Episode 124

“Huh…?”

I was astonished.

“Huh?!”

Neri was delighted, though.

Though her frame was still naturally petite, the Neri before me no longer looked like a child.
Her new appearance left both of us speechless for a moment.
It was as if the little sister from next door had suddenly transformed into a full-fledged woman, standing before me with a radiance that was both mesmerizing and dangerous.

“What is going on…?”

Even as the top student in the Forest of Heroes, having endured all sorts of gods’ incidents and heroes’ 24-hour pursuits, I knew little about the nymphs’ nature.
I had always assumed that, unlike me, Neri aged slowly and had simply yet to mature.
I never expected her to suddenly undergo such rapid growth right before my eyes.

“Wow! Dia! Look at me! I finally grew up!”

“Oh, uh, yeah…”

The most striking feature was her flawless, milky white skin.
Her now rosy-white shoulders and delicate arms looked soft and smooth to the touch.
Her long hair, which had grown so quickly it now resembled a flowing gown, gently swayed and partially concealed her figure.
And yet, even that couldn’t fully obscure the subtle two fruits that had developed.
Though smaller than those of the women and goddesses I had been with before, they held an understated allure, peeking out from behind her damp hair with an almost hypnotic presence.
Her long, flawless legs were so pristine that, even without touching them, I could imagine how soft and silky they must feel.
It was as if a gentle white wave had taken the form of a woman and smiled at me.

“Ahahaha! Everything’s taller now! The sink is lower, my legs are longer, and I can touch the ceiling with my hands!”

She stretched her legs and wiggled her longer fingers and toes in wonder, like a child fascinated by a new toy.
But the innocent gestures paired with her newly mature form no longer felt simply cute—they felt precarious.
It was a delicate kind of danger, as though her innocence might shatter at any moment.
Yet, beneath that apprehension, I found myself quietly anticipating what lay beyond her now-fragile purity.

As shocked as I was by her sudden change, I couldn’t say anything more, quietly biting my lips.

“Dianes?”

“….Yes?”

Even her voice had changed 180 degrees, and the whining child from before was gone, replaced by the clear, sweet voice of a bright woman tickling my ears.
My turmoil only deepened further.

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh, well, you see…”

The rapid development was almost like a roller coaster, leaving me bewildered, forgetting my age and composure.
The naive princess I used to serve vanished, replaced by a beauty capable of captivating entire nations in an instant.
Perhaps noticing my strange look, Neri’s eyes, which were shining with surprise and joy, suddenly changed.
Those eyes were like those of a hunter who found its prey—a gaze I was well familiar with.

“Hoo, hoo, hoo…”

“Neri?”

“I’m not Neri anymore.”

What is she saying now?
It wasn’t the first time Neri had spoken in a way I couldn’t understand.
Seeing her confidently proclaim it with her chest out, I quietly turned my head.

“What? Why are you looking away?”

“No, it’s just…”

Just a minute ago, she was just a cute little girl, and now she had suddenly grown up and was standing there exposed.
For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to look.

“Ahem! Anyway, I’m not Neri anymore. Little Neri is gone! I am Nesneria, daughter of Oceanus and sister to Amphitrite, the Queen of the Sea.”

Neri—or rather, Nesneria—lifted her chin proudly, still partially draped in her hair, as she formally introduced herself.
Every time she touched her chest with her beautiful hands, her hair swayed, revealing glimpses of her fair skin, and for some reason, I couldn’t look directly, so I kept my head turned.
Still captivated by the beautiful goddess before me, the fact that this goddess was Neri conflicted in my mind, leaving me in a state of confusion like some naive boy.

“…Do you understand?”

“I understand, I understand. But first, put on some clothes…”

“Why clothes…?”

Damn.
This princess—she had already figured it all out.
That was always how things were between Neri and me.
She would rush ahead excitedly, and I would be left scrambling to catch up, only for her to gleefully grab my hand and pull me along once again.
And even now, in this moment, Neri—or rather, Nesneria—was certain I was still caught in her grasp.

