"Um, was that one of you purring, Kiyo?" Ajitaruo as both brothers shook their heads, causing them to go really pale.

They then hear the heavy breathing as if something wanted them to know it was there, behind them. Too afraid to face whatever it was, they trembled like guppies.

"Y-you knows, maybe that's enough fun for one night, Kiyo…" Burio shivered as he was dripping in fear sweat.

"Y-yeah, let's head home, Kiyo…" Magurou agreed as they quickly walked away, but something was following them.

They kept walking, faster and faster until they were running! But something was getting closer and closer as the panting and growling can be heard!

The monster then pounced!

"KIYO!" All three of them howled as they faced their doom!

Their screams echoed through the night as slashing and tearing could be heard with blood smearing the sidewalk! The best then howled as it left with its prey and the chill of the night can be felt by all!

"Tell me, children, what do you know of the Beastfolk?" Pāru as she revealed an old and moss-covered book.

While the young Merfolk shivered, Nagasumi and his parents looked confused.

"Beastfolk… Like Merfolk?" Nagasumi questioned as he earned an uppercut by Gozaburo.

"How dare you compare us to those monsters!"

"Seto, comport yourself. This is a serious matter and I want everyone awake and alert of the danger out there." The official warned as Nagasumi recovered from the attack.

"So, if they're not like Merfolk, then what are they…?" Nagasumi wondered as he struggled to pick himself up.

"That is the question. Though regrettably, you are right to say that they have similar traits to Merfolk, they are certainly not like us completely. Only slightly." She explained as she turned a couple of pages in the book.

"I heard these guys are total monsters of the land that eat mermaid flesh!" Maruko shivered as she held Fuki close.

"I thought they were fairy tales, to tell kids to warn them about dry land. 'Be good on the beach or the Beastfolk will get you'." Lunar quoted as she pretends not to believe.

"We tell adolescents that so you wouldn't be so afraid of dry land and wait until you grow up completely… but they are very real and very deadly."

"The bad news is that the illness is really a rare form of a painful mutation. It seems when Nagasumi reached a certain part in his life to activate the mutated gene that is causing the dangerous effects."

Mutation?

Masa listened as he had a bad feeling in his gut.

"And the good?" Nagasumi's mother wondered.

"The good news is that it can be treated and Nagasumi can live a normal life afterward." Dr. Hirose smiled, "Allow me to introduce the person overseeing the treatment, Dr. Baneswell."

The man was grey with features to indicate he came from another land.

"Greetings, my name is Dr. Richard Baneswell, I am quite pleased to meet you." He introduced himself as you can hear his British accent, "Don't worry about your friend, I know exactly what to do with him."

That last bit sounded a bit sinister as Masa looked at the man with suspicion.

"Can you make Nagasumi well again?" Sun pleaded as the doctor ruffled her hair.

"Do not worry, I am an expert on this and Nagasumi will be just fine under my care. Just fine." He promised as he turned to Nagasumi's parents, "Now, I need you to sign a few things and we can begin."

As the doctor led the couple to another room, Masa felt that the doctor cannot be trusted.

"So, it is true. Nagasumi is a Beastfolk in awakening." The afro warrior gritted his teeth as he could not believe that such a sweet boy could come from a savage bloodline.

"Not a normal Beast Folk, no, no, no, quite special and powerful. With the power of your Merfolk energy, you unleashed a great and ancient power, a Zheng!"

A Zheng?

One of the deadliest Beastfolk known to Merfolk kind. A monster of the old days of Japan. A red leopard monster with stripes of a tiger, teeth of a sabertoothed, horn of a rhino, mane of a lion, tails of whips, face of a tiger, paws that can crush boulders. They were massive and lived in the mountains and hunt the Merfolk and humans alike.

"When the boy realizes his true potential, we will wipe out the Merfolk that knows of our existence and devour them." Dr. Baneswell explained as the monsters began to growl and lower down at them.

"If this is how I am going down… I am going down fighting!" Gozaburo proclaimed as he was terrified but refused to bow to fear!

"Let's do it, boss! Let's show these mongrels who's boss!" Maki screamed with her weapon ready and loaded!

"You will not have him. We will fight you 'till the end." Masa informed coldly.

"But not alone."

The gang turned around to see Sun with her mother as well as the Seto and Edomae gang ready to fight.

"Hmm… Looks like we will need to slaughter the fish first before training our latest member of our family." A Beast Folk Sneered, "Very well, let's rock."

"For SETO!" They all cheered in the fight with the swords in their hands!

"For HOUSE MICHISHIO!" The Beast Folk bellowed back!

"For Nagasumi!" Sun screamed with her blades in a dance!

"You see, Nagasumi would have lived the rest of his life as a human with dormant genes of the Beastfolk if he never met the Merfolk. Your constant and steady exposer to your magic awakened the genes slowly. You fed it, made it strong with each spell he was in close proximity to. Eventually, the beast came out and Nagasumi's true nature was unleashed, though it is odd to meet a Beastfolk with a distaste for fish."

Fish?

"Of course." Fanshī uttered as everyone looked to her, "In all the times of the investigation, we never really looked into the evidence deeply. There no bite marks or missing flesh, the food that the victims had were the only things missing and the wounds were completely treatable."

She then looked at the boy sleeping.

"Nagasumi was never to hurt anyone, he was just hunting for food in his form."

"Nagasumi…" Sun uttered under her breath.

"This brings us to the topic at hand, we want the boy, and we want to know why he's with the Merfolk in the first place. We want to hear every detail of how this could possibly happen and if we hear something we do not like…."

The Beastfolk then crushed a cracker with his hands.

They then explained the events that came, Nagasumi meeting Sun, the engagement by law, the merfolk that followed them here, and everything else in between as the Beastfolk frowned at every word that came out.

But before they could continue this any further, Nagasumi, the boy at the center of it all began to wake up.

"Uh… S-Sun? Where am I?" Nagasumi muttered as he was surrounded by strangers, friends, family, and his doctor.

"Home. You're home." She answered while she hugged the boy she loved.

"Interesting… you thought he was just another weak human you could kill without batting an eye when in truth, it was the reverse. And what was funnier than that is that you created him." The minotaur in the form of a man scoffed with laughter.

"The mistress will be pleased."

"The mistress." The Wife of the underwater mafia questioned.

"Michishio Hanabira."

"My aunt?"