Chapter 89 – After the Dungeon, Is the Prince Still the Boss?

Chapter 89 - After the Dungeon, Is the Prince Still the Boss?

The sun ascended above the horizon, dispelling the thick veil of darkness. A scarlet mermaid tail swayed gently as the mermaid glided through the ocean depths, her voice singing praises to the warmth of the dawn.

Seagulls gathered in the sky, harmonizing with her song in their cries. Schools of fish, crabs, and shrimp adjusted their swimming pace in rhythm, while seaweed swayed joyfully, celebrating the mermaid's return to the sea's embrace. The prince felt an unprecedented lightness in his heart.

Dolphins breached the surface, leaving behind a series of graceful arcs under the crimson glow of the sunrise.

Awakened by the melody, the prince listened to that familiar voice, as if he were trapped in a long-awaited dream, unsure whether it was reality or illusion.

It was like the first time he had seen the mermaid. That day too, the dawn was bathed in the same hues, and her voice echoed in his ears, just as it did now, clouding his senses.

Mermaid?

With a splash, the prince leaped from his platform into the sea, the waves jolting him back to reality.

Wasn't the mermaid in the kingdom's castle? Why would her voice be here?

His gaze was soon captivated by the blue pearl atop the platform. Radiating a soft blue luminescence in the sunlight, it was an extraordinary beauty.

Its hue was so peculiar that it reminded him of the tales the mermaid had shared with him.

"A mermaid never weeps; they have one chance in their life to shed a tear in memory of their most unforgettable moment. A blue pearl forms from sorrow, while a red one from joy."

The blue pearl, left behind by the mermaid, was her melancholic keepsake.

"What if you were to wait forever for the mermaid of your dreams?"

"Are you truly certain that the one you're waiting for is your true bride?"

"Suppose I told you that I am the mermaid, and your feelings have been misguided. Would you believe me?"

"When the sun rises tomorrow, I must depart."

"Prince, would you like a pearl as a wedding gift? I'll dive into the depths to fetch the largest, brightest pearl for you to present to your princess, and she will surely be delighted."

She was the mermaid!

The mermaid!

He didn't recognize her, his vows now proved empty, his assurances naively foolish. His self-assurance and blindness were blinded by appearances and scent, obscuring the essence of who she truly was beyond her physical form.

The mermaid had returned to his side long ago, unbeknownst to him.

A mere magician's deceptive orb could easily deceive him – it turned out he had only believed in his own imaginary mermaid.

She was gone, perhaps angered by news of the wedding, or deeply disappointed in his arrogance and ignorance.

How could he not have recognized her for five years? How could he speak of marrying another with the mermaid? How could he repeatedly dismiss her warnings?

"Mermaid!!" The prince swam desperately towards the singing.

"Mermaid, I've realized who you are, can you come back?"

But the song grew distant, the leaping dolphins dwindling into a tiny black dot, soon vanishing at the horizon where sky met sea. The prince's futile cries went unheard.

Exhausted, the prince's efforts only served to distance him from the mermaid's voice, until it was silenced altogether.

Clutching the pearl in his palm - the teardrop of a mermaid, the one and only keepsake she could offer - he transformed her memory into sorrow.

"I'm sorry I recognized you too late."

The prince seemed to have lost all vigor. He floated on his back in the sea, gazing at the wandering white clouds in the sky. He had missed his chance for five long years, and time could never be reclaimed; it relentlessly moved forward.

Where should he search for the mermaid now, and how could he recapture the opportunity he'd lost?

The knight and the wizard pulled the prince aboard their ship.

Upon returning to the castle, the prince resolved to continue waiting, just as he had for those five years. He would stretch time indefinitely, making it endless.

"Your Highness, I request that you return with me to our domain to be wed." The wizard explained the potion's effect to the prince: "The mermaid no longer remembers you. You cannot wait for her any longer."

