Chapter 33 Part I

    The Appearance of the Mermaid "Aime"

    "Hey, hey, Möbius, wake up." 

    The young man woke up because of the sweet voice beside his ear. As he looked around, he realized he was still in the same place, but now Gumiho had snuggled up next to him in the narrow space between the bed and the wall. When the fox girl noticed he was awake, she sat up and pointed toward Inari, who was hugging Leia close to her chest. "Look, Möbius, Mom and Leia won’t wake up to keep me company." 

    She puffed out her cheeks, glancing at the two women who wouldn’t wake up no matter what. Möbius immediately understood she had woken him up just to keep her company. Smiling softly, the young man gently patted her head before speaking to her in a kind voice.

    "In that case, how about we go for a walk on the beach? It’ll help with your boredom, Miho."

    "Yeah. Let’s go to the beach right now."

    “How’s it going, Miho? Are you having fun here?” 

    Möbius, walking along the beach in the morning, talked with the fox girl who was playfully running around like a child, amidst the soft sunlight that was easy on the eyes. Today, he carried his guitar case, anticipating the possibility of more unexpected events.

    The person being asked, holding a bottle of blue potion and not letting go, and lifting the hem of her short kimono with the other hand, kicked the foam of the waves playfully as they washed ashore. She turned back to Möbius with a bright smile.

    "Yeah. I’m having so much fun. I can’t believe how delicious Bust was, and this place is so beautiful. I love it here, hehe."

    "Is that so? I like it too." 

    Seeing the fox girl so joyful, Möbius couldn’t help but smile happily. Though he had wanted to chat with her, now that the time had come, he wasn’t sure what to say. But that was okay because just seeing her happy was enough for him.

    "Ever since I met you, Möbius, every day has been so much fun. And with Mom and Leia around, it’s even better." 

    Gumiho said as she sat down to play with a large hermit crab dragging its shell across the sand. Möbius, noticing the crab crawling by, sat down next to her. He furrowed his brow slightly as he thought about how dangerous things had been for her since they met. He couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh as he looked into her eyes.

    "Hehe, thinking back, there have only been life-threatening situations."

    "It’s okay. No matter how dangerous it gets, I’m not scared, because… because… I have you... Möbius." 

    The fox girl lowered her head to avoid the young man’s gaze. She didn’t know why, but thinking about the young man beside her made her face feel warm. Her left index finger drew random circles in the sand as her right hand moved to rest on top of the hand of the person next to her. She then scooted closer, pressing against him.

    “I’m happy too, Miho, to have you with me.” 

    The young man felt his face flush with warmth as well, and he turned to smile at the beautiful girl beside him. Today, she looked especially cute, so much so that his hand rose to gently pat her head.

    “Hehehe... Möbius... you’re such a cheat, just like Mom said.” 

    Gumiho laughed happily as the young man’s hand softly stroked her hair. Besides the incident on the cruise ship, she thought being patted on the head like this was one of the best feelings. However, a mischievous thought crossed her mind, and her smile morphed into a sly grin, one that perfectly mirrored Inari’s expressions. It was a sign that Möbius knew something was about to happen.

    The fox girl placed her hands on his shoulders, then slowly slid them around to the back of his neck, drawing their faces so close that they could feel each other’s breath. Although Möbius had been close to her before, this time the atmosphere was entirely different. He couldn’t help but wonder if Gumiho was about to eat him...

    Thump, thump! 

    Möbius’s heart raced so loudly that he could hear it himself as the beautiful fox girl leaned in closer. The scene that the young man saw looked like a painting, with the sun slowly rising, and the white foam from the gentle waves reflecting the soft sunlight, as if diamonds were being carried along with the waves.

    “Do you want to know what happened on the ship after you shot yourself, Möbius... what did we do to you?” 

    Her soft breath from speaking brushed against his face. The more he looked at her sweet face, which had a rosy tint more than usual, the faster his heartbeat. It felt as though time had stopped. The beautiful scenery around him meant nothing anymore; only the beautiful girl in front of him remained in his sight.

    But in an instant, everything was shattered when Möbius saw the dugong he had thrown into the sea the night before, washed ashore once again. In the daylight, he could see clearly now—it wasn’t a dugong at all. The upper half of the creature resembled a human, and he could only guess that it was a mermaid. Still, at that moment, he wasn't interested in it because the fox girl in front of him was far more interesting.

