The Princess's Plea
Her chest pounded wildly, and her fists clenched of their own accord.
That did not mean she had to shrink back. In moments like this, composure was the only choice she had. Vivienne swallowed the dry lump in her throat and tightened her grip.
“I simply couldn’t sleep. I went for a walk for a bit.”
“You mean the strange hole in the wall outside the palace?”
“……”
Oh no. He already knew.
With no reply for her father’s sharp questioning, Vivienne fell silent, her tongue glued to the roof of her mouth.
Quiet descended in the room.
The Mermaid King looked almost heartbroken, as though he no longer knew where to begin teaching his foolish daughter again.
Vivienne sat there in silence. She felt ashamed before her father; if he already knew about the hole, then she had gone outside the palace, and there was no excuse she could offer.
“You are being reckless.”
The Mermaid King spoke first.
“Every day you claim you go to the temple and go to bed early, and the maid is scolded for it. A long tail is simply stepped on. How long did you intend to deceive your father with such flimsy excuses?”
“I’m sorry. Being locked inside the palace all the time made me so restless, that’s why.”
“Enough!”
The Mermaid King roared, his voice shaking the walls of the underwater palace like thunder.
“I have told you countless times not to go outside the palace on a whim. Do you think my words are amusing to you?”
Vivienne pleaded toward her father.
“Father, I understand your worry, but I am perfectly fine. I am the best dancer in the kingdom, and I swim the fastest. Even if I circled the seaweed garden twenty times, it would be nothing.”
“What?”
“So please let me go outside the palace. Please?”
“I won’t hear it!”
The Mermaid King did not even blink at her pleas; he rejected her with a single, stubborn word.
Her throat tightened with the frustration of blind, unreasonable suppression.
“Indeed. I see you have been wandering outside and enjoying the fresh air. It seems your heat has been raging quite fiercely.”
“H-heat…?”
Heat? To her father, the word sounded almost insulting and deeply embarrassing. Vivienne doubted her own ears.
“I have already arranged your marriage. To the eldest son of the Prime Minister. You have met him several times at parties and exchanged greetings; you must know.”
“This is my marriage! How could you decide without consulting me?”
Whenever they met at parties, he had followed her around so subtly. Only the parties knew; the parties were well aware.
“You seem unable to control your body. So we shall arrange the date as soon as possible.”
“I won’t allow it. A marriage without the parties consent is unacceptable.”
“Stop being stubborn, Vivi!”
The Mermaid King appeared unwilling to listen to a word from his youngest daughter. Anger and injustice burned inside her. Vivienne bit her trembling lips.
“Your sisters have already experienced this. Now they are married to your wishes, having children and living happily.”
“You want me to marry a man I don’t love. That’s absurd. Father, please withdraw your words.”
“You are impossible!”
The Mermaid King warned her in a heated voice.
“You are a princess. Because you were spoiled, pampered, and raised without discipline. Do you think that position is merely a casual game of love?”
“Father. I have respected you all this time. I believed every word you said had meaning, and I followed you. But this time, you were wrong.”
“What?”
“I am not in pain, and I am healthy. I am not your puppet. I will never marry you by being pulled along against my will…!”
Slap!
A loud sound accompanied Vivienne’s face turning to the side. Her entire body swayed from the first-ever slap she had received.
“…Why.”
Her vision blurred, and thick tears rolled down her cheeks, which had already flushed red.
“You will not step outside this room until the wedding. Remember that!”
Crash!
The door slammed shut violently.
Soon after, the sound of metal scraping began outside the door.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Vivienne panicked and began pounding on the door.
“Father…. Please don’t lock me away……! Father! Please!”
Outside, the lock turned. No matter how much she knocked or twisted the doorknob, the door would not open.
“I’m trapped without any escape.”
Vivienne leaned against the door, covered her face with her hands, and slid down to the floor.
If only she had known this would be the end…
She should have run away.
She should have asked his name.
Tears poured endlessly, and sobs leaked out. Her heart stung more than the cheek that had been slapped.
***
“Princess. Are you really not going to eat?”
In Vivienne’s bedroom, Anabel carried a tray of clam stew and asked with concern, yet Vivienne turned away and lay down again.
“If you do that, you will really get into big trouble. Just one spoonful. Please?”
“No.”
She was adamant. Anabel let out a soft sigh, then straightened her voice again.
“Princess, please look at me.”
“……”
“You don’t have to eat. Just look at me, okay?”
Anabel gently stroked Vivienne’s shoulder and coaxed her. Reluctantly, Vivienne turned her head.
Her eyes were swollen from crying, and her fair face was messy and wet.
“Oh, poor little princess. How upset you must be. Come here.”
Anabel wiped the wet face with her fingertips, looking at her as if she were pitiful.
“Stop crying so much. Your beautiful eyes will be ruined.”
Safe in Anabel’s tender touch, she kept trying not to cry, but the tears kept coming.
When Vivienne clung to Anabel’s neck like a spoiled child, Anabel hugged her and patted her back.
“Princess.”
“……Why.”
“You dislike the marriage partner that much?”
