While Hong Ki was busy helping Shin Hye bring the captives, the prince, and the survivors back to the palace, something else was happening underwater.

The lobsters had mutated and had evolved to become giant indeed. These creatures started to invade the mer people, destroying every establishment that they could find. They were like the Huns who showed no mercy to the people that they invaded.

The mer people swam everywhere just so they could get away and seek refuge in the mountainous regions in the sea. The lobsters began to invade houses and began looting. The rich mer people were the once fearful for their wealth, and they did all they could to protect their estate.

The kingdom started to move out their troops, headed by Bom. The soldiers got their best arms and started attacking the lobsters.

****

Ailee, meanwhile, was happily harvesting red algae and planktons in her garden when she heard the commotion from outside the house. The mer people passed by her house, and she heard all about the lobsters. She got a hunch that something was wrong right at home, so she swam out with her algae and her planktons and swam to her home.

At home, her parents were guarding their money vault, and they were held hostage by the lobsters. The lobsters looked the door of the house, thus making it impossible for the soldiers to rescue trapped merpeople inside. The lady of the house had been crying, and the mer husband held out a coral dagger to protect him and his wife.

From outside, Ailee saw the soldiers trying to open the house.

"Eomma! Appa!" Ailee shouted.

The soldiers tried to shoo her off, so she swam away to another opening in the house.

The lobsters inside tried to wipe out the coral dagger that the merman was holding, but all of a sudden, a strong whirlpool banged the windows open. All of the occupants, lobsters included, turned their attention to the window. And from the window came a strong and melodious voice of a lady, singing to war songs of old.

"It's the witch!" the eomeoni said, avoiding naming her accursed daughter.

Ailee swam in the window and continued to sing while doing something with the algae and planktons in her hands. The lobsters started to attack her, but Ailee flicked the plants from her hand and hit the lobsters like the plants were bullets. Her eomma and appa hid behind one rock cabinet, and thus, Ailee was able to destroy the pincers of the lobsters. The angry lobsters swam angrily at her, but Ailee got more of her harvest and formed a sword out of it. She began exterminating the lobsters while she continued singing the war song. When the lobsters were dead, she swam out of the window to look for the other lobsters.

Eomma and Appa got out of hiding, shocked and ashamed that the daughter that they despised saved their lives.

****

Indeed, the soldiers of the mer army, the four men who were trained by Shin Hye, were not able to defeat the lobsters. Ailee swam to the battlefield and continued singing the war song. All the lobsters swarmed towards her, but with her powerful voice, dark magic, and military training, she was able to exterminate all the lobsters within ten minutes. 

Finally, all the lobsters were dead, so she began collecting their broken limbs. The superiors of the army approached her gingerly before speaking.

"That swirling sword technique, where did you learn that?" Hong Ki's father asked.

"From Shin Hye-gongju," Ailee revealed.

Hong Ki's father knelt in front of her. In fact, all the soldiers, starting from the superiors down to the subordinates, knelt in front of her. That was the scene that her bumonim had seen, and they too, knelt in front of her.

"Gamsahamnida! Jeongmal gamsahamnida!" the elder soldiers cried out.

Bom swam to the vicinity and saw the soldiers kneeling down, so she looked at Ailee in confusion. Hong Ki's abeonim explained to the princess what had happened. With that, Bom knelt down in front of Ailee as well.

"Joesonghamnida!" Bom cried to the witch. "We had been wrong..."

"Mianhamnida!" Ailee's  bumonim cried out. "We had been wrong! we had been wrong!"

Ailee shed her tears as she looked at her parents and all the mer people kneeling in front of her.

"We are ashamed of what we have done to you, Ailee-ya," her eomma said. "May you find it in your heart to forgive us..."

Ailee shed her tears, finally gaining the acceptance that she had been longing for. She swam to her parents and gave them a hug.

"Eomma, Appa, bogo shipseumnida...." she cried.

The parents hugged her hard, and the military roared in joy. They made a proposal if she could join the military as a soldier. Ailee was unable to believe that her dream would come true, so she looked at Bom. Bom showed her cute smile and nodded at her.

"When can... I apply?" Ailee asked.

"Anytime you want," Hong Ki's father said.

Ailee jumped for joy as she was able to have her dream realized: her dream of being reunited with her parents, and the dream of becoming a soldier. She was the freak in the mer army who had the special ability to bring them to victory.

******

Meanwhile, Hong Ki bid Shin Hye goodbye.

"Ah, we will see each other again," Hong Ki said before swimming away.

The fishermen did not see Hong Ki, only the vessel. They helped Shin Hye in taking the prisoners away and helped her in taking the survivors inside the palace.

Indeed, the pirates were thrown in the dungeon, were they were totally forgotten for years without food nor drink.

But the two fishermen who insisted on the mermaid tale began theorizing how Shin Hye was able to get to the island fast without borrowing a boat. None of the fishermen's boats were even missing.

*****

The king and the queen were more than happy that their son had been returned safely. They thanked and apologized to Shin Hye that she even went there to save Yong Hwa.

"Ah, that's all right," she told them.

"You can stay here for as long as you want, my dear," the queen said.

The queen had Hyuna accompany Shin Hye to her room, and the maidservant obeyed, though half-heartedly. Hyuna was a bit jealous that, maybe, this new girl was Jung Shin's new and secret fling even if the latter was associated with the prince.

Min Hyuk and Jung Shin brought Yong Hwa and Jong Hyun to their respective rooms. The two other minstrels took care of Jong Hyun, while Shin Hye took care of her prince.

Hyuna spied and saw how Shin Hye took care of Yong Hwa well.

"Hmmm... I guess I am wrong," Hyuna thought. "I guess Jung Shin is faithful to me...Hmmm...  but why is the princess only lighting up the night light?"

"What are you spying at?" a familiar voice askd her.

When she turned around, it was her untouchable lover. Hyuna smiled sheepishly at him and apologized for snooping. The untouchable minstrel smirked at her and told her to come with him to Jong Hyun's room to help in caring for his hyung.

Inside Yong Hwa's room...

Yong Hwa lay on his stomach while Shin Hye massaged his back with perfumed oil. The prince let out soft moans as her gentle hands hit the right and painful spots of his body.

"Do mer people have massages too?" he asked weakly.

Shin Hye told him that she was the royal masseuse too, but only to her abeonim and her two eonnis. Yong Hwa lit up a smile and sighed in contentment.

"Stop talking, Jagiya," Shin Hye chided him softly. "Get to sleep now."

Yong Hwa slowly moved to sit up on bed.

"Ya!" Shin Hye pouted.

He sat down on bed and looked at her with his sleepy eyes. He grabbed the bottle of perfumed oil from the table and placed some in his palms. He began rubbing his palms together.

"Saranghae," he whispered.

Shin Hye felt his piercing stare, and she could not help but melt at his stare. Yong Hwa held her neck and began rubbing with his oil-soaked hand. Soon, her neck was filled with the scent of the fragrant oil.

"Saranghae," he whispered again.

She shut her eyes as she felt his hand on her neck. He leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on her lips. He kissed her gently first, then started to make the kiss deep. She reciprocated the kiss with a deep one of her own. Soon, the scent of the oil had her going high, and it made her incoherent. Her arms found their way around his neck and brought him closer to her.