Volume 4 Chapter 5

Volume 4 + Chapter 5: A Simple Reason

“Daughter, just now you said… you missed me?” After hearing Xia Yi’s voice, Xia Lulu asked with curiosity.

“Uh… mm… well…”

For once, Xia Yi did not immediately snap back. Her cheeks flushed red, which practically counted as an admission.

“You still—honestly, daughter, you really are all mouth and no heart.” Xia Lulu teased.

“I–I… it’s not like it was only for you! I was thinking of the others too!” Xia Yi protested. “Like Fat Cat, and Little Mousie, and Serra, Elly… everyone! I missed all of them, not just you!”

“All right, all right.”

Xia Lulu patted her daughter’s head and rubbed her silly ahoge.

“C-cursed nemesis, resorting to a head-pat tactic to corrupt my steadfast will—h-hah! I won’t fall for that!”

But the little silver dragon’s big tail behind her swayed left and right, clearly enjoying it a great deal, even leaning forward on her own.

“Come along, daughter,” Xia Lulu said. “You should have something to report.”

“Mm.”

Xia Yi nodded and followed beside Xia Lulu.

Just after leaving the rear garden of the Dragon Palace, Xia Yi spotted Lucia standing by the entrance.

“Lucia!” Xia Yi exclaimed in surprise. “Why did you suddenly disappear earlier? I looked everywhere for you, but couldn’t find you anywhere!”

Lucia opened her mouth to answer, but Xia Lulu’s eyes narrowed.

Feeling the Silver Dragon Queen’s gaze, Lucia lowered her head.

“Your Highness, I sincerely apologize for troubling you. I happened to have an urgent matter to handle, so I stepped away.”

“I see!” Xia Yi grumbled. “Lucia, since when did your acting skills get so good? You actually teamed up with Xia Lulu to prank me—you really scared me… no, no! I mean you almost fooled me! Good thing I noticed in time and didn’t fall for it!”

Lucia’s expression grew complicated, a deep worry flickering in her eyes. “Your Majesty… do you need to rest?”

“No need. I know my limits, Lucia. I want to spend more time with my daughter.”

Xia Lulu refused.

“Go call everyone back. We’ll hold a welcome banquet for Xia Yi.”

“…As you command.”

Receiving the order, Lucia withdrew with heavy thoughts.

Xia Yi found it a bit strange. She could tell Xia Lulu and Lucia were exchanging a meaning between the lines.

It sounded like they were saying things only the two of them understood…

So annoying!

“Xia Lulu, what did Lucia mean by rest?”

“Nothing. She’s just worried about my health—thinks I’ve overworked myself…”

“Overworked? How? You haven’t even been at the Dragon Palace these last few days! All the paperwork in your office is untouched and piling up.”

Xia Lulu only smiled without giving a direct answer. “True. When I have time, I’ll deal with it.”

“Why haven’t I seen the Royal Maid Corps around the palace recently?”

“I gave them a holiday,” Xia Lulu explained. “After all, the biggest troublemaker in the Dragon Palace was away for a while, so everyone suddenly wasn’t busy. I took the chance to let them rest before their unused vacation days piled up.”

“I… I am not a troublemaker! A little mischief doesn’t count!”

“Mm-hmm, of course, you’re the most well-behaved princess in dragon history.”

“That’s obvious—I am the most well-behaved—No! That’s temporary! Deep down I remember clearly, you are my mortal enemy! One day I’ll surpass you again! Wherever I fall, that’s where I’ll rise! That is the unyielding spirit of a Holy Sword wielder!”

Xia Yi nodded firmly.

Yes, yes—exactly so.

As long as she never forgets these things, it means her heart hasn’t changed.

Today, I still haven’t fallen!

…

Inside Xia Lulu’s office.

Lucia was currently gathering the Royal Maid Corps back to the Dragon Palace and preparing Xia Yi’s welcome banquet.

During this time, of course Xia Yi had to properly report the completion status of her mission.

“Heh heh heh!”

Hugging her little rice-cake plush, Xia Yi lifted her chin proudly.

“Xia Lulu, I’ve finished every task you gave me!”

“Oh?” Xia Lulu sounded surprised. “Daughter, have you really completed it?”

“Words alone aren’t as convincing as real proof.”

Xia Yi took out the Golden Key of the Human King Armor.

Seeing it, Xia Lulu looked truly pleased. “The Human King Armor—you obtained it?”

“Of course. The enemy was troublesome, but I still defeated them and secured the Human King Armor.”

“And when you used it, did it fit well?”

“I like it a lot.”

When Xia Yi wore the Human King Armor, she really did feel as though she had returned to her days as the Human Sword Saint.

That period of her life was unforgettable.

Wandering the world—not to become a hero, but simply to temper her swordsmanship, and along the way help those in danger, gradually earning the recognition of the Holy Sword…

“The Human King Armor suits me so well. Did you intend it for me from the beginning?”

“Back then, I sent Lucia to Laurel Academy to investigate ancient human history from the Mythic Era. By chance, she found the Human King Armor there,” Xia Lulu explained. “Dragons can’t use the armor—its user must be human. So I went to a certain shut-in girl and asked her to hack the armor’s recognition system. That way, once you use it, you can forcibly activate one hour of permission.”

Xia Yi was stunned. To hack something on the level of the Human King Armor—how skilled must that person be?

A shut-in girl…?

Did she mean Dorothea, the supposedly extinct golden dragon hermit living in Purple Iris Valley?

“You saw that part of history too?” Xia Lulu asked.

“I did. The Human King was defeated after the Dragon King used a scheme, captured, imprisoned, and eventually died… That’s the history recorded by Little World Tree.”

“Yes,” Xia Lulu nodded. “In the Mythic Era, our dragon race was the strongest. But in truth, the most dangerous race was humanity. We had no choice but to eliminate that dangerous competitor through… unique methods.”

“Why?” Xia Yi asked, deeply curious.

Even in the Mythic Era, humans were powerful enough to make the highest race—the dragons—fear them?

Xia Lulu said, “Well, the reason is actually very simple…”

Then she gave an answer that completely surprised Xia Yi—yet made perfect sense.