The merfolk, who had been laughing and chatting moments before, suddenly changed completely and desperately tried to persuade their two adorable human friends not to seek out the Sea Hag.
Aurora was quite surprised by their reaction and asked, "Why do you suddenly look so frightened? Is there something special about that Sea Hag?"
The merfolk all began talking at once. "The Sea Hag is a Witch skilled in Black Magic. She's ugly and terrifying."
"She lives beyond a stretch of whirlpools, in an undersea forest made entirely of coral thickets. Everything there is terrifying. Just one extra glance will give you nightmares for days!"
"No matter what you ask the Sea Hag to do, even if it's only a small question, you must pay a price. And it will definitely be an enormous price, one you cannot bear!"
"I've heard that few who received her help ended well—because all she knows is dark magic. Compared to bringing happiness, she is far better at bringing disaster; compared to fulfilling wishes, she is far better at making people pay a price and sacrifice."
"Yes, only merfolk and other intelligent sea creatures with absolutely no other choice would have even the slightest possibility of seeking her help!"
That doesn't sound too bad. At most, she's a profiteer who charges exorbitantly, not some utterly unscrupulous villain, Rhine thought.
He remembered the transaction between the female protagonist, the "little mermaid," and the Sea Hag in the original story.
After saving the prince, the little mermaid fell in love with the handsome human. In order to stay with him forever and obtain an Immortal Soul, she begged the Sea Hag to turn her fish tail into human legs.
The Sea Hag demanded the little mermaid's voice as payment—that was the most beautiful singing voice in the entire sea, so it was certainly an expensive price.
Indeed, it was a terrifying transaction.
But throughout the deal, the Sea Hag had informed her of the risks in advance. There had been no concealment or deception.
After listening to the merfolk's warnings, he said firmly, "It's fine. We only want to ask her one question, the simplest question imaginable. Let's see what price the Sea Hag will demand from us.
"Even if the Sea Hag truly asks for an exorbitant price beyond our means, we'll weigh the pros and cons and refuse the transaction. No one will lose anything.
"Where we come from, in the human world, some profiteers always boast about the benefits of their goods without telling people the price they must pay."
Seeing that they could not persuade the two humans, the merfolk stopped trying.
Just then, Aurora noticed that one of the mermaids—seemingly the most beautiful and most gorgeously dressed among them, practically like a princess—had suddenly fallen silent at the mention of the Sea Hag and turned away.
Aurora was puzzled. This little mermaid had clearly been the most curious one and had asked Rhine several questions earlier. Why had she fallen silent the moment the Sea Hag was mentioned? "What's wrong? Did mentioning the Sea Hag stir something in you?"
Aurora asked the most gorgeously dressed mermaid—the other girl looked only slightly older than her, and she had been very polite when questioning Rhine earlier, which made Aurora feel rather warmly toward her.
"I..." The little mermaid hesitated, but finally gave her answer. "I... I've also been considering going to see the Sea Hag lately."
The moment she said that, the expressions of the watching merfolk exploded. "Why? Noble Sixth Princess! How could you possibly have such a thought?"
"Princess Ariel, you are the princess of this sea kingdom, the Sea King's most beloved youngest daughter, and you possess the most beautiful singing voice in these waters! Is there truly anything in the Mermaid Kingdom that Your Highness wants but cannot have?"
The merfolk were all terrified and hurriedly tried to dissuade their princess from going to the Coral Forest where the Sea Hag lived!
They tried far harder to stop her than they had tried to stop the two humans.
Humans might not know how terrifying the Sea Hag was, but how could the Mermaid Princess, a daughter of the sea, not know? Besides, why would a noble princess need to seek out a Witch and magic to fulfill a wish? "The Sixth Princess? The Sea King's youngest daughter?"
"So it was her?"
Rhine's heart stirred, and he felt slightly astonished.
"To think I'd run into the Mermaid Princess here—the protagonist of The Little Mermaid."
Judging by the timeline, this should have been shortly after the Mermaid Princess saved the prince. She had just learned the secret of the Immortal Soul from Old Grandmother and was about to seek the Sea Hag's help!
Before you continue