17 - Million Dollar Question

Instead of going to the beach in a simple workout outfit like I always did, today I dressed a little more formally as I headed there, considering the fact that since I had canceled the meeting with her father last night, I might have to deal with it today.

As I rode through the capital, I began to notice the signs of the conversation with my father.

The city was getting more crowded, the roads were full of carriages and wagons with people bringing their valuables here, trying to keep themselves safe and not lose everything they had gained.

Looking even more closely, I could see that some people were looking at me with simple joy and respect, while others were looking at me with more fervor, as if it were despair, as if the only hope they had of returning to their normal lives was me.

Although the fervor in everyone's eyes and the feeling of being under so much expectation was a little suffocating, I didn't let on that it was getting to me and I kept my best polite and charismatic smile, trying my best to pass on the comfort and security that these people desperately needed.

And it seemed to help a little, everyone I smiled and waved at seemed more relieved to see me, to see that I was confident.

It was dangerous to pin the kingdom's hopes on a single person, but considering that person was me, with a cheat as stolen as the Meta Essence Gacha, at least that would make things easier.

And just as I imagined, when I arrived at the beach, Ariel was already waiting for me there, and next to her were two other curious mermaids.

Adjusting my blue tunic after getting off the horse, I walked across the sand to where they were, trying to keep my nervousness to myself.

Ariel swam forward a little when she saw me, her smile as bright as ever. "Eric!" she said excitedly, her tail slapping the water lightly. "You came!" She looked relieved, but her eyes were full of anticipation.

"Of course I came," I said, smiling back. "I wasn't going to keep you waiting." My gaze flicked to the two mermaids behind her, and I raised an eyebrow, curious. "And those are...?"

Ariel laughed, pointing at one of them, who had loose blonde hair and a mischievous smile. "That's Arista. She won't sit still." Arista swam quickly over to me, throwing water everywhere, and looked me up and down as if I were an amusing novelty.

"So you're the famous Eric!" she said, her voice full of excitement. "Ariel won't shut up about you. Tell me, what's this about making water dance with a sword? Is it like magic or what?" She laughed, spinning around in the water and throwing more drops in my direction in excitement.

I didn't dodge the water, laughing too, already liking her way.

"It's a bit more complicated than just Magic..." I replied, winking. "But if you want, one day I'll show you." Arista's eyes widened in excitement and she was about to say more, but the other mermaid swam forward, cutting her off.

"That's enough, Arista," said the second one, in a calm but firm voice.

She had brown hair tied up in a tight bun and eyes that seemed to study me. "I'm Attina, the eldest of the sisters." She crossed her arms, staring at me. "Ariel talks about you a lot, Eric, but I want to understand who you really are. She trusts you, but trust isn't enough. Why are you so interested in my sister?"

I swallowed, not imagining such an intense reception after the lively Arista.

Attina wasn't kidding... she wanted answers, and from the way she was acting, I couldn't just say anything random.

Ariel blushed, swimming to her sister's side. "Attina, stop! He's nice, I told you!"

"I heard you." Attina replied, without taking her eyes off me. "But I want to hear it from him."

I took a deep breath, keeping calm. "That's right, Attina. I like Ariel because she's... different. She sees the world in a different way from everyone I've ever met... even though her saving my life contributed a lot to my initial curiosity, it was who she is that made me interested in her even more."

I looked at Ariel, who was red, but smiling. "She's brave, curious, and makes me laugh even when the day is heavy... she's someone I want to be around, and I promise that my intention was never to cause her any harm."

Attina remained quiet, analyzing me. After a while, she nodded, somewhat reluctantly. "You seem sincere. But I'll keep an eye on you, Eric. Don't forget that." She relaxed a little, and I finally breathed a sigh of relief, surprised that facing this older sister seemed more difficult than battles with monsters.

Arista laughed out loud, breaking the tension. "Gee, Attina, leave the guy alone! He's cute, Ariel's right." She swam in circles around me, as if to tease me. "So, Eric, you fight monsters, do magic, flirt with a mermaid... it seems you live for the thrill, right?!"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Maybe... or the emotion that comes around me?" Ariel laughed along, a little embarrassed by her sister's comment about her, but even Attina gave a half-smile, albeit a small one.