"I should blame you for using the potion to conceal everything she could have sensed and recognized about me. Yet, she has given me an answer plainly. It's I who refuse to believe anything that contradicts my perception," the prince looked at the wizard. He took out the blue pearl, the tear of the mermaid, and noticed the wizard's quickened breath. "Perhaps this was your true objective all along."

"Prince, she has completely forgotten your tale. There is no meaning in keeping mementos."

"She may have forgotten, but I never will." The prince's gaze drifted towards the distant sea. "I will never forget."

...

The prince wandered the ocean's vast expanse, day after day, year upon year. Five, ten, fifty years passed, and the once-vibrant and handsome prince was now bent with age. His skin had wrinkled, and his raven hair had turned to silver.

His eyes, once bright with life, grew dim and clouded, and he could no longer hear the songs of the sea. His teeth clung precariously to their sockets.

On a serene day, with the sky and sea as blue as polished gems, resembling the aged prince's cherished blue pearl, the clouds resembled scattered pearls atop the jeweled expanse. The gentle swells rocked the prow of his ship, as it ventured in search of the mermaid.

Feeling the end of his days drawing near, the prince summoned his sailors and said, "Dress me in my wedding attire. After I have passed, commit my body to the sea, so that I may become one with it, eternally by her side."

Clad in resplendent robes, the prince closed his eyes, and his shallow breaths grew ever more labored. Today was a wedding for one.

Mermaid, wherever you are in the depths, my memories will fade with my last breath.

Our tale, unknown to all but us, will live on in the fraction of a chance that I may find you again.

...

The prince, with his silver locks, wore the wedding garment, hands folded upon his chest. Solemnly, the sailors played wedding melodies as they conveyed him, with reverence, into the embrace of the sea.

The bustling sea surface caught the attention of numerous schools of fish, and among them was a mermaid with a fiery red tail and raven-black hair, peering from the ocean floor towards the surface above.

It was humans playing music. What were they doing?

Amidst the faint blue shimmer of the waves, a figure descended towards the ocean depths.

A human had fallen into the water!

Reacting instinctively, the mermaid swished her tail gracefully, swiftly lifting the prince's body from the seabed towards the surface.

On that once-handsome face, traces of divine favor still lingered, even in his aged state, making him an elegantly handsome old man.

With a slow, deliberate release, the prince's clasped hands opened, and a blue pearl tumbled out. Resembling a tear, it was as blue as a gem, translucent and dazzling.

It fell into the mermaid's dark, enigmatic eyes.

Memories seemed to spill forth like a dam breaking, bringing long-forgotten, hazy scenes into sharp focus.

A golden sandy shore.

A castle resplendent with light.

Guarding and awaiting.

Loss and farewell.

The mermaid, not yet in the full bloom of maturity, gazed blankly at the person in her arms, "Prince..."

"Mission accomplished."

"You have received the betrothal gift from the Prince of Wales: Mermaid's Tear - Ocean's Heart."

"Mission settlement: Jewelry Card, Gem category, Mermaid's Tear - Ocean's Heart."

"Mysterious Treasure Chest x1."

A flood of suppressed memories surged forth, leaving Tang Fei in a daze. It turned out that this was just a game.

All the emotions she had invested were merely in a virtual world; it felt as if she had truly lived a lifetime. Tang Fei's brows knitted tightly together.

The surroundings began to blur, and she struggled to open her eyes, but they felt incredibly heavy.

"Tang Fei!"

"Doctor, she's moving! Tang Fei, wake up, doctor! She's moving!"

"Relatives, please remain calm and don't obstruct the doctor's emergency treatment. Step back."

Tang Fei sensed someone injecting her arm with a syringe. With great effort, she opened her eyes to see Zhou Weichuan's face oscillating behind a blue privacy curtain. She couldn't resist reaching out to touch that anxious yet handsome face.

Was he a prince or the boss?

A pair of warm hands enveloped hers, large and steady.

It was the prince who hadn't aged. How wonderful.

"System vulnerability detected..."

"Rebooting for correction..."

Tang Fei felt an overwhelming influx of information flooding her mind, causing dizziness. She closed her eyes once more.