ITHMF 08

Chapter 08

How should I phrase it to better entice the witch?

To learn about potions in earnest, I absolutely needed a teacher. However, most mermaids only learned enough magic to get by, so there weren’t many specialized teachers.

If I weren’t the Princess, I probably would have just learned the basics from my parents.

I cleared my throat and suppressed my nervousness.

“I heard you make all kinds of potions, not just healing ones.”

“Well… since I’m the only mermaid in the kingdom who deals in potions.”

“You must enjoy research? Most mermaids don’t delve this deep.”

“My family has been renowned in the field of potions for generations. I’m just continuing that legacy, so to speak.”

Her tone was cynical, but her sparkling eyes couldn’t lie. Whenever she talked about potions, I could feel her pride and passion radiating from her.

The more I heard, the more I wanted the Witch.

She’s perfect! She’s just perfect to be my potions teacher!

I could have taken the easy route and just continued buying healing potions from her, but I wanted to learn how to make them myself. In case of an emergency, it would be better to know how to make them rather than live with anxiety.

It would be useful to have that skill.

After taking a deep breath in and out, I spoke with a resolute expression.

“Actually, I’ve also become very interested in potions lately. So I was wondering… would you consider being my teacher?”

“…Teacher?”

“Yeah. Become my personal tutor.”

The Witch’s expression went blank for a moment, as if she’d heard something unexpected.

I stared intently at the Witch with the most docile and innocent face I could muster. She looked back at me, her eyes shifting, before averting her gaze.

I think I just saw her pupils dilate a lot.

Afraid she might refuse like this, I decided to express my passion more forcefully.

“I’ll attend every class diligently and never skip!”

“Um… I prefer doing my research alone here.”

“I’ll pay you a generous salary! I’ll also prepare all the potion ingredients.”

“Even so…”

“If you want, I can even set up a private research lab inside the castle!”

“Private… research lab?”

The Witch, who had been looking troubled, changed her expression at the words ‘private research lab.’ Sensing her interest, I nodded vigorously.

“And that’s not all! I’ll also provide research support! How about it? Aren’t these pretty amazing conditions?”

However, she seemed about to nod immediately but quickly shook her head instead.

“That sounds really goo… Ah, no. Ahem. Let me think about it a little more first.”

“Why? Are the conditions not good enough?”

“It’s not that, but I need some time to prepare myself mentally as well.”

It seemed the Witch was more cautious than I’d thought.

It was disappointing, but I figured it was best to back off for today. Her expression didn’t seem like she had no interest at all.

After saying I understood, I stood up with Maya. The Witch came to the door to see us off.

“Please be careful on your way back.”

“Yeah! I’ll send you a letter soon. I hope it brings good news.”

“Haha, sure.”

Leaving the Witch with an awkward smile, Maya and I exited the house. Maya, who had been staying by my side like a shadow, whispered in a small voice.

“Are you really going to make the Witch of the Deep Sea your teacher?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“I don’t think she’ll accept. She came all the way to the east for her research—would she really take on a teaching job?”

She certainly seemed lukewarm until the mention of a private research lab. She looked like she was troubled about how to refuse.

Still, her reaction at the end wasn’t bad, so I thought if I coaxed her a little more, she might agree to be my teacher.

“I’ll persuade her well.”

“I hope things go as you wish.”

“Thanks, Maya.”

After finishing our conversation, I returned to the castle with Maya.

After having dinner with my parents and coming back to my room, I saw the dust bag containing the potions on the table.

Sitting on the sofa excitedly, I opened the dust bag. Then I transferred the potion, which fit snugly in my hand, into the bag containing my self-defense tools.

“I hope this makes Riose’s condition at least a little better…”

Actually, even if I didn’t give her the potion right away, Riose would hold on for about a year with her current condition. She would pass away shortly after Flora came to visit the villa.

Still, the reason I’d sought out the potion was because I didn’t want to see Kairan suffer.

“If Riose gets better with the potion, Kairan will be able to relax a little too.”

I’d like to see him smile brightly for a change.

The smiles Kairan had shown me so far were nice, but there was always a hint of melancholy behind them that bothered me.

To save Riose, I needed to improve my potion-making skills as quickly as possible.

I hope the Witch of the Deep Sea accepts my offer…

Letting out a long sigh, I hid the bag back under the bed.

“Let’s get a good night’s sleep for tomorrow!”

Just thinking about handing the healing potion to Kairan made the corners of my mouth lift involuntarily. Someday, I’ll definitely give him one I made myself.

Humming a tune, I let myself sink into the soft bed.

Night had fallen, and the lights that illuminated the kingdom had also quieted down. After making sure the surroundings were silent, I immediately slipped out of the castle.

Having done this several times now, I wasn’t even scared anymore.

Sticking my body through the hole, I looked around. Fortunately, there was no one around except for a few light balls scattered here and there, illuminating the darkness.

“Kairan must be waiting!”

I put more strength into my tail strokes toward the shore. Trying to swim fast was making me short of breath. Just a little further…! Using the moonlight embroidering the sea’s surface as a guide, I poked my face above the water.

“Pwah!”

