I Thought It Was a Fairy Tale but the Genre Is Strange

The Curse That Will Destroy the World

The fake, which had been expressing Rapunzel’s suppressed emotions, was no longer in Rapunzel’s form, but had returned to ordinary brown hair. I breathed heavily, looking around. The golden hair that had been attacking us had lost its will, and hung down like normal hair.

“Hah… hah… I did it.”

I did it. I actually did it. I, who had been nothing more than a coward, blocked Rapunzel’s hatred.

Then someone put their arm around my shoulder from behind, hugging me tight.

Turning to my side, I saw Alice, her hair a bright, canary-yellow like a forsythia, though not quite as vibrant as Rapunzel’s, wearing a manic smile.

“Honey, you did it! It was impressive to see a different side of you from the timid one you’ve been showing.”

[Get off our prince!]

Ariel darted from the side, struggling with all her might to pull Alice off, but Alice was just too powerful to budge.

I grinned at the sight.

“Thanks, you guys.”

[No problem! This is nothing! For our Prince, I could even pluck stars from the sky!]

“Heh heh! How are you gonna pluck stars? Do you even know what space is?”

[Ugh! Don’t look down on me! S-Space is….]

“What is space?”

Ariel, her pride wounded, blushed and gave me an earnest look, begging for an answer. I pointed at the sky and mouthed, *beyond Earth*, and she burst into a wide, beaming smile, declaring proudly,

[It’s the Cloud Kingdom!]

“Hahahaha! Cloud Kingdom? Cloud Kingdom~? Seriously, there’s a Cloud Kingdom called space?”

Alice erupted in laughter, teasing Ariel, whose face was about to explode.

[Shut up! What would a crazy b*tch like you know!]

I left the two squabbling and went to finally greet the moment I’d been yearning for. Rapunzel, who had been bound by her own hair on the bed, was now free. But something was off.

Her face was a whirlwind of emotions. I couldn’t quite decipher her expression, she looked like someone in deep confusion. But as soon as she noticed me approach, her face lit up with a smile as pleasant as warm sunlight tickling your skin, and she spoke.

“Siyoo.”

At her call, I rushed to her. Seeing her gentle and kind smile, I finally felt a sense of relief. The tension of the past moments suddenly released, and my legs gave out, sending me tumbling onto the bed.

“Ugh!”

The soft touch of the mattress enveloped my face. A chuckle from above made me lift my head, and I saw Rapunzel smiling with amusement, as if I was a silly child.

She gently stroked my hair.

“You really did work hard.”

Rapunzel’s soft hand touched my cheek, and my face flushed hot. Seeing her this close, Rapunzel felt more beautiful than any celebrity, any woman.

“You’ve been through a lot too. Oh, right! The tower’s barrier is down! We can finally go outside! Now, all that’s left is for me to cut your hair nicely!”

I was puzzled. I expected her to be jumping for joy, but Rapunzel just wore a subtle smile, her lips pressed shut.

“Oh my, what’s going on with you two~? Seeing you like that makes me so jealous I could kill you.”

[WTF! What are they doing!! He’s my prince!!!]

I turned around with an awkward smile at the jealous shouting behind us.

“Haha, w-well, you see…”

*Smack.* Huh? What was that? A small smack sound from beside me. At the same time, a soft sensation lightly moistened my cheek.

Ariel and Alice’s pupils dilated in real-time. They were aghast. When I turned my head, Rapunzel was smiling shyly, looking directly into my eyes.

“Hehe, I’ve branded you as mine with that. Everyone saw it, right? Siyu is my boyfriend!”

“Heh~ You’ve got some nerve, huh? I should carve open that smug belly of yours and put your guts back in, don’t you think?”

[Shock! Hatred! Jealousy man! That b*tch is seriously crazy! Don’t make me laugh! The prince is mine and mine alone!]

It was like throwing gasoline on a fire, and I didn’t know what to do. Then Rapunzel grabbed my cheeks with both hands and made me turn my head towards her. Her breath was on my face, so close. A little bit closer, and our lips would touch.

Rapunzel stared intently at my face, as if examining it carefully. On the other hand, I was too embarrassed to properly look at her face. My heart felt like it was going to burst every time, and my mind went completely blank.

