also frowned as he looked ahead. The lights were still too far away and the darkness of the night made it difficult to make out their shapes clearly.

The lights gently swayed above the river as they slowly drifted closer and closer. Under normal circumstances, the sight would’ve looked beautiful, but none of them felt like appreciating it.

Instead, all four of them felt a slight chill run down their backs. The lights were definitely approaching them and getting closer and closer, and each passing second only made that fact more obvious.

Everyone noticed it and yet no one wanted to be the bearer of bad news.

And so, at that very moment, Ahreum decided to be her usual straightforward self. Hence, she pointed at the lights and said plainly,

"I think those things are getting closer and closer."

Silence filled the boat for a moment as no one replied.

Korre tightened her grip on the edge of the boat while Oliver narrowed his eyes and stared into the darkness ahead.

’Please don’t tell me we escaped one monster just to meet another.’

They looked at each other hoping for the best. They all wanted to escape.

But could they really?

No...Those lights were moving much faster than their boat.

And on the other hand, if they went back to the shore, there was always the chance that the fire leopard was still there waiting for them.

Silence filled the boat for the next few moments as Theo unconsciously slowed down his rowing while Korre narrowed her eyes and stared ahead.

Oliver too kept looking at the lights, trying his best to make out their shapes.

As the distance between them decreased, Theo suddenly frowned. He stared at the lights for a few more seconds before speaking.

"They’re not chasing us."

Oliver and the others immediately looked at him.

"What do you mean?" Korre asked.

Theo pointed toward the lights. "They aren’t moving toward us," he said slowly. "They are going slightly to our left and seem to be moving in a straight line."

He paused for a moment as if trying to organize his thoughts and then his expression changed.

"No."

"It is more like...they are running away."

The words immediately caused everyone’s expression to change. Oliver instinctively looked toward the darkness from where those glowing creatures had come.

’Running away?’

’From what?’

The lights drifted closer and closer. And finally, they saw them.

They were tiny translucent creatures that floated just above the water surface. Some of them glowed blue, some golden and while some shone with a faint purple hue.

"Jellyfish?", Oliver muttered as stared at them.

The creatures completely ignored the boat and floated past them one after another as if fleeing for their lives.

All of them were desperately moving in one direction as if they were moving away from something, just as Theo had said.

Oliver slowly turned his head and looked toward the place they were escaping from.

Suddenly, at some distance, he noticed that the glow of one of the golden jellyfish disappeared.

Oliver blinked as more of them disappeared.

The glowing creatures were simply vanishing as if swallowed by the darkness itself.

’Oh...goddess!’

"What the hell is happeing?" Theo muttered as his grip on the paddle tightened.

Nobody answered him as they all were busy with themselves.

Everyone stared silently at the place where the jellyfishes had disappeared from. Even the remaining glowing creatures seemed to become more frantic as they desperately floated away.

And then...a sound appeared.

"Hmmmmm..."

It was a very faint sound and it sounded like someone humming a melody from very far away.

Oliver frowned in fright as he questioned, "Did you guys hear that?"

Theo slowly nodded while Korre’s expression also became serious. Ahreum and Goldie meanwhile had gone pale, as if they had seen death itself.

"Hmmmmm..."

The humming came again.

It was strangely beautiful, soft and gentle, almost like a lullaby sung by a mother to her child.

And yet, for some reason, hearing it made Oliver’s heartbeat quicken and a strange unease slowly crept into his chest.

Goldie suddenly jumped from Oliver’s shoulder onto his head.

The squirrel’s fur stood upright and its tiny body trembled violently. It slapped Oliver’s forehead repeatedly and began making strange gestures with its paws.

"What?" Oliver whispered.

Goldie pointed at his own ears and then he pointed at Oliver’s ears and finally toward the darkness ahead.

’Now, what does that mean?’ 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Oliver blinked as he was confused as to what the little squirrel was saying.

"I have absolutely no clue what you are trying to say."

Goldie froze and for a moment, the squirrel looked at him as if wondering how someone this dumb had managed to survive so far.

It slapped him again, this time even harder.

Oliver rubbed his forehead and stared at Goldie’s gestures again. Suddenly, his expression changed as he understood.

"The melody..."

Goldie nodded furiously seeing which Oliver’s face immediately became serious.

"Everyone!" he shouted. "Keep your fingers in your ears and try not to listen to the melody!"

Theo’s expression changed instantly and without asking any questions, he immediately followed Oliver’s instructions.

Korre and Ahreum did the same while nervously looking toward the darkness.

Goldie finally sighed in relief while Oliver looked at him curiously.

"You don’t need to do it?"

Goldie proudly shook his head.

’Well, Its tiny paws aren’t even big enough to reach its ears anyway.’

"Hmmmmm..."

The melody came once again and even though their fingers blocked most of the sound, this time it felt much closer.

Much closer.

Oliver slowly turned his head and looked toward the place where the sound was coming from.

There was only darkness there as the river was pitch black and even with the four moons hanging in the sky, the moonlight barely illuminated its surface.

The water there seemed unnaturally calm but then dozens of ripples spread across the river surface.

Nobody spoke as the four humans and the squirrel simply stared at the darkness ahead while the ripples kept expanding further and further.

Suddenly...something enormous moved beneath the water and the boat shook violently.

Goldie screeched while Theo, Korre and Ahreum struggled to remain seated with their hand covering their ears.

And as for Oliver...for a brief moment, he felt his scalp go numb because he had seen something.

It was an eye.

An eye beneath the water.

And this eye alone...was bigger than their entire boat.