Extrait du livre The monkey and the jellyfish
The monkey and the jellyfish Pascale Vignali Illustrated by Justine Cunha Le Regard Sonore Editions
This ancient legend was born in the land of the Rising Sun... Japan. It is said that at this time, the world was inhabited by fabulous creatures…
And a wonderful place lay hidden in the heart of the ocean : the Kingdom of Dragons. Its terrible king, Riujyn, absolute master of tides and storms, lived in a fabulous palace of red coral and mother of pearl where jellyfish, turtles and all the other sea animals fulfilled his every desire. Riujyn, feared among the fearsome, had only one weakness...
...his daughter, the beautiful princess Otohime, whose every whim he indulged ... One day, the beautiful Otohime was in a sulky mood and, out of boredom, decided to stay in bed. Everyone panicked at the sea palace, believing that she was ill. Riujyn, the king of Dragons, sent her his best doctors, but even they were unable to find the mysterious disease from which she suffered...
Riujyn himself came to see her : KING RIUJYN : My daughter, my pearly wonder... what ails you ? Must I order a starfish broth for your sake ? OTOHIME : Oh no, above all, father, do no such thing ! I can not eat anymore of this seafood, I even think that it is precisely what makes me sick ! Look, my tongue is all green from eating seaweed ! Aaaaahhhh ! KING RIUJYN : Uh… I think your tongue looks just fine, in fact lovely ! and it is as pink as a crayfish... OTOHIME : Ah, but do you not see that I am withering away ? No, I need something else, something I've never eaten before, that will give me strength and heal me ... Monkey liver ! I need monkey liver!
The dragon king's scales ruffled in surprise. KING RIUJYN : What a crazy idea ! You can’t be serious, my dear !
The beautiful Otohime began to sob, protesting that it was very little to ask of the Great God of the Seas and that he probably did not love her that much, since he did not even take her request seriously... The terrible Riujyn finally relented and summoned the jellyfish, his most faithful servant: