TDAA Ch 19
by soapaBut that didn’t happen.
“Master… Eorzen.”
The one in front of him was the real Eorzen. Not the beastly dragon from his dream.
Suddenly losing his strength, Siol collapsed and clenched his fists.
He couldn’t tell whether the emotion that had just pierced his heart was disappointment or relief.
The real Eorzen reached out, touched Siol’s forehead, and said with concern,
“You don’t seem to have a fever, but… should I call a doctor?”
“No, I just… had a scary dream.”
“A scary dream… What kind of dream was it?”
He couldn’t confess the sticky details of his dream to anyone. Especially not to the person who starred in it.
“No, I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“…Yes?”
Eorzen, sitting on the bed, asked again, making eye contact with Siol.
“Why not?”
Those eyes held Siol captive, just like Eorzen’s eyes in his dream.
“It was an… embarrassing… dream…?”
“It makes me even more curious that you say it was embarrassing. Can you really not tell me?”
His gentle tone and fierce gaze coaxed Siol at the same time, but he didn’t give in.
“No. But why are you here?”
When Siol asked, glancing at him, Eorzen patted Siol’s head with his large hand.
“I came to check on you because you were waking up so late.”
“How late is it?”
Come to think of it, it was bright outside. Seeing the sunlight streaming through the gap in the curtains, different from when he usually woke up, Siol groaned softly.
“Late enough that everyone has finished eating. Your meal has been set aside, so go eat later.”
“Okay.”
“I’m glad you’re not sick. Then I’ll be going.”
Eorzen seemed reluctant to make Siol get up, but Siol rose with him. He quickly put on his outer clothes without washing his face, and Eorzen stopped and raised an eyebrow.
“You can say goodbye here.”
“I want to see you off.”
“If you insist… I’ll wait here, so get ready properly.”
Thanks to his offer to wait, Siol was spared the embarrassment of wearing his outer clothes over his pajamas.
After quickly throwing off his outer clothes and washing his face, Siol hesitated as he was about to change. Beneath his clothes were the dragon’s curse and alchemic tattoos that Siol was so desperate to hide. He would normally take off his clothes without hesitation, regardless of whether Eorzen was present or not, but he couldn’t now. Because the dragon’s curse was fading day by day.
Siol glanced at Eorzen and quickly checked his chest, turning his back to him. As expected, the dragon’s curse had faded a little. What would happen when it disappeared completely?
If the dragon’s curse disappears, will the dragon never know that I am the Death Alchemist, and then, then, will I be able to live forever as the wolf beastman Sizool?
Lost in thought for a moment, Siol smiled wryly and shook his head. That would just be living another fake life. It was unthinkable to subject himself to such a life after being so deeply wounded in the King’s Glass Garden.
Siol quickly adjusted his earrings to match the color of the curse and tattoos, changed his clothes, and put on his outer clothes, scarf, and hat again.
As the boy, now plump and fluffy like a fattened bear, approached, Eorzen scooped him up in his arms. He was a bit bulkier because of his clothes, but not so much that he wouldn’t fit in his arms.
As they went downstairs, unlike last night, Ryufen was lying sprawled out in the middle of the warm hall, his belly exposed. Ryufen, who seemed half asleep, saw them, got up, scratched behind his ear with his prosthetic leg, and followed them.
“Sleeping in today, Sizool? Your face is so puffy!”
“It’s not that bad!”
“Hmph. Well, if you’re satisfied with it.”
It wasn’t something to be satisfied or dissatisfied with, but such words bothered him. Siol pressed his cheeks with his palms, wondering, Is it really that swollen? He couldn’t tell since there were no mirrors in this lodging.
“It’s alright. It’s cute.”
So it was true that his face was swollen. Siol pouted and pulled his scarf up to his eyes to cover his face.
“Then I’ll be going.”
Eorzen, after setting Siol down on the floor, seemed to hesitate for a moment, looking at him. Ryufen sighed deeply and said,
“It won’t happen overnight, but I hope you find them soon. We’re running out of time…”
“We’re running out of time?”
“No, it’s not that we don’t have time… it’s that you’ve waited too long.”
Ryufen rolled his eyes and asked Eorzen, “Isn’t that right?”
“Yes. I’ve waited for far too long.”
“…I hope you find them this time, Master Eorzen.”
Siol cheered, clenching his fists.
After having that dream, he understood. The one he was with that day was the blue dragon who had lost his reason and was driven only by instinct. It was the rampaging dragon, craving guidance and consumed by desire, so in the end, it wasn’t the real Eorzen that Siol had been with. The night Siol spent with Eorzen that day wasn’t about sharing hearts, but merely about satisfying desire.
Rather than desiring the blue dragon based on that one night, his relationship with the Eorzen in front of him now was more precious.
He was happier to be able to stay within this protective barrier and be with him, rather than having a deeper relationship with him.
So let’s put aside trivial jealousy, which had the potential to break their current relationship.
“I’ll be waiting for your mate too.”
Seeing Siol’s refreshingly bright smile, Eorzen felt strangely irritated. However, not knowing why such an inappropriate feeling arose, he just nodded and turned away.
Heavy snow was falling outside. The blue dragon spread his wings from his back and soared into the wind. The cold snowflakes lashed against his body.
⋆୨🔮୧⋆
Creeeak—
As the door closed with a loud noise, Siol nudged Ryufen’s side and asked,
“Ryufen, how do dragons have babies?”
“Huh? Why are you asking that all of a sudden?”
“Master Eorzen will have children when he meets his mate, right?”
“Well, yeah.”
Trying to ignore the sharp pain that flashed through his chest, Siol smiled bashfully.
“I want to see them. Master Eorzen’s children.”
“But we might not be able to see them while we’re alive.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Dragons are born from the fruit that grows from the seeds given by the World Tree.”
“…Yes?”
He was surprised that there was a World Tree, but dragons are tree fruit? Siol’s expression faltered as this unexpectedly fantastical setting suddenly emerged.
“It’s in the history books…. Did you even study properly?”
“…I skimmed the first part.”
He thought it was devoid of historical value since it was full of stories that looked like mere myths. Ryufen looked at Siol as if he were a problem child and shook his head. Being treated like this by Ryufen hurt his pride quite a bit. Siol resolved that when he returned to the castle, he would devour the first part of the history book, which had seemed like a made-up story.
“When a dragon goes to the World Tree and says they want to have a child, the tree gives them a seed. They take that seed home, plant it in the ground, and nurture it with care. Both parents pour their love into it for a long, long time. Then, someday, it sprouts, becomes a tree, blossoms, bears fruit, and becomes a dragon.”
“So, Ryufen hasn’t seen it either.”
“The only dragon I’ve seen is the Captain. Do you think dragons are such a common species?”
Ryufen glared at Siol with a scoff and then tilted his head.
“But the Captain’s child…. I hope I can see it before I die.”
“Me too. They’ll definitely be cute.”
“But actually… dragons are a species that has difficulty having children.”
He said that if you receive a seed and nurture it with love, a dragon will grow, so why is it like this?
“As you know, dragons are a bit… insane when it comes to possessiveness. Both parents’ love is needed for the seed to sprout and become a tree, but the dragon… doesn’t give enough love.”
“…Do you mean because they’re afraid their mate will pay less attention to them because of the child?”
“Well, anyway, finding a mate is the priority if they want to have a child.”
Siol stared blankly, his mouth agape, as he watched Ryufen subtly change the subject. Eorzen didn’t seem like the childish kind of beastman who would compete with his child for affection, but could it be?
He had thought that because they were a possessive species, they would certainly want to spend time alone with their mate for a while….
“Asios!”
When Ryufen called, Asios, who was mopping the floor on the kitchen side of the dining hall, came running. It was puzzling why he was even wearing an apron, even though mopping the floor was understandable. But before Siol could ask anything, Ryufen shoved Siol’s back, handing him over to Asios.
“Give him breakfast. Don’t let him go until he’s eaten it all.”
“What? How much, how much are you talking about? You’re not telling me to make him eat a mountain of food, are you?”
Asios and Ryufen exchanged glances, wondering if this was Ryufen’s way of getting revenge for only bringing him cold water last night. Ryufen snorted.
“I put in a reasonable amount, alright? Asios did.”
“Really, Asios?”
“Yes, Mr. Sizool. I prepared your meal, so don’t worry.”
Only then did Siol breathe a sigh of relief. He couldn’t trust Ryufen in matters like this, but he could trust Asios. This new beastman, unlike Ryufen, didn’t stubbornly insist on things or play pranks, and he had a serious side.
Ryufen, watching Siol’s relieved expression with a sly smile, led the other knights, who had finished their meal and were resting, out of the lodging. Today, they were divided into three groups: one to guard the city, one to patrol the nearby city, and the remaining group to visit a city a bit further away. Without Eorzen, they had to move more busily.
Siol saw Ryufen off at the door and then went back inside. When he returned to Asios, brushing the snow off his head, Asios tossed the mop against the wall and guided Siol to the dining hall.
“Why were you cleaning, by the way?”
