The Little Merman Demands Legs from the Sea Witch - Chapter 40
Once she was alone, Iko began to objectively evaluate her situation. Had she ever gotten any confirmation about how he felt about her? He had never said he liked her or wanted to stay with her. And, of course, he had never called her pretty.
For the first time, Iko began to question why he had asked her to come to the village with him. She had always assumed it was because he wanted to be with her, just as she wanted to be with him. But seeing Kashmir braiding a stranger’s hair made her doubt that assumption.
Kashmir finally returned to Iko after spending quite some time with the woman. He was holding a banana that the woman had been selling.
“Looks like you had a fun time with that woman,” Iko said, glaring at him coldly.
“It was fun. She’s much nicer than you. She even gave me a banana to try,” Kashmir laughed, seemingly oblivious to Iko’s sarcasm.
Her face twitched with frustration as she felt a surge of anger rising from deep within her.
“And she was easy on the eyes, too,” he added, pouring fuel on the fire of Iko’s barely controlled rage.
Iko forced a smile, though her eyes remained icy cold. The contrast between her smile and her cold eyes made for a rather unsettling expression.
“What are you thinking about to make such a wicked face?”
Kashmir frowned as he criticized her. Being called wicked made Iko try to suppress her anger, but it was difficult. Her fury was too intense.
“Are you hungry? Here, at least eat this.”
Kashmir mistook her bad mood for hunger and offering her the banana. She couldn’t tell what time it was exactly, but it must have been around noon.
Looking at the banana in front of her, Iko let out a high, sharp laugh. She was furious. Here she was, consumed by uncontrollable emotions, her fingers trembling, and he was mistaking it for hunger, offering her a banana he’d received from another woman. His simplicity and insensitivity made her seethe with rage.
“Kashmir, why did you want to come here with me?”
Iko asked, staring at him. He peeled the banana she had refused and started eating it, blinking in confusion.
“Because you know this village well,” he replied.
“So you just needed a guide since it’s your first time here,” Iko said, barely containing the storm inside her.
Kashmir cheerfully agreed, oblivious to the turmoil in her heart. Iko mumbled to herself, her face darkening.
He only needed her as a guide.
Realizing this, Iko began to question why she was even standing there. Was she just a fool, waiting for him to return from flirting with another woman so she could continue showing him around the village?
She had been so excited to come here with him. But now, she felt a hollow laugh bubbling up inside her. Loving him, feeling jealous of a nameless woman—it all began to feel deeply unpleasant.
She feared that if she continued to harbor these emotions, she might lose her sanity. At the very least, her daily life was already in shambles. It was already one o’clock. Normally, she would have finished lunch by now, but she hadn’t eaten anything, all because she was waiting for Kashmir to finish flirting with another woman.
And it wasn’t just today. She had been falling asleep in the morning and waking up late in the afternoon.
Her life had been a mess lately. It was clear that staying with him would only make things worse.
She had thought that being able to keep him by her side would make her happy, but now, looking at this pathetic situation, she realized how wrong she had been.
“If you don’t want the banana, how about a sandwich? I saw some being sold over there.”
Kashmir grabbed Iko’s arm to lead her there. But she shook off his hand and took a step back. It was just one step, but emotionally, it felt like the distance from Kokoya Village to her aquarium home.
Perhaps they had been this far apart from the beginning. Blinded by love, she hadn’t noticed. Now that the shock had cleared her mind, she realized it was the perfect time to break free from this curse.
“My part of the deal ends here,” Iko said.
“Deal?”
Kashmir looked at her, puzzled. He had no idea why she was suddenly talking about deals.
“I gave you legs and helped you walk, remember?”
Only then did Kashmir recall the deal they had made, letting out an “Ah.” But he still didn’t understand why she was bringing it up now.
“So, this is where it ends. I’m leaving.”
Iko finished her short goodbye and turning to leave. She knew that if she stayed and explained everything, she would waver, feel hurt, and end up trying to cling to him.
“Where are you going?”
Kashmir grabbed her arm, his eyes wide with surprise.
“Home.”
“Then I’ll go with you.”
“Why? You’ve finished what you came here to do,” Iko shot back.
Kashmir fell silent. She was right—there was no reason for him to stay at her place any longer.
“That’s my home. The house of the sea witch. It’s not a place you can just drop by whenever you’re bored and stay as you please.”
