Baby System: I'm the Beast World's Only Hope!-Chapter 198: Episode : Escape Plan

"Oh, stop wiggling, sister!" Nimue laughed, her grip on Roxy’s arm unyielding. "You are just suffering from pre-mating jitters! It is very common. I bit my first suitor on the nose!"

Vespera and Thalassa, flanking them like prison guards in pearl armor, swung the massive double doors open.

"Behold," Vespera announced, her voice filled with pride. "The Pearl Wing."

They shoved Roxy inside.

Roxy drifted awkwardly into the room, prepared to scream again. But the scream died in her throat.

She stopped panting. Her frying pan bumped against her hip as she floated there, staring. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

It was breathtaking.

The room was carved from the interior of a massive, spiraling conch shell. The walls were a soft, pearlescent white. In the center of the room sat a bed, a genuine, giant clam shell lined with moss so thick and soft it looked like green velvet.

There was a vanity table carved from pink coral, topped with a polished bronze mirror that reflected the shimmering water. A wardrobe made of woven sea-glass stood open, revealing rows of silk skirts, pearl-encrusted sashes, and yes, bras made of scallop shells.

It was every five-year-old girl’s dream come true. It was The Little Mermaid on a billionaire’s budget.

"Okay," Roxy whispered, her anger momentarily derailed by the aesthetics. "This is... significantly better than the damp cave."

"It is the Royal Birthing Suite," Thalassa sighed, running a hand over the velvet moss. "Nerissa had it cleaned for you."

Roxy felt a pang of guilt. They were trying so hard, trying to give her a home in a world that wasn’t built for her.

"Sit," Nimue commanded, guiding Roxy to the clam bed. "We must explain the Aqualis Rite. You are a Surface Princess, so your customs are likely... dry. Ours are wet."

Roxy sat on the moss. It was squishy. "Hit me. What do I have to do? Wave a wand? Break a bottle?"

"First," Vespera counted on her clawed fingers. "The Binding of Fins. You and the King will be tied together with Kelp to symbolize that you swim the same current."

"Okay," Roxy nodded. Trying to act as she understood.

"Second," Thalassa added. "The Exchange of Breath. You will take in oxygen through his gills. It symbolizes trust."

"Gross, but okay."

Wait, do I even have gills again?

"And finally," Nimue beamed, clapping her hands. "The Planting of the Seed."

Roxy froze. That should not be what I am thinking about, right?

"The... what?"

" The Consummation," Vespera clarified bluntly. "The King must claim you before the witness of the Moon. The union must be physical. The scent of his claim must be on you."

Roxy swallowed hard. "Right. And... does this have to happen tonight? Like, immediately? Can’t we just... hold hands and promise really hard?"

How do they even tell the morning and the night?!

"It must be tonight," Nimue said seriously. "Queen Nerissa will come at dawn. She will inspect the bedding. She will smell the water. If the scent of the King is not on you, she will know the line is not secure. And if the line is not secure..."

Nimue made a slashing motion across her throat.

"She eats the bride," Roxy finished, her voice hollow.

Of course, it is either eat or be eaten!

"She eats the bride," Nimue confirmed cheerfully. "But don’t worry! Caspian is very... enthusiastic. It will be quick!"

Roxy stared at her pink tail. She stared at the iridescent scales that covered her legs, her hips, her... everything.

The horror hit her like a torpedo.

How?

She had a tail. He had a tail. Where did the parts go? How did the mechanics work? She had biology credits from university, but Mermaid Anatomy 101 was not in the curriculum.

[System Analysis: Mer-Form Anatomy.]

[Status: Fully Functional.]

[Reproductive organs are internal, concealed beneath the pelvic scales (Cloacal Vent). They emerge during arousal. Compatibility with Subject Caspian: 100%.]

I don’t want to have sex.

"Oh god," Roxy whispered, covering her face with her hands.

[Aphrodite (Goddess of Love): Oh, calm down, darling! It’s just a little fishy fun! Honestly, this is fantastic. You weigh nothing underwater!]

