CH 87

The man that came with her then stepped forward and spread out a cloth. And then he began to skillfully prepare the fish. After a short while, the slices of raw fish were placed beautifully on a large plate.

“Prince Amia. How about this? I heard that the people by the coast have a custom of eating fish raw like this.”

“I don’t want it. More importantly, take me back to the lake. I’ve already talked to you for several days. You said you only wanted to talk for a short while.”

“Oh, but I have not been satisfied yet. Amia, you’ve barely told me anything but your name.”

“Are all humans so dull-witted? My father and brother will not be happy when they find out what you are doing.”

“What I am doing?”

“You are keeping me here as a prisoner.”

“A prisoner! I am only keeping you here as a guest. Is there anything that I can get for you, Amia?”

“I want to return to the lake.”

“But you’ll go away if I return you to the lake, won’t you?”

“This is going nowhere.”

After that, Amia refused to reply, no matter how much Chouze tried to talk to him. He just stared at the lake.

“Well, I shall visit you again later.”

Chouze said before going out into the hallway. She sighed. After they had walked a little, she turned to her maid and said,

“Oh, he was so beautiful today as well. Prince Amia. I don’t care if he doesn’t talk. As long as he stays here.”

“Still, Princess Chouze. I think you should return him soon.”

The maid said rather bluntly.

“In the first place, you ignored the warnings about it being dangerous this year and came to the lake. And then you captured a merman on top of that. Oh, when the others find out about this, you will be forbidden from going outside.”

“Captured! He is a guest!”

“He’s half fish. And yet you tried to feed him raw fish. How frightful.”

“I don’t see what’s wrong with it.”

“If you don’t return him to the water soon, he’ll get all dried up and die.”

“What a horrible thing to say! You’re the one that’s frightful!”

No, what is frightful is your obsession and will to keep him locked up, even when he could die. The maid almost said this but held her tongue. Recently, even the oldest and most loyal servants in the palace were being let go over minor issues. And so she hesitated in saying exactly what was on her mind.

Chouze had always been a dreamer, but was still an honest girl. The maid didn’t understand what had happened.

“If only Prince Norfe was here…or…”

He was gentle with his younger sister, and so she wasn’t sure that he would deal with the situation calmly. It would all be fine if he just returned the fish to the lake. But what if he hurt him instead? The maid shook the thought out of her head. And then she followed after the princess.

Amia watched Chouze and the others leave the room. Then he hit the sofa once with his tail and let out a deep sigh.

The lake was shallow. He had known this, and yet he was lured by the miasma and went close to the shore. It was his own fault. He was annoyed at his own stupidity for getting caught in the net. But had he really wanted to get away, he could have cut it and escaped.

However…

“Would you please come to my villa?”

The young human girl had said. There was something about her that reminded him of the beloved children. That was his downfall. She didn’t even have the same hair or eyes. However, he thought there would be no harm in indulging her for a while. And now look where that led. His tail slapped down on the sofa in frustration.

She was probably doing it with pure intentions. However, her head was so full of herself, that she was incapable of thinking about anyone else. Even merfolk were like that at her age.

If she was an enemy, he could eliminate her. He didn’t care if she was royalty. He would get rid of anyone that he disliked.

He could also just slip out on his own, but the thought of the grieving child was too much for him. He was also unable to treat her coldly. It was a rare moment where Amia was truly unsure of what to do.

In other words, he was well aware that he was in a very ridiculous situation. And that made him a little frantic.

“I can only hope that Saia doesn’t get ahead of himself.”

He muttered. However, Amia had no way of knowing that it was much too later for that.

☆　　☆　　☆

“Norfe. Chouze!”

A voice called from the front of the carriage. Maki and Chiharu were still sitting in the back and enjoying the scenery. They replied just as loudly.

“Yes!”

“What is it?”

Maki stood up on well-balanced feet. She passed through the other luggage in the back and stuck her head out by the driver’s seat.

“There are soldiers by the town’s exit. That’s very unusual.”

Aaron said. Maki stretched her neck and looked ahead.

“There really are. They’re checking each carriage too. But…”

She squinted.

“I don’t think it’s about searching for something? It’s probably just to keep dangerous people out. It should be fine.”

Maki said, as if it wasn’t a big deal. Aaron sighed.

“Look, we’re a group of people who are trying to sell oranges in a time like this. We look pretty suspicious. So, where’s this confidence even coming from?”

“Well, it’s not like we can do anything now. If we have no choice, then we should act boldly.”

“You’re not wrong…but. Hey, Edwy.”

“Yes, yes. What he’s trying to say, Maki, is that we should be careful.”

“I know that. We’ll be careful in the back.”

“Yes, please do.”

Maki returned to the back.

“Edwy. Be careful about how you talk.”

“That’s right. I will.”

“Now, we’re almost in Nelis. Once we get in, we’ll have to rent a room at an inn and then secure a spot in the market place.”

Chiharu was in the far back and dangling her feet carelessly. That being said, it was tough having to sit on a hard wooden board for such a long time. Sometimes, they walked next to the carriage or slept between the cargo. The road hadn’t been easy.

“We’re almost there.”

“Ultimately, we didn’t really learn anything other than that the princess went to the villa and they aren’t able to get fish from the lake anymore.”

“Princess. What a joke. It’s that little girl, right?”

Maki snorted. Chiharu chuckled but then remonstrated her.

“Don’t say that. If you really do just see her as a little girl, you should be nice.”

“Well, they really annoyed me.”

“I won’t argue with that. I’m still not sure why they treated us like enemies.”

Maki was a little exasperated that Chiharu didn’t seem to care much, in spite of all that had happened. Still, she continued.

“Really. And you know, they don’t actually contribute much money to the Saintess in the first place? While they will pay larger sums if the Saintess Palace needs some construction work or other such things, normally, most countries pay the same amount they would to a single knight.”

“Oh, that’s cheap. If a Saintess is purifying the land of miasma for the same salary as a knight, then I don’t know why they’re complaining. In fact, we’re doing it right now! It’s starting to annoy me.” 

Chiharu batted the air as if she could see the miasma around her. However, her body would suck it in regardless. Maki couldn’t help but laugh.

“Haha. It’s no use. Though, to be honest, the miasma here is just as thick as it was in the dwarf lands.”

“Yes. The magic gems are created very quickly.”

Chiharu touched her forehead and then her chest. This wasn’t for the royal family. They were doing it for everyone else. It couldn’t be helped. She would forget the pain that she had felt in her chest at that time. And like that, the carriage that carried the Saintesses, entered the town.