Chapter 6: Mermaid Princess

[Sorry to keep everyone waiting! The next play will be performed by class 1-4! This is the mermaid princess!]

"Oh, its time." Alex grinned as he took a piece of popcorn from the large bucket on his lap and tossed it to his mouth.

"Hmm," Emi smiled as she also took a piece of popcorn and feed it to Alice, who happily munched it.

Alex, Emi, Nonko, Koyuzu, Yaya, Harribel, Suzuno, were sitting at the middle of the audience's seats. Sagiri was also with them, since her shift was already over.

As for Hibari and Genshiro, they went and exploded the school with Hibari as the guide and they haven't returned yet.

[Long, long ago, in the depths of the sea. There was a castle belonging to mermaids....]

On the stage, Yuuna can be seen wearing a mermaid costume floating, swimming in the air like a fish.

[....And today was the birthday of the seventh mermaid princess, Marine. In celebration, she decided to go to the surface and observe it. She swam at the top of the sea.....]

"Wow~!" Koyuzu stared at her in awe, "Yuuna-chan is really beautiful!"

"Why is she using poltergeist?" Sagiri whispered as she stared at Yuuna. "Isn't she afraid of being discovered at all?"

"Let it be," Nonko said as she just smiled and watch the performance, "She's having fun, that's what matters the most."

Sagiri sighed and didn't say anything more.

Harribel furrowed her brows, thinking that their views of mermaids were wrong. They don't wear such a clothing, they aren't pretty, they don't have smooth and white skin and most importantly they weren't friendly!

The mermaid in the demon world were ugly, with long and sharp teeth that grows out of their mouth, covered by disgusting greenish brown scales, they are bald, with long ears, and creepy looking face.

Their claws were long and sharp enough to cut through metal like a hot knife to a butter. Their tail was also not this beautiful but creepy looking.

No matter how she look at Yuuna, she doesn't look like a mermaid at all!

[Marine was drawn to the lights on the surface. And there, she saw a large boat, and there, standing on the deck, was handsome male wearing a luxurious clothing, giving off an aura of royalty. He's a Prince! Marine was captivated. It was love at first sight!]

Nonko's eye twitched at that. Really, everything related to love just irritates her to no end.

"Aah, such young love." Suzuno smiled as she watched Yuuna who looking at the prince.

Alex blinks as he turned towards her with a raised eyebrow, "How old are you again?"

Suzuno looked at him with a hint of annoyance, but she answered either way. "I may look like this but I'm already 32, yes, I believe that is my current age Alex-dono."

Yes, she's a legal loli. A 30+ years old woman looking like a young 14 or 15 years old girl. She is also very petite.

"Hmm, you're still quite young." Alex shook his head, "Besides, you can prolong your life with magic anyway."

Alex suddenly realized something, 'Is this why they appear quite young? Because their magic are delaying their aging? No wonder, because Suzuno's a chief inquisitor she's quite strong and has a lot of magic, Hisui is a court magician and so she also has a lot of magic, Albert only has a enough magic to strengthen his body that allows him to fight a Transcendental so he looks normal in his age. And Emi—'

"Stop." Emi spoked, lightly glaring at him. She just knew that Alex was about to go and think something that would surely upset her.

Alex just smirked at her before raising his hands in surrender and returned to watching the play.

[A storm destroyed the boat, but the mermaid princess Marine managed to saved the prince from his death, carried him to shore and left, silently observing him from afar. However, a human princess, Ellis, who was walking on the sand of the beach, saw the prince and went to help him]

The stage then showed Chisaki dressed in a princess outfit as she ran towards the unconscious prince.

[The prince woke up, finds himself sleeping on the lap of the human princess and thought it was she, who has saved him from his inevitable death]

"That's not fair," Koyuzu pouted seeing that.

"That's just a story, don't dwell on it too much Koyuzu-chan." Said Sagiri with a smile.

The audience watched as the story unfold. The mermaid asked for help to help her gain a pair of legs to be with the one she loves, but in exchange, if she didn't get to be together with him, she will turn into a foam and disappear. And to avoid this, Marine's sister told her to kill the prince if he didn't chose her.

Alex actually resisted the urge to yawn as he finds the story rather bland and boring.

