Just as the king of the skies needs wings, the ruler of the seas must have a tail.

A mermaid’s tail directly links to dominion over the sea.

Even though Triton’s father stayed away from the sea, people revered him as a god of the sea because of his wife Amphitrite’s dominance, who was a mermaid.

Without Amphitrite, Poseidon could not have become the god of the sea despite his overwhelming power to control water and storms.

This explained why Poseidon had ascended to Olympus after an early succession.

Because Triton, the firstborn with a ‘tail’, was born.

‘…Did Hecate know about this?’

Triton lifted his gaze to stare into the void. He looked toward the northwestern direction where the island he had given to Hecate stood. He sensed the goddess of the moon, underworld, spring, and shadows looking back in his direction.

‘Life first, then dominion over the sea….’

The price to completely possess one woman seemed quite steep.

Smirking, he closed his eyes momentarily and listened to the woman running up to the castle’s top.

Tap, tap-tap! Tap-tap!

The sound of footsteps treading through water-thick air rang cheerfully. Livia’s footsteps running straight toward him never failed to make his heart burn hot.

Just from hearing those footsteps heading his way, his mind danced with joy and delight, and his body writhed hot, seemingly having swallowed a ball of fire.

Listening more carefully, he could even hear Livia’s heart beating excitedly. How admirable and precious that small, fragile thing fluttered so vigorously trying to live.

The sound pleased him more than any siren’s song.

To Triton, Livia appeared admirable and lovable without doing anything at all.

Just by existing, eating, sleeping, and running, Livia’s very presence felt remarkable to him.

Something so weak it could die from just a touch, something so small it could blow away with just a breath, yet stubbornly living on with bright eyes.

Triton turned around to look at the entrance where Livia would appear.

She would rush in thoughtlessly like a young rhinoceros, then hesitate at the entrance momentarily. After catching her breath, she would try to enter calmly, pretending she hadn’t been running.

Simply imagining Livia’s actions turned his excited mind to mush.

Finally, he felt her presence just a stone’s throw away.

Triton smiled quietly and released silver bubbles into the air.

‘As much as you want.’

The blue letters that briefly flickered dissolved into bubbling foam. The bubbles containing Triton’s answer shot vigorously above the sea, flying toward Hecate.

“…Triton!”

Pretending she hadn’t been running, Livia appeared after catching her breath and ran toward Triton.

When she smiled, her reddened cheeks rose into cute circles that looked sweet enough to taste. He embraced her without hesitation and whispered while nibbling on her plump cheeks.

“Shall we go somewhere?”

“Huh? Where?”

Wondering about this sudden suggestion, Livia’s eyes turned upward. Triton, who had been rubbing his lips against the end of her sharp gaze, bit her soft, plump earlobe and said,

“To see your brother.”

***

Triton took Livia to the island.

It was the very same island where he had rescued children taken by pirates. Livia and Triton stood on the cliff, facing the fierce wind. The moisture-laden wind tousled Livia’s long hair into a mess.

“Ouch.”

Eventually, her hair caught in the gold ornament decorating her shoulder. While Livia fidgeted, trying to untangle her caught hair, she sighed and turned to Triton, saying,

“Cut this for me, Triton.”

“…You want me to cut it?”

“Yes. It won’t come loose. You cut it for me. I don’t want to use a knife…”

At Livia’s request, Triton briefly glared at something in the void with narrowed eyes, then reached toward where her hair tangled. However, instead of cutting her hair, he tore off the ornament from Livia’s clothes.

“If something needs cutting, it should be this. Your hair holds more value than this thing.”

He spoke nonchalantly while tapping the spot where the ornament had been with his fingertips. A red coral jewel appeared, replacing the torn gold ornament.

Looking down at Livia, who stared with round eyes in surprise, he smiled and brought over the raspberries that were once again placed on the temple altar today, putting down the gold ornament in their place.

Livia watched the scene with curious eyes.

By now, quite a few offerings had accumulated on his altar. Besides raspberries, there were golden-brown baked bread, particularly large-seeded apples, grapes, and even well-cleaned meat.

However, Triton didn’t touch any other offerings, only taking the most humble raspberries and popping them into Livia’s mouth.

“How is it?”

Though more tart than sweet, it perfectly suited Livia’s palate, which had been craving sour tastes lately. When she nodded with a bright smile indicating it was delicious, he put a few more pieces of fruit into her mouth.

Strangely, the wind that had been messing up Livia’s hair suddenly stopped.

She briefly wondered if Triton’s earlier glaring into the void had been directed at another god who controlled the wind, but she didn’t bother to ask.

“Do you like the raspberries? Should I get you some more?”

He asked kindly while wiping the fruit juice from Livia’s lips. He naturally put his juice-stained fingertip into his own mouth.

