Livia’s opposition was more fierce than expected.

The problem started when Echidna told Livia about the tail.

Sometimes living without knowing the truth might be better.

Triton truly regretted that Livia had learned the truth. But he couldn’t simply erase her memories either.

‘…Erase her memories?’

It wasn’t a bad idea, but Triton quickly pushed the thought away. It was for the same reason he hadn’t destroyed Lete’s soul before.

The truth has a way of revealing itself unexpectedly.

Wasn’t it the same with the tail? Though he had tried to keep it secret, it was quickly revealed to Livia. It had exposed itself contrary to Triton’s wishes.

So what should he do now…

He needed to either persuade that stubborn woman or find another way. Neither would be easy, but he had to accomplish one of them before time ran out.

After quietly contemplating, Triton called for Phorkys.

“What is it? Do you have a task for me?”

“I think I need to call my brothers.”

“Ah… you mean the Tritones?”

Phorkys couldn’t help but ask.

Of course, when Triton spoke of “brothers,” he naturally meant only the Tritones, but the question slipped out because it was such an unexpected summons.

Usually, meetings between Triton and the Tritones were held at regular intervals. It was dangerous for all the leaders guarding different seas to move at once.

Above all, the sea was less volatile than one might think and had maintained peace for a long time. There simply wasn’t a need for frequent meetings.

“…Well. More heads are better than one, I suppose.”

“Understood. When should I announce it?”

“Right now.”

Though Phorkys’s face showed surprise at Triton’s instruction, he quickly composed himself and went to blow the conch horn.

It would take two days for Phorkys’s conch horn sound to spread throughout the seas…. Even if the meeting were held the very next day, it would still take more than four days.

‘Hecate gave us 7 days…’

They had to find a solution within that time.

“Tender heart? D*mn it, Triton! Is this about having a tender heart right now? It’s not. Would you readily accept it if I said I would blow away half my body to save you?”

Though he had never thought about it before, just imagining it felt like his heart was being cut out.

As she said, if their positions were reversed, Triton would probably react just as violently as Livia. No, perhaps even more violently than her.

Thinking about it that way, he could somewhat understand Livia’s feelings.

So… first, they should try to find another solution by putting hundreds of heads together.

If that didn’t work, he would have to proceed even at the cost of Livia’s anger, but that decision could wait until after the seven days.

***

‘7 days…’

Livia was lost in thought while fiddling with the hairpin she was making for Triton.

It was too little time to prepare anything.

Especially to find a way to escape from here while avoiding Triton’s eyes…

Livia recalled his firm gaze before Hecate.

His face, showing neither hesitation nor restraint, seemed not just calm but almost cold. It was a look that showed he couldn’t understand her fierce opposition at all.

‘He will surely try to persuade me.’

Well, his words weren’t wrong either.

She too might willingly make such a choice if she could save him by cutting off half her body.

But whether she could accept his sacrifice was a different matter. The sacrifice of a mere human couldn’t carry the same weight as the sacrifice of a sea god who protected the entire ocean.

‘…So in the end, I must leave. That’s right.’

Triton had made the extreme choice to cut off his tail because he thought Livia might die from Echidna’s curse.

He wanted to perfectly block all misfortunes that could befall Livia due to the curse placed on their love.

Even with the goddess of spells on his side, his choice probably wouldn’t change.

If all this curse was because of love, if the spell was cast because of this love…

She thought that perhaps ‘separation’ could eliminate or dilute their tragedy.

Of course, if she stopped loving him or his love cooled, that would be a sure way to avoid Echidna’s curse.

But Livia could be certain. That would never happen.

Livia twisted her lips in a self-deprecating smile at that thought that was both bitter and sweet.

Then in the current situation, leaving him seemed like the only way to prevent his sacrifice.

While they were apart, she could try to find another way herself, or perhaps… he might find another solution.

Of course, she might die as he worried. But she thought that if she could die without his interference, that wouldn’t be so bad either.

‘If he knew these thoughts, Triton would surely be furious.’

Livia quietly looked down at the red hair ornament she had carefully carved and polished from coral.

Though red coral would be considered a precious gem outside the sea, here in the ocean it was just one of countless common corals.

What she had prepared as a gift after much consideration was just coral that was abundant in the sea.

Perhaps this was all Livia could ever give to Triton – such ordinary things.

Nothing precious or remarkable…. At most, just sharing her life with him.

Though it pained her, Livia thought again and again about how insignificant she was. If she didn’t, she felt she might change her mind about having to leave him now.

Everything was too sudden. Well, everything had been that way.

Her tragedy had come without warning, and so had falling into the sea.

Was love any different…?

