[You've been practicing by sparring with Dullahan, right? Now it's time for some real combat.]
Lun smiled at Amelia, who had opened her eyes wide.
âIt would be a shame to only stick to safe methods for someone who has prepared this much.â
Fortunately, upon hearing the word "real combat," Amelia only looked a bit tense and nodded once.
Seeing this, Lun looked at her with approval.
âShe seems to have gained some confidence. Thatâs good.â
[Then, shall we go inside the passage first?]
Lun had a good method to boost Amelia's morale and abilities.
Hesitantly, Amelia followed Lun into the passage.
Standing in front of the completely dry passage, Amelia transformed into her humanoid form.
Her fish fins disappeared, and instead, two legs touched the ground.
The girl, who had never left the deep sea before, pursed her lips and slowly inhaled the air.
[The air... tastes like this...]
Lun nodded and slowly wagged his tail.
[Yes. I'll show you how to eat it, so watch carefully.]
Using his black front paw to gesture, Amelia sat down obediently.
Lun handed her a fork and stabbed a large piece of cake with a satisfying sound.
The cake, topped with fluffy cream, filled the black hatchling's mouth.
âAs expected, Christinaâs cake. Itâs always good.â
Lun pointed to the cake with one of his front paws, indicating for her to do the same.
Amelia carefully stabbed the cake with her fork.
He had been listening to Jedâs advice and had brought along desserts that looked as cute and sweet as possible.
It turned out to be the perfect timing to present them.
Finally, Amelia gently placed the white cream and bread in her mouth.
As she chewed, she covered her mouth with her other hand and looked surprised.
The happy taste she felt for the first time filled her mouth, and her eyes widened with the sweet stimulation.
The magic-infused food began to infuse vitality into Ameliaâs body.
Her body, which had been exhausted from holding darkness for so long, felt a bit more comfortable.
[Itâs delicious...! My body doesnât hurt either! How can there be such... food?]
âJust as I expected.â
Even a blind servant would be amazed by the taste.
Although the pain suppression was only a temporary effect, the brief relief made Amelia, who was curious, reach out to the cake without hesitation.
Amelia, who had not even heard Lunâs response, filled her mouth with the strawberry cake and opened her eyes wide.
Holding the fork, the girl swallowed the sweetness of the cake and then asked.
[This... what is it called?]
[Strawberry. Personally, I think itâs best to spread both cream and jam on the bread and eat them together.]
At that moment, Lun signaled to Dullahan.
While Amelia enjoyed the new snack, Lun watched the deep sea behind her.
Dullahan, who had appeared from the darkness, glowed with a green soul.
In his hand was a piece of smooth, shiny leather.
Lun gave a calm look, indicating that he had confirmed the situation without Ameliaâs knowledge.
Soon, the leather slipped from Dullahanâs hand and mixed into the current, drifting away.
âI guess we have to postpone the real combat.â
The leather Dullahan had brought was from a marine monster.
Although Lun had only asked him to scout, he had not instructed him to hunt monsters.
This meant that Dullahan had encountered a monster during his reconnaissance.
And he had been in a situation where he had to kill it and bring back the leather.
Since Lun had already suspected the reason, he felt an unpleasant feeling inside.
âI hoped it wasnât the case, but it seems she is under a curse.â
The lair of the Blue Dragon.
The reason no other living beings or monsters could be sensed in this place, except for Amelia, was that they had been swallowed by the power of darkness and were in a deep sleep.
However, Dullahan had warned Lun about sensing other monsters during training recently.
âThanks to me absorbing a bit of it, Ameliaâs darkness has started to fade.â
At that moment, he realized.
If he continued to absorb all the darkness, not only would Ameliaâs parent dragons awaken, but the spirits, creatures, and marine monsters buried in the deep sea would also awaken.
âSending him to scout to confirm this... the fact that he had to kill it...â
It was certainly not a good sign.
âIn the worst case, we might face Blue Dragons contaminated by darkness.â
The reason Lun wanted Amelia to experience real combat was to increase the intensity of her training.
He wanted her to become stronger to wake up her parents.
But if the Blue Dragons were as abnormal as the monsters, what then?
âThereâs no guarantee they wonât be. I need to think about the worst-case scenario.â
If she were to face a cursed monster in real combat, it would naturally lead her to think about the state of her parent dragons.