    Even though Möbius didn't pay attention, the fox girl wasn't the same. She sniffed the air, as if she smelled something, and the mood was abruptly broken. She released her hold on Möbius and pointed at the large mermaid lying on the beach.

    “Möbius, look at that big fish… It looks delicious.” 

    Having never seen a mermaid before, Gumiho thought it was some kind of fish washed ashore. She wondered if it might taste even better than Bust, so the beautiful girl ran over and poked the its belly to see if it was still alive. Möbius was left dumbfounded, as everything had taken an unexpected turn just when things were going so well.

    “Water... I need water.” 

    The mermaid croaked weakly to Gumiho, who suddenly realized it wasn’t a fish but likely a rare monster, much like herself.

    “There’s plenty of water over there.” 

    Gumiho squatted down in front of the mermaid and pointed to the sea behind it, where there was obviously a lot of sea water. The mermaid almost face-planted into the sand from the sheer ignorance of the one in front of her. “Maybe she means red potion water.”

    Möbius, having come to terms with the situation, approached with four or five bottles of red potion in hand. As he got closer to the mermaid, he froze in shock. If children around the world saw this mermaid, they would likely lose all their magical fantasies about beautiful mermaids for sure. That was because the mermaid before him was the complete opposite of what he had imagined.

    Her dry, blue hair resembled the bristles of an old broom, stretching all the way to her tail. Her face was shaped like a flat mandarin orange, wider than it was long, with rough, pale skin covered in blackheads. The skin on her body was even rougher, mottled with dark patches. Thick blue eyebrows were joined in the middle, forming one continuous line, and her mossy green eyes were sunken behind swollen eyelids. She wore a massive seashell to cover her vital areas, and her stubby, short blue fish tail matched her hair. Overall, if you weren’t paying close attention, you’d never realize she was supposed to be a mermaid.

    “Well, kind sir... I know I’m beautiful, but you don’t have to stare so much.” 

    The dugong girl said to Möbius, who was still examining her, trying to figure out which part of her resembled the beautiful mermaids from his imagination. The young man quickly looked up at the sky, trying to erase her image from his mind. Meanwhile, the mermaid stared at him unblinking, in much the same way.

    “Um... so, why are you stranded here?” 

    For the first time, Möbius felt that he didn’t want to get involved with someone. As soon as the dugong girl heard his question, she immediately burst into tears, causing both Gumiho and Möbius to furrow their brows in unison.

    “Möbius...” 

    Leia, who had come out to find Möbius and Gumiho with Inari, arrived at the scene right as the dugong girl started crying. Both women glanced at the mermaid, seeing only her plump fish tail, as the upper half was blocked by the two people who had arrived earlier.

    “Oh, Möbius, is today’s breakfast fish? Wow ~~~that’s a big one, looks delicious.” 

    “No, Inari. Dugongs are a protected species. You can’t kill it. They’re almost extinct.” 

    Leia also seeing just the short tail, quickly stopped Inari before she could roast the dugong. However, a raspy voice rose, causing both women to circle around to get a better look at the dugong.

    “I am not a dugong!!! I’m a mermaid, and the most beautiful one among all the mermaids.” The mermaid turned to speak to Möbius and the three women. Hearing her claim to be the most beautiful, they couldn’t help but imagine what the less beautiful mermaids must look like. She then turned to introduce herself to Möbius.

    “My name is Aime, princess of the city of Blue Aquarium, one of the three main cities of the mermaid tribe. You... Please, help me.”

    “Let me think about it.” 

    For the first time, Möbius didn’t immediately agree to help someone in distress. His response matched the feelings of the three women, who didn't really want to help the so-called beautiful mermaid princess either, but they also couldn’t just leave her stranded.

    “If that’s the case, let’s go inside to talk... You can transform into a human, right?” 

    Although Inari didn’t want to dwell on the fact that both she and Aime were rare, special types of monsters, it was necessary to continue the conversation. The fox mother assumed that the other party could transform into a human as well. The dugong girl nodded before transforming as requested.

    “If possible, don’t tell anyone you’re a mermaid. Uh... it’s kind of dangerous around here.” 

    Leia, whose fantasy of mermaids being beautiful was completely shattered, spoke to Aime. When she transformed into a human, she became a woman the size of a small elephant, but she wore a strapless one-piece swimsuit with a short, frilly skirt and a blue bow matching her hair. The petite girl thought the outfit was completely mismatched with Aime’s appearance.