“The Vice-Captain has a bit of a petty side, doesn’t he?”
“Was it revenge, by any chance?”
“Well, even cleaning the dining hall is nothing. I once cleaned the entire hallway and stairs of the Knights’ lodging by myself.”
His grin suggested he had pulled off something tremendous and satisfying….
Siol decided not to pry any further.
As he sat down in the dining hall and was about to take off his hat and scarf, Asios went into the kitchen and returned with a tray. On the large tray were three steaks, two grilled portobello mushrooms, a plate of stir-fried vegetables, two sandwiches, and a bowl of potato stew.
“…….”
“Now, please eat.”
Asios handed a fork to Siol, who had paused while removing his scarf, and smiled brightly.
“A… a reasonable amount, you said…?”
“Yes? Is something wrong?”
Looking into those innocent eyes that seemed completely clueless, Siol sighed. It wasn’t a mountain of food, certainly, but to Siol, it felt like a small hill.
In other words, it was an amount that Siol couldn’t possibly finish on his own.
Siol could picture Ryufen watching with glee while Asios was plating the food. Come to think of it, he’d wondered why Ryufen had sneered and walked by earlier, and it seemed to be because of this.
“…Asios. I can’t eat all of this.”
“…Yes? Why not?”
“It’s too much. I’ll get a stomachache if I eat it all.”
Asios then made an incredulous face. It didn’t last long. He was undoubtedly recalling Ryufen’s ranting on top of the spire. The ranting about a frail, small child who couldn’t eat well.
“In the first place, it’s not an amount someone my size can eat.”
“…I ate three times this amount when I was fifteen.”
“…Anyway, I can’t eat it…. Ryufen knew I wouldn’t be able to eat it all, so he told you not to let me go until I finished it as a joke.”
As Siol grumbled, Asios sighed softly and nodded.
He felt a sense of crisis that the rumor of his frailty would spread even further, but he didn’t want to overeat just to avoid hearing such things.
“No wonder he was smiling slyly while looking at the tray earlier. So this was why.”
He quickly ran to the kitchen, brought a large plate, and handed it to Siol.
“Put whatever you can’t eat here. I’ll eat it.”
“Is that okay? Ryufen told you to make me eat it all…. I thought you’d force-feed me.”
“Haha! You’re a funny one. The Captain is much scarier than the Vice-Captain. I don’t want to be trampled by that dragon’s aura again. It was terrifying.”
It was a simple but convincing reason. Should he say that he understood the power structure within the Knights’ Order perfectly, or that he looked down on Ryufen…? No, he definitely said he would repay Ryufen’s kindness, didn’t he? For that, it felt a little too harsh.
However, that made him like Asios even more. He felt like he had gained a good advisor in dealing with Ryufen, which had been overwhelming on his own.
Come to think of it, didn’t all the beastmen close to Ryufen tend to treat him a bit too harshly? Asios, Muriel with a half-contemptuous tone, Burdril constantly bickering with him…. And me too. Considering everyone does it, Ryufen must be at fault.
Siol put a piece of steak, a grilled portobello mushroom, and a very small portion of stir-fried vegetables on the plate. Then, he pushed the tray towards Asios, who was about to take the plate.
“…Are you really only going to eat that?”
“My stomach hurts if I eat a lot in the morning.”
“Oh my.”
Behind his extremely shocked expression was the agonizing thought of whether he should make Siol eat more. However, if he made him eat more when he said his stomach would hurt, and something happened, he would undoubtedly receive the Captain’s chilling gaze.
Seeing Asios wavering between these two possibilities, Siol sighed and took another piece of sandwich.
“I’ll just eat this much.”
In fact, one sandwich was enough to fill Siol’s stomach in the morning. Siol was bewildered by how much his appetite had increased since becoming a beastman. It seemed his body’s appetite was somewhere ambiguously between human and beastman.
Fortunately, one sandwich was enough to put an end to Asios’s agony. The two quickly finished the food in front of them.
“Ah, Asios, I have a favor to ask—would you take me to that spire one more time?”
At the request, Asios’s face briefly darkened, probably remembering the time he was crushed by the blue dragon’s aura. However, he didn’t refuse Siol’s request.
“Alright. But you must dress very warmly today. No, that’s not enough. Put on a thick shawl over that coat. And it would be good to add some fur to your boots, too.”
Asios darted upstairs and brought down a thick shawl and something like fur puffs to attach to Siol’s boots, further layering him up.
“I can’t walk like this….”
“I’ll carry you, so it’s fine.”
“You don’t have to go this far.”
“I’ll go after I get the Captain’s permission for your attire.”