Ariel swam closer, her voice softer. "Eric, my father is waiting. He wants to meet you today. I... I told him you're special, and he's curious, but he doesn't trust you very much yet." She hesitated, fiddling with her hair. "Are you coming with us?"

I felt my heart race. Facing King Triton was scarier than any goblin or kobold, and considering the strength of the King of Atlantica and that I was flirting with his daughter, that was true in every sense.

But I looked at Ariel, her eyes full of confidence, and nodded. "I'm ready. Let's go."

Arista shouted excitedly while Attina just sighed, but swam along with us, keeping Ariel close to her. I got into the water, using Percy's power to breathe easy, and followed the three of them into the sea. The current was cold, but the warmth in my chest kept me going.

Ariel's sisters were amazed at how I could keep up with their speed without a mermaid's tail.

If it hadn't been for Percy's powers, there was no way I could have kept up with them. With how strong those tails were, my legs would suffer trying to keep up, but by controlling the water around me to push me through the sea, the ride was much smoother for me.

We swam for a while, past bright corals and shoals that seemed to dance.

Arista, just as I imagined she would, kept talking, telling exaggerated stories about parties in Atlantica, while Attina stayed quiet, just watching me from time to time.

Ariel swam beside me, smiling slightly, as if to reassure me.

Finally, we reached a deeper area where the sea seemed to pulse with energy. A golden glow cut through the darkness, coming from a coral palace that looked bigger than any castle I'd ever seen.

My stomach knotted at the sight of this castle, but my royal training helped me hide my concern, while my royal side made me observe the details of this magnificent castle and wonder if it would be possible to do something like this on the surface when I expanded my kingdom?

Entering the castle I saw several mermen in royal clothes, some used tridents as weapons, others preferred spears, but all had the firm and respectful attitude of the royal soldiers of my castle.

"This is it..." Ariel whispered, pointing to the main hall.

Looking through the large door that Ariel had pointed out, I saw an immense figure on a throne, holding a trident that shone like the sun.

King Triton.

Compared to the power I felt from him, Goblins and Kobolds were practically nothing, even my power, which was slowly going to my head, seemed like nothing compared to the mighty merman in front of me.

King Triton looked up when he saw us, his eyes fixed on me as if he could see my soul.

Arista laughed low. "Good luck, human..." she whispered as she moved away to stand next to her father.

Attina only shook Ariel's hand and laughed at me before going with her sister, leaving just Ariel and me facing the great King.

With a preaching two seconds to take a deep breath, I finally swam forward.

'Damn, it feels like I'm walking into the room of a Dark Souls Boss...' I thought, shocked by the atmosphere.

"Eric from Miralune." Triton said, his deep voice echoing like a storm. "You're the human my daughter keeps talking about. Let's see if you're worthy of her trust." He pointed the trident upwards, making the weapon glow even brighter, and I felt a chill but kept my posture.

The way he was acting, it looked like he was really going to attack me at any moment.

Feeling my sword at my waist, I had to resist my urges not to just draw my sword and try to fight this huge Boss in front of me.

But considering that the man is literally the father of the girl who saved my life, that would be completely disrespectful to everyone, so I just controlled it and nodded to the merman politely.

"King Triton, I'm Eric Lunaris, it's a pleasure to finally meet you." I said using the royal etiquette of Miralune.

King Triton was silent for a few seconds, keeping the atmosphere as tense as possible.

Even his daughters couldn't say anything at that point.

For what seemed like an eternity, only the king and I stood up straight as we stared at each other intensely.

Finally the silence was broken by him.

"Looks like you've got more guts than sense, kid." He said as he retracted his trident, causing the weapon to stop glowing.

But looking more closely, you could see the corner of his mouth turn up in a satisfied little smile as he sat back down on the throne.

Seeing that he liked it, I decided to be a little daring and also smiled as I replied. "And it looks like the title of King of Atlantica didn't just come about because of the trident, eh?"

The soldiers and mermaids around me were shocked by my answer, but instead of getting angry, the gigantic king started laughing.

"You're cheeky, Eric of Miralune." He said, but now without the pressure of before. "But courage and a sharp tongue are not enough. My daughter says you're special, that you make the water obey as if it were one of us. After seeing your power I was curious... what is your power?"

'That was the million dollar question... I just hope my answer is good enough for him. I thought.

--- Cat Notes ---

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