Volume 6 Chapter 28

Volume 6 + Chapter 28: An Unforgettable Birthday

Inside the Dragon Clan’s royal palace, the magnificent and resplendent hall was brightly lit. Many people had gathered together to celebrate the Silver Dragon Princess’s birthday, creating a very lively atmosphere.

“Today is Princess Xia Yi’s birthday.”

“Indeed. The princess is truly remarkable, far too accomplished for her age. At her age, my own child is still playing ball with the other kids.”

“Not only did the princess end the anti-vampire war, but she also helped the Fox Clan’s royal family restore their kingdom. Through several maneuvers, she facilitated the proposal of the Central Alliance. It’s truly admirable.”

The guests were exchanging words with one another.

Their speech revealed no attempt to hide their admiration for Xia Yi.

Xia Yi had opened a brand-new chapter for the future of the Dragon Clan.

“Princess, you’re very popular indeed,” Serra said with a smile. “This is everyone’s genuine recognition of you.”

“Mm…”

Xia Yi replied vaguely.

Her attention was focused on the clock, calculating the time.

“Princess, it’s time for you to appear.”

“Alright.” Xia Yi nodded.

“Let us welcome the absolute star of today’s event, the future heir to the Dragon Clan’s royal family, the Silver Dragon Princess, Xia Yi Christie!!”

The master of ceremonies announced Xia Yi’s name in a loud voice.

Everyone inside the hall stood up, casting expectant glances in the same direction, followed by thunderous applause.

Xia Yi appeared before the crowd’s watchful eyes. She displayed perfect royal etiquette, walking step by step in front of everyone with impeccable poise and an elegant bearing.

“Princess, happy birthday to you!!”

Led by the master of ceremonies, everyone offered Xia Yi warm birthday wishes.

“Thank you very much, dear guests, for coming. Today is my birthday, and at this birthday banquet, there are some things I’ve actually been wanting to find an opportunity to share with all of you, “

Xia Yi entered her “performing” state and began a brief speech.

As for the content of the speech, it was all written by Karami.

The speech revolved mostly around how the Dragon Clan would pursue hegemony in the future, primarily aimed at instilling confidence in the Dragon Clan.

The ambitious speech clearly won the considerable favor of the Dragon Clan present, invisibly elevating Xia Yi’s prestige once again.

“In the future, the presence of our Dragon Clan will be seen everywhere across this land. This is an irresistible tide of the times, the great ambition of our ancestors, and the establishment of the Central Alliance will turn future visions into reality…”

While reciting the speech from memory, Xia Yi observed the clock from the corner of her eye.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Click!

Suddenly, all the lights in the hall went out, and darkness rapidly enveloped the space.

“What’s happening? Why have the lights gone out?”

The master of ceremonies was very nervous.

“I’m terribly sorry, Princess. We will send someone to investigate immediately!!”

However, as soon as the master of ceremonies finished speaking, an even greater upheaval occurred.

The hall shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck. The spreading shockwaves caused the entire Dragon Clan royal palace to lose its light, dimming everything around.

It was as if a mysterious giant beast sleeping deep underground had awakened, with deafening roars continuously rising from below.

Everyone sensed a terrifying energy gathering.

“Oh no! Something’s happened, something terrible has happened!!”

“Is someone attacking the Dragon Clan royal palace?”

“Run! Don’t stay here!!”

The Dragon Clan fell into a panic and began fleeing outside.

“Princess, this place has become very dangerous. Please leave with us immediately!!”

Karami, down below, anxiously rushed forward, wanting to take Xia Yi with him.

But he couldn’t find Xia Yi.

“Oh no! The princess has disappeared!!!”

…

…

“Heh heh heh, hahahaha!!”

Xia Yi hid in a deserted corner, watching the Dragon Clan royal palace descend into chaos and the Dragon Clan members running about frantically, letting out a villainous laugh.

The magic source supply center had been taken over by the magic circle she had set up, cutting off the normal magic supply.

Not only had the Dragon Clan royal palace lost its lighting system, but the alarm notification system had also ceased to function.

She controlled the magic source supply center, directing different attributes and types of magic to various parts of the Dragon Clan royal palace. At pre-set exit points, magical energy erupted like volcanic explosions.

Different areas emitted different colors of light, flashing at a consistent frequency, as if an enraged beast beneath the earth was breathing angrily.

The air was already filled with unstable magic.

The Dragon Clan members didn’t dare transform into their true draconic forms and fly into the sky, afraid of being caught up in it. They could only search for escape routes on the ground.

