Trash Prince and Ice Queen 10th Re - Life-Chapter 173: Audience With The Merman King

After arriving at a magnificent, towering palace illuminated by colorful glowing algae, they were greeted by two female attendants who immediately bowed upon seeing Luca. They carried four transparent helmets that looked like round aquariums, inscribed with runes and featuring a small box attached to the back connected by a hose—as if they had been expecting them.

Luca took them and handed one each to Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin inside the bubble. She then signaled for them to put the helmets on and showed them how. Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin quickly donned the gear and pressed the buttons on the back. Instantly, their bodies were enveloped in a transparent energy that acted like a protective barrier.

Then Luca popped the bubble. Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin landed on the palace veranda right in front of the entrance.

"Welcome to the royal palace of Lenoria," the two attendants greeted them with a bow.

Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin were startled because the language spoken by the two attendants sounded completely foreign to their ears, yet they could understand the meaning perfectly. Luca, seeing their confusion, smiled.

"You can breathe underwater now. Your body shields protect you from being crushed by the water pressure, and you’ll be able to understand the merman language, so don’t be surprised. Everything is controlled by the magic device attached to your helmets," Luca said, pointing to the device on the back of Ard’s helmet.

"Oh... so that’s how it works. Wow... I’m speaking normally, but the words coming out are different. Fascinating," Ard muttered, surprised.

"Of course. Right now, you’re speaking the merman tongue. You saw the mermen on the surface, right? They wear the same helmets to communicate with the demons," Luca explained.

"Incredible. Merman civilization seems more advanced than ours," Ainsley muttered.

"True. I’m truly grateful to see all this and experience something like this," Irwin added.

"I’m glad I became your fiancée, Ard. This is wonderful," Claudia said, clinging to Ard’s arm.

"Yeah, yeah... so, what are we doing here? Meeting the king?" Ard asked Luca.

"Yes. Come on in; King Triton is already waiting inside," Luca answered.

They swam inside, and the two female attendants bowed as they passed by. Luca led Ard and the others straight toward the king’s study. While swimming there, Ard could see that the palace atmosphere wasn’t much different from his own kingdom; many attendants were working, guards clad in armor and carrying spears stood watch, and several palace staff members looked busy scurrying back and forth.

Then they reached a large door made of seashell after passing through the palace corridors. Luca casually kicked the door wide open, making Ard shake his head at how she acted so freely, treating the palace like her own home. Inside, they saw a middle-aged man who looked to be in his 40s by human standards. He had the lower body of a fish with bright blue scales, wore a crown, had eyes as blue as the ocean, and a golden trident leaned against his desk. He was sitting behind his workspace, looking over documents made of a type of swaying seaweed.

The king looked up to see Luca entering and immediately set his papers down. He stood up, walked out from behind the desk, and bowed before Luca.

"Welcome back, Goddess," the king said.

"King Triton, I brought them," Luca said casually, pointing toward Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin, who were kneeling on one knee out of politeness and bowing their heads.

"Greetings, King Triton," Ard and the others said together.

"Please... come, stand up, stand up," Triton said to Ard and the others.

Once they were back on their feet, Triton invited them to sit on the sofa so they could chat more comfortably and less formally. After Ard and the others introduced themselves to the king, Triton looked toward Ard.

"Pardon me, but may I see Exgrandal? The sword that became a legend in my kingdom?" Triton asked.

Without any hesitation, Ard pulled Exgrandal out of his dimensional storage and placed it on the table. Triton immediately stared at it with a look of awe and slight disbelief, examining the blade closely before leaning back in his chair to face Ard.

"Very well. I am now certain that you are Ashton, the hero of the human race who sealed away the demon god Malekh, who once oppressed our people," Triton said, bowing his head to show his respect to Ard.

"Hmm? Really? But I don’t feel like I ever visited this kingdom before. How could I become a legend here?" Ard asked, confused.

Triton immediately explained that there had been a legendary tale in the Lenoria Kingdom since ancient times. The Lenoria Kingdom was founded 3000 years ago by mermen who were oppressed and enslaved by the demon god Malekh. When Ashton and Esmeralda sealed Malekh away at the gates of hell, they unknowingly liberated the mermen from the demon god’s tyranny, leading to the founding of the Lenoria Kingdom, hidden from the world beneath the sea.

