Chapter 1639: Chapter 1639

"Wooow!" Celes and Nyx gasped as they realized they had entered the grand castle in the distance.

Its azure and golden halls, adorned with countless colorful coral decorations and numerous small ponds, made this magnificent castle a wondrous structure unlike any other.

Statues of divine rulers lined the expansive corridors, spacious enough to accommodate their enormous bodies.

Dozens of servants flitted about, and Nyx caught the scent of something delightful.

"This place's amazing!" Celes said. "But… I kind of remember it. That's… weird…"

"Hmm! Sniff, sniff! Celes, there's something really tasty being cooked!" Nyx said, drooling. "Look!"

"Oooh?!" Celes gasped.

The two children marveled at a vast table laden with exquisite dishes, brimming with seafood: fish of all sizes, colors, and textures, shrimp, lobster, clams, and more, prepared in myriad ways.

Servants bustled from one place to another, chefs delivering new dishes constantly. The largest was a whole roasted whale, which the King seemed to savor occasionally.

"I wouldn't mind having breakfast here!" Nyx said.

"Me neither…" Celes gulped.

Both children were seated at the table, while the giants gathered around it. The boy and girl stayed close to Thalassa, Naiad's mother. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ NoveI-Fire.ɴet

"Go ahead! Eat to your heart's content! I am sure you'll love all these dishes, my dear," said Thalassa. "I've even prepared many of your favorites!"

"Favorites?" Celes wondered. "Oh wow, they smell nice! Thank you! Come on, Nyx, let's eat together!"

"Okay! Excuse me!" Nyx said, displaying manners that elicited chuckles from the elder siblings.

"At least she got appetite," the King said.

"Yes!" nodded Thalassa. "Naiad, can you feel something? Any memory coming back?"

"Hmm?" Celes was confused, his mouth full of smoked fish. "What?"

"…Nothing, enjoy the food, dear," Thalassa sighed, glancing down briefly.

The feast was immense, but Celes could only eat so much before feeling satisfied, consuming far less than the royal family, whose appetites rivaled dragons due to their great size.

Nyx, however, surpassed them all, eating relentlessly. The royal family wondered where the food went, as she had consumed more than her own size multiple times.

"How are you even eating so much, little girl?" Brontys wondered.

"She already has eaten enough to feed a whole battalion!" Coraleia said.

"I'm a dragon!" Nyx said. "We have very big bellies… I consume all the food I eat using my dragon stomach."

"Dragon stomach?" the King raised an eyebrow. "Hahah! There's no way a dragon stomach would be so small."

"It's not! I am very, very big! But I take this small form… But my strength and my mass remains! Or that's what dad always say," Nyx said.

"Really? You were very lightweight on my palm," Thalassa said, smiling.

"T-That's because I can modify my weight…" Nyx muttered, feeling a little embarrassed she was being questioned so much.

"Nyx is really a dragon, don't question her like that, she's not lying!" Celes said. "She's also my best friend… So don't be mean to her."

"Fine, we were just teasing her," Coraleia giggled. "She's as cute as you are, little sister."

"Don't treat me like a girl, I'm a boy… ugh," Celes said, slightly annoyed.

"Sure thing, Naiad," nodded Brontys. "Have any memories returned though? Feeling like finally taking your true form?"

"What? No… Well, I did regain some memories of the time I ate really good smoked fish with mom and dad on the beach!" Celes said. "I was just a baby back then though… it's like the last memory I had of dad before he died…"

"Aw, Celes…" Nyx patted his shoulder and then hugged him. "Well, I'm sure your dad would be proud of the person you've become!"

"Really?" Celes blushed a little.

"I am your father, Naiad, I don't know who else you're talking about, but they were not your father," Oceanus said, growing slightly irritated over these "fake stories" his "daughter" was making up. "Haaa… Alright, let's bring her to her room, surely, once she sees her belongings, something should return to her little head."

"Alright," Thalassa nodded, as the queen gently lifted Celes in her hand and moved toward the room.

"Wait, don't go without me! Hey!" Nyx grabbed a huge smoked tuna, carrying it in her mouth while munching as she followed them. "Wow, I think I ate too much, I've slowed down and all…"

Her small wings struggled to keep up with the speed at which the giants swam through the air with their massive bodies, but she managed to reach Celes.

"Hey, Celes! I think we should tell mom about this and—"

"See, here it is! This is your room, Naiad," Thalassa said with a resonant voice, drowning out Nyx's words.

Celes gazed at the enormous room where Naiad once lived. It featured a massive bed and oversized furniture, all designed for the titans' immense size, which astonished him.

The colorful bed, crafted from fish scales, stood alongside furniture made of vibrant corals. Lamps fashioned from beautiful sea anemones illuminated the space, complemented by tapestries depicting ocean flowers, seagrass, and fish of all shapes and sizes.

Oceanus opened the closet, revealing a dozen dresses of various colors that Naiad once wore. They could never fit Celes, as he was too small, and he wouldn't wear them anyway.

"These are all your dresses and accessories. You used to look at them for hours, unsure what to wear, always arriving late for dinner," Oceanus said. "But… I guess you cannot wear them in your current state. Nonetheless, this golden bracelet, do you remember it?"

The King presented a massive golden bracelet adorned with colorful crystal shells. It was so large it fell onto Thalassa's palm, encircling Celes in the center.

"This is a bracelet?! It's huge!" Celes said. "I can feel it has a lot of magic power inside."

"Yes, this is your bracelet, dear… You don't recall it?" Thalassa asked. "Your father gifted it to you on your hundredth birthday."

"Hundredth birthday? I haven't lived that long! I am like… uuhh, almost six!" said Celes, counting with his small fingers.

"So this started six years ago?" wondered Oceanus. "I wonder what happened. Did she hit her head really hard and lose her memories? Perhaps it is indeed some form of amnesia."

"Yes, but… can't you at least take a different shape, Naiad?" Thalassa asked. "I know you can do it. We all can. Come on, try to look more like us."

"Um…" Celes looked at his hands and closed his eyes, straining to change. "Nnnggh… Ugh! No, I can't… I don't think humans can shapeshift easily, ma'am…"

"Ma'am?! I am your mother! W-Why won't you address me as mother at the very least?!" Thalassa asked, on the verge of tears. Her sudden change in demeanor startled Celes, causing him to step back.

"A-Ah… I'm sorry…" Celes muttered.

"Thalassa, calm down," Oceanus said, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"O-Oh… I'm so sorry, Naiad…" Thalassa murmured. "You're just suffering amnesia and forgot how to use your powers! That's not too bad. At least you're alive, and that's what matters, right?"

"Yeah!" Brontys nodded.

"It's already better than before when we thought she was… well, not alive," Coraleia murmured.

"Hm," Oceanus sighed. "What about this, Naiad? Remember anything?"