Favored

Juri looked at the man dressed in what would go for high end luxury around these parts. As his jewelry and upper body clothing were made out of the finest of pearls.

Also, the gold crown the Prince wore proudly on his head was decorated with the flashiest sapphires, amethysts, crystals and jade jewels she had ever laid eyes on. Plus, those were the only ones she recognised. No doubt there were a few rare ones that she hadn't identified.

"You belong to me now," the Prince said to her.

"I belong to no one but myself," Juri replied defiantly, her voice never wavered, despite her fear she managed to look self possessed and remained calm.

Up close the Prince looked even taller than she remembered, more ripped in physique and deeply tanned. His hair reminded her of golden corn as it curled in ringlets around his ears, sometimes unconsciously he would use his hand to brush away the annoying curls that kept falling into his face.

His eyes were bluest she's ever seen and glittered brighter than the gemstones that littered his crown. The longer he stared at her the more he unnerved Juri and made her skin crawl. His buff upper body made him stand out amongst the mermen and made him the envy of all the males.

The Crown Prince had the attention of all the mermaids and all the men wanted to be like him, gills, shiny tail and all. His arrogance and way of talking down to her made her aware that he was aware of his looks and wasn't afraid to use it to his advantage.

She was lucky his men could not speak the human language or one of them would have slit her throat for daring to insult the Prince of the merfolk kingdom. He, on the other hand, was amused by her bravery. She would make a lovely addition to his harem.

It was refreshing to not have a simpering female hanging onto his every word and do everything he asked without giving it a second thought. The Prince never knew how much he missed having someone to debate with.

She even looked intelligent enough to engage him in decent conversations and hold his interests for a while. After she groomed herself of course. She smelled worse than the sewers that drained their human filth into the sea. He asked, "Are you able to stand?"

Well, that was to be expected since she had been confined to the holds of a stinking ship if he was to believe the unbelievable report the Captain had given him.

Still he couldn't believe his luck to receive something so valuable from those cursed Vampires. Clearly one had managed to brainwash the young woman if she was asking to be returned to him instead of being asked to be taken back to her native homeland.

Curse the day those vampires ever laid eyes on her, he would do whatever it takes to erase those memories and make her his in mind, body and soul. He'll show her who wielded the ultimate power.

He would give her a taste of the good life ensuring that she finally understood where her loyalties should lie. The Prince turned his back on her before shouting orders to his men.

"Guards take her way."

What felt like an eternity late after being dragged through the streets, being mocked and jeered at by the merfolk for being a filthy human. Apparently, if she didn't have the Prince's favor she would have either been treated worse than an indentures servant or sold to a prostitution shop.

Both to her who had known freedom for the majority of her life was a fate worse than death. Her foot bottom felt sore and she wouldn't be surprised if they were bleeding as she trudged through the streets of the merfolk kingdom.

The Prince's guard said before he shoved her straight into the hands of the waiting eunuch. The Prince's trusted servant had watched as the guard hauled and manhandled the Prince's property with such disregard. He made a note of his rank number and facial features.

Adolph would report him and have him pay dearly for his rough treatment of the human slave. He wasn't given to sentiment or empathy for new females normally they had to work extra hard to earn his regard but this case was different.

He felt sorry for the girl, she wasn't of their species, a mermaid and it was difficult for the new mermaids who entered the harem to rise in rankings and popularity much less a human slave. Competition was very stiff in the harem and she would have a hard time gaining power.

Or even the favor to gain the Prince's attention when word got out that the Prince had added a human to his harem. He could see all was not lost for this human, there was still some spark in her eyes even when her body was defiant and collapsed against him.

He whispered softly into the ears of the young lady who had passed out exhausted from hunger and fatigue, "Welcome to your new home."