Became the Academy Romantic Phantom Thief chapter 112

112 – Merrow

“mmm…”

I slowly opened my eyes as I felt my cheek pricked.

A girl with turquoise hair enters the blurred vision.

I recalled the last memory of her just before she passed out and raised her upper body in a fright.

“Wow!”

“Who…”

Before I could finish my words, I could see the girl with the distance widened.

First of all, her upper body and important parts were covered only with a shell, and everything else was naked and dressed in a manly fashion.

But there was something else more important than that.

If you lower your gaze slightly down and look at the lower body, you can see that the fins of a fish are rustling instead of the two legs of a human that should have been there.

As I stared blankly at the unreal figure, the girl cautiously approached me again.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Ah, yes…”

She managed to come to her senses and asked her hesitantly.

“So. That one… Are you a mermaid?”

“We are Merrow.”

“Merrow?”

She was tilting her head at a strange word she had never heard before, so the goddess explained it instead.

[The mermaid you think is correct. To be precise, they are mermaids living around Ireland.]

Things like that are detailed.

Human beings living on land are also classified and referred to as countries by region, but there might be no law against saying that to mermaids living in the sea.

Even in terms of territory, the sea is larger than the land.

I was a bit surprised at first, but I quickly got used to it. In the first place, this world is a worldview where various mysteries including magic remain. In fact, there was a time when a mermaid appeared as if passing by briefly in the original work.

“My name is Ariel.”

“Oh, I am Raven.”

When she realized that the hat had been removed, she took it.

And while doing so, I naturally looked around and admired it without even realizing it.

“But here…”

“This is the house we live in.”

I felt like I made this while imagining that if there was a castle in the sea like a theme park, it would look like this.

Corals, clams and fish swimming freely in the palace.

I felt as if I had entered the world of a fairy tale, so I couldn’t help but admire it with my mouth open.

But aside from that, there’s a fish floating inside.

Doesn’t that mean that this place is full of water?

“How am I breathing…?”

Belatedly noticing the inconsistency that I had forgotten about because it was so natural, I muttered to myself, and the mermaid girl said while poking me on the cheek.

“Thanks to this.”

It was only then that I noticed the foreign body feeling on my cheek and raised my hand to confirm that it was sticking to my face.

“These are crystal gills. You can breathe freely underwater while wearing this.”

As soon as I heard the explanation, I could guess the potential of this crystal. Designing the perfect trick was a piece of cake if the environment worked well.

“Can I buy this?”

“No. This is the only treasure that comes down from our royal family.”

“Ah…”

Then I can’t help it. Stealing like a phantom thief, I wasn’t so wicked as to stab the benefactor who saved my life.

“Thank you for using such a valuable treasure for me.”

“It’s not uncommon for humans to come down here. Many of you are curious about Raven.”

It’s a bit embarrassing to say that. When our eyes met, Ariel smiled brightly.

Anyway, I felt it from a while ago, but she was so beautiful that it was hard to take my eyes off her.

Particularly, the glossy turquoise hair that added to her mysterious impression doubled her beauty.

Isn’t it a case that fits well with the beauty that transcends humanity that we thought on the boat earlier?

Certainly, the mermaid legend isn’t widely known for nothing.

Half man, half fish. It will never be easy to have such an unconventional personality. Wouldn’t it be possible to deal with a centaur or a harpy.

No. Instead of being distracted by unnecessary things, I have to remember my real goal.

Yes. The reason I almost lost my life after descending to this deep sea was to obtain the Millennium Pearl.

So where is the Millennium Pearl?

He must have picked up the pearl right before he passed out.

“Mr. Ariel.”

“Yes? What are you doing?”

“Have you ever seen a great pearl? It must have been in my hand or somewhere nearby.”

In the split second of asking her question, her expression hardened a little, then returned to her original softness.

What was that just about?

It was obviously strange to see it as a mere illusion.

“Pearls. We are keeping it well.”

“I’m glad. So can I get it back right away? Because it is very important to me.”

“Yes. Sure. Please follow me.”

Ariel jumped up and left the room.

As I carefully examined her back, I recalled her alertness.