“Hey there, Sword Hero. Don’t you get it? Now, I’m not the young Neri anymore. That’s what I’m saying.”

As expected of a princess.
The moment she realized she held the upper hand, she began to savor my flustered state, leaning in and whispering softly.

“This is my palace, my domain. A deep sea territory allowed only for me and my partner. Here, it’s just you and me…”

-Splash, splash…

One word, one step.
The light sound of her feet on the water approached me, slow and deliberate.
Before I knew it, Neri, or rather Nesneria, was standing right in front of me, looking down at me as I soaked in the bathtub.
The eyes I always thought were bright and pure now reflected me in a deep, sticky navy blue.
Her silver hair, swept aside by her white hand like the curtain of a stage, unveiled the beautiful female form she had been hiding beneath.
A slightly curvaceous, alluring form.
The depths of fruit revealed under the white light seemed as captivating and sweet as the forbidden fruit.
Something one shouldn’t touch, yet couldn’t resist—the forbidden fruit itself.
And below that white fruit, behold the sanctuary that no hand had dared to violate.
Comparing her to a sculpture or doll was truly an insult.
Yes, like the white waves she was born from, her small chest gently waved with rough breaths, and her slender, pleasingly white waist would have been immediately embraced if my self-control was lacking even a bit.

“How is it? Am I beautiful?”

“…Yes.”

Was it because she had cast off the burden of prophecy in her mind?
Or was it because she had merely been enduring until now?
Nesneria, shedding her mask of innocence and starting to reveal her true colors, was truly dangerous and beautiful.

Have you ever stared at a relentless whirlpool?
The kind that thrashes violently, yet beneath its tumultuous surface lies a deep, seductive abyss?
If you weren’t careful, you’d find yourself irresistibly drawn to throw yourself in, succumbing to its treacherous allure.

The temptation of the Nereid nymph was like that whirlpool.
Dangerous yet mesmerizing.
It would consume the offering it sought, then settle down as if nothing had happened, breathing peacefully once again.

And I found myself willing to become that offering.

New. Exciting. Delightful.

Nesneria was overjoyed with her slender figure, incomparable to before.
At the long-awaited moment, when she had wished for it so much, Pontos blessed her by transforming her body perfectly.
And this confidence was not hers alone.

‘Hehehe…’

Even the stone-like Dianes was at a loss for words, unable to handle her transformation.
Though he always had a soft spot for her, his prowess in matters of romance was undeniable.
Even the red-haired Atalanta had fallen for him after their initial clash, where she had challenged him like a mad warhound. By the time Nesneria arrived, Atalanta had already succumbed to his charm and made no effort to hide it.

‘She even mocked me as a mere child!’

Though Dianes was present, she didn’t openly mock, but each time they were together, the slight smirk that crept up was enough to irritate Nesneria.
Still, the redhead’s underestimation of her childish appearance had allowed her to monopolize Dianes’s nights, so there wasn’t much to complain about.
Even now, all the burdens of being a child had disappeared, and the place where she would spend the night with Dianes was a cradle prepared solely for her.

Now, the only thing that could stop her was the stammering hero in front of her.

‘Still, he is so big.’

No matter how much she had grown, Dianes was still larger than her.
But the way he avoided her gaze, his flushed face betraying his unease, showed that the dynamic between them was beginning to shift.

‘Let’s see… is this how it’s done?’

Nereid nymphs imbue their voices with power.
When she spoke in a low, melodic whisper, her words carried the authority of guidance, like the siren song that lured lost sailors in the vast ocean.

“How is it? Am I beautiful?”

Standing in that whisper, his black eyes slowly stared at her—filled with pure awe and deep-seated desire. Nesneria felt an overwhelming emotion flooding her heart.

Perhaps it was love.
Not the fresh, innocent love of a child, but the sticky and sweet eroticism led by Aphrodite and Eros.

“…Yes.”

When Dianes, who couldn’t find words to answer her question, finally reached out and embraced her.
She rejoiced that the long wait was finally over.