Chapter 29

However, if the main quest isn’t completed, there would be no way to gain power—in other words, what most people would call a salary.

The Lord God is like the boss, providing the system with a budget to work on a project. If the project is successful, the system receives a share of the rewards.

This budget is what the system uses to guide the hero’s growth and help them overcome crises—essentially, the so-called quest rewards.

Once the initial funds run out, the system has to start covering expenses itself.

If, in the end, the host dies and fails to complete the task, the system not only misses out on project bonuses, but also loses all the resources it invested.

The Lord God also connects multiple systems to the consciousness of the transmigrators or original inhabitants, creating a competitive environment between them.

Only the system tied to the consciousness of the hero who completes the quest will receive the final grand reward.

The Lord God is a true capitalist through and through.

But the rewards for the main quest are so tempting that the system knows it’s a trap but still steps right into it.

Sigh…

Look at Naya—she’s wagging her tail, happily playing a feeding game with Iris. How could she be thinking about becoming a God right now?

Playing house is clearly more appealing than becoming a God!

“All done.”

Naya looked at the empty plate.

The sweet and sour pineapple pie was gone, just like that. Time really flew by.

“There’s more.”

“Huh?”

More? There wasn’t a crumb left on the plate.

Just as Naya was puzzled, Iris leaned over and kissed away the crumbs from the corner of her mouth.

And then…

Iris took the last bit of sweetness from Naya’s lips.

Naya pushed Iris away, blushing like a shy girl. She placed her hands on her lap, nervously gripping the lace of her white skirt.

“Can’t you stop kissing me all the time?”

“Do you not like it?”

“I-it’s not that I don’t like it…”

Naya took a deep breath.

But every time Iris got close, she couldn’t help but think about that.

Even though last night they had already done a lot, just being near Iris made her want to become a piano, letting Iris play her like an instrument, making beautiful music.

Dragon bodies are really strange.

Just a few years ago, she hadn’t been like this!

Back then, her body was still normal, with no worldly desires to speak of.

Could it be that Iris had actually done something to modify her body?

But Naya was too embarrassed to ask.

After all, what if Iris hadn’t done anything? Then wouldn’t that mean Naya was just naturally someone who always wanted to play the part of a willing partner?

Yes, exactly!

As long as I don’t ask, I can just believe that Iris modified me, and I won’t have to think that I’m simply a pillow princess. Sometimes I’m just like this because of those modifications. It’s not my fault.

“Iris, where are you planning to travel?”

“I’ve gathered some intelligence recently and have a few places where heroes might go treasure hunting. Wherever they go, we’ll go too. Once they find the treasure, we’ll just take it from them.”

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong? Don’t like the idea, given that you used to be human?”

“No, I think I understand now why humans hate you.”

Iris’s expression grew serious as she explained to Naya.

“The root of racial hatred is difficult to trace back. Ultimately, the heroes’ goal is to kill me. This land is filled with abundant leyline energy, and over hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years, places rich in this energy will form treasures. Some are hidden in dangerous places, others deep in mountains or at the bottom of the sea. With these treasures, humans gain the means to exceed their limits. I have to prevent this, or else the number of dragons will continue to dwindle until, one day, humans wipe us out entirely.”

Naya swallowed nervously.

The dragon race had a notoriously low birth rate. Historical records showed that they once dominated this land in every corner, but now they were confined to a single empire, banding together for survival and a tiny measure of peace.

It was all because the dragon birthrate was far below their death rate. They simply couldn’t afford to die anymore.

Meanwhile, humans—these little monkeys—seemed indestructible. Though a dragon could easily crush one, their overwhelming reproductive ability meant that the human race kept growing in number over time.

Now, humans were the most populous race on the land.

“Can you understand my burden, Naya? I’m not trying to slaughter your kind—I’m just forced into this. As a Dragon King, if I don’t think about the future of our race, who knows, in a hundred or a thousand years, the Dragon Empire might cease to exist.”

“Hmm…”

Naya nodded.

Iris had just referred to humans as Naya’s kind. Naya looked at Iris with a complex expression.

“Iris, do you think I’m human?”

Iris hesitated for a moment, then her eyes filled with a trace of helplessness.

“I hope you’re not. But what do you think deep down? I worry that calling you a dragon will offend you.”

Naya lowered her head.

Had she stayed amnesiac, she would have always thought of herself as a dragon.

But now that her memories had returned, she couldn’t shake that damned sense of identification with humanity.

“It’s okay. You don’t need to force yourself to choose between being human or dragon. It’s just a difference in perspective.”

Iris stood up and extended her hand to Naya, a soft smile on her lips.

“Shall we go to the garden and look at the flowers?”

“Mmm.”

Naya placed her hand in Iris’s.

Together, they walked to the garden behind the castle. A vast sea of flowers stretched out before them, the scent of blossoms filling the air, the vibrant colors pleasing to the eye. The tension caused by their earlier conversation eased, allowing Naya’s heart to relax for a moment.

She hated thinking about things like racial hatred and the future of nations.

Why couldn’t they just stop fighting?

Why did Iris have to be the Dragon King?

Iris wrapped her arms around Naya from behind, whispering in her ear.

“Our home is so beautiful, don’t you think?”

“Mmm.”

Naya didn’t want to leave anymore.

Hearing Iris speak of the cruel world outside, Naya resisted facing reality.

Iris gently caressed Naya’s abdomen, where a miraculous life was stirring.

Resting her chin on Naya’s shoulder, Iris closed her eyes, savoring this precious moment of peace.

Why had she instinctively called Naya human earlier?

It was because, though Naya looked like a dragon now, she retained the strong fertility of humans. The child in her belly was proof of that—when Naya wanted to conceive, she succeeded.

That was something that might take other dragons years or even decades, if it happened at all.

This was why humans often referred to dragons with a derogatory nickname—”lustful dragons.” It was just another label humans had attached to dragons, painting them as inherently evil.

But really, dragons just wanted to survive.

Feeling the warmth from her belly, Naya remembered that she was pregnant. She tilted her head slightly, nuzzling Iris’s cheek.

“By the way, we still haven’t told Illya that she’s going to have a little sister soon. Do you think we should tell her now, or wait a little longer?”

“It’s up to you. Whenever you feel ready to tell her.”

Naya placed her hand over Iris’s, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Maybe tonight, during storytime, they’d finally tell Illya the news.