“……”
“He is handsome. Smart, and from a good family. He even won first place in the javelin-throwing competition this time. The king has specially chosen him for you.”
Despite the constant urging, the princess shook her head no. Anabel’s head tilted slightly. Whether the partner was handsome or not seemed irrelevant; there must be another reason.
“Or… do you have someone else you like?”
The sharp question made Vivienne’s blue eyes widen a little.
That was it. The princess could not hide her expressions well, even cutely. Anabel’s lips curved upward in a pleased smile.
“Why didn’t you say anything? Tell me, just a little.”
“No. Why would I.”
“Maybe I can help you. With my strength.”
At the word of help, Vivienne sat up immediately.
“You’ll keep it a secret?”
“Of course. Who’s secret?”
“Truly?”
“Yes. My lips are sealed.”
Feeling anxious, Vivienne asked again. Anabel nodded firmly, lips pressed tight as a promise.
Vivienne hesitated a moment, then spoke timidly.
“……There’s nothing here.”
“Really?”
Instead of answering, she pointed upward with her finger. Up? Anabel pondered deeply, then her face turned pale with realization.
“You mean… on land?”
“Uh-huh.”
“O-oh my…”
How could she speak so fearlessly? Anabel muttered in disbelief, her eyes wide.
If she had seen it from above the water, and if it had made her cry so much, she must have seen it more than once.
Thinking of the enormous things a foolish princess had done, Anabel’s head ached.
“I saw it at the South Coral Beach. I don’t know his name.”
“That’s fortunate. Forget it.”
Anabel’s decisive answer made Vivienne’s face grow even sadder.
“Princess, why did you go there alone? It’s dangerous!”
“It wasn’t that dangerous. Nothing happened. I just looked from afar.”
They had even made eye contact…
She had held back this part, fearing Anabel would foam at the mouth and rage.
“Anyway. Humans are never allowed!”
“Even if I trusted you the most, I didn’t think you’d understand.”
“I want to understand too. I’m sorry, but this time I cannot side with you.”
“Anabel-”
“I have never heard of a mermaid who fell in love with a human and returned to the sea.”
Even while calling her name and whining, Anabel remained firm.
Anabel was knowledgeable and wise. She was Vivienne’s maid, companion, and sometimes a big sister figure who supported her.
Stuck inside the mermaid palace without the ability to leave, Vivienne had borrowed books from Anabel and heard stories about the outside world.
Anabel had spoken so resolutely. Was this really an impossible fantasy? A strange feeling of relief spread through her chest.
“Perhaps she just wants to be happy and never wants to return.”
“Think carefully, princess. Mermaids cannot move on land because they have no legs. What would you do then? Humans would cage mermaids in glass boxes or ponds, they say. How could anyone be happy living like that?”
“But that is the same here.”
“That is completely different.”
Anabel sighed deeply, frustrated.
“Your highness loves you. But humans do not know how to love mermaids. They only keep them locked away and own them.”
“……”
Anabel pulled the dejected Vivienne into her arms and stroked her hair.
“It will pass like a fleeting fever. So forget it.”
Even her last thread of hope shattered. Like a sandcastle swept away by waves, it crumbled completely.
***
After being locked in the room, Vivienne barely ate, sleeping as if dead.
She had said she would arrange the date as soon as possible, but the wedding was closer than she expected—a full month away.
Vivienne stared at her reflection in the mirror. Adorned with rare pearls and mother-of-pearl, sitting stiffly, she looked like a gaudy corpse.
“Princess, smile for me.”
Although she had no mood to smile, Anabel kept urging her.
“Quickly. Right now, how beautiful the princess is.”
When Vivienne remained motionless, Anabel bent down and looked her in the face.
“You will be happy. I promise.”
“How?”
“I will pray earnestly so that you will be.”
“If I pray, will I really become happy?”
The sight of her widening eyes in wonder was pitiful.
“Of course.”
Anabel kissed Vivienne’s forehead gently, then fixed her hair ornament.
“Anabel, let me be alone for a while.”
“Why?”
“I want to pray.”
“Then just a little.”
When Anabel left, Vivienne remained alone in the empty room.
She was not particularly devout, but a sincere heart made her want to grab at anything. Otherwise, she might not be able to endure it.
With no one around, she cautiously glanced around, then quietly pulled out her compass.
My treasure.
Holding the compass, she clasped her hands together in prayer and closed her eyes tightly. When it came time to pray, she did not know what to ask.
She had said she would be happy.
She decided to ask for that happiness.
“Please make that man happy.”
She did not know his name, and she might never see him again, but she hoped he would be happy at least for a little while.
“And I… I want to be happy too.”
Could she truly become happy?
Marrying a man she did not choose, having children, still locked away inside the palace—could she ever be happy?
Please, just make me happy. Even after offering the prayer she had never made before?
She already knew she could not be happy. Still, the instinct to wish for happiness was natural.
What if she had legs?
What if she could become human?
Could she reach him?
[Should I help?]
At that moment, a voice she could not identify spoke.
Could it be… a response to her prayer?
“Yes.”
Vivienne answered, spellbound.
“……I want to be happy too.”