The Hero Who Became a Monster Girl Will Never Fall to Evil

The endless blue sea stretched out beneath them. The vessel they rode—Ship No. 009—cut through the waves, leaving a deep-blue wake behind it. No land was yet in sight; around them lay only boundless ocean, a white whale trailing behind the ship with its mouth open to swallow small fish, and seabirds circling lazily above the water.

Vieya stood on the deck, wind brushing against her as her emerald-green eyes reflected the seascape ahead. This was their sixth day at sea.

If the original voyage plan held, they would reach the West Coast tomorrow morning.

The Western Sea... this ocean held memories for her as well.

Many years ago, she had come here to subjugate a Demon King—riding the Swan, one of the four great magic arks—seeking the Demon King known as the “God of Ocean and Storm.”

That Demon King had taken the form of a beautiful mermaid, with sky-colored eyes and sea-colored hair. The scales on her tail were a brilliant blue, glimmering like the firmament. Her aura had been gentle and soft, like some auspicious, benevolent spirit—carrying no hint at all of wickedness or madness.

During their first meeting, Vieya had genuinely thought the woman was some monster girl imprisoned by the Demon King as a slave. She was ready to rescue her from the water prison—only for the Holy Sword in her hand to suddenly vibrate.

The Holy Sword always issued a warning when it sensed a Demon King.

The mermaid Demon King’s disguise was far inferior to Flaviel’s; merely taking her hand had triggered the sword’s defensive reaction.

Once her true form was revealed, the battle between them erupted instantly.

They had been in the dead center of the ocean. As the Demon King who presided over the seas, she held absolute advantage—able to summon thousand-meter-high tsunamis with a gesture, or call forth tornadoes linking sea and sky.

Even the Swan struggled before such towering waves.

Vieya had fought with great difficulty. For someone who almost never bothered using Authority, she had been forced to unleash it then.

In the end, although she heavily wounded the Demon King, the Swan was so severely damaged that it had to be retired—the only one among the four great magic arks to ever be decommissioned.

“Sigh... If only we were riding a magic ark now, we could reach the Western Territory in two days. As for sea monsters...” Vieya muttered as she gazed across the water.

This route was normally patrolled by official military forces every half-month or so. Pirates and sea monsters encountered along the way would also be culled regularly.

At least... that was how things used to be.

As for the mermaid Demon King, her traces had completely vanished after that battle. No one knew where she’d gone.

Vieya lingered on the deck a while longer, letting the sea breeze wash over her. Once she confirmed the route looked normal and no unexpected danger lurked nearby, she turned and headed back to the upper cabins.

The upper cabins were a class above business class—usually reserved for important figures.

Jasmine and Aurora sat on opposite ends of the sofa, one smiling brightly, the other puffing out her cheeks.

A massive floor-to-ceiling window stood behind them. A lavish lunch was set on the table before the sofa, sunlight glinting off the polished silver utensils.

A room meant for VIPs naturally came with luxury; from here, one could overlook the vast ocean or bask in sunlight above the waves.

Aurora very much wanted to get closer to the captain’s daughter, but the girl seemed to have seen straight through her intentions. Jasmine kept her distance, giving her no openings at all.

“Little Jasmine, do you want some fruit? I can peel it for you.”

“Thank you, but I don’t want any.”

“Then shall we play a game? Hehe, they have board games here!”

“...I don’t really want to play cards.”

“Uh... how about a story then? I can tell you a story!” Aurora, ever patient, dug through her pocket and pulled out a volume of Andersen’s fairy tales, flipping through it for a suitable selection.

Jasmine remained silent for a moment, then decisively refused: “I’m sorry, Sister Aurora. I just want to rest for a bit.”

“Just want to rest...” Aurora blinked, as if suddenly realizing something. “Ah, of course! It’s your first time on a ship for so long—you must feel unwell! Little Jasmine, wait right here. I’ll go to the medical cabin and get you some anti-seasickness medicine!”

“Actually, I...”

Jasmine opened her mouth, but before she could finish, Aurora’s silhouette had already vanished.

“...I’m not seasick.”