Without any preparation, the young Blue Dragon hatchling might panic and have reckless thoughts.
Amelia, who was excited about the pudding, was seen holding her blushing cheeks.
âA contingency plan, thatâs what I need.â
The young mermaid, who was unaware of Lunâs thoughts, put a soft vanilla pudding in her mouth and rolled it around.
[Wow... something this soft and smooth... is a first...]
[Iâm glad it suits you. Eat more.]
[Okay...! This cookie... is also really delicious. Thank you, Lun.]
To resolve this situation, Amelia needed to grow.
Amelia, who was unaware of Lunâs thoughts, chewed on the crispy cookie and smiled.
After sending Amelia back to the deep sea, Lun returned to the black room with Dullahan.
âI can handle a marine monster, but to consider adult Blue Dragons as well...â
A sigh escaped him involuntarily.
Dullahan, understanding Lunâs feelings, glowed with a dark green light.
Bakuya, who had been keeping watch at the entrance of the passage, flew up quickly and perched on Lunâs head, chirping.
âA carefree little thing.â
Leaving the bird, who was unaware of the situation, alone, Lun sat down anywhere in the room and fell into thought.
âI need to sort things out one by one. I need a breakthrough.â
The characteristic of the water clan is âpurificationâ.
This was also the reason the Black Dragonâs dark attribute power was entrusted to the Blue Dragon.
So, even if they were cursed, as long as the Blue Dragon could regain enough composure, they could activate their innate âpurificationâ.
âI need to properly understand what kind of curse it is.â
It wasnât a simple sleep.
If it were, Dullahan wouldnât have killed the monster and brought back the leather to show.
âHe didnât just kill a startled monster that woke up. Then...?â
After deep thought, Lun sighed.
A state where there are no noticeable physical features but aggression appears.
Even if Lun were to recover all the darkness from Amelia, he couldnât undo the abnormal conditions of those already cursed.
âShe doesnât seem to know, but it will be quite a shock when she finds out the truth.â
The situation with Amelia holding the darkness was like keeping a black pearl in cold, clear water.
A child with the pure power of water, who doesnât clash with darkness and doesnât use power privately.
Amelia met both of these conditions.
However, the darkness, which was the essence of her clan, was too powerful for a young Blue Dragon hatchling to handle.
Therefore, Amelia couldnât contain all the darkness.
The curse couldnât be properly purified and instead became more contaminated.
âUnmanageable power often leads to disaster.â
Ultimately, the power that Amelia couldnât contain spread throughout the deep sea, pushing all the creatures in the lair into a massive curse.
âItâs because the black pearl containing the ink broke in the water.â
No one near the dragon lair could escape that darkness.
Ameliaâs parent dragons.
The marine creatures and monsters living near the lair.
Even those who lived under the protection of the water clan.
âPerhaps... even the dungeon wonât be safe.â
The Blue Dragon lair had a water dungeon.
Although it usually wouldnât be affected by external conditions, the situation would be different if the entire lair was engulfed by darkness and curses.
âIt might have become a cursed dungeon.â
The underwater dungeon, deformed by long-term darkness and curses, was a state Lun couldnât even imagine.
At this point, Ameliaâs potential was seen in a new light.
âShe managed to maintain almost half of her attribute even in such a situation. Even adult Blue Dragons couldnât do that.â
It was impressive that she had endured alone at the center of this crisis for so long.
But just enduring wasnât enough.
When the darkness lifts and the creatures, driven mad by the long curse, start causing chaos.
This water-colored girl would blame herself for not containing more darkness.
âIf her parents are enveloped in madness right before her eyes, it will be a great shock.â
âShould I tell Christina?â
If there was no other solution, telling Christina about the situation and seeking her help could be an answer.
âIf I do, I wonât be able to take the darkness until I become a full adult. Christina will prioritize my safety.â
She might make a cold and rational decision.
Understanding that the cursed Blue Dragons had made their choice and that they were gradually becoming more cursed, she might prioritize protecting Amelia and Lun.
âChristinaâs abilities are excellent, but she canât handle the combined power of the entire dark clan alone. If I donât step in to handle that power... Amelia will lose her parents.â
Christina doesnât know Lunâs true abilities yet.
If he were to say he could absorb all the darkness alone, she might start to doubt his existence.
âIf I tell her the truth, my future self will be in trouble, and if I donât, I wonât have the chance to solve it.â