Falling in love with Triton, something that had seemed impossible, hadn’t been predictable either. So separation could be the same.

And now because she loved him, leaving him was the right thing to do.

‘…There’s no time to be weak. I need to think about how to get out of here.’

Ignoring the stabbing pain in her chest at the word separation, she began to think of ways to escape from him.

Every living creature in the sea was his eyes and ears.

She had heard that after her kidnapping, Triton had made the barrier around the castle even more dense. She wasn’t confident she could swim faster than sharks in her human body.

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t think of a way to escape this ocean while avoiding his eyes.

She couldn’t sink into the ground or soar into the sky. Perhaps dying would be the quickest way…

At that moment, Livia’s eyes lit up.

She realized there might be a very easy way.

Perhaps she could escape more simply than expected…

“What are you thinking about so hard?”

“Eek!”

Livia let out a shriek at Triton’s sudden appearance without any warning.

Though startled, she had the presence of mind to quickly hide the hairpin behind her back, but that only made her look more suspicious.

With one hand pressed against her rapidly beating heart, she cautiously backed away while watching Triton approach with wary eyes.

“What are you hiding behind your back?”

Livia just glared at him without answering.

Apart from her loving feelings, she hadn’t yet decided how to act towards him.

She felt conflicted between wanting to be angry like she was in the underground prison and wanting to be held in his arms while demanding to know why he did it and sharing these confusing thoughts.

But she couldn’t easily show weakness to Triton. Because he was the type who would manipulate and control her as he pleased if she gave in even a little.

“Livia.”

Triton tilted his head askew as he stared at her. His sharp gaze urged her to show what she was hiding behind her back.

Actually, there was nothing she couldn’t show him. Wasn’t it a gift she had prepared for him? She had originally planned to make and decorate many more before giving them to him, but after being kidnapped and returning from the coral garden, she hadn’t dared to work on them again.

“No.”

“…What? What do you mean?”

“I don’t want to tell you. You only tell me what you want to tell me, so I’ll only tell you what I want to tell you.”

At her words, Triton let out a scornful laugh before approaching her in one stride. He grabbed her forearm and forcefully pulled her hand forward. His grip was so strong that her captured arm felt like it might break.

“What are you doing, that hurts! I said no…!”

Though she pushed and struck at him with her free hand, it was a futile resistance.

Like a child caught by an adult, she couldn’t put up any real resistance as her hand was pulled forward. Triton frowned as he looked down at her hand.

“…Coral?”

Livia glared at him with reddened eyes, her lips pressed tightly together. She hated his high-handed attitude. How could this be the way someone treats the person they love, acting so inconsiderately and doing whatever they want?

Unable to contain her anger, Livia struck his shoulders and arms with the hand holding the coral.

“I said, I don’t, want to tell you! I said no…! I don’t want to tell you! That I made, something like this, for you…! I hate it so much…!”

Thump, thwack!

Though her hand holding the coral struck Triton randomly, he seemed completely unaware of being hit, only reacting to her words.

His complete disregard, not even seeming to notice he was being hit, made Livia even more frustrated.

“…You made this to give to me?”

“I don’t know! Why should you know about this!”

Livia shouted, throwing away the hairpin she was holding and began hitting him properly with both hands. Though his solid body seemed completely unaffected by such punches, Livia just wanted to vent her anger.

“I really hate the way you do things!”

Triton stood still, quietly accepting her blows. His gaze remained fixed on the hairpin Livia had thrown away.

Though Livia’s hands scratched, hit, and pushed him, he stood there like a rock, completely immobile, fully enduring the outpouring of Livia’s emotions.

“Not listening when I say no! Confining me, ignoring my opinions, acting as if my feelings don’t matter…!”

Livia’s voice gradually died down as she continued hitting him for a while. Whether because her strength was depleting or because her pent-up feelings had somewhat cleared, her sharp tone weakened into something like sobbing.

“…I hate it.”

Livia’s hands dropped down, and her forehead touched Triton’s chest. Only then did Triton raise his hands to tightly embrace her body.

“Why do I love you so much?”

“…”

“Even your hitting hands feel so dear to me, how could I ever give you up?”

“…You’re really the worst.”

Triton showed a faint smile at Livia’s weak mumbling.

After gently stroking her shoulders for a long while as she silently shed tears, he lifted her chin to make her look at him.

Green eyes shimmering with tears met deep blue eyes that held the ocean. Seemingly trapped in Livia’s green eyes, Triton stared at her for a long time before whispering in a calm voice.

“I love you, Livia.”

Livia, who had been trying hard to hold back her tears, burst into tears. The selfish man never missed an opportunity.

As her lips parted in sobbing, Triton’s tongue deeply penetrated into her mouth.