Like a Little Sister
Seeing a mermaid brought good luck, and a mermaid’s tears turned into pearls. So if a mermaid asked for anything, you should help her out. It was the sort of story kids would love.
Caution: Do not confuse mermaids with sirens. If you see a siren, run away.
Nothing had to appear before I could decide whether to run or help, though.
As one of the people craning my neck in hopes of spotting a mermaid, I couldn’t help feeling disgruntled.
Capturing mermaids was officially forbidden, but illegal activities always paid well. There had always been groups that hunted them in secret, but the reason it had grown especially rampant lately was because the country had turned a blind eye, letting the slave traders swell their ranks unchecked.
Humans already had enough trouble surviving in this messy world; there was no leisure left to worry about the safety of other races.
“Jeanie, so this is where you were.”
I glanced over, offered no reply, and turned my gaze back to the sea.
At some point Ash had started anxiously searching for me whenever I was out of sight. If I spaced out alone anywhere, he would inevitably track me down.
Having Rai chase after me everywhere was already more than enough.
“Ahem…”
Ash stood at a careful distance and awkwardly fiddled with the railing. He kept stealing glances as if he had something to say, so I finally spoke first.
“What?”
“…It’s nothing. I was wondering if I could stand beside you…”
“You’re such a coward.”
“Could you call it being cautious? Asking for permission is a matter of respect. No matter how…”
“How?”
“Close we are.”
Even saying that, he watched me nervously, gauging my reaction. It was honestly too cute to scold him for being a nuisance.
I let out a small snort of laughter, and Ash seemed relieved. He crept closer and stopped about two paces away.
His large hands fidgeted on the railing as he made a strangely earnest confession.
“Just because you show me kindness doesn’t mean I can take it for granted. Being allowed to stand beside you like this, even simply looking at the same view side by side—every single thing requires your permission. The desire I feel to stay by your side and the moments when you want me there are surely different…”
It felt fresh. Maybe because I had rarely been treated like a lady.
The reason I found this man less and less unpleasant was probably because he was one of the rare people who never triggered my foul temper.
Was it the strict imperial etiquette for dealing with the opposite sex? Or was it political distance?
Ash always approached me with meticulous care.
I didn’t know exactly why he was so cautious, but anyway.
“I like you too. I like being together.”
“…Pardon? Ah, yes… That clearly means…”
“But it would be nicer if you said it without the necklace on.”
When I narrowed my eyes and muttered, he tensed and glanced around as if afraid someone might overhear.
There was no one nearby. I had only spoken because I knew that.
“This… it doesn’t matter, does it?”
“How should I put it? It feels like we’re talking through a glass window. I can’t shake the sense that there’s something between us that doesn’t need to be there. Of course the necklace’s performance is incredible and your expressions come through perfectly… but it’s still not your real face. It bothers me.”
“It feels insincere, is what you’re saying.”
“A little? Or maybe I just liked the version of you without the necklace too much.”
A complete moment with no secrets.
And at the same time, a moment that was itself a secret.
Having tasted that intoxicating flavor once, the current state left me somehow dissatisfied.
Was it just me?
When I rested my chin on my hand and stared at him, Ash merely glanced down at his necklace and stayed silent.
It had been far more refreshing and pleasant on the castle wall when it was just the two of us. When we looked only at each other without worrying about anyone else.
I couldn’t stand anything that irritated me. That was why I felt this way. Remembering that time occasionally made the present feel stifling.
“My brooch!”
The commotion beside us erupted right after the ship gave a heavy lurch.
“No… it can’t be!”
It looked like a small child had dropped something precious into the sea. I saw her leaning dangerously far over the railing before a sailor pulled her back.
“Little one, you mustn’t lean on the railing!”
“Mister! My brooch fell into the sea!”
“You should have been more careful. Once it’s in the ocean, there’s nothing we can do.”
“But… Mother gave it to me…”
The brown-haired girl looked about Einy’s age. If she attended the academy she would be in the elementary division. She had clearly tried to dress up for the voyage, but her clothes marked her as a commoner, so the sailor’s attitude toward her was less than kind.
“I’m sorry, but you’ll have to let it go.”
“Please. Can’t you stop the ship? I have to find it!”
“That’s ridiculous! How are we supposed to retrieve something that fell into the sea? We’re not mermaids. Even a mage couldn’t manage it. A water spirit might have a chance, but…”
“That can’t be…”
“You should ask your mother to buy you a new one.”
“But that was a memento my mother gave me!”
The girl finally burst into tears.
The weather was nice; I was starting to feel sleepy.
I pretended to yawn while gazing at the sea, but it was impossible to ignore the persistent stare boring into me from the side.
When someone looked at me that intently right beside me…
“…What! Why are you looking at me!”
“A water spirit master…”
“Do you have a death wish? Turn your eyes away!”
Do I look like one to you!
Did Ash really think he could mine sympathy from me? Finding a golden cup would have been more realistic.
