THE BILLIONAIRE'S FORBIDDEN OBSESSION

AFTER THREE YEARS WITH SHANTAL

AFTER THREE YEARS:

Three years had passed since the night of a naked body, scale-flaring sea creature had scrambled under Shantal’s bed to escape a denim monster.

Now, the midday Siargao sun streamed through the wide glass doors of the sprawling floating house, illuminating a completely different scene. Sitting perfectly upright at the dining table was the blonde girl.. now formally known to the local community as "Neri."

She was wearing a chic, linen sundress. Her golden hair was braided elegantly to one side. In her right hand, she held a silver fork, delicately slicing into a medium-rare ribeye steak with the precision of a Michelin-star critic.

Shantal leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping her iced coffee, watching her long-term investment.

The two private tutors had earned every single peso of their double-rate paychecks over the last thirty-six months.

"The atmospheric humidity today is rather high, Shantal," Neri said. Her voice no longer sounded like fractured, broken glass. It was now a smooth, melodic cadence, though it still carried a faint, unidentifiable accent that sounded vaguely ancient.

"Yeah, well, it's tropical weather, Neri," Shantal replied, a smirk playing on her lips.

"You used to just dive into the ocean when you got hot."

Neri paused, her fork hovering in the air. A brief, sharp flash of her old predatory instinct crossed her eyes before she gracefully wiped the corner of her mouth with a cloth napkin.

"Salty water ruins the fabric blend of this dress. Human vanity is an expensive habit to acquire." Shantal chuckled.

Neri wasn't just trained, she was articulate, civilized, and possessed a razor-sharp wit. She had mastered Tagalog, English, and basic social etiquette. But beneath the polite posture and the expensive sunscreen, Shantal knew the fierce ocean predator was still very much alive. Neri's patience was still paper-thin, and her strength was still terrifyingly superhuman, a fact Shantal’s broken blender and a shattered doorknob could attest to.

Neri set her fork down. The elegant facade slipped just a fraction, replaced by a calculating, intense focus. She reached into her small designer handbag on the chair next to her and pulled out the pulsing "Fire-bringer" device.

After three years, the glowing lines on the key were flashing faster, hummed with frantic energy.

"Now, I am ready to meet Gabriel," Neri said, her voice dropping to a serious, and dramatic scene.

"My time in this land is running out." she added.

Shantal's smile faded, her heart doing a familiar nervous flip. The comedic days of teaching a mermaid how to wear pants and look into a mirror were officially over. The training montage was complete. It was time to free Neri and send her back to her world. More importantly, it was finally time to pass this massive, chaotic headache over to her brother.

Gabriel was about to inherit the absolute handful he had created.Shantal crossed her arms, a calculating look replacing her worry.

"You've learned our language, our manners, and how to eat steak with a fork. But most importantly, you’ve learned how to hold a grudge."

Neri stood up from the dining table, the elegant linen dress flowing around her. She looked entirely human, but the raw power in her posture was unmistakable.

"Gabriel left me with a burning artifact. He thinks he is safe on his hidden island. He does not know I have spent three years mastering the art of the human lecture."

"Good," Shantal muttered, grabbing her waterproof backpack from the counter.

"Because I didn't pay double-rates for two private tutors just for you to be polite. I want him to look at you and realize exactly what kind of storm is coming for him" Shantal talked to herself.

Neri clutched the "Fire-bringer" tightly in her hand. The glowing lines flared against her palm, responding to her touch. She walked out onto the wide balcony, and the wind of Siargao catching her golden hair.

"Let me go, Shantal," Neri said, looking out at the horizon.

Shantal walked out onto the balcony, joining her at the railing. The Siargao wind was picking up, churning the waters below into choppy, restless waves. The comedy was entirely gone now, replaced by the heavy, electric tension of a long-awaited finale.

"I'm not stopping you," Shantal said softly.

"But remember the plan. You find him, you hand him that stupid fire-bringer, and you give him a piece of your mind. Make him pay for every single day I spent worrying about him."

Neri looked back over her shoulder. For a fleeting second, the polished, articulate human girl vanished, and Shantal saw the wild, ancient creature from three years ago.

Neri reached out, placing a hand on Shantal's shoulder. Her grip was firm, a silent acknowledgment of the bond they had forged over countless vocabulary lessons, ruined jeans, and burnt steaks.

"Thank you, Shantal Vance," Neri said, her voice carrying a deep, resonant gravity.

"You gave me a voice on land. Now, I will use it to break his silence."

Without another word, Neri unzipped the back of her elegant linen dress. She let the fabric slip from her shoulders, stepping out of it entirely until she stood in the simple swimsuit she wore underneath. She climbed onto the edge of the balcony railing, balancing flawlessly against the howling wind.

She held the "Fire-bringer" high above her head. The device lets out a sharp, blinding pulse of light, cutting through the dark ocean mist.

Far out in the distance, the empty horizon shimmered, revealing a faint, ghostly outline of a jagged island that hadn't been there a second ago.

Neri looked down at the open water. A sudden ripple of iridescent scales flared to life across her thighs, the call of the deep taking over her human skin.

She turned her head to Shantal one last time, a wicked, triumphant smirk playing on her lips.

"Wish me luck. Gabriel is about to learn that the sea does not forget."

With a graceful, powerful leap, Neri dove off the high balcony. She cut through the air like a golden arrow and hit the water with a flawless, splash less entry.

Shantal gripped the railing, leaning over to watch the powerful blonde tail breached the surface, slapping the water with a thunderous crack before disappearing into the deep, heading straight for the another island.

Shantal let out a long breath, and vindictive smile spreading across her face. She turned back inside her quiet, empty house.

"Good luck, Gabriel, Sometimes we need hard lessons to learn." she muttered to that empty room.