Chapter 119

The Mermaid Prince, buried in the ground, showed no movement, as if he had died instantly. Naturally, any physical transformation or whatever he was doing had also stopped.

[Fishy… So there was a way to attack during physical transformation…]

[He must really be a genius.]

[Why didn’t we think of that before?]

[Maou Guburi]—Probably couldn’t do it because he’s a fish head. Idiots.

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—LOL, no brain?

[Reverse Rape Mania]—LOL…

[Handsome Licker]—But why did Se-hoon use a headbutt instead of a normal punch? That’s a headache. *Lick*.

[Meng Yao]—Probably because headbutts are stronger than punches. Or not.

[Oh! Come to think of it, when a mermaid transforms, they’re almost immune to physical damage.]

[Right, that’s true. I forgot. That’s why we didn’t think of attacking during transformation.]

[Immune? This is the first I’ve heard of it. Fishy.]

[Fishy… I’ve never heard of it either…]

[I think I’ve heard of it. When transforming, they can block most attacks from even high-level yokai.]

[Huh? Then why did the guest’s attack work?]

[Maybe because the guest is much stronger than most high-level yokai.]

[And why did the Mermaid Prince panic when the guest attacked? Did he suspect the attack would work?]

[That prince has good instincts. He probably sensed the threat instinctively.]

Leaving the murmuring merfolk behind, I slowly approached the Mermaid Prince.

I had to finish this properly.

He might get up again like before.

Even though he’s lying limp now, he seems pretty tenacious, so it’s better to make sure.

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—Finish him off for good this time.

[Big Girl]—Right. He might get up again.

[Min Ji]—Isn’t he already dead? He’s not moving.

[Yoho]—If he were human, maybe, but since he’s a yokai, he might revive.

[Min Ji]—What should we do then?

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure he doesn’t get up again this time.”

[Jujijoa]—He says ‘to kill’ so casually. Has he killed a lot?

“He’s not human, he’s a yokai. Of course, I don’t like killing yokai either… but he tried to kill me first, so I have no choice.”

[Yoho]—Right. It’s justified.

[Handsome Licker]—No rationalization. *Lick*.

[Maid]—Wow! You kill first and then pretend you don’t like killing!

I nudged the Mermaid Prince’s body with my foot.

Still, there was no movement.

‘…He doesn’t seem to be faking death. Maybe he’s just unconscious.’

It’s dangerous to assume he’s dead and let my guard down.

The Mermaid Prince isn’t just any yokai; he’s a high-level yokai among yokai.

If I’m not careful, he might counterattack.

‘Well, I’ll know if I attack.’

I raised one leg.

And just as I was about to stomp on his body to finish him off—

Poof—

Suddenly, the Mermaid Prince’s body turned to ash and began to scatter in the wind.

[Min Ji]—?? What’s this?

[Handsome Licker]—Why’s he like that? *Lick*.

[Jujijoa]—He’s disintegrating.

[Yoho]—Do they usually disintegrate that fast?

[Jujijoa]—Sometimes they do. Not always.

[Reverse Rape Mania]—Juji, how do you know that?

[Jujijoa]—I heard Maehwa talking about it before. Sometimes they disintegrate immediately, or at least within a week.

[Reverse Rape Mania]—I see. But why is this high-level yokai so weak? Boring. Tsk tsk.

[Drifting AI]—I’ll say it. He’s stronger than you, Mania.

[Qkrnfl892]—LOL, if that yokai were right in front of you, you’d be pissing yourself.

I guess I worried for nothing.

There was no need to finish him off; the Mermaid Prince was already dead.

“I didn’t know he’d be this weak… Is he really a high-level yokai? This is disappointing.”

[Qkrnfl892]—Don’t be disappointed. Damn.

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—Did you want to fight more? LOL.

[Big Girl]—If you like fighting, you can fight me later.

[Jujijoa]—Are you suicidal?

And just like that, the Mermaid Prince’s body disappeared without a trace.

[Meng Yao]—Wow, is he really dead? Just from two hits?

[Balloon Gum Collector]—Wow! What a weak yokai!

[Maid]—Wow! He was just pretending to be strong!

[Maou Guburi]—High-level yokai aren’t much. I could beat him too. LOL.

It was a truly pitiful and anticlimactic end for someone with the title of high-level yokai and prince.

***

Right after the Mermaid Prince disintegrated, I heard the merfolk’s situation.

I didn’t really want to ask, but they explained it themselves.

Anyway.

The merfolk are currently under a curse.

The act of their bodies being eaten.

The curse turns their repulsion into excitement.

[Maou Guburi]—No wonder. I thought something was off.

[Handsome Licker]—So they’re not perverts. *Lick*.

[Big Girl]—So all those actions earlier were because of the curse… Knowing the truth makes me feel complicated…

Not all merfolk are cursed.

Only those who have committed sins are cursed.

Merfolk who sin receive a permanent curse, while mermaids who sin receive a temporary curse.