    “I’m so glad there are still good people like you. Actually, I arrived at this beach last night, but then some human came along and gave me some kind of potion for me to drink. Afterward, they tossed me into the sea, and I almost drowned.” 

    Aime spoke as they walked with Möbius toward the large cottage for breakfast. Unfortunately, she hadn’t seen the face of the human, nor could she recall their voice, as she had been too exhausted at the time. The mermaid only remembered that the human resembled Möbius, but since the man seemed to be alone, she didn’t think it was him, as he had several women with him.

    “Uh... why don’t you tell me more about your story?” 

    Möbius, fully aware of who the human was, suddenly felt the need to help Aime, guilt tightening in his throat. He didn’t even stop to question how a mermaid could drown. This made the mermaid very grateful for Möbius 's kindness. She looked at the young man almost the entire time before accepting his kindness with a shy expression.

    “Thank you.”

    While they ate breakfast, Möbius and the three women introduced themselves to Aime, and she told them her story in return as they ate.

    She explained that there were three main mermaid cities, each with a tradition where the royal children were arranged to marry the prince or princess of another city to strengthen their alliances. Aime, the princess of Blue Aquarium City, had been betrothed to Prince Shark of Red Ruby City since birth. However, Prince Shark rejected the arrangement, choosing instead to marry Princess Sweetpea of Yellow Amber City, claiming that he couldn’t marry Aime without ever having seen her.

    Princess Aime wasn’t upset, understanding that love couldn’t be forced. To show she harbored no ill will, she attended the wedding. But when Prince Shark saw Aime’s beauty for the first time, he was immediately captivated by her. After the wedding, he returned to claim his engagement to Princess Aime with her father, the king of Blue Aquarium. Naturally, the king refused, as the prince was already married.

    This situation led the prince of Red Ruby to storm the castle of Blue Aquarium City, intending to force Princess Aime to become his bride. The king of Blue Aquarium ordered her to flee the city before she could fall into the prince's clutches. As a result, both the king and queen were captured and imprisoned in their own castle. Prince Shark demanded that Princess Aime, who had escaped, return and marry him, promising that the king and queen would be safe.

    "Sob... sob... That’s how it happened. With my strength alone, I cannot rescue my father and mother, so I’m begging you all to help me." 

    Aime, the beautiful princess, cried after finishing her story. Möbius was already inclined to help, but just as he was about to turn to his girls to ask their opinion—

    Bang!

    “That Prince Shark is despicable. A two-timing jerk.” 

    Inari, who despised men like that, slammed the table in anger, causing Möbius to jump in surprise.

    “How disgusting. How can a man have someone he loves and still chase after another woman?” 

    Gumiho, though inexperienced in love, knew enough to understand that this kind of man was useless.

    “A man like that needs to be... cut...” 

    Leia, equally furious at how the prince treated women like playthings, spoke in a cold voice while pulling out a black blade hidden in her sleeve, gesturing as if to slice something.

    “Um… how about we finish breakfast first?” 

    Möbius, feeling a strange warmth in his stomach from the breakfast he had just eaten, tried to lighten the mood by suggesting the girls continue eating. Fortunately, it worked. As they ate more, the two fox girls and Leia gradually calmed down, bringing him some much-needed relief.

    “It must be tough, huh? Eating so much and still staying slim. Look at me—I eat just a little and I’m already gaining weight,” 

    Aime said, watching the two slim fox girls eat voraciously yet maintain their petite figures.

    “In the mermaid city... what’s considered beautiful?” 

    Inari, still puzzled by Aime’s idea of beauty, asked.

    “Like me, of course. I have everything that defines beauty—artfully split, dry hair; a short, round, plump figure; a flat chest; dry, cracked skin with lots of acne; and my beautifully swollen eyes. That’s the true definition of beauty.” 

    Aime proudly declared. She had held the title of the most beautiful mermaid in her kingdom for decades, and all the mermaids in her city admired her as the epitome of beauty. This made Leia instantly understand.

    “Oh... I see. So, I guess that makes us the ugly ones, right?”

    “Ah... yeah.” 

    Aime hesitated to answer directly, not wanting to offend the people she needed to help rescue her parents. But according to her standards, Möbius’s three companions were indeed extremely unattractive.