Chapter 36

No, it’s better not to get too excited just yet.

Can Illya’s words really be trusted?

Naya lowered her head, looking at the bulge in her clothes where Illya had crawled inside, raising her clothes high, almost like she was pregnant, like a viviparous human.

“How did you figure it out?”

It seemed like Iris mentioned before that she hadn’t been pregnant for even a month yet.

“I judged based on the type of energy. This is a life-sensing ability that the former Dragon King taught me. As long as it’s something that can be called a life, you can judge and sense its distance or quantity using this method.”

I see. I totally don’t get it.

Better to believe it than not, I suppose. When Iris gets back, I’ll talk to her about it. There’s no way Illya can know something that Iris doesn’t, right?

We’ll see how Iris assesses the situation later.

“You said it’s not just one. There are two? Or more?”

“Two.”

“Oh. Stop listening and come out already.”

“Hehe, it’s so warm inside Mama.”

“Illya!”

Naya lifted her skirt and pulled Illya’s head out.

“Right now, immediately, start studying! You’re driving me crazy.”

[System, find me the full text of the “Tao Te Ching”. I want Illya to copy it a hundred times.]

[Host, Illya won’t understand the “Tao Te Ching”.]

[Then, how about the “Three Character Classic”? Never mind, I can recite it myself.]

“Mama, what’s wrong? Why are you suddenly so angry? Is it because there are two little sisters and you’re not happy?”

Illya looked up at Naya, confused.

Naya stared into Illya’s pure, unblemished eyes and realized that she was overthinking it.

What does Illya even understand? She’s just a child.

For Illya, touching her mother’s belly was probably just something fun to do, or perhaps an expression of her dependence on her mother.

Naya’s anger dissipated instantly.

“No, Mama’s very happy. Illya, are you happy? In a few months, you’ll have two little sisters.”

“Happy! No, not happy. With two sisters, will Mama only care about them from now on?”

Illya suddenly realized a serious problem.

With two more sisters, wouldn’t that make three kids in the family? How could one mother divide herself among three children?

Would she no longer get to hear Mama’s bedtime stories? Would Mama spend all her time during the day with her little sisters while she would be left to play with the maids?

Seeing Illya’s pitiful expression, like a little sun about to cry, Naya smiled gently.

“No, of course not. Whether it’s you, or your unborn sisters, I will treat you all equally. The love I give you won’t be reduced at all.”

“But Mama is only one person.”

“Hmm, then when the time comes, how about you help Mama take care of your little sisters? We can hatch them together, help them take their forms, and you’ll be the first one they call ‘big sister’. Then you and I can tell them stories together. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

“Huh? That sounds fun!”

Being an older sister… it’s not a bad idea.

Illya wagged her tail, starting to look forward to that kind of future.

“But first, you’re going to copy the ‘Three Character Classic‘ once.”

“The ‘Three Character Classic‘? What’s that?”

“I’ll read it, and you’ll write it down.”

“Okay!”

Illya sat on a nearby chair, earnestly grabbing her pen.

“People at birth, are naturally good…”

But as soon as the words left her mouth, Naya felt awkward.

Teaching a child the ‘Three Character Classic’ in another world. Not only that, but her child wasn’t even human, she was a dragon.

And Illya was so well-behaved. Naya couldn’t bring herself to punish her by making her copy it.

Still, some of the lessons in the ‘Three Character Classic‘ might be useful to explain to Illya.

———

Afternoon nap time.

After putting Illya to sleep, Naya sat beside her, gazing at Illya’s peaceful, beautiful sleeping face.

Reluctant to leave her side, but too bored to just watch her sleep, Naya decided to have a chat with the system.

[System, why didn’t you figure out that I’m having twins?]

[I couldn’t analyze that they were twins.]

[Huh? Didn’t you say you could analyze what stage the baby was at?]

[Yes, but I’m not as amazing as Illya. I can’t directly sense life through energy analysis. I don’t understand how that works either.]

[The process of a dragon’s birth is very different from a human’s. You can’t lump the two together. I can’t determine how many lives are hidden within the chaotic energy in your body. I can only vaguely estimate what stage the life form is at based on its shape. I can’t count how many there are. Besides, twins can be either identical or fraternal. If they’re identical, it’s even harder to tell, because who knows how many will split off during the process?]

[You’re pretty useless, huh? Illya, as small as she is, can do something you can’t.]

[Illya isn’t an ordinary dragon. The magic within her is far more abundant than in other dragons. After that dream, she’s grown a little stronger. It seems the Dragon King in her dream really did teach her something, accelerating her progress.]

Having explained the situation, the system then felt the need to respond to Naya’s earlier jab.

[And you? You can’t do anything either! Just look at you now. You have the nerve to mock me? Without me, you’d spend your whole life being Iris’ little wife.]

Spending her whole life as Iris’ little wife? That idea intrigued Naya.

[That… wouldn’t be so bad…]

[…]

Hopeless.

The system now wished it could be rammed by a wild boar.

How did it end up stuck with a host who had fallen so deeply into submission?

Oh, right. It had chosen her itself. Never mind, then.

Even a system that exists beyond three-dimensional space should know better than to expect free lunches. There’s a reason Naya didn’t connect to any other systems.

She’s just too in love with Iris.

Getting someone like her to betray her wife? Not that easy.

[System, I have a question. The previous system… is it really dead?]

Before the system could answer, Naya quickly added,

[Don’t lie to me. Don’t use the previous system, don’t use my guilt to turn me against Iris.]

[Yes, it’s dead. Completely dead. Its death was sensed by the Lord God in the main system space, and the Lord God spread the news of its death to us. This is unheard of. Most systems, when they fail a mission, return to the main system space to find another host to connect to.]

[Do systems know each other?]

[No, systems cannot communicate with one another. Even in the main system space, systems are isolated energy forms, as far as you three-dimensional beings would describe it.]

[Then, why do you exist?]

What is she going on about now? How much more information does she want to extract?

The system had already given Naya plenty of leeway.

[You’re not entitled to know that. I thought you were heartless, but if you feel grateful to the previous system for saving you, then what are your feelings now, facing its killer— Iris? When you’re sharing love with Iris, doesn’t your conscience hurt?]

Naya bit her lip, her hands clenched tightly on her thighs, her white dress fabric wrinkling under the pressure as her fingers dug into her legs.

This is why she didn’t want to bring up the previous system.

She was too afraid.

She was afraid that this matter would cause her to hold a grudge against Iris.

She was afraid that the current system would exploit her guilt and say bad things about Iris, and that in a moment of emotional weakness, she might end up hating Iris because of it.