It had been an exhausting day. After finding Vivianne again, Kian had been away at Baldwin’s estate for some time, resulting in a backlog of pending matters at his duchy.

Having summoned his vassals, he tackled the most urgent issues first. Since he would need to leave his territory again after completing his schedule at Larson, he had compressed multiple tasks into a short timeframe.

Though he had hoped to finish quickly and have dinner with Vivianne, things hadn’t gone according to plan.

By the time he returned to the mansion, it was already past midnight. She was probably asleep by now. It was the middle of the night for someone who loved sleep as much as she did.

Then again, perhaps she might hear his footsteps and come out to greet him, throwing herself into his arms. That would be nice.

With this small hope in mind, he climbed the stairs of the main building where the lights had already been turned off. His bedroom held too many unpleasant memories. He had once kept Vivianne bound in shackles there, and she had tried to stab him with a dagger in that same room.

For this reason, he had placed her in her own bedroom and only visited her there, wanting to minimize anything that might trigger bad memories.

When he reached the door, Kian paused briefly.

“Kian…?”

“It’s me.”

The image of her peeking out with just her head, greeting him with a bright smile, lingered in his mind. She must have been tired. Despite his pause, there was no response. It had been merely wishful thinking on his part, all in vain.

He missed how things used to be, yet feared it at the same time.

If she were to recover her memories… Even while enjoying a luxury he dared not hope for, human greed truly knew no bounds. With these complicated feelings, he forced a smile. Perhaps it was better that she was sound asleep to endure the night.

He had deliberately left out baby shoes for her to see and had intentionally shown her Alice’s child to help remove any resistance she might have to pregnancy.

Scratch, scratch, scratch—

Squeak, squeak, squeeeeeak.

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch—

An was quicker than Vivianne. The sound of paws scratching at the door came from right in front of him.

He would need to put An to bed first and then wash up. Vivianne would be too shy to cuddle if this little puppy was awake. With this thought, he opened the door.

Woof! Woof woof!

Waiting eagerly, An jumped out, wagging its tail and clinging to Kian’s leg. He quickly picked it up and entered the room.

Upon discovering the empty bed, Kian froze in place.

Vivianne was gone.

* * *

As soon as he rushed out of the mansion, the full moon caught his eye. Suddenly, he recalled the first night Vivianne had disappeared. She had made the implausible excuse that she couldn’t sleep and had gone for a night swim.

Her lips had been blue and trembling, either from cold or fear. Looking back, that night had also featured a full moon, just like tonight.

Kian headed toward the coral beach, drawn there almost by instinct. That night, he had immediately found her shawl and shoes neatly placed on the beach. Tonight, even those weren’t visible.

Instead, he spotted a woman in a negligee wading unsteadily into the sea. His heart sank. The crashing waves were already soaking her thighs.

“…Vivi!”

Without time to think, he ran forward calling her name. The woman with dazzling platinum blonde hair in a thin negligee was unmistakably Vivianne.

“Vivi!”

Despite his desperate calls, she didn’t look back. She simply continued forward, parting the water with her body, seemingly entranced by something.

When the water reached her waist, Vivianne submerged her fragile body beneath the waves without hesitation. Once she disappeared below the surface, she didn’t resurface.

“No!”

Kian plunged into the seawater with an anguished cry.

Was she trying to take her own life? No, that couldn’t be. Just that morning, she had smiled brightly, saying how cute babies were. When he suggested they make one, she had pouted and grumbled that he was teasing her.

He had kissed those protruding lips—that was the last he had seen of her.

She had smiled so beautifully. She couldn’t have wanted to die. No, that was impossible.

Had her memories returned in the meantime?

Even if they had, this made no sense. How could she do this so suddenly, without confronting him, without demanding explanations?

Or had she regained her memories and simply waited until she was alone? To end her life?

No, that couldn’t be right.

He was on the verge of madness with anxiety. Kian swam frantically toward where Vivianne had disappeared. The dark ocean was impenetrable, impossible to see through.

When he surfaced for air, he saw something of an unusual color undulating on the water’s surface. Seeing this, Kian recalled what Alice had told him:

“If her feet hurt… she needs to soak them in seawater, because a tail could form at any time.”