This meant he would either go like this or he would only take Siol after receiving permission from Eorzen that it wasn’t necessary to go this far. While he spoke as if he would do anything, he never backed down on things like this.
Siol grumbled inwardly, but the thought that Asios would be the one scolded if any problems arose discouraged him from being stubborn.
Asios lifted the nearly ball-shaped Siol onto his back and took flight once more. As they soared through the falling snow, the entirely white, swirling view was dizzying. While Siol clung tightly to the giant bird’s back, enduring the snowflakes, Asios landed gracefully on the same spire they had visited the day before.
What followed was the same as before. The first thing they did was light a fire in the hearth with flint. They hadn’t brought anything like tea, but he added more of the piled-up firewood to make the fire bigger. Seeing Siol shivering despite being bundled up, he started to regret bringing him to the spire.
“Oh, it’s cold. The snow keeps hitting my face, making it cold.”
Almost the only exposed part of him was his face, and it was so cold it felt like it was freezing. Siol warmed his face near the hearth and then went closer to the spire’s railing.
He did so to confirm something he hadn’t been able to check properly last time due to Eorzen’s sudden appearance. He looked at the city with suspicion. Although it was snowing, the view wasn’t completely obscured. He could clearly see the beastmen working and the sight of the city they were cultivating through the falling snow.
“Are you looking for something?”
“…No. I thought I saw something last time, but I guess I was mistaken.”
The sight of the city, with more parts already repaired, was completely different from yesterday. On the plains where earthquakes didn’t occur, the reconstruction of this city, where almost all the buildings were single-story, was progressing at an astonishing pace day by day. The scene he saw yesterday was no longer there.
The sight that looked like part of some kind of magical inscription was also gone.
Was what he saw yesterday just a coincidence?
“Yes. I think so.”
That magic consumed a tremendous amount of magical power even when drawn small. Although it had a greater effect the larger it was drawn, the magical power consumed doubled with each increase in the size of the magical circle, so it was highly unlikely that such a large magical circle could be activated.
If one wanted to activate it, they would need a magic stone the size of a person.
“But it bothers me a little…. Can we check over there one more time and then go back to the lodging? Please?”
Asios, who was standing next to Siol, spreading his wings to block the snow, had a troubled look on his face, but when Siol pleaded, “Let’s just stop by there and then go back,” he nodded as if he had no choice.
They looked around the city, but there was nothing particularly suspicious. People were actively rebuilding the city and didn’t rest even though it was snowing. They walked around as if nothing was wrong, building new buildings, carrying luggage, making clothes and food, and returning to their daily lives, without bundling up like Siol.
In the end, having merely toured the city, Siol had no choice but to return to the lodging, sucking on a candy Asios had bought him.
Nothing would happen just by loitering around, and more than anything, Siol, waddling because of his clothes among the swiftly moving beastmen, was just a nuisance.
While fiddling with his necklace back at the lodging, the sun set and a crescent moon rose, casting a faint moonlight. The moonlight dimly illuminating the darkness conveyed a mystery completely different from what Siol had seen as a human. Siol scanned the scene outside the window with his wolf’s eyes that pierced through the darkness, then sighed and closed the window. Even though it had only been slightly open, the cold air that seeped through had already filled the room. The small fireplace couldn’t overcome the chill outside.
Being alone this late—no, being alone for this long, was truly a first in a long time. Since becoming Sizool, either Ryufen or Eorzen had always been by his side. At first, it was Ryufen, and later, it was Eorzen who always stayed close.
“Why aren’t they coming…?”
Siol mumbled, wrapped in a blanket, hugging his knees in front of the fireplace.
He had once lived a life where loneliness was a given, yet having someone constantly by his side for a while made this loneliness unbearable. Even though he thought it was childish, he couldn’t stop the ache in his chest.
How many times had he counted the time, tapping his fingers on his knees as if playing a melody?
Finally, he heard a commotion downstairs. The rough sound of the door and the fierce wind seeping in. Siol jumped up, roughly adjusting his slipping blanket, and ran outside. As he ran down the hallway and down the stairs, there were Ryufen and the other beastmen, brushing off the snow.
“Alright, I ate on the way back, so that’s settled. We’ll probably have to go further tomorrow, so get some rest.”
“Ah.”
Ryufen’s face crumpled as he looked towards the sound of footsteps that stopped mid-descent down the stairs.
“Sizool, why are you coming down dressed like that again?”
“Well…. I was wondering who came back.”
“Whether someone came back or not, you should dress properly! What is this!”
Ryufen fussed, grabbing the blanket slipping off Siol’s shoulder with his mouth and flipping it over to the other shoulder, scolding him.