“It’s her mother’s memento. Let’s help her.”
“I hate kids!”
“Hic… sob… I wanted to show the brooch the sea… Hic!”
As the crying grew louder, people on the deck began to murmur.
“Jeanie.”
“Kah, ptooey. You’d have better luck looking for a mermaid in the sea.”
“Come on.”
“I have zero interest in good deeds! Try another house! What’s in it for me?”
Behold—my dazzling selfishness!
This was exactly how people were meant to live: lazily!
“…Let’s do this instead.”
“Do what! I won’t! I can’t! Slice the ship in half! Get lost!”
“Whenever you want, I’ll brush your hair for you.”
“…Hmm?”
“Anywhere, anytime. As many times as you wish.”
“You won’t go back on your word later? Earlier when I asked, you ran away saying it was embarrassing in front of others.”
“I won’t.”
Hmm… A personal hairstylist on demand. That didn’t sound half bad.
I stared at the horizon and pretended to consider it. There was nothing else to do on the ship anyway.
“Undine.”
Since we were surrounded by ocean I expected her to appear immediately, but it took longer than I thought.
Why wasn’t she coming out?
I moved only my eyes, scanning around.
The voice came from below the railing. I walked over and looked down to see Undine shooting up from the sea in a spray of bubbles.
Since it wasn’t an emergency summons, she had come from the water.
I brought Undine with me as I approached the girl, striding forward with one dog, one man, and one spirit in tow.
Wait—no. Two spirits and one man.
“Hey, kid.”
The girl who had been squatting and crying looked up at me with tear-soaked eyes. The moment she saw us they sparkled as if she had never been crying at all.
“Wooooow, what is that? Sister? A fairy?”
She was fascinated by Undine floating in the air. The girl’s tears stopped instantly, and I thought this alone might have been enough.
“Look, the kid stopped crying. We don’t have to find the brooch anymore, right?”
“No! My brooch!”
“Ah, so it was a brooch.”
“We have to find it! It’s the memento my mother gave me!”
When she looked ready to cry again I openly clicked my tongue.
To think that after everything, I would fall for Ash’s angelic touch of all things.
“Tsk, fine. Fine. Describe what the brooch looks like.”
“It’s about this big… golden… and it opens from the side…”
“You heard her, Undine? It fell somewhere around here, so go look for it.”
It didn’t seem like a difficult task, yet Undine hesitated instead of moving right away. That was unlike her.
Right. There was no way Undine would know what a brooch was. Spirits didn’t wear clothes or accessories.
I sometimes forgot they were completely different life forms from another dimension.
“Stop lying, you mutt.”
I really couldn’t let my guard down for a second.
Rai’s rivalry with Undine was so intense that he teased her at every opportunity. He had tried to make her look stupid again and ended up getting caught by me.
After chasing him a good distance away, I kindly gave Undine a tailored explanation.
“It’s not food. It’s a decoration about this big—like the earrings or necklaces I’ve worn. You remember those, right, Undine? Just find something similar.”
I made a circle with my thumb and forefinger to show the size.
“I’m already sparkling. I’m the self-illuminating type.”
“Anyway?”
Our Undine might be small and cute, but she was reliable.
For the crime of disrupting the chain of command, I really ought to smack Rai… The moment the thought crossed my mind I spotted him already fleeing to the opposite railing. When had he run all the way over there?
He had gone so far he looked no bigger than a fingernail. He was pretending he didn’t even know me.
“Don’t cry, little one. This person will definitely find your precious brooch for you.”
Um… was that supposed to be me?
“Sniff… really?”
“Say thank you.”
“Thank you, sister!”
Instead of chasing after Rai, I looked down at the girl Ash was gently comforting.
It seemed Ash had a soft spot for girls around that age. Now that I thought about it, he had been the same with Einy. He would stop whatever he was doing to soothe her.
“Thank the man who enslaved me instead of me.”
“Thank you, kind brother!”
Technically Undine was the one doing the work while I reaped the benefits, but whatever.
I leaned back against the railing and asked.
“Be honest, Ash. You have a younger sister around that age, don’t you?”
Whenever anyone was nearby, Ash tried to avoid talking about himself. When he didn’t want to lie, he would quietly lower his eyes as he answered.
“You seem used to looking after girls.”
“Do I?”
“Yeah. You were like that with Einy, and when I was little you were… really…”
I had been chattering casually when a sudden realization hit me, and it wasn’t a pleasant one.
What flashed through my mind was a day ten years ago—a small boy trying to protect an even smaller girl.
And the fact that Ash still looked like that little boy in my eyes, and the way he sometimes gazed at me with confused eyes.
“Ash, you!”
“Yes?”
There was no mistake.
The reason he had been staring only at me lately, following only me, bothering me, and fidgeting whenever I tried to pull away—it was all because…!
“You see me as—”
“…!”
“Your little sister, don’t you!”