"Hn? The prince married the human princess?" Koyuzu asked in confusion and worry.

"That's how the story goes." Said Sagiri as she forced herself to focus on the play, honestly this kind of story just doesn't have any appeal to her.

"Whaaa!?" Koyuzu stared at the stage in shock, "B-But, Yuuna-chan has to be together with the prince or she will die, right?"

"Kids are so pure," Sagiri smiled as she crossed her arms and shook her head, looking like a dignified adult.

"Riiiight~? For us, this kind of story are so painfully obvious with an ending you can easily guess even before getting into the middle of the story." Nonko nodded.

Harribel looked around, the audiences, mostly students, are just whispering and smirking, some were even playing with their phones, they weren't focused on the stage play at all.

She sighed, even as a Hollow who haven't even touched the realm of "Culture" she knew just how obvious this story is.

"If they don't add a twist, the whole play will be a bust."

"Indeed."

"Yeah."

The scene changed into Yuuna, holding knife while standing beside the bed where the prince and Chisaki were sleeping.

"If I end the prince, I'll end this without disappearing into foam..." Yuuna raised the knife as she stared at the sleeping prince.

"My prince...why? Why didn't you chose me? If only you had chosen me!" She glared at the prince, her eyes watering in grief.

Chisaki slightly opened her eyes, and she knew that Yuuna wasn't acting. She was venting her frustration. Even though Chisaki already talked to her, Yuuna still felt that she shouldn't harbor such feelings because she's a spirit.

She was frustrated to not having been able to meet the man she loves when she was alive, and only met him when she was already an earthbound ghost.

She was frustrated at herself for falling in love with a man who already have a family.

Chisaki knew about this...they weren't friends for nothing after all.

Yuuna bit her lips as she dropped the knife, staggering backwards as she wiped the tears falling from her eyes.

"I..I'm sorry onee-sama, I really couldn't kill the prince..." She took a step back, "If I...If I just disappear then, the prince will be happy together with Ellis-sama..."

"If only...If only I could just disappear!" She cried as she ran.

Only to pause when she felt someone grabbing her hand, "Eh?"

Turning around, Yuuna saw Chisaki holding her hand, looking as shocked as her.

Alex raised an eyebrow as his interest was now piqued. He somewhat remember this in the manga, but he wasn't sure...still, this has now became rather interesting.

Chisaki blinks her eyes, staring at her hands holding Yuuna's in shock. 'Oh...Ohhh...OOOHH MY GOD! What am I even doing!?'

She stared at Yuuna, looking at her sorrowful look, 'B-But...it's too late now! So I'll just roll with it!'

"Marine...you won't disappear! I don't really understand your situation, but...but if you disappeared, I'll...be lonely!"

Yuuna's eyes widened.

"E-Ellis-sama! I-I'm actually a mermaid, I'm not supposed to even be here in the land, I...I'm afraid that even if I stayed...I, I won't be able to find happiness..."

"Marine!" Chisaki stared at Yuuna, eyes full of determination. "Don't go deciding to give up on yourself like that! Who decided that you can't stay? Who decided that you can't be happy? You are now a human...you can experience things you haven't before, you can see places you haven't seen before, you...you can love like you have never been before..."

Yuuna's eyes widened, she stared at Chisaki's blue eyes as tears were threatening to fall from her how.

'Chisaki-san.'

Right, she cannot even be considered as a Spirit anymore. She was technically alive and has her own flesh and bones.

Its just, she still thought of herself as an earthbound ghost, suppressing her feelings because she thought that it isn't appropriate...

Not only because she was a ghost, but also because the person who is the target of her affection is already with someone else.

But...

Yuuna turned her gaze at the audiences, looking straight into Alex's eyes as he gave her a smile.

'Still...is it alright for me to fall in love?' she wondered. The man she loves already have someone else, is it alright to love him? What would Emi say if she finds out about her feelings?

'Is it alright for me...to wish to be together with the man I love?' she wondered. Maybe Emi will hate her, maybe Emi will be disgusted of her, maybe Emi will cut off their relationship...

...but, it should be alright to try right?

She stared Alex with a longing look that is rather familiar to the demon king. 'If...If the fate permits.'

'Then I...'