“Why are you getting angry?”
“What if you catch a cold dressed like this?”
“I’m not that weak?!”
Siol, after shouting back, whispered, lowering his voice.
“Ryufen, you said you only agreed with Lord Eorzen when you said I was weak.”
“I just exaggerated a bit back then, it doesn’t mean you’re healthy…!”
Ryufen, also lowering his voice, clicked his tongue and looked at Siol with exasperation, then glanced at the other knights.
“You guys, take care and see you tomorrow.”
Then, without waiting for a reply, he grabbed Siol’s blanket with his mouth and dragged him upstairs.
Ryufen entered Siol’s room and sat him in front of the fireplace. He added more wood to the fireplace, properly closed the window that was letting in the cold air, and tightly drew the curtains.
“Oh, I’m exhausted. I have to wait on you after coming back from a long patrol?”
“I never asked you to.”
“Then take care of yourself.”
Ryufen narrowed his eyes accusingly and pushed another thick log into the fireplace. As he blew on it, the wood burned more fiercely. It was different from a dragon’s fire, but unlike when ordinary wood burned, it emitted a cozy warmth. It was so hot that Siol had to move his bottom back a bit.
“I understand why the Captain is so overprotective of you. It’s because you live so carelessly.”
“I’m not careless. It’s just…”
“Just what?”
Siol hesitated for a moment, choosing his words, then said softly,
“I was worried because you both were so late.”
Ryufen stared blankly at Siol, who looked downcast after confessing his true feelings. Worry? He couldn’t remember the last time he’d heard such an endearing word. For a long time, he had been called the Bloodfang Wolf who guarded the Blue Dragon, solidifying his position as the city’s second-in-command. A position determined solely by strength, unaffected by anything political like humans.
“Why… Why would you worry about me?”
“What’s wrong with worrying?”
Siol retorted, feeling a surge of emotion at the dumbfounded reaction.
“I’m incredibly strong, why would you worry? It’s the same with the Captain. Other than the mate issue, worrying about the Blue Dragon is truly pointless.”
“But Ryufen, you went out so confidently not long ago and lost your hind leg.”
“That’s….”
Ryufen was speechless when the person who made him new legs pointed that out. Although he had succeeded in that day’s operation, it was true that he had been half-dead.
“Of course, even if you lose it again, I can make you another one… but still, worrying is worrying.”
“…Sigh. Alright, alright. Worry all you want.”
Ryufen shook his head, but his expression wasn’t unpleasant.
Siol pouted at the seemingly resigned response, but simply nodded.
“When will Lord Eorzen come back?”
“Well…. He might come back today, or in a few days.”
“A few days?”
“Even if he’s checking out just one city, since there are so many people there, it will naturally take time to see everyone.”
That meant there was a possibility he wouldn’t see Eorzen even once a day for a while. Siol felt a pang of loneliness. Eorzen would gradually become more distant like this, and once he found a mate, he would become even further away.
“So, don’t wait for the Captain. Let’s just sleep.”
“Okay. Good night, Ryufen.”
As Siol obediently nodded and stood up, Ryufen yawned widely and crawled into bed. Siol’s bed.
“Ryufen? That’s my bed.”
“I can’t trust you to be on your own. You can’t catch a cold again because the fire went out at night, so let’s just sleep together.”
Indeed, there were times when the room became cold after the firewood burned out in the early morning. When he was staying at the laboratory, Ladie replenished the firewood in the early morning, keeping the room warm, but there was no one to do that here, so it couldn’t be helped.
Ryufen’s fur was quite fluffy, so he thought it would be warm to burrow into it and sleep.
With that thought, Siol lay down next to Ryufen and closed his eyes, but immediately sat up and smacked Ryufen’s side.
“Your fur is prickly!”
The wolf’s back fur was so stiff that it poked through his clothes. The sensation against his skin was so prickly that he couldn’t sleep at all. As Siol scratched his irritated skin and complained, Ryufen, half-asleep, woke up and turned over.
“This… whiny lump….”
The fur on his chest and belly was soft. Siol carefully arranged Ryufen’s chest fur and rested his head on it. The wolf’s body temperature was warmer than his, making him feel like he was hugging a hot pack.
⋆୨🔮୧⋆
It had been a terribly long day.
From the moment he soared through the snow, throughout the time he scanned countless people in other cities searching for his mate, and all the way back, Eorzen felt a suffocating thirst. He searched and searched with burning eyes for a spring. However, his mate was nowhere to be found, and in the end, he had no choice but to return for a short rest.