If Xia Yi wanted to, she could easily take the released energy, detonate it, and blow the entire Dragon Clan royal palace sky-high!

“Hello, hello, Lord Glutinous Rice Cake, do you copy? Please respond!”

Xia Yi’s magic communication device rang.

It was Elly initiating the communication.

“Cabbage, this is Glutinous Rice Cake. Initiate the fuses now.”

“Lord Glutinous Rice Cake, do you really want to do this? It might blow the entire Dragon Clan royal palace sky-high…”

“No nonsense. Obey my command! Cabbage, execute immediately!”

“…Understood!!”

Elly’s tearful voice came through the communication device.

Following Xia Yi’s instructions, she had been hiding in a certain area of the Dragon Clan royal palace, making various preparations.

Now, she could only comply with Xia Yi’s orders, gradually activating the different fuses according to the predetermined steps.

“Xia Yi, what are you doing?” Heart Demon Xia Yi chose to appear at this moment.

“I, I… am destroying the Dragon Clan royal palace!”

Xia Yi quickly turned her face away, avoiding her heart demon’s gaze.

“I’m very busy right now. I don’t have time for idle chatter. Go wait over there!”

“…Oh.” Heart Demon Xia Yi was surprisingly obedient this time and simply stood by to observe.

The lights overlapped one another, covering the sky above the Dragon Clan royal palace like a suspended, colorful lake of light.

After the fuses were activated, many points of light appeared from various corners of the Dragon Clan royal palace and rose into the sky.

The moment they touched the lake of light, ripples spread across it, simultaneously dyeing it with brilliant colors. It was like a gas station for energy, causing their upward speed to suddenly increase.

Each point of light trailed a magnificent wake, turning into reverse-flying meteors that soared to heights ordinary fireworks could never reach, blooming at the end of the sky.

The light they released could be seen from very, very far away from the northern imperial capital.

“What is that?”

“Is it fireworks? It seems to be coming from the northern imperial capital!”

“Incredible. We can see it even though we’re so far from the northern imperial capital? Can anyone tell what that pattern means?”

In the northern reaches of the Dragon Kingdom, many Dragon Clan members witnessed this astonishing sight.

“…”

Xia Yi gazed into the distant sky, the colorful fireworks reflected in her silver eyes.

“Xia Yi, weren’t you going to blow up the Dragon Clan royal palace?” Heart Demon Xia Yi asked.

“Ahem, I’ll blow it up soon. I’ll blow it up soon!”

“Those are fireworks, aren’t they?”

“…”

“What do the patterns in the fireworks mean?”

“They are… a criminal warning. A warning that I’m about to destroy the Dragon Clan royal palace. When Xia Lulu sees it, she’ll definitely regret it!” Xia Yi said guiltily.

In truth, that was a lie.

The images formed by the light were in Ancient Dragon Script.

There were not many people in the entire Dragon Kingdom who could understand Ancient Dragon Script. Xia Lulu was one of them.

With all this fuss, Xia Yi simply wanted to convey one message to Xia Lulu, who had gone away for work…

I want to be with you forever.

These past few days, she had been throwing a tantrum, wanting Xia Lulu to stay in the Dragon Clan royal palace.

But work was work. Xia Lulu was the Dragon King. Xia Yi couldn’t expect Xia Lulu to accommodate her in everything. She couldn’t be too willful…

Even while sulking, Xia Yi understood these things.

Xia Lulu should be able to see it, right?

“Princess… sob, sob, sob…”

Xia Yi heard a familiar voice.

This was…

Cabbage!

She turned around and saw Elly, tied up hand and foot, tears streaming down her face, being carried in Lucia’s hand.

Lucia looked at her with a rather helpless expression.

Oh no, Elly had been caught, and everything was exposed!

“Sob, sob, sob… Princess, I’m sorry… Sister Lucia still caught me…” Elly cried out.

“So it really was your doing, Princess.”

Lucia pressed a hand to her forehead.

“I kept feeling that something wasn’t right, so I went to find Elly… and sure enough, all this time, she’s been helping you cause trouble.”

“Damn it, so I’ve been found out after all?!”

Xia Yi took several steps back, assuming a combat stance.

She had a premonition that Lucia was about to capture her.

“I’m not going to surrender without a fight, Lucia! Now that things have come to this, don’t think you can make me stop!!”

“Princess, your words sound very much like those of a cornered criminal.”

Lucia dropped Elly to the ground, freeing up her hands.

So she really was going to make a move after all!