I am not having sex with a fish! Roxy screamed internally. I have five husbands! Five! I am maxed out on marital duties!

[Aphrodite (Goddess of Love): Prude, just so you know, the ’Doggy’ position is structurally impossible due to the tail vertebra, but the ’Coiled Python’ is highly rated among the Atlanteans. And Caspian has excellent stamina. You might enjoy it.]

Are you not a Greek goddess? How the fuck do you know about doggy?

[Athena (Goddess of Strategy): Our physical body may be dead, but we live inside our children.]

Oh...

I hate you, Roxy thought violently.

She looked up at Nimue, who was holding up a shell bra with a critical eye.

"So," Roxy said, her voice trembling slightly. "If I don’t do it, I die. If I do it, I commit adultery with a tuna."

"He is a merman," Vespera corrected. "Much more aggressive."

Roxy stood up. She floated off the bed. Her pink tail swished agitatedly, creating little whirlpools in the room.

She couldn’t do it.

She couldn’t marry him. She couldn’t sleep with him. Not just because of the weirdness, but because it felt... final.

If she bonded with him here, under the laws of the deep, she felt like she would lose the part of her that belonged to the surface. She would lose her mates up there. She would lose the twins.

Her mating marks were still on her, but now that she had the tail, the black inks of it had turned white.

She had to run.

She looked at the balcony. It was open. The current outside was strong, whipping the neon algae in the tubes.

She had a tail now. She was fast. She had dragged a dead-weight King for miles. If she could just slip out, find an updraft...

[System Warning: Escape Probability: 12%.]

[The Spires are guarded by the Royal Legion. The Deep Ocean is populated by SS-Tier scavengers. You are a Level 1 Mermaid.]

I don’t care, Roxy thought stubbornly, her jaw setting. I am the Mother of Dragons. I gave birth to children. I am not getting married at gunpoint by an octopus.

She turned to the girls. She needed them gone. She needed a window of opportunity.

"Okay," Roxy said, forcing a bright, manic smile. "You’re right. I’m just nervous. I need to prepare. I need to be the perfect bride."

"Yes!" Nimue cheered. "We will dress you!"

"But first," Roxy interrupted, placing a hand on her stomach. "The... the baby."

The three mermaids froze, their eyes bulging out, ’There was a baby in there?!’ Their eyes went to her midsection.

"The little one is... craving," Roxy lied, channeling her inner Oscar-winning actress. "It needs strength. I feel... faint."

"Food!" Nimue gasped. "We will fetch the banquet leftovers! The raw heart!"

"No!" Roxy gagged. "No heart. The baby wants... specific things. Cravings. You know how it is."

She tapped her chin, thinking fast.

"I need... Golden Algae from the Thermal Ridge," Roxy invented. "And... the blue-shelled crabs from the Northern Shelf. And... oh, what was it? Spicy Kelp? Yes. The really spicy kind that grows near the vents."

Vespera frowned. "Those are... far. The Northern Shelf is three miles up-current."

"But the baby wants it," Roxy whispered, widening her eyes and letting a single, perfect tear bubble out. "If I don’t eat it, I might faint during the ceremony. And Nerissa would be so angry..."

The mention of Nerissa was the magic word.

"We go!" Nimue decided instantly. She grabbed Vespera and Thalassa. "We will hunt the Blue Crabs! We will harvest the Gold Algae! We will be back in one hour!"

She turned to Roxy.

"Do not leave the room! The currents are strong tonight!"

"I won’t move a muscle," Roxy promised, crossing her fingers behind her back.

The three mermaids shot out of the room like torpedoes, desperate to fulfill the future heir’s cravings. The heavy pearl doors slammed shut.

Roxy was alone.

She waited three seconds.

Then, she grabbed her frying pan, tied her sash tight, and swam straight for the balcony.

"Sorry, Caspian," she whispered to the empty room. "But I have to leave."