It was definitely Vivi… Vivianne.

Though he swam toward her like a madman, the woman had vanished without a trace.

Could it be a side effect of the potion? Perhaps she needed to swim to alleviate it. Alice had said as much, and Theodore had clearly seen Vivianne swimming in her mermaid form with his own eyes. That was the very day she had lied about going for a night swim.

Although he had found a plausible explanation for why Vivianne had disappeared beneath the surface, he couldn’t shake his anxiety.

He had watched her walk into the water of her own accord. How could he possibly remain calm?

The memory of that day when she was devoured by the fierce waves remained vivid in his mind. The fear that she would break apart with the waves and vanish forever was driving him mad.

“Vivi…!”

After searching frantically for a long time, Kian unexpectedly found Vivianne on the sand. Soaked with seawater, she lay collapsed with her body limp.

He needed to save her immediately.

As he hurriedly emerged from the sea, his vision swayed violently. His knees buckled, and his body pitched forward. His palms were a mess of sand and blood, but he didn’t care. With all his might, he ran to her and took her in his arms.

“Vivi, please… you need to wake up. Please…”

Kian held the limp Vivianne, pleading desperately. He placed his finger under her nose and his ear to her chest. Thankfully, her heart was beating, and she was still breathing.

Is she really okay? Is she truly alive?

No matter how many times he checked, he couldn’t believe it. Unable to feel reassured, he breathed into her mouth and caressed her cold cheeks to warm them.

“…You can’t die. Please, come to your senses. Vivi, please.”

His vision blurred, and her pale face kept dissolving before his eyes.

“…No.”

You can’t disappear. Please.

How could I live without you?

You saved me. You can’t die because of me.

Pain tore through his insides.

“I should be the one to die. Why you…? You’ve done nothing wrong. No. Absolutely not.”

But no matter how tightly he held her or how much he screamed, Vivianne didn’t regain consciousness.

* * *

“I’ll take care of Lady Vivianne. You need to get some rest, even if just for a moment, Your Grace.”

Alice spoke with a sympathetic tone. The physician had visited and determined there was nothing seriously wrong besides a mild fever.

“…I’m fine.”

Kian shook his head as he wiped Vivianne’s sleeping face with a damp cloth. His touch was careful, afraid he might wake her. His hands had been trembling continuously.

For a while, he had been nearly catatonic. Drenched in seawater, he had carried Vivianne back and since then had been unable to sleep or eat. He had canceled all appointments and kept a sleepless vigil by her side, fearing she might vanish again if he didn’t.

Even watching over her like this, he was anxious she might evaporate at any moment.

Even to observers, his condition appeared precarious.

“…You mentioned it was a side effect of the potion.”

“Yes.”

“You said you’ve experienced these side effects before. Is it very taxing on the body? She had something like this before… She was bedridden for days before recovering.”

“She’ll be fine soon. Please don’t worry too much.”

Despite these words of comfort, Kian merely sighed faintly, unable to feel at ease.

How could he not worry?

She had been swallowed by the sea right before his eyes once again. She had walked in on her own, seemingly pulled in. It had happened so quickly, without any chance to stop her.

The scene looked either like she was fleeing from him or trying to take her own life.

“The princess who saved the sacrifice becomes another sacrifice herself.”

The curse that had supposedly been placed on Vivianne filled his mind. He had nearly lost her again right before his eyes. The thought nearly drove him insane.

* * *

Her body felt heavy, sinking below the surface.

[She did it unknowingly. What sin could this little one have committed?]

Her father’s deep, sighing voice echoed faintly.

[Such an odd one.]

[This is all your fault.]

Thorny words directed at her.

[Help me…]

[Help me.]

[…Help me!]

[Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me.]

The desperate cries of her sisters begging for help.

[You’ve been trapped.]

…No. That can’t be true.

[So mate with me every day, bear my offspring, and live bound to my side for the rest of your life.]

‘Please, let me go. Please… please!’

[You can’t live without me anyway.]

She struggled against the sensation of drowning. Her breath caught in her throat, and bubbles like seizures rose above her head. She couldn’t tell if her body was trembling from sobbing or from lack of oxygen.

When she opened her eyes, tears streaming down her face.

“…Vivi.”

H*ll was right before her eyes.