He had thought the journey to find his mate wouldn’t be easy, but he hadn’t expected to endure such a suffocating time.
He ignored the guard who greeted him and went up to the second floor of the lodging. As he was about to open his door, he was gripped by a strange premonition. A peculiar unease, a sensation like needles pricking his back, bothered him, and he unconsciously reached for the door next to his.
It was Siol’s room.
As he pushed the door open, the first thing he felt was a chilling coldness. Eorzen immediately used magic to put firewood in the fireplace and light it. His little wolf was weak and often fell ill. Sleeping in such a cold place would give him a cold, but why wasn’t there a single ember left in the fireplace? Judging from the ashes piled in the fireplace, it seemed he had lit a fire before going to sleep. It appeared the firewood he’d put in had burned out in the meantime.
Eorzen approached the bed to check on Siol and found an unexpected scene. Siol wasn’t alone in the bed. He was asleep, nestled in the fur of Ryufen, who was sprawled out.
“…….”
The moment he saw the two wolves snuggled close together, Eorzen felt a strange twist in his gut. Perhaps it was because he had returned exhausted after such hardship, while Ryufen was lying there comfortably.
Just then, Siol whimpered and burrowed deeper into Ryufen’s fur.
Eorzen twisted his lips and grabbed Ryufen’s hind leg, pulling him off the bed. His physically robust First Deputy slept soundly on the floor, oblivious to what had happened. He briefly considered stepping on him, but decided against it.
Instead, he took off his outer garment, casually draped it over a chair, and lay down in Siol’s bed. As the warm wolf disappeared, Siol, who had been shivering and curled up, sensed the arrival of a new source of warmth and snuggled close.
However, perhaps he sensed the difference in touch. Siol woke up slightly and spoke without opening his eyes.
“…Eo… rzen…?”
“Yes.”
Eorzen replied, placing Siol’s head on his arm. Siol fidgeted a few times and then rested his face against Eorzen’s chest.
“When… did you get back?”
“Just now.”
“I… see.”
Siol, who seemed to be drifting back to sleep, lifted his head again. Still without opening his eyes.
“Where’s… Ryufen?”
“Sleeping on the floor.”
“Why… are you back already…?”
“Do you dislike me being back already?”
Eorzen asked in a low voice, and Siol, after frowning slightly, shook his head.
“No…. Ryufen said… it could take a few days….”
His sleep-drenched voice began to trail off languidly.
“I missed you….”
“…I see.”
Eorzen listened quietly to the softly whispered words, holding the little wolf close.
“I’m glad… you’re back.”
Siol murmured, rubbing his cheek against Eorzen’s chest, and fell asleep again.
Eorzen distinctly felt the warm breath against his chest, the weight of the small head resting on his arm, and the occasional nuzzling against his forehead. Siol’s closed eyelashes fluttered slightly, and his mouth opened a little as if to say something before closing again.
As Eorzen gazed at Siol endlessly, he suddenly felt drowsiness wash over him.
The thirst and anxiety that had tormented him all day long vanished without a trace.
He slowly lowered his head, kissed Siol’s forehead, and quietly closed his eyes.
⋆୨🔮୧⋆
This happened when Eorzen was still living in the northern dragon lands.
At the time, there was a notorious hooligan dragon in the dragon lands. A red dragon, he had been raised by a black dragon father. The black dragon’s jealousy was so terrible that he couldn’t often see his mother growing up, leading to considerable resentment. Eorzen found it somewhat pathetic that he couldn’t bear to see his mate spend time with their child, but among the dragons, there was a prevailing atmosphere of envy towards the black dragon for being able to do so.
“Even so, wasn’t that a bit too much?”
When Eorzen asked, his father casually shook his head.
“If your mother hadn’t cherished you quite so much, I would have raised you separately.”
“…I’ll tell Mother.”
“Haha! That’s why you didn’t. I also gave affection to the seed so you could be born. Be grateful to your mother that you were born safely.”
Eorzen sighed deeply at the warning look accompanied by the slow fluttering of his father’s fan.
His mother was a beastman who valued father-son bonding. So, every day, for an hour or two, while she enjoyed her hobby of painting, she would put Eorzen and his father in the same room and make them spend time together.
It had been happening since he was young, but it wasn’t very effective.
His father always treated him more like a rival than a child to shower with love, and if his mother showed him more affection than he deemed appropriate, he would ruthlessly intervene. In Eorzen’s view, the ratio was roughly 1:9. The moment it went beyond that, his father—with the aloof and composed face of a cold, handsome man he showed now—would burst into tears and cling to his mother’s skirt.
So childish, really.