Wiping the water streaming down my face, I quickly scanned my surroundings.

Seeing the cave not far away, a smile spread across my face. After visiting a few times, I could now find my destination pretty accurately even from underwater.

I approached the cave with excitement. At the rather loud sound of water, Kairan poked his head out of the cave.

“You came?”

Kairan greeted me very naturally. It was oddly amusing that this secret meeting under the moonlight had become familiar not just to me, but to Kairan as well.

“Yeah! Did you do well while I was gone?”

“What else would I be doing?”

“Your complexion doesn’t look that great for someone who says that.”

“…Does it?”

Kairan paused and brushed his own cheek with his hand.

Aside from looking a bit thinner, Kairan was still dazzlingly handsome. Especially when bathed in the pouring moonlight, he even had a mysterious aura about him.

It was as if the moonlight breaking through the curtain of night existed solely for Kairan.

“Does my face look that bad?”

“Huh? Why?”

“You were staring so intently, I thought maybe it was unbearable to look at.”

“As if!”

That’s nonsense!

I waved my hands in horror. At my exaggerated reaction, Kairan gave an awkward laugh.

Ah, did I overreact? Feeling embarrassed along with him, I tried to change the subject as if nothing had happened.

“What were you doing?”

“Just the same as usual.”

“Stargazing?”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t you get bored?”

“Not really. Well, you show up around the time I start getting bored.”

“So it is better to talk to someone than be alone, right? Imagine if I weren’t here! You wouldn’t be able to stand the boredom!”

I said boastfully, looking at Kairan with playful eyes. He let out a deflated sound as he met my gaze. Then he half-heartedly played along, saying ‘yeah, sure.’

The fact that I’d made Kairan smile, even a little, filled my heart with pride.

“How is the Duchess doing?”

“Ah, just the same.”

“She’s still bedridden?”

“Yeah. She keeps having fevers, so she can’t move around much.”

“I see.”

Riose’s condition seemed to be exactly as mentioned in the original story.

She would endure as long as possible, her body burning with fever and her organs aching as if they were being torn apart, for her beloved family.

But in the end, she would die…

It’s a later revelation, but there was actually someone behind Riose’s death. I needed to take action before that person could make their move again.

Letting out a long sigh, I pulled the bag I was carrying above the water’s surface. Kairan quietly watched what I was doing. I took out the potion bottle from the bag and slowly approached Kairan.

“Take this.”

After carefully placing the potion on the cave floor, I moved back again. Kairan, who had flinched as I approached, looked at the potion.

The deep purple potion would be unfamiliar to Kairan. He very cautiously picked it up and examined it from all angles.

“It’s a healing potion.”

“A healing potion?”

“Yeah. Have you ever heard of magic?”

There were no mages on the surface world right now.

Magic had always been a special ability of mermaids, a realm that humans couldn’t access. Their old records mentioned the existence of mages, but even that was a reference to mermaids.

It was such an ancient story that modern humans probably didn’t even know about mages, right? Or maybe they just didn’t learn about them?

I waited anxiously for Kairan’s answer.

“I know. It’s the mystical power that existed in ancient times. I was taught that, like Transcendents, only those chosen by the gods could become mages.”

Good, he knows!

That made explaining things much easier. With a brightened face, I explained about the potion.

“That potion was made with magic. It can heal most wounds and internal injuries.”

“This… was made with magic?”

Kairan’s eyes widened in disbelief. His expression didn’t change much, but he seemed quite surprised.

I nodded.

“Yeah. I asked a mage I know! Actually, I wanted to make it myself, but I’m still a bit inexperienced, so it was hard. Next time, I’ll definitely give you one I made myself!”

“You’re a mage too?”

“Hmm, something like that? Anyway, it’s not dangerous, so don’t worry and give it to the Duchess!”

His initial surprise faded, and Kairan stared intently at the potion with a thoughtful expression.

As his answer grew longer, I grew a little more impatient.

Hmm, what if he says he can’t trust it? We’ve gotten a bit closer, but thinking about it now, it was probably too short a time to build enough trust for him to readily accept something like this.

Still, I’ve been acting pretty harmless all this time…

I fidgeted with my fingers and eventually couldn’t help but add one more thing.

“You might not trust me, but could you just do as I say this once?”

“…”

“If you’re uneasy, you could even drink it right here.”

“…”

“I told you before. That I would do whatever it takes to cure the Duchess. It wasn’t just empty words!”

At that moment, Kairan nodded.

“I understand.”

“So… huh? You understand?”

“Yeah. I’ll do as you say. Thank you. This seems like something very precious.”

Breaking the silence, Kairan put the potion in his pocket. It was a rather absurd persuasion attempt, but I was so grateful he said he believed me. It felt like my efforts in making potions had been rewarded.

I smiled brightly and said.

“Good choice! You can drink it all at once. The effect will appear right away, so don’t worry!”

“Yeah. Thank you.”

It’s nothing!

His gentle smile made me feel a little shy.

I urged Kairan to go and use it quickly, pushing his back. After hesitating, he said he’d see me next time and left the cave first.

Watching his retreating back, I prayed that the healing potion would do its job.