Looking back, it was like entering the base of a completely different race, so I needed to be careful.

Of course, since he saved my life, there is no need to blindly accuse him of being an enemy, but on the contrary, it was not a situation where we could be careless enough to trust him hastily.

The only choice is to keep a reasonable distance and be vigilant. And you’d better get out of here and get back to the ship as soon as possible.

She got up from her seat and took a step to follow her.

“Ouch!”

Ah, I forgot that this place was underwater.

She unconsciously assumed a normal walking posture as if it were natural, and then she floundered unseemly.

“Foot. What are you doing?”

Even her figure was caught by Ariel, who turned her head just in time.

“What about humans?”

“No… It’s a little awkward in the water.”

“Ah, that was it. Can I hold your hand if you swim wrong?”

I waved his hand in surprise at such a bold proposal.

“No. You can go alone.”

“Then I can’t help it. Let’s go.”

Watching her move her back to her back swept her chest.

No, are mermaids normally that open-minded? Or am I just overreacting?

First of all, I don’t feel hostile at all just by looking at his attitude towards me from the beginning.

Of course, the acting was all fake, and the inside could be dark, so I couldn’t let go of the tension yet.

I followed Ariel through the corridors of the palace. Looking at the scenery outside at first glance, admiration came out without me knowing.

An undersea city represented by Atlantis. A fantasy that makes you yearn for it even more because it is infinitely close to impossible in reality.

Simply put, this place was romantic itself.

As we continued heading somewhere, we encountered other mermaids besides Ariel. If there is one peculiarity, all the women are beautiful, while the men look like nasty bullfrogs.

It may be individual differences, but since every mermaid I met was like that, it could be a characteristic of the Merrowan race itself.

Actually, there was something else that bothered me more than that.

It’s because every time my eyes met, they were talking to each other and staring at me.

Of course I understand. It is said that humans rarely visited this place, so in their eyes, it would seem strange to me that I have human legs, not fish legs.

Is that so, or are you laughing at my poor swimming posture?

I’ve never experienced such a sense of shame before, but I felt a strange sense of defeat when I saw Ariel moving forward, waving her fins in front of me.

But this is the limit of the race itself, so what can I say?

You guys are all the same when you come to land, right?

It seemed that I had finally reached my destination after passing through the long hallway, feeling so much shame.

As soon as I entered, it was not difficult to guess what this room was for.

A wide space and splendid decorations, a throne seen from the innermost part and a woman sitting on it.

This was the audience room to face the ruler of the sea.

“Oh. You woke up pretty early.”

The woman on the throne who speaks to me first in a relaxed voice.

She had colorful fins like a koi and had a golden crown on her head.

At first, it seemed clear that she was the queen of this place. Because all of her attendants and mermaids lined up on her left and right were bowing their heads to her and bowing down in her adoration.

In that case, giving them proper courtesy would be the minimum courtesy. Anyway, as long as I don’t know how strong they are in the current situation, I will only lose if I move recklessly.

“Thank you for saving my life. Your majesty.”

“Whoops. You’re a very polite kid. You don’t have to thank me. Because the one who saved you was Ariel next to you.”

I see. Now that I think about it, I think she saw turquoise right before she passed out.

Even if you don’t know the other person’s exact intentions, it’s not enough to be thankful for the fact that you saved his life.

But I couldn’t waste my time here forever.

Above all, I have to go to the academy this morning and take the exam.

Since it is so deep in the sea, there is no way to properly check the current time.

I had to get out of here as quickly as possible.

So, even if it was a bit rude, I brought it up first.

“Well, by any chance, where is my pearl…”

“Your pearl. Do you really think it is your pearl?”

“Yes…?”

Wait a minute. The Goddess said it was a jewel without an owner, right?

[I have never lied.]

While I was confused by the conflicting opinions, the mermaid queen looked at me and smiled ominously.

“Good. Then prove that you are the owner of the pearl.”

“…Yes?”

“There is a legend handed down among us Merrow. The owner of the Millennium Pearl will marry Merrow and rule our paradise.”

“・・・・・・Yes?”

Oh my God. What is this all of a sudden