Just as she shook her head to indicate it was fine, someone approached the two without warning and spoke to them.

“What a pleasant sight.”

Livia turned her head with a start, but Triton faced Persephone with a calm expression, seemingly aware of her presence all along.

The goddess walked toward them comfortably, appearing to have been there from the beginning.

With each step, the greenery on the ground stood up stiffly welcoming her, releasing fresh grass fragrance. Spring bloomed beneath the goddess’s feet. Livia found herself staring in awe at this mysterious sight.

Persephone in the underworld and Persephone in the living world appeared completely different.

Below ground she seemed darker, calmer, with a heavier presence, but above ground she radiated brightness and freshness. She resembled neither a queen nor anyone’s mother.

“It’s good to see you again, Kore.”

“…I greet you, my queen.”

“I’m not a queen here. No need to address me thus. After all… it seems we’ll occupy similar positions soon.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

As Livia tilted her head in confusion, Triton stepped forward and extended his hand toward Persephone.

“Since we’re not here for idle chat, why don’t you give what you brought first?”

Persephone briefly gazed at Triton with mysterious eyes. They held pure admiration without sharp emotions, and faint nostalgia. Her tightly closed lips parted to speak unexpected words.

“Interestingly, you and Hades share quite a few similarities.”

“Is that so?”

Triton responded indifferently, suggesting insignificance. Even this reaction didn’t disturb Persephone’s smiling expression, seemingly anticipating it.

“The arrogance of beings that can devour anything…”

Triton’s oily eyes steadily gazed at Persephone’s smile. Though he knew how to express displeasure, Persephone pretended not to notice and maintained her bright smile while looking at Livia.

“This repays a debt I owe to Triton and you. Just as you saved what was mine when it nearly died, I have saved and brought what belongs to you when it nearly vanished.”

When Persephone brought her hands together, a round light appeared above her palms. A light whiter and more brilliant than any Livia had ever seen transferred from Persephone’s hands to Livia’s.

“This is…”

“Look carefully, Livia.”

As Livia hesitated, she gazed into the light following Persephone’s instruction. The white light that had rippled before Livia’s eyes suddenly enveloped them.

Soon, a familiar and longed-for scene unfolded before Livia’s eyes.

“Don’t be a picky eater, Livia. You need to eat your greens too.”

“How do sheep eat this tasteless stuff so deliciously?”

“Eat diligently, even if it’s to understand the sheep’s mind. If it’s hard to eat, I’ll give you more of my fish, Livia.”

“Father! You keep giving Livia only the tasty things, that’s why she keeps being a picky eater!”

“That’s right, Dad. Give it to me instead of Livia. Livia needs to eat less these days because she’s getting fat, you know?”

“Hey, I’m someone who needs to gain weight, you know? How dare you reach for your sister’s plate!”

The battle between Livia defending her plate and Lete pointing his fork continued for a while. At the clinking sounds of forks and plates, Mumu, who had been dozing under the table, perked up one ear.

Looking at the squabbling Livia and Lete with one eye open, Mumu wagged his tail gently, then yawned widely before closing his eyes again.

Unable to watch the childish plate fight between his siblings any longer, Iason brought out an extra grilled fish he had prepared, and that day’s meal ended peacefully.

It represented just one of many days spent together as a family.

There were so many similar days that this particular one wasn’t even memorable enough to remember exactly when it occurred – just a very ordinary, everyday moment.

“Spring has the power to sprout new life. Now is spring, when my power reaches its fullest.”

Persephone continued her explanation in a gentle voice. Livia could only listen with her ears while lost in watching the scene before her.

She couldn’t take her eyes off it. No, she never wanted to take her eyes off it.

“So, I purified the soul damaged by poison and made it be born as a new life. Of course, in the process, I had to erase the memories of the previous life…”

Persephone paused briefly before adding in an even gentler voice.

“These are the memories your brother tried to hold onto until the very end. I brought them because it seemed he wanted to say goodbye to Kore.”

Livia’s eyes turned red as she listened to Persephone’s words. Thick tears fell from her eyes while watching the memories enveloped in light.

The white light surrounding her wide eyes began to scatter, blurred by her tears. Lete’s memories that he had tried to hold onto until the end, his final traces—no, he himself—truly approached complete disappearance.

“Ah. No… No, Lete.”

She couldn’t bring herself to tell him not to go.

Just as she helplessly muttered that it couldn’t be, Lete in the memory lifted his head and looked directly at where Livia stood.

From within the increasingly hazy form, Lete’s voice whispered as he looked at Livia with a grin.

“Don’t cry and always stay strong, sister.”

At that moment, the light enveloping Livia’s eyes completely evaporated and disappeared.