When I woke up the next day, the dragon had vanished.
I never felt so recovered ever since the ordeal. I sucked blood before, but I was never willing to suck enough every day to feel comfortable, since I was worried about Mommy Vyvyan. I managed to obtain enough mana, since I didnāt have to worry about robbing the dragon of all its mana.
I sat up. Sleeping on top of a mountain of gold coins wasnāt as comfortable as I thought itād be. The smell of gold all around made me feel slightly uncomfortable. Iād be more willing to sleep outside if possible even if that small timber house would be blown away with a single gust of wind.
I stood up and slid down from atop the gold coins. I didnāt know if the dragon collected so many gold coins from somewhere or what, but I have to give credit where itās due. She did a decent job saving of them. You could buy a nation with the cave-worth of money. If possible, Iād take it all back after I returned.
She said that I could take as I please, and I called her āMom.ā By logic, I shouldāve been her child. Therefore, inheriting her fortuneā¦ Ā I suddenly had a thought: āWaitā¦ Wait. I could take her back to live in the Northā¦ That wouldnāt mean Iām taking possession of her fortune. Itās called moving homes.ā
I slowly exited the cave. It was very difficult to find the correct path in the cave, but I made a mark at the entrance when I came in yesterday. Thankfully, I soon found the source of fresh air. I finally had fresh air in my mind instead of having my mind filled with the scent of gold. It was windy, and the sky was as red as yesterday, but the tiny oasis was a small shelter from the wind for me. I stood at the edge of the lake and took in big breaths of fresh air. The dew on the leaves was clear, as well.
I didnāt know where the dragon went. I then saw the White Deer King by the side, looking at the leaves overhead and spacing out. There was no soil there, thus no grass. In other words, the White Deer King probably wanted to eat leaves. I walked over to her, and then gently stroked her neck. With a smile, I greeted her, āGood morning, White Deer King.ā
The White Deer King snorted. I walked up to the tree, and then climbed up to pluck down a few leaves. I then walked up to the White Deer King. I tore up the leaves then held it up to the White Deer Kingās mouth; however, she didnāt show me any gratitude or attention. Instead, she gladly helped herself to them by snatching them off me, and sheād even occasionally bite my fingers.
The White Deer King then came up to my side. She lowered her head and drank from the lake. I gently caressed the White Deer King. I looked at the water in front of me feeling slightly melancholic. I softly remarked, āManā¦ I want to eat somethingā¦ I havenāt eaten anything for a day, and now Iām starvingā¦ That dragon knocked my backpack away, when all of our stuff is in it.ā
The White Deer King hesitated for a moment, and then dangled a piece of a leaf in her mouth in front of me. I smiled helplessly: āIām very thankful for your kind gesture, but I donāt eat leaves.ā
The White Deer King looked at me with displeasure as if I wasted her kind gesture. I scooped up some water with my hand and wiped the White Deer Kingās face. She didnāt dodge me. Instead, she licked my face. It mustāve been the first time the White Deer King was so intimate with meā¦
Just when I was thinking that, a shadow suddenly appeared overhead. I looked up to see an enormous body landing. I initially thought she landed there to avoid destroying the place. She flapped her wings rapidly and slowly landed in the centre of the lake. As a result, I was splashed with water as though it was torrential rain pouring down on me.
I sighed then wiped the water off my face. Her eyes were fully golden when she was in her dragon form, but she had one golden eye and one blue eye when she was in her human form. Perhaps she wanted to imitate Mommy Vyvyanās eyes. She stared at me with those eyes again. This time, however, there was no murderous intent or threat in them. There were only strong friendly sentiments and affection. She had huge a goat that was still moving, dangling from her mouthā¦ I think it was a goatā¦
I looked at the huge horns and feet overhead. The dragon spat the goat down right in front of me. I listlessly looked at the goat. It struggled. It was afraid of even me. The White Deer King was surprised. She seemed to dislike unbecoming animals. After all, the goat looked repulsive, and it was covered in dust. Letās not forget there was the dragonās saliva, too.
The White Deer King went behind me and pestered me, seemingly wanting for me to kill the goat. The dragon then went up to the edge of the lake. The goat struggled with all its might. As soon as it tried to flee, the dragon swiftly lowered her head and chomped off its head, spraying its blood in every direction.
