Chapter 53: Chapter 54: Immortal Souls for the Entire Mermaid Kingdom

“These two humans are friends of my granddaughter, Princess Ariel, and naturally, friends of the Mermaid Kingdom,” the Grand Matron introduced them to the nobles. She gestured proudly at Rhine, adding, “Moreover, this human boy is a skilled magician!”

“A magician? From the human world?” The nobles were even more amazed.

Rhine demonstrated his abilities on the spot.

First, he brought sculptures in the palace to life. Then he transformed the anglerfish’s translucent belly into various land animals.

“This is a bird. This is a horse. This is a deer. This is a cow. This is a sheep. This is a rabbit…”

The bizarre and exotic land creatures left the nobles and Ariel’s sisters staring in disbelief. The royal court’s painters hurried to capture the appearances of these strange animals, sketching them before the images disappeared.

“Honored magician and wise sage, everyone has many questions about the surface world!” said the Sea King.

Thus, Rhine and Aurora began answering the nobles’ curious inquiries about the land. They shared stories of the surface world, describing the countless kingdoms across the western continent and recounting legends from the distant East, from cruel sultans to the emperors of the Eastern Empire.

Rhine even produced a mirror to project images of these tales.

As a Sage of the Rose Kingdom, Rhine’s knowledge surpassed that of most people in the world!

The nobles were astonished to learn that the surface world was even more diverse than their oceanic realm. It had mountains, forests, deserts, grasslands, snow-covered tundras, and lifeless wastelands.

Just as Aurora had been awed by the beauty of the undersea world when she first saw it, the merfolk were similarly mesmerized by the wonders of the surface world.

The palace scholars worked tirelessly that day. Armed with pens crafted from octopus ink sacs, they recorded every word spoken by Rhine and Aurora, running the poor creatures dry of ink.

The Mermaid Kingdom’s millennia-old records of the human world paled in comparison to what the two children shared that day.

“What a shame,” the Sea King sighed. “The land has such remarkable beauty, yet we merfolk cannot form friendships with humans.

“Humans seem to fear and despise us. Sometimes, when sailors spot merfolk, they attack us, firing poisoned arrows at my people.”

Having learned the context, Rhine couldn’t help but chuckle.

It wasn’t as though merfolk were entirely blameless—singing about the sea’s beauty in front of human ships just before storms was hardly conducive to goodwill.

Rhine explained the situation in detail, emphasizing how human sailors feared the sea’s dangers—the enormous waves and fierce storms.

“To ensure a safe voyage, every sailor offers prayers to the sea gods, hoping to avoid being swallowed by the ocean.

“But to humans, either the merfolk’s songs summon the storms, or their singing lures sailors into perilous waters, causing ships to wreck on reefs or sink in whirlpools.

“In either case, merfolk are seen as harbingers of disaster, not as heralds of storms.”

The Sea King sighed in understanding.

“Alas, the lack of understanding between our worlds has caused such misinterpretations.”

The once-imposing monarch now wore an expression akin to his daughter’s—a wistful longing for a brighter future.

“If one day, humans and the creatures of the sea could understand each other and live in harmony, how wonderful that would be!

“But we cannot go ashore. We can only linger at the coast, unable to venture inland.”

Aurora froze, recalling her own melancholic thoughts from the previous night and Rhine’s words.

“Could it be…”

A vague suspicion began to form in her mind about the direction of this story’s conclusion.

The silver-haired boy in the anglerfish’s belly smiled and said, “It’s not impossible.

“Your Majesty’s youngest daughter, Princess Ariel, is already attempting this.

“She fell in love with a human prince and sought his love and an immortal soul. To that end, she approached the only witch in your kingdom, requesting a potion to grant her legs.

“The Sea Hag wanted to take your daughter’s voice as payment. I happened to be there and offered Princess Ariel a superior potion for free.”

Rhine briefly recounted the events of the previous night.

The Grand Matron, who had been beaming moments ago, now turned pale.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Heavens! My little princess has gone to the land? How could she do such a foolish thing?

“I warned her to abandon her silly fantasies about being with humans! I thought she had long forgotten about it.

“What are we going to do now?”

The Sea King and Ariel’s sisters—the other five mermaid princesses—were just as distressed. Upon hearing that Ariel would turn into sea foam if she failed, they became as anxious as ants on a hot pan, fretting among themselves.

Rhine was struck by their reactions.

Although the original story never depicted the family’s response to Ariel’s departure, their desperation at the end—when the sisters traded their hair with the Sea Hag for a way to save Ariel—showed how deeply they cared for her.

“Honored Magician, since you can transform Ariel into a human, surely you can turn her back?”

“This is too dangerous. Bring her back to us!”

“We can pay you with pearls from the sea or our beautiful hair—whatever you want!”

The Sea King, the Grand Matron, and the mermaid princesses surrounded Rhine, pleading for his help.

Rhine envisioned a scene left out of the original story:

Ariel’s family, desperate after her departure, turned to the Sea Hag for help, her sisters sacrificing their hair to save her.

“Your Majesty, I can indeed do that,” Rhine said. “But I don’t recommend doing so right now.”

As the Sea King and the mermaid princesses looked at him in confusion, Rhine explained:

“I believe Princess Ariel’s attempt isn’t just about her alone. Her venture to the land, though fraught with danger, might also pave the way for the future of the Mermaid Kingdom.”

The Sea King looked puzzled. “What do you mean?”

The former Sage of the Rose Kingdom raised his voice with passion and conviction:

“Consider this: if Princess Ariel succeeds, wouldn’t that prove that merfolk and humans can share love and build lasting relationships?

“This could be the foundation for friendship between the kingdoms of the sea and the land. And it just so happens that the lovers in this tale are a prince and a princess—a match made in heaven!

“Your Majesty, you know the secret of the immortal soul.

“If Ariel succeeds, it will set a shining precedent!

“When Ariel and the prince marry, it must be known to all that she hails from the Mermaid Kingdom. Aside from physiological differences, merfolk are no different from humans.

“With the power of magic, the barriers between the sea and land will cease to exist. If I can grant merfolk legs to walk on land, I can also transform humans into merfolk, allowing them to explore the sea!

“From then on, any ordinary mermaid in these vast seas could follow Ariel’s example, find love among humans, and gain an immortal soul!”