[No way! No way, is this for real? What are they doing! Is it what I’m imagining?!]

“Heh, that mouth is the problem. I’ll tear it off whole. Just you wait~”

Alice cracked her knuckles and clenched her fist while Ariel was preparing to throw a water spear.

“Ugh! Rapunzel, it’s dangerous right now! If this goes on…”

“Siyu.”

It happened in an instant. It was so short and intense that I couldn’t even register what had happened to me. A soft, sweet sensation touched my lips, and a strong strawberry scent lingered in my mouth. I blinked my eyes. I could see Ariel and Alice running at us with murderous intent, but my eyes were fixed only on Rapunzel.

Rapunzel, her face flushed, spoke with a blindingly bright smile.

“I’ll always love you. And, we…”

A single, thin tear streamed down Rapunzel’s cheek.

“Let’s break up.”

“Huh?”

What did I just hear? It was a moment where I wondered if there was something wrong with my hearing.

Everything before my eyes turned gold. To be exact, from all directions, an uncontrollable golden hair began to devour the entire world in front of me. To make matters worse, an immense pressure crushed my whole body, leaving me unable to do anything.

“Wh-what the hell is this! Ra-, *cough!*”

I could barely get out a voice. My throat was tearing, so I gritted my teeth and shouted.

“Rapunzel—!”

What the hell is going on? Wasn’t it me who killed the personality within that hair, the one spewing hatred?

“I’m sorry, Siyu.”

*Whir!* A golden spear fell at my feet. No, on closer inspection, they were fragments of a shattered blade. Things are taking a strange turn. What the hell is going on? The question “why?” wouldn’t leave my head.

“You know, I really thought I was okay.”

Everything I can see is golden hair. The floor I’m standing on, the ceiling above me. It was definitely a wall with windows, but even that was covered in hair.

Even Ariel and Alice were nowhere to be seen.

“Rapunzel! What the hell is going on! Are you okay!?”

“No, I’m not okay. Not okay at all. It’s so awful, I want to rip out my heart, I want to cut open my stomach and spill out all my guts.”

Rapunzel’s voice came from behind me. I spun around, and the hair in my line of sight parted like curtains.

And within, there were countless… countless Rapunzels.

But I knew instinctively. The Rapunzel at the very front, she was the real one.

Her face wasn’t right. Her vibrant pink dress was ripped to shreds, her body was a mess of bruises and wounds, and her tangled hair, each strand was sharp like a blade.

Deep dark circles shadowed her eyes, and the beautiful pupils that used to radiate a loving gaze were now filled with unspeakable hatred and rage.

Tears of blood streamed from her eyes, gathering at her chin.

“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

The Rapunzels behind her charged all at once. They merged into a single mass, soon becoming a giant wave of golden hair. From within, the Rapunzels’ upper bodies emerged, their hands transformed into weapons, swinging to take my life.

“I thought I was okay. I dreamed of a future with you. I wanted to go on adventures with you, visit your world and go on dates. I wanted to spend every moment with you. I really… I meant it…”

Rapunzel’s head hung low as she stared at her trembling hands.

“But when the persona of my imprisoning hair vanished, I realized…”

I blankly watched the wave. Not a single thought formed in my mind. I just stared at Rapunzel, listening to her story.

“That persona had been holding my emotions back. I thought you’d cut away my hatred, but no! Rather, kyahaha! A tidal wave of emotions I’d forgotten surged and washed away everything inside me!”

Rapunzel dragged her hands across her face. Her fingers tore at her facial skin as they moved.

The wave was right in front of me. I’ll die if this continues. I’ll be torn to shreds and die.

“I can’t stop myself. I really, really tried to hold back, but I can’t. My parents who imprisoned me, the people who cursed me, the people living their lives laughing without a care, unlike me! I’m going to kill them all! Rip them apart, trample them, make them cry tears of blood, and writhe in pain—!”

Rapunzel screamed as if possessed. The muscles around her cheek twitched in a spasm.

“My rage won’t disappear. My seething emotions won’t just vanish in an instant because I’m with you! And you know what? I actually loved killing Gothel. It made me happy to insert my hair into my parents and the citizens and control them however I liked! Yes, now I understand! What kind of being I am!”

She looked at me with a hollow yet chilling smile.

“I am the curse that will end this disgusting world.”