The sea had been calm the entire journey, the ship steady, barely rocking more than thirty degrees at any point. Jasmine, though physically frail, hadn’t shown a single sign of seasickness.

Her desire not to spend time with Aurora came from a very simple reason. Besides her initial wariness toward unfamiliar women, she had discovered Aurora subtly probing and taking notes on her mother’s preferences.

And from time to time, Aurora would blurt out dangerous lines like:

“Wow, her tastes haven’t changed at all after all these years!”

“Great! The strategy guidebook I bought for a fortune back then will finally be useful again!”

If Aurora’s questions weren’t all about her mother, Jasmine would’ve started to wonder whether this green-haired woman was trying to court her instead!

Good heavens—she was only seven! Obviously that wasn’t the case. Which left only one explanation—Sister Aurora was preparing to court her mom!

And with Cat-sis having once mentioned that Aurora and Mom were old acquaintances...

A sense of crisis bloomed in Jasmine’s small heart. Someone wanted to steal her cake! Thankfully, Sister Aislin had insisted that Mom bring her along on this trip!

Otherwise, if only Aurora and Mom were traveling together... just the two of them... wouldn’t that basically be a honeymoon?! And with how much of a hopeless airhead her mom could be—Jasmine didn’t even want to imagine what could happen!

These past few days, she had been having nightmares one after another—dreams in which her mom, with a huge belly, smiled and told her:

“Little Jasmine, you’re about to have a baby sister. Are you happy?”

Then she would jolt awake, sitting up immediately to confirm that Mom was still nearby—and that her stomach was still flat.

Happy? A sister?

How could she possibly be happy?! Her mother’s love belonged only to her—it must not be taken by anyone! Something like a sister shouldn’t exist at all!

Jasmine silently resolved that she must protect her mother, and allow no ill-intentioned man or woman to approach her.

...

On the other side—

Vieya had just returned to the cabin entrance when she collided head-on with Aurora, who came rushing out at full speed.

Smack!

She turned the corner and was immediately knocked backward by a very familiar figure, landing on the floor with a thump. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

“S-Sorry! I didn’t mean to, Captain!” Aurora hurried to pull the white-haired loli up from the floor, apologizing repeatedly. “I’m really sorry! Jasmine is seasick, so I was rushing to get medicine, and I didn’t notice you!”

“Ah... you seriously—!” Vieya pressed a hand to her forehead, baring her teeth slightly. “You’ve been an assassin for so many years, and you’re still this careless!”

“Sorry!” Aurora bowed deeply.

“Forget it, forget it.” Vieya sighed and switched topics. “You just said Jasmine is seasick?”

“Mhm, mhm, mhm!” Aurora nodded vigorously, her deep-green eyes shining with pleading sincerity. “Captain, I don’t really know where the medical cabin is on this ship. Can you come with me?”

“Ah... I’m not entirely sure myself.” Vieya hesitated. “How about I go ask the sailors?”

“That’s a great idea! You’re so smart, Captain!”

After pulling the slime-girl back to her feet, the two began heading toward the sailors’ working area.

Operation Plan, Step One: avoid the eight-million-watt third wheel and secure alone-time with Captain—success!

Aurora exhaled in relief.

But after a few steps, she suddenly blurted out: “By the way, Captain... are you planning to recreate our Hero Squad?!”

“...Why are you suddenly asking that?” Vieya’s pace faltered.

“After the Hero Squad disbanded, everyone went their separate ways.”

Aurora lowered her voice slightly, speaking gently. “Lilian and I aren’t worth mentioning—we both probably know your identity, and we’re doing the best among the group. But the other three... you worked so hard to train them. What happened that year hit them really hard. Aren’t you going to see them?”

“I will.”

Vieya rubbed her own cheek, speaking seriously. “But not now. I have to take things step by step. If I get impatient, I’m afraid ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) I’ll repeat the same mistakes I made back then.”

“Mhm.” Aurora nodded firmly. “I believe in you, Captain.”

“...Don’t place too much hope on me.”

Vieya stopped walking and looked toward the sailors unloading wooden crates by the railing. Her eyes brightened.

“Come on, let’s go ask them where the medical cabin is. While we’re picking up the medicine, we can also ask about the current situation in the Western Territory.”