āFresh breakfast, my son.ā
The dragon bit the goat apart, and then pushed it over to me. It was very obvious she was trying to please me when she spoke with a smile. A gust of wind blew. The huge dragon vanished. Replacing her was a dignified woman. It was impossible to imagine the dignified woman was the dragon that bit a goatās neck and stained herself with blood as a consequence. She walked up to the side of the goat. With a smile, she then asked, āSon, how does thou want it prepared?ā
āWhat preparation methods do you have?ā
I watched the woman in front of me spit fire from her mouth, stunned. The flames burnt the fur of the goat, leaving just the juicy meat underneath. I blankly looked at the smoke coming from the goat. The woman crouched down next to the goat, and then reached her hand out; wait, they were claws. I didnāt know when she did it, but she had transformed her hand into her dragon claw. She dug out its gut, taking out all of its organs then tossed them aside. She then spat fire inside its belly. When she was done, she placed the meat that was burnt outside and tender inside before me.
She smiled as if she was trying to get in my good books; she was eager to have me take a bite. To be honest, I didnāt particularly hate the goat meat in front of meā¦ Ā Itās a very blissful feeling to be able to enjoy grilled meat when youāre hungry, but I was in a dilemma. How was I supposed to eat it? Was I supposed to just bite into it? Was I supposed to just chow down the goat larger than me?
Noticing my concern, the dragonās expression turned a little sour. It wasnāt disappointment but self-blame. She plucked a few leaves, and then transformed her hand into a claw again. She tore the goat to pieces and carefully placed the meat onto the leaves just as I did for the White Deer King, and then served it up to me.
āI made a mistake. I made a mistakeā¦ I was not thoroughā¦ Thy made a mistakeā¦ Son, son, hereā¦ hereā¦ hereā¦ Have someā¦ Have someā¦ā
I looked at the sliced up meat in front of me. My heart throbbed. Back when I was at home, Mommy Vyvyan would also pass me the meat after she cut it up. When I was with Mommy Elizabeth, all of the meat would have been sliced before it was served up. Mommy Vyvyan loved to sit opposite me and watch me even if I didnāt take a single bite. She would sit there with a look filled with bliss. I quietly thanked her, āThank you. Thank you, Momā¦ Thank youā¦ā
āR-Reallyā¦? Iā¦ Iā¦ Iā¦ I am very happyā¦ Iā¦ am very happyā¦ Iā¦ I want to fly a few lapsā¦ I am going to flyā¦ā
She was excited to the point that her speech became incoherent rambling. I didnāt even know what she exactly said. There was the ancient elven language mixed in with the dragon raceās ancient language. Everything was mashed together. She leapt to her feet; then she transformed into an enormous flying dragon. She cried out as she soared toward the sky. She accompanied her flight with bright flames akin to fireworksā¦
āWhat sort of habit is thatā¦? Soā¦ so this dragonās way of expressing excitement was by doing laps in the skyā¦ Thatās straightforward, for sureā¦ā I thought.
Current time at the Imperial Palace in the Northā¦
Freya handed Ying a set of keys and seriously asked, āThis is your residence. Taking your sister, Xiaās condition into account, there will be only your double room here. Further, you are scheduled for daytime shifts. We have also organised maids to look after Xia during the day; therefore, you need not worry. At night time, you just need to call out. There will be people who will take care of you. However, you must promise you will keep His Majesty safe during the day. Can you promise me that?ā
Ying looked back at Freya, and then took in a deep breath. She solemnly replied, āSorry, but I cannot guarantee that, for I have never protected anybody else in the shrine. As such, I do not know how to protect an individual. But nonetheless, I will do my best; please have faith in me.ā
Freya nodded: āThe guard unit will provide you with training later on. I hope you can become a qualified guard before His Majestyās return. I have arranged for people to pick up your sister, so you do not need to worry. Please head on in, and see if it suits you.ā
Ying turned around and opened the door. It was a very standard home. There were no unnecessary decorations. Ying was very satisfied. Freya then turned to leave. Ying sat there alone on the bed, thinking about her sister.
Ying looked up at the woman before her, feeling puzzled. Tone serious, Vyvyan said, āYing, you have time, right? You now have the task of a guard to fulfil. Letās go. Come with me to kill a beast thatās the same as the wyrms. Come with me to kill another wild beast similar to it!ā