“I promised to go to the lake with Mother this afternoon. I should go alone with her and express my deep gratitude.”
“My wife wouldn’t leave me alone.”
“I plan to ask her to do so as a birthday present.”
“Then I should drink plenty of tea in advance.”
This meant he would hydrate in advance since he would soon be crying. Eorzen looked at his father, who made such remarks with a cold and indifferent expression, with disbelief, and then clicked his tongue.
“Watching you, Father, makes me not want to become an adult.”
The young dragon, not yet a hundred years old, said seriously, looking at his father. His father then scoffed loudly.
“Learn by watching in advance. A handsome man’s tears are a powerful weapon. I’d bet my left eye that when you meet your mate, you’ll end up imitating everything I do.”
“That will never happen.”
“If you truly believe that, would you make a bet?”
At his father’s question, delivered with a smile and his face half-hidden behind his fan, Eorzen closed his mouth. Although he sincerely found his father pathetic now, he didn’t know what would happen when the time came; that was the life of a dragon.
His father looked at Eorzen, who didn’t make promises lightly, with a look of approval.
He didn’t want to declare it an impossible promise, but in any case, it was right not to make any assurances about life after meeting a mate. He had seen countless dragons live completely different lives before and after meeting their mates.
The story he was about to tell was also about such a changed life.
“Anyway, I heard that the red dragon returned with his mate.”
“Yes. I thought it was about time. He held out for quite a while.”
“Held out?”
“Dragons eventually return to this city.”
“Why is that?”
His father closed his fan, sipped his tea, and smiled slyly. Seeing him drink more than usual, it seemed he was really preparing to cry.
“My son, do you know that humans and beastmen are called social animals?”
“Of course. I read it in a book.”
“Foolish dragons forget even after reading it. Our mates are typically social animals. That means they live in societies. They can’t stand living cooped up in a cave, and they enjoy interacting with others. Where would you live with such a being?”
“Aren’t there cities everywhere?”
“But wherever you go, potential rivals abound, so you’ll live a life of constant anxiety.”
“Ah.”
Apart from dragons and those who served them, no one else lived in the dragon lands. Dragons and their mates were excluded as potential rivals, and since those who served the dragons knew their nature, they didn’t engage deeply with their superiors if they valued their lives. Since there had never been a case from the beginning where a dragon’s mate and a servant had a romantic relationship, the dragons also treated them with ease.
On the other hand, countless beastmen and humans lived in outside cities, and since they didn’t know dragons well, they easily approached dragon mates, leaving the dragons’ hearts consumed by jealousy and possessiveness. It is said that when a mate who wants to socialize and a dragon who wants to be alone with their mate meet, the dragon loses, but the spark of jealousy that arises from deep within their heart is unavoidable.
“But when the red dragon left these lands, didn’t he say he would never see the black dragon again?”
“He did.”
“I heard he went to the black dragon’s residence with his mate yesterday.”
“Yes, that’s likely.”
“Why is that?”
A dragon’s stubbornness is said to be tougher than a whale’s tendon, so Eorzen couldn’t understand why he changed his mind. However, his father smiled as if he knew the reason well.
“Who else but his mother would care for his mate here? Now that the red dragon has a mate, he will no longer crave his mother’s affection, so he won’t be an eyesore to the black dragon. It’s natural for interaction between family members to begin.”
“…I can’t believe I’ll have such a mate someday.”
“It’s natural to think that way since you’re still young. You’ll understand when you’re older.”
That deep emotion was said to be understood only after adulthood, so it was simply a mystery to Eorzen. He didn’t entirely disbelieve it because he always saw it happening around him, but no matter how much he thought about it, it felt perplexing.
“Father, when you meet your mate, can you really tell at a glance that they are your mate?”
“You can’t not know. A halo shines, bells ring, the surroundings sparkle, and everything within me turns towards them.”
“I’m curious. Can you lend me your eyes just once?”
“What?”
“Just once. Please?”
Eorzen rarely pleaded, but his father looked reluctant.
“If you show me just once, I’ll go out and train for a year.”
“That’s tempting.”
“Please.”
“Alright, this father will show you just this once, as a special favor.”
If it had been any other dragon, they wouldn’t have allowed their child to do such a thing, even with the condition of leaving and living outside without taking up their mate’s time for a year, so in fact, Eorzen’s father was among the dragons who overflowed with affection for their children. He swept his hand over his eyes and offered what he held in his hand to his son.
“Only for five seconds. Apply this to your eyes and look at your mother. You’ll see the most beautiful being in the world.”
“Yes!”
