Volume 4 Chapter 114

Volume 4 + Chapter 114: The Temptation of Soup Dumplings

Dragon Kingdom, Dragon Clan Imperial Palace, Xia Yi’s room.

“Your Highness?”

“……”

“Your Highness, have you already awakened?”

The red dragon maid—an older sister type—called out toward the bed.

At this moment, the silver dragon loli was curled into a tight ball beneath the blankets, hiding away, with only a long tail exposed outside.

Upon hearing Serra’s voice, the lump under the blanket clearly stirred.

“Your Highness, since you’re awake, you should wash up, get out of bed, and go have breakfast.”

“No!” Xia Yi shouted in resistance.

“Your Highness, do you simply not want to get up?”

Serra blinked.

It was already close to the time when the sun would be shining right on one’s backside, if she delayed any longer, it would practically be noon.

“No, no!”

Xia Yi’s voice sounded like she was throwing a tantrum—unreasonably aggrieved.

“Your Highness, are you really not coming out? Today’s breakfast includes something specially prepared for you.”

“No matter what it is, it won’t sway me! I absolutely will not leave my bed, even if the heavens collapse and the earth shatters!”

“What if it’s Xiaolongbao?”

“Xiaolongbao?!”

The moment Xia Yi heard those three words, she immediately poked her head out from under the blanket, her face filled with delight.

“Your Highness, it’s true. It seems to be a delicacy from the human world. I was fortunate enough to obtain a recipe for Xiaolongbao from a traveling merchant at the market recently, so I tried making a batch. The others all rated it quite highly,” Serra explained. “And it’s not just ordinary Xiaolongbao—it’s soup-filled