The Extra Prince Sets Out To Conquer The World

Everyone’s eyes sparkled with interest when I said I was investigating the mermaid legend.

“A mermaid legend?”

“What kind of legend is passed down?”

If it were me, I would have just glossed over it without much interest, legend or not.

Seeing their reactions made me realize how young my companions were.

Taking a closer look, they were all teenagers.

Before entering this body, I might have thought they looked like a group of runaway teens.

Of course, by this world’s standards, not only myself but also Gilbert and Jade were adults, so it wasn’t a big problem.

I sat on the inn’s bed and began telling the story.

“As far as legends go, it’s a rather common story.”

Long ago – I’m not sure exactly how long ago, but anyway, a long time ago – there was a young fisherman.

That fisherman was young but skilled at sailing, recognized by all.

The fisherman had one other outstanding talent – his singing ability.

With a singing voice superior to any decent minstrel, he captured the hearts of many young women.

But no matter how well he sang, he was still a fisherman. That day too, as usual, he launched his fishing boat and set out to the distant sea with his colleagues.

The seasoned fishermen rowed, following a school of fish, and soon discovered a large group, casting their nets.

As they were pulling in the nets to make a big catch, a sudden fierce storm began raging, as if the sea’s fickle weather had never been calm.

The fishermen dropped their nets and clung to the boat to survive.

Then, one of the young fisherman’s colleagues lost his grip on the railing on the rocking deck.

The young fisherman tied a rope to a pillar and leaped to save his colleague from falling into the sea.

His colleague grabbed the rope and was saved, but the young fisherman ended up falling into the water.

Swept away by the continuing rough waves, the young fisherman quickly drifted far from the boat. His colleagues cried out, anguished at seeing him fall overboard.

As the young fisherman sank deeper, losing consciousness, he heard singing in his ears.

When he came to his senses, he found he had drifted to an island in the Whirlpool Archipelago.

Wandering the small island in despair for several days, the young fisherman began experiencing a strange phenomenon.

Whenever he heard singing from somewhere, he would find fish that someone had caught.

Seeing this, the young fisherman believed it was a mermaid who saved him and provided him with food.

So he devised a scheme to meet the mermaid he owed his life to.

The young fisherman ended up spending several days with the mermaid and they made love.

But their happiness was short-lived. The young fisherman spotted a fishing boat operating nearby.

The mermaid, knowing he missed his family and friends, encouraged him to go.

The young fisherman left the mermaid’s side after promising to return to her. But that parting ended up being their last.

Because to ensure the young fisherman’s happiness, the mermaid created numerous whirlpools around the island so he could never find his way back to her.

“That is the origin of the Whirlpool Archipelago and the mermaid legend passed down in this city.”

After hearing the not-too-long story, Silua looked sad.

“Deciding to part for the sake of your loved one is so tragic.”

In contrast, Jade pondered for a bit before presenting a counterargument.

“Mermaid blood and scales are famously valuable magic ingredients. Did the mermaid in the story really create the whirlpools for her lover’s sake?”

It was an analysis completely devoid of childlike innocence.

“Could the reason Yuan is searching for the mermaid be…?”

I made a motion of poking Jade’s eyes at his gaze that seemed to view me as a criminal.

“How impertinent to look at your benefactor that way! You think I’m crazed about magic like you?”

“Ahem, well I’m not exactly crazed either…”

Jade averted his eyes, perhaps feeling guilty.

“As if! And I don’t intend to hunt the mermaid. I just…”

I pondered what to say for a moment then chuckled.

“I just heard mermaids are such good singers that I wanted to hear it for myself.”

Of course, I did have thoughts of naturally collecting any shed scales or getting a small blood donation.

That is, if the mermaid was in her right mind.

If she had already gone mad, I’d have to kill her before any lives were lost.

*****

Since everyone was interested in the mermaid legend despite me giving them free time, rather than moving as one big group, we decided to split into two teams to gather information.

“Precia and I will be team 1. Gilbert, Jade, and Silua will be team 2. Let’s divide up like this.”

The reason for this division was simple.

“Gilbert, be careful that those two don’t cause any trouble.”

Among my companions who somewhat lacked common sense, besides myself, Gilbert was the only sensible one.

As I patted Gilbert’s shoulder and cautioned him, he seemed to lack confidence.

I gave warnings to Jade and Silua for Gilbert’s sake as well.

“Listen well to Gilbert. Don’t go off on your own if you see something interesting. I’ll give you money, so don’t sell any magic tools for cheap, saying you’re out of cash. And don’t stick your nose in even if you see someone who looks like they need help. In summary, know that you’ll be scolded if you cause trouble.”

At my words, Jade and Silua said with a smile:

“Do you think I’m some little kid?”

“That’s right! I’m not a child either!”

I could believe it about Jade, but Silua really did seem like a child.

Moreover, Jade was the type to easily get embroiled in incidents and accidents befitting a protagonist, so I was worried.

I handed a heavy purse of coins and Navi for communicatin to Gilbert.

“There’s no rush to gather information, so use this if you need money. And make sure to contact me if anything happens.”

“Yes, understood.”

Although merchant ships stop here, it’s fundamentally a fishing village, so they shouldn’t lack for money.

“Ahahaha, Yuan, you worry too much. Come on, let’s go! Gilbert, Silua!”

Brushing aside my concerns, Jade naturally took Gilbert and Silua towards the marketplace.

I grew uneasy, wondering if leaving it to Gilbert was a good idea.

Lightly sighing, I spoke to Precia.

“It’s been a while since just the two of us went around like this. Let’s enjoy ourselves on our own little date.”

“A d-date?!”

Precia blushed at my joke. She was so straitlaced that she couldn’t just brush it off as a joke.