The opportunity to glimpse how a dragon saw their mate was extremely rare, even for a young dragon. Eorzen clutched what his father had given him preciously and smiled bashfully.
“Now hurry up and go. Hide outside the window or something.”
“What? You’re telling me to leave without saying goodbye to Mother?”
“I’ll explain it to your mother, so just go away.”
When Eorzen hesitated, his father leaned closer as if to snatch what he held in his hand. To protect what he held, Eorzen had no choice but to flee the room.
After waiting outside the window for a while, his mother, finished with her painting, returned to the room. She seemed surprised to see his father alone and asked what had happened. Then his father threw himself into his mother’s arms and clung to her.
“My dear, our son seems too indifferent. It hasn’t been long since he settled down at home, and he’s already talking about going on a training journey?”
“You’re saying my son left without even saying goodbye to me?”
His mother frowned suspiciously, but his father continued his fabrication without changing his expression.
“He’s about to become an adult, so perhaps it’s a rebellious phase.”
“Do dragons have rebellious phases? That sweet child, having a rebellious phase….”
“You know the black dragon’s son, don’t you?”
“Ah, yes. That child was originally well-behaved, but suddenly changed….”
Eorzen’s mother, who came from the East, wore clothes not worn in this region and followed customs unknown here. His father, who was relatively late in finding his mate, would do anything for his mother, and everything his mother was accustomed to soon became the law of the house, extending even to Eorzen. An Eastern-style mansion, Eastern-style meals, an Eastern-style way of life…. How must his mother have appeared in the eyes of his father, who loved her so much that he adapted everything to her?
Eorzen applied what he had received earlier to his eyes, hid behind the window, and looked at his mother.
⋆୨🔮୧⋆
“If I had to describe the sight I saw back then… the Milky Way, the morning star, the sun…. I can’t decide which expression would be most fitting.”
“Did she really look that radiant?”
Siol asked incredulously. If Eorzen hadn’t borrowed his father’s eyes, he wouldn’t have known how dragons perceived their mates. He didn’t have a mate yet, after all.
To his father’s eyes, his mother wasn’t simply beautiful; she was as if she alone shone in the world.
“My father was a bit… dramatic. He met my mother rather late because she was in the far East. He burst into tears in front of her at their first meeting.”
Then, would Eorzen, who hadn’t met his mate for a long time, also burst into tears upon meeting them?
Siol secretly imagined Eorzen crying, but stopped, taken aback because it seemed to suit him surprisingly well. He then fell into a deep sense of self-loathing. How could he make that blue dragon cry in his imagination…!
Seeing Siol freeze, his cheeks flushed red, Eorzen reached out with a worried hand and stroked his cheek.
“Wait, your cheeks are a bit hot…. Are you catching a cold?”
“N-no! It’s just…”
As Siol stammered, unable to confess that it was because of his indecent imagination, Ryufen quickly brought hot water.
“Drink some warm water! We even slept together so you wouldn’t catch a cold at night, and yet!”
“I’m telling you it’s not…. I was just thinking about something else….”
Siol tried to gloss over it, blowing on the hot water to cool it, but Ryufen, oblivious, pressed him.
“Thinking about what else?”
“…Just something else. Ahem. Anyway, Lord Eorzen, you came back very late yesterday, right?”
Eorzen gladly accepted Siol’s efforts to change the subject.
“Yes, when I returned, Ryufen was sleeping on the floor, and you were shivering alone in bed.”
“I usually sleep like the dead, so it’s really strange. Sizool, did you kick me off the bed?”
“No, I don’t have a habit of kicking people next to me either!”
Ryufen still looked suspicious of Siol but didn’t press the matter further.
“Will you be late again today?”
“No, I plan to return as early as possible today. Because you’ll be waiting, Sizool.”
“What? What do you… Ah!”
Remembering the sleep talk he had completely forgotten, Siol blushed at Eorzen’s playful gaze. His face, now crimson to the point of explosion, and his flustered appearance were utterly adorable.
“Th-that’s not it!”
“You weren’t happy that I came back?”
“No! I was, I was happy!”
Seeing Siol shout honestly in response to the questioning, then turn bewildered, Eorzen burst out laughing. Beside him, Ryufen tilted his head, puzzled. He was such a cute child. Just having this adorable child by his side made his heart feel so full and happy, so how much happier would he be when he met his mate?
Eorzen cupped Siol’s cheeks and neck, pulling him closer, and lightly kissed his forehead. Siol seemed to flinch slightly as his fingertips brushed against his neck.
He found the reaction somehow appetizing. Eorzen stroked Siol’s cheek with his thumb and stood up, pleased.
It was time to set off again in search of his mate.