The first king of Lenoria, who founded the realm, heard the tale of Ashton and Esmeralda from a vampire who visited the Lenoria Kingdom after the destruction of the Chronius Kingdom on the surface. Following the execution of the two heroes in the Chronius Kingdom, that vampire had come searching for Ashton’s remains among the ruins that had sunk into the sea and accidentally discovered the merman kingdom.

Later on, they also heard that a mysterious demon lord had appeared wielding the very same sword; he had secured the mermen from the reach of anyone on the western continent and driven the humans away. Hearing Triton’s story, Ard smiled.

"So the one who visited this kingdom was Velvet, huh? It seems at that time she didn’t know yet that I had become Azroth, and unintentionally, my actions ended up securing the merman kingdom under the sea... I remember now, she only found out I was Azroth a thousand years ago," Ard muttered, unconsciously speaking the memories surfacing in his mind with a look of sadness on his face.

"Don’t forget, you sank that kingdom and nearly killed every merman in this realm," Luca pointed out.

"Oh, that’s right... sorry," Ard replied, turning to look at Triton and bowing his head.

"Hahaha... it’s quite alright. Goddess Lucathan has already explained everything to us. Besides, we also know that the demon lord who protected us on the western continent was actually you. So, if you are asking for our help now, we would be more than happy to assist. But could you tell us what is currently happening on the surface?" Triton asked Ard.

Without wasting any more time, Ard—with the help of Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin—explained everything currently happening on the surface and the war sweeping across the lands. They also revealed that this war was actually the work of a goddess named Ophelia, who was one half of Malekh’s being, intending to merge with her other half and return to her true form as the goddess Ordione.

Furthermore, Ard shared that currently, Esmeralda—now known as Eva—was in Le Rein Infernal to recruit the kingdoms there to join their cause. As Triton listened to Ard’s story, his expression grew darker and darker; he realized the world was in grave danger, and if Ordione were to rise again, the consequences for the world would be unimaginable.

After Ard and the others finished informing Triton about the state of the world, he immediately fell silent, appearing to be in deep thought. The room went quiet, with no one speaking except for the sound of Luca casually munching on a snack shaped like dried anchovies. King Triton then turned toward Ard.

"Very well. I understand and I believe you. I will aid your struggle. I will send 5,000 merman troops to secure the strait between the northern and central continents to ensure no reinforcements can cross to the north. Furthermore, I will dispatch another 5,000 troops to assist in the battles on land," Triton declared.

"I apologize for dragging your kingdom into this, Your Majesty Triton," Ard said, bowing his head.

"Raise your head, Prince Ard. If this world is in danger, then we mermen who live within it are naturally in danger as well. We fight together for the common good. We are grateful to take part in a war that determines the fate of the world, so do not worry about involving us," Triton said.

Suddenly, "blam," the door swung open. Everyone immediately turned toward the sound. A beautiful mermaid with long, wavy red hair, wearing combat armor and carrying a silver trident, stepped inside. She glanced at Ard and the others sitting frozen on the sofa, then spotted Luca and immediately offered a salute. After that, she looked at Triton.

"Father... who are they? Humans?" the mermaid asked.

"Ah, right... Prince Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, Irwin, let me introduce my daughter, Tatiana. She is the commander of this kingdom’s forces... Tatiana, this is Prince Arden from Fredonia and his companions," Triton said, introducing his daughter and then presenting the others to her.

But Tatiana instead leveled her trident at Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin, making them flinch in surprise.

"Why are you meeting with humans, Father... what do they want here? Our kingdom does not welcome humans!" Tatiana shouted, her face twisted in fury.

"Hey... lower your weapon. I will explain everything to you, and don’t make me angry," Triton shouted as he stood up.

The atmosphere in the room turned tense. Tatiana continued to aim her weapon, staring at Triton with a look that branded her father a traitor, while Triton appeared ready to silence his own daughter. Meanwhile, Ard, Claudia, Ainsley, and Irwin sat frozen, unable to say a word, wondering if Tatiana truly hated humans. As for Luca, she seemed relaxed, yet she watched Tatiana with a sharp, piercing gaze.