“Well, sorry if it made you uncomfortable.”

“No, not at all! I wasn’t uncomfortable.”

“Really? That’s a relief then.”

The two of us checked out the marketplace together and the fish market set up by the docks.

To the side of the fish market, mages were freezing massive fish, seemingly just caught, that were as big as a person.

Seeing even those precious mages mobilized, they were probably fish bound for the resort city of Ziliville.

The resort city of Ziliville is also by the sea, so there are some fishermen.

But with an overflow of tourists and merchants, the supply can’t meet the demand, so they purchase from nearby cities.

Or they could be goods to be supplied to the royal castle or aristocratic houses inland.

“My teacher said mages are arrogant, but I see them doing this kind of work too.”

Precia observed with intrigue.

It certainly wasn’t a common sight to see mages, needlessly proud, doing such work.

At least not in inland areas.

“Mages are people too. They need money to live.”

The magic reagents needed for research don’t fall from the sky.

Mages use so much money on research, you’d think they bleed cash just by breathing.

If their skills are good or they can sweet-talk well, they can get aristocratic sponsorship, but not all mages are so well-treated.

Still, freezing fish seemed more stable and peaceful than working as a mercenary.

After some browsing and snacking, Precia and I spoke to an old-looking merchant.

“A word, if you will. They say mermaids live in the distant Whirlpool Archipelago. Is that true?”

At my sudden question, the merchant gave a wry chuckle.

“There is such a legend, but mermaids actually existing? You’re a naive young man.”

“Hahaha, I don’t really believe mermaids truly exist either. I’m just collecting stories about mermaid legends.”

“Oh? Why collect such old tales?”

I shrugged nonchalantly at the merchant’s question.

“You see, I’m a peddler. Noble ladies tend to love those kinds of stories. Especially poignant love stories all the more so.”

The elderly merchant nodded at my answer.

“Aha! So you captivate the ears of high-born ladies with fun tales to sell your wares!”

“Exactly! As a bonus, if I match the goods to fit the legends, even if the quality isn’t great, they say it’s wonderful. I thought cheap pearl earrings would go well with a mermaid legend.”

I purchased some dried fish the merchant was selling.

“Oho! This young friend has a knack for business!”

Whether because he made a sale or he was genuinely impressed, the merchant, now in a good mood, shared what he knew about mermaids.

The general details weren’t very different from what I already knew.

“Well, that’s about all I know. If you want more details, ask the fishermen drinking at the tavern up ahead. That legend is an old tale the fishermen spout when drunk.”

“The fishermen, you say?”

“Yes. Old Man Agni in particular would probably know a lot. He’s the oldest among the fishermen.”

Come to think of it, unless it could fly, I’d need to hire a boat and crew to get past that reef-filled area and giant whirlpools.

In that sense, making contact with the fishermen was a good choice.

Of course, I could rely on the Navi and Rami’s power to pilot it myself, but I could only foresee a future where the boat hits a reef and sinks.

To be honest, I was confident in just going straight, but I had no confidence in complex maneuvering.

I thanked the merchant for his tip and headed to the tavern he pointed out – The White Long Bearded Booze Whale.

“It’s cleaner than I expected.”

“It is.”

I nodded in agreement with Precia’s words.

Unlike the exterior which was rusted and dirtied by the sea breeze, the interior was unexpectedly clean. Especially for a place frequented by rough fishermen.

Usually in movies, when an outsider enters a local pub like this, the patrons stop their chatter and warily watch the entrance.

But movies are just movies. The tavern drunks were too busy boisterously engaged in their own conversations.

I approached the bar where the owner was standing guard and took a seat, ordering a drink.

“I’ll have a glass of your most expensive. The pricey stuff must be good, right?”

The owner grinned, yellowed teeth peeking out from his long whiskers, and took out a glass.

“Now that’s an order after my own heart. ‘Course the expensive stuff is good. Those useless bastards only ever look for the cheap or strong stuff.”

A fisherman nearby cackled at the owner’s words.

“Cheap or pricey, long as the booze gets ya drunk, what more d’ya need? Ain’t that right, lads!”

The fisherman’s shout drew cries of agreement from the tavern patrons as they playfully jeered at the owner.

The owner nonchalantly raised a hand at their taunts, middle finger extended for all to see.

“Shut it, you worthless bastards! Hurry up and drink! And pay up! Now scram! Hey you! If you puke in the corner again, I’ll end you myself!”

“Ooh, a trashy crook! Shut up and pour the drinks!”

The owner verbally sparred with the customers while his hands deftly mixed a cocktail.

“This cocktail takes after the emerald sea at sunset. The sunset at Ziliville, that is.”

The faintly red cocktail was quite sweet with a fairly high alcohol content.

It wasn’t the sweetness of fruit. It was the taste of refined sugar syrup.

Sugar could be obtained at the market, but it was a pricey luxury good.

“Wow! This sweetness justifies the high price!”

I deliberately raised my voice to draw the attention of the fishermen in the tavern. Then I took out a silver coin from my pocket and said:

“Something this tasty shouldn’t be enjoyed alone. But it’s so expensive, so just one person! I’ll treat whoever tells me the most interesting story to a glass! By the way, I’m very interested in this city’s mermaid legend!”

At my offer, the fishermen showed interest and vied with each other to tell their tales first.

With mediation from the foul-mouthed owner, the contenders were lined up and the fishermen shared stories about the mermaid legend.

As I was listening to their stories for a while, an old man entered, opening the tavern door.

“If it’s the mermaid legend, I know it better than anyone else in this city.”

The fishermen sighed in resignation at the old man’s appearance.

“Get ready to treat this old codger to a drink.”

The elderly fisherman grinned confidently.