Die Melusine - Chapter 68

The Grand Duke’s return journey was not set to head south toward the Duchy of Triton, but rather north—farther north than the capital itself.

“The journey might become too long, sir…”

Ian’s concern was understandable when Kieron revised the route to pass through the northeastern sea of the Empire before eventually circling back through the capital and down to the southernmost region.

“It’s the best option.”

But the Grand Duke was adamant.

Despite delaying their original plans and staying several extra days at the palace to monitor her condition, Melusine hadn’t improved past a certain point.

She spent nearly half the day asleep, and even when awake, her energy was depleted. Her once hearty appetite had diminished, and she hardly ate anything.

Most concerning of all—she had almost stopped walking entirely. Every step she took caused pain from her ankles all the way up her thighs. Not long ago, she had been bounding about like an excited puppy.

Kieron believed that if they pushed through the long trip back to the southern duchy in her condition, it could become even harder for her to fully recover.

“She needs seawater.”

The northern sea would be colder, and its waves rougher than the southern waters, but he recalled how she had rapidly recovered once she’d immersed herself in seawater aboard the ship that passed through Bersez on their return. It was worth a try.

For the past few days, Kieron had been conducting all his duties in the drawing room adjacent to the bedroom.

Without needing to explain, it was clear he had no intention of leaving Melusine’s side even for a moment. Ian, ever perceptive, respected his superior’s wishes without question.

“The sea…?”

As she came out of the bedroom, Melusine overheard their conversation. Limping slightly, she made her way to Kieron and clung to him.

“We’re going to the sea?”

“Yes.”

“Really?”

She asked again as if she couldn’t quite believe it, her face visibly lighting up.

Kieron pulled her onto his lap and held her there, asking softly:

“Why?”

“I wanted to go… a lot.”

For the first time in a while, her fading blue eyes sparkled again. A faint flush colored her previously pale cheeks.

Seeing the two of them gazing so intently at each other, Ian quietly stepped out of the drawing room.

“But,”

Melusine fiddled with the collar of his shirt, which Kieron always kept buttoned to the top when others were around.

“I thought… I’d never be able to go again. So, I’m really happy.”

So happy, her voice trembled with emotion.

Kieron didn’t reply, simply pressing his forehead to hers.

When he found out that this woman—who didn’t even know how to lie—had deceived her devoted maid and jumped from the second-story balcony just to sneak out of the western manor… he’d found it genuinely astonishing.

Maybe this is what she meant when she asked about that feeling. Maybe this was it.

“Then hurry up and get better.”

He kissed the tip of her round nose.

And then, their lips met.

As if breathing life back into her sagging body, Kieron kissed her slowly, deeply.

At some point… The scent of the sea that once clung to her had begun to fade.

And through the loosened collar button she had unfastened with trembling fingers, a subtle sense of unease—still unnoticed even by Kieron—began to quietly seep in.

***

Even if it was cold, it was still the sea.

After ordering his subordinates and attendants to unpack their things at the old mansion—once a castle of a long-lost kingdom—Kieron carried Melusine alone to the rear coast.

So the sea can be this grey. Melusine stared ahead in astonishment.

Under a sky so overcast that even the shape of the clouds was hard to make out, the sea had lost all its blue hue. It looked harsh, rough. The white froth of the waves broke violently, irregularly.

It wasn’t the kind of sea that seemed to stretch on endlessly—rather, it felt as though if one kept going, they’d eventually reach a point where nothing remained. There was an emptiness to it, a faint, eerie fear.

“Can I go in…?”

“Yes.”

She asked again, as if she couldn’t believe it.

Even though her shackles had been removed some time ago, the lingering marks on her ankles ached the closer she got to the ocean. Strangely, though the sea was right before her, Melusine couldn’t immediately dive in—she hesitated. It had simply been too long.

Kieron, having also removed his clothes, looked on with faint satisfaction as the woman hesitated by the shore.

Then, without letting her decide further, he carried her straight into the sea.

The cold water wrapped tightly around them, as if pressing in from all sides.

Together, with her arms around his neck, Melusine slowly began to submerge in the water.

At some point, her legs transformed into a mermaid’s tail. The soft scales of her swaying fin brushed against his thighs and arms. Even without sunlight above, a soft green shimmer danced beneath the clear surface of the water.

In his arms, Melusine returned to her mermaid form.

“Ah….”

Melusine closed her eyes, sighing as she basked in the briny scent and the touch of seawater surrounding her.

The chill that had scraped at her skin, the dryness that clung to her—it was still bearable now that she was truly in the sea. Though the water stung like melted ice and the wind that blew against her damp face carried a biting cold, peace began to return to her face in the form of a smile.

How different is this sea from her homeland, Bersez?

She wanted to swim properly, to explore. Mustering strength from her waist, she prepared to move. She let go of the man’s neck—but he only tightened his hold.

With one arm around her slender waist, Kieron pulled her back against him. Her swaying fin fluttered against his leg, brushing and drifting away again.

“I said we were coming to the sea. I didn’t say you could swim around on your own.”

“I can’t?”

Melusine widened her already large eyes and stared at him.

“No.”

Kieron’s voice was firm, his face unchanged.

To be in the sea, yet not allowed to use her tail freely—

Melusine drooped, disheartened.

Her fin fluttered helplessly in the water, like it had nowhere to go.

For a mermaid, swimming in water was as instinctive as walking was for a human. It was bone-deep, irresistible.

“Really not allowed…?”

Her voice trembled faintly with frustration as she asked again.

Kieron didn’t answer. His golden eyes, colder now than the sea around them, bore into her.

He looked over the expression on her face—a mixture of longing and resignation—his gaze heavy and slow.

And then, because they were floating in the sea, or perhaps because she was soaked through with ocean water, his lips pressed firmly against her wet eyes.

As if branding what was already his, leaving behind a mark that could never be erased.

“Mel, you don’t belong here anymore.”

You belong to me.

“Kieron….”

She didn’t know what else to say.

What could she say to him, when she knew pleading further would likely be useless?

Just then, something cold tapped against her cheek— A single drop, falling from above.

Melusine flinched, thinking it might have been the cold breath of the stoic man brushing past her. But then, a chill danced down onto the bridge of her nose.

The instant it touched her skin, it melted like a soap bubble—cold, but pleasantly ticklish. That same tickle drifted down next to her brow, eyelids, and even the top of her round little head.

“Achoo.”

She scrunched her nose and let out a tiny sneeze.

Watching her, Kieron’s lips lifted—ever so slightly.

“Snow. This is snow,” he said, brushing the white flake off her pink hair.

“Snow…?”

“Yes. Ice crystals formed from water in the sky.”

“Wow… It’s so pretty.”

By now, snowflakes were fluttering down wildly over the gray sea.

Like soft grains of white sand, they fell gently, melting instantly as they touched the water’s surface. To Melusine, it was mesmerizing.

The flakes landed on Kieron’s jet-black hair, on Melusine’s rounded shoulders submerged in the water.

Until the frozen shoreline was completely blanketed in white snow, the two remained there—clinging to each other in the now-calmed sea.

Though the northern coast and falling snow were familiar, well-worn things to him, Kieron had a feeling that this moment—because of the woman in his arms—was something he would never forget.