really needs some kind of external trigger to wake her, much to your annoyance. You supposed that if the Prince slapped her and she woke up, she would have a pretty good face to put with the voice and the story would be over. However, if you went over, the merman might get spooked and never return to the surface.

There is only one thing for it.

"Woof!"

The merman stops hitting her in the face and sits upright, at alert. You die inside behind the rock, taking in another deep breath as your shame rises to new levels.

"Woof!"

The Princess begins to stir, much to your relief and shame. Noticing this, the merman dives back into the water and submerges himself before she can see him. The Princess sits upright, looking out toward the water in confusion. Suddenly she begins to cough, hacking up water from deep within her lungs.

Oh bother.

Without much choice you rush over, hitting her on the back to help her get rid of the fluid in her lungs. She collapses on you with a cough, blinking up at you tiredly.

"Thank... you..."

"You're gonna be fine." You go to assure her. "Where do you live?"

"The... castle..."

"...and where is that?'

She coughs again and you steady her. You take her right arm and wrap it around your shoulders and move into a crouch. "Here, try and stand."

Slowly, you help her get to her feet. She's too wobbly to stand on her own, so you end up acting as her personal human crutch as you guide her off the beach.

"Where's the castle?" You ask again.

Once she's choked out a response, you haul her back to the village. You need to get her there quickly, or else the story, your heist, and the future of your world may all die with her.

"Princess!" A man calls out when he sees you approaching with her slung over your shoulders. "We thought you were dead!"

"She needs a doctor!" You call out.

Absolute panic. Guards rush over, hoisting her into their arms and taking her away. It all happens too fast to react- she is in your arms one moment and then gone the next. There's yelling, running, pushing... The guards rush her inside the castle and close the gates, shutting you outside.

You stand there blankly. You can't help but feel a bit put off. You know it's selfish and you know there are bigger problems right now, but would a thank you for finding their princess have killed them?

By now the sun is setting. Your shadow is growing longer, marking the night's fast approach. You doubt you're going to be let into the castle, so you head back to the town square. Hopefully Grim has been more productive than you had.

"Anything?" You ask.

"Nope." Grim shakes his head moodily and crosses his arms. "The people here sure don't like to share."

"I didn't get any information either." You sigh and take a seat on the edge of the fountain, putting your face in your hands. "I ran into the Little Merman though, and the princess."

"They're different too?" Grim crosses his arms thoughtfully.

"Yep." You yawn. "It wasn't very useful as far as meetings go, though."

"Excuse me?" A voice calls out. Grim squeaks beside you, only making you more suspicious of the two strangers approaching you.

"Us?" You ask.

"Who else could it be?" One of the two men askes grumpily. You glance around and notice that you're the only ones left in the square. The men stop, their stature alone towering over you.

"I'm Jade, and this is my brother Floyd." The first man says politely.

"I see the resemblance."

"Yeah, but I'm the better looking twin, right?" Floyd asks with a grin, his scowl disappearing into a smirk. He gives you a wink.

"Now Floyd, please leave it be."

"Can I help you?" You ask, not missing the way Grim fidgets beside you. You shoot him a look. What did you do?

Before he can respond, Jade laces his fingers and gives you a smile that shows off his teeth. Your stomach sinks- they are much sharper than any human's. "I'm terribly sorry for the interruption, but your pet stole food from our establishment. Would you mind coming with us to establish some form of payment?"