[Until recently, there were mermaid staff. But now the curse has lifted, and they’ve quit.]

[The restaurant is called the Mermaid Restaurant because its main customers are mermaids. Fishy.]

[Maou Guburi]—I’m not curious, so stop explaining, damn it.

[Reverse Rape Mania]—Those merfolk are such explainers. LOL.

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—Why do they keep explaining things we didn’t ask about?

[Min Ji]—Why are you all like that? I’m interested and want to keep listening.

[Yoho]—Me too. It’s kind of fun.

[Drifting AI]—I’ll say it. I also find it interesting.

[Balloon Gum Collector]—Wow! I want to see a mermaid too!

[Qkrnfl892]—You just saw one.

[Meng Yao]—Did you erase the Mermaid Prince from your memory?

[Balloon Gum Collector]—Wow! That wasn’t a mermaid, it was a monster!

[Maid]—Wow! Ugly mermaids don’t count!

[Jujijoa]—Idiots.

Next.

They explained about the Mermaid Queen, a yokai.

Nothing special.

A queen-level yokai, higher than high-level yokai, has been unsealed, and because of her, the balance of power has collapsed, and the merfolk have become slaves to the mermaids.

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—Queen?

[Qkrnfl892]—There’s a Mermaid Queen too? There’s all sorts of things.

[Reverse Rape Mania]—Maehwa, what’s a queen?

[Maou Guburi]—Maehwa’s offline right now. Probably went to masturbate.

“The Queen… That Mermaid Queen yokai won’t come seeking revenge, right?”

I asked just in case.

It didn’t seem likely that the Queen would stay quiet after the Mermaid Prince’s death.

A queen-level yokai seems like something even I might struggle to handle.

[Hmm… The Mermaid Queen seeking revenge…]

[I’ve never thought about that.]

The merfolk looked at each other, pondered for a moment, and then answered.

[Don’t worry about it. Fishy.]

[Personally, I don’t think she’ll seek revenge.]

[The death of one Mermaid Prince won’t bother her.]

[I think so too.]

[And there’s no way for her to take revenge on you.]

[Right. The Mermaid Queen can’t come inland anyway… Fishy…]

[Just be careful around the sea. Fishy.]

[Maou Guburi]—Gye Sekkihoon, scared? LOL.

[Reverse Rape Mania]—Just exorcise the Queen. Why are you scared?

[Min Ji]—You guys talk so casually when it’s not your problem. -_-

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—LOL, you’d probably faint if you actually faced a yokai.

[Jujijoa]—They’d probably be dealt with at the maid level.

[Maid]—Wow!

Most of the merfolk thought it would be fine.

Hearing that, I decided to stop worrying.

Especially since they said the yokai can’t even come inland.

[Anyway, guest, should we prepare more food for you? Now that the dirty Mermaid Prince is dead, we should have a festival!]

[Right! As a token of gratitude, all the food will be free!]

[Min Ji]—It was already free. You wanna die?

[Qkrnfl892]—Pretending to be generous. LOL.

[Jujijoa]—Min Ji’s personality has gotten sharper lately.

“No, it’s fine. The food is good, but knowing it’s served because of the curse makes it hard to eat…”

I declined politely.

The curse made me uneasy, and I was also full.

[Oh! Don’t worry about the curse! We’re all enjoying it now!]

[Right, fishy! Even if the curse is lifted, we’ll keep working at this restaurant!]

[Handsome Licker]—Wow, they really are perverts. *Lick*.

[Qkrnfl892]—LOL, if you can’t avoid it, enjoy it, huh?

[Balloon Gum Collector]—They’re inherently twisted!

[Yoho]—Maybe the curse wasn’t the problem.

I firmly declined all their offers and bid farewell before leaving the restaurant.

“Anyway, thanks for the delicious food. I’ll come back if I get the chance.”

[Reverse Rape Mania]—You’re not gonna hang out with them anymore?

[Se-hoon Defense Team]—Why would I? Damn.

[Maou Guburi]—Gye Sekkihoon, let’s go to a nude beach next time.

[Drifting AI]—I’ll ask. Where is there a nude beach in Jeju?

[Maou Guburi]—Just take off your clothes at any beach, damn it. LOL.

[Drifting AI]—I’m impressed.

[Handsome Licker]—Is Drifting broken? *Lick*.

“Well, I’ll be going now.”

[Yes! Please come again!]

[We’ll be waiting!]

[Fishy, fishy!]

[Fishy… Please come back…]

And so, after leaving the Mermaid Restaurant, I continued my stroll as if nothing had happened.

***

Deep in the sea.

The Mermaid Queen, who had been resting, suddenly opened her eyes and muttered.

[…The Prince is dead.]

The Mermaid Queen, sensing the Prince’s death.

Images of the Prince’s final moments began to seep into her mind.

Soon, the Mermaid Queen realized who had killed the Prince.

[The one who killed the Prince… is a human man…]

The image of Gye Se-hoon flickered before the Queen’s eyes.