I Became the Villainess, But My Beast Husbands Can Hear My Mind?!

Chapter 315: The Cruel Kindness of Goodbye (2)

"Mera... don’t do this," Azul pleaded, struggling to stay awake.

He grabbed Mera’s arm tightly, as if he could stop everything from happening if he just held on hard enough, but slowly, his fingers began to loosen.

"Azul, don’t make this harder than it already is," Mera said softly. "You don’t have to fight it. This is the only way to keep you safe."

His voice trembled slightly. "After this, you won’t remember anything. One of the side effects is that you won’t even remember your true form. You’ll probably think you’re just an ordinary fish."

"But it’s alright, Azul." Mera forced a gentle smile. "It’s only temporary."

The world around Azul slowly began to blur. The sky, the sea, the beach, everything seemed to melt together and no matter how hard he tried, he could no longer keep his eyes open.

His grip on Mera’s arm had completely slipped away, and just before his eyes finally closed, he saw Mera move his lips and silently say, "Take care, brother."

Mera smiled at him.

It was a gentle smile, just like the ones he had shown him since they were children. But this time, there was something else hidden behind it. There were regret, hope, fear, and other emotions Mera had been trying so hard to hide.

After all, just like Azul, he was also afraid to face an unknown future, afraid of what would happen to their family, and afraid that everything they loved would disappear.

But as the older brother, he couldn’t allow himself to stop. He had to protect Azul, even if it meant making a choice that would break both their hearts and even if it meant letting his little brother hate him one day.

As long as Azul survived, Mera was willing to bear it.

Before leaving, he placed several bags filled with treasures from the sea beside Azul. There were shells, pearls, and other precious things from their homeland.

He wanted Azul to have something familiar when he woke up. Something that would remind him that, no matter where he went, he would always belong to the ocean and no matter how many memories he lost, he would always be Mera’s beloved little brother.

Mera left him beneath the shade of a coconut tree before turning back toward the ocean. He never looked back because he knew that if he did, he would choose to stay, and that wouldn’t be good for either of them.

That was why he kept moving forward. Step by step, he returned to the sea until his figure slowly disappeared beneath the waves.

As Mera disappeared beneath the waves, the adult Azul and Roxanna sat side by side on the beach.

The gentle waves rolled onto the shore and brushed against their feet. But it didn’t feel completely real, because everything around them was only a memory from the past.

For a long time, neither of them spoke. The sky was painted with shades of orange and gold as the sun slowly sank toward the horizon.

"It was my fault." Azul was the first to break the silence. He didn’t look at Roxanna. Instead, he kept staring at the sunset reflecting across the ocean in an unreadable expression.

For a moment, Roxanna remained silent, giving him time to process the memories that had just returned to him.

"We can’t save everyone," she finally said softly.

"I know," Azul replied without any emotion in his voice.

"We can try our best," she continued. "But in the end, we’re not the ones who decide who lives and who dies."

The ocean breeze gently stirred their hair.

"I know," Azul said again.

"You keep saying that, but you don’t really believe it," Roxanna said gently.

Azul finally turned to look at her. The moment their eyes met, the anger he had been holding back became impossible to hide.

"Then what am I supposed to say?!" he snapped. His voice came out louder than he intended, filled with frustration and pain.

But Roxanna didn’t flinch. She didn’t scold him and she didn’t tell him to calm down because she knew this wasn’t really anger directed at her.

It was grief, guilt, and years of pain that had never truly disappeared.

Instead of answering, she reached out and wrapped her arms around him. All this time, he had always been the one comforting her whenever she panicked.

Whenever she was afraid, he would stay by her side. Whenever she cried, he would patiently listen. Therefore, this time, it was her turn.

Roxanna tightened her embrace slightly. "You don’t have to say anything," she said softly.

The anger on Azul’s face slowly cracked. For a moment, he looked like he wanted to push her away, like he wanted to argue, and like he wanted to keep carrying all the blame by himself.

But he was far too tired, so in the end, his shoulders trembled.

"What if they’re gone because of me?" he asked in a broken voice. "What if Father, Mother, Mera, Sybill... what if all of them suffered because of a choice I made?"

Roxanna rested her chin lightly on his shoulder. "Then it means you made a mistake."

Azul’s body stiffened. But then Roxanna immediately continued, "But making a mistake doesn’t make you a bad person."

"You helped them because you wanted to save people," Roxanna continued. "You weren’t trying to hurt anyone. You weren’t trying to destroy your kingdom."

Her voice remained calm and gentle. "You saw people who needed help, and you opened your home to them. That’s not something an evil person would do."

Azul lowered his head. "But I was wrong."

"Yes," Roxanna admitted. "But being wrong and being cruel aren’t the same thing."

Just like him, Roxanna had once tried to help people and ended up getting hurt because of it.

For a long time, she blamed herself. She thought she had been foolish for trusting others so easily. She thought everything that happened afterward was the price she had to pay for being too kind.

But as time passed, she realized that it wasn’t her fault and it wasn’t Azul’s fault either.

The people who should be blamed were the ones who chose to betray their trust, not the ones who offered a helping hand.

"Azul was only trying to be kind," Roxanna said softly. The waves rolled onto the shore behind them, their gentle sound filling the quiet evening.

"And your family never blamed you for that."