The seals already see humans as predators and keep their distance. Especially on land where they aren't so mobile. So a human (or something that looks like one) carrying the underlying scent of blood and viscera no matter how much he tries to wash it off is worth staying far away from. That's the sort of thing that Aqua should be paying more attention to as well but there's no many unfamiliar smells here, especially as he gets away from the ocean more, that it's hard to discern what they are or where they're coming from. So he's going off of how someone acts and how he's being treated. The way a person looks and how they speak to him.

And this one seems nice so far.

Aqua blinks up at Su-jin curiosity, tilting his head to one side. "I thought we were meeting around the rocks." What and where is 'noon'? He's heard the word before but has zero context for it.