Xia Yi considered how to face the enemy next.

Among those in the Dragon Clan royal palace, Lucia was among the very best in terms of strength. Instantly defeating her was unlikely.

If they started fighting here, it would attract the attention of the guards in the Dragon Clan royal palace.

That would put her in an even more disadvantageous situation.

The best option now would be to retreat, one of the Thirty-Six Stratagems?

“In that case…”

Xia Yi was secretly surveying her escape route. Her plan was to launch a feint attack, make Lucia think she wanted to fight, and then seize the opportunity to flee.

Yeah, that should work.

Just as she was about to engage, Lucia did something completely unexpected.

“Huh? Sister Lucia, what’s going on?!”

The ropes binding Elly came loose, Lucia had untied her.

“Lucia, aren’t you… here to stop me?” Xia Yi asked curiously.

“…Princess, someone is waiting for you in the back garden of the Dragon Clan royal palace,” Lucia replied quietly.

“…”

Xia Yi was stunned for a moment, but only one possibility came to mind.

Without even needing to confirm with Lucia, she started running toward the back garden of the Dragon Clan royal palace.

…

Xia Yi ran without stopping for a moment, finally arriving in front of the back garden.

With an anxious heart, she entered the entrance and saw light shining in the dark garden.

She followed the source of the light and found a silver dragon girl who looked almost identical to her, surrounded by small animals, seemingly waiting for her arrival.

And the light came from… candles.

“Xia Yi.”

Xia Lulu cheerfully called her daughter’s name.

“Xia Lulu? Didn’t you already leave the Dragon Clan royal palace? Why are you here?”

Xia Yi was astonished.

“That was a lie,” Xia Lulu said. “I wanted to give you a surprise, so I delayed my inspection tour of the various provinces by a few days.”

“That’s… so mean of you. You didn’t even tell me.” Xia Yi murmured.

“Squeak~!”

“Meow, meow!”

“Woof, woof!”

The small animals in the garden all ran out from Xia Lulu’s side and gathered around Xia Yi. A little hamster even climbed onto her head.

The little animals were all celebrating Xia Yi’s birthday.

“Xia Yi, happy birthday.”

Xia Lulu lifted the cake from the table and walked step by step to Xia Yi.

The soft glow of the candles illuminated Xia Yi’s face and Xia Lulu’s gentle smile.

Looking at the birthday cake before her, Xia Yi’s eyes unconsciously grew moist.

“Xia Yi, are you crying?”

Xia Lulu seemed to treat Xia Yi’s tears as a source of joy, her smile growing even brighter.

“I, I’m not… crying. I just got some sand in my eyes. They’re itchy!”

Xia Yi wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, though it didn’t seem to help much.

“This cake was made by my own hands,” Xia Lulu said. “I put a bit of thought into making it to your taste.”

“Xia Lulu, you actually…?!” Xia Yi found this incredibly hard to believe.

“After all, you made a cake for me with your own hands last time. And besides, I promised to celebrate your birthday with you.”

“Ugh…”

Xia Yi lowered her head.

She was a little embarrassed. This time, she couldn’t even put up a tough front, and her big silver tail was swishing restlessly behind her.

“I saw the Ancient Dragon Script, too.”

“I, I… ugh…”

Xia Yi’s cheeks grew hotter and hotter.

Although she did want to convey those feelings to Xia Lulu, having Xia Lulu say it directly to her face was still a bit embarrassing.

“I am very happy. Having had you by my side all this time has been the happiest thing in my life,” Xia Lulu expressed from her heart.

This surprised Xia Yi greatly. So this was truly how Xia Lulu felt!!

Despite herself, Xia Yi smiled. From a human sword saint to a silver dragon princess, it was the first time she had ever experienced such warm happiness.

“Make a wish, Xia Yi. Today is your birthday, after all,” Xia Lulu said.

“Mm!”

Xia Yi nodded, closed her eyes, and pressed her palms together.

She knew that when making a wish in front of a birthday cake, you couldn’t say it out loud, otherwise, it wouldn’t come true.

But this time was different. She would tell Xia Lulu.

Because Xia Yi’s wish had already come true.

Just as the Ancient Dragon Script said, from this day forward, she would always be with Xia Lulu, 

Pop.

Xia Yi heard an abrupt sound. Confused, she opened her eyes. What she saw made her freeze.

The birthday cake had fallen to the ground. Candles had rolled everywhere. And Xia Lulu, for some reason, was lying on the cold floor, her eyes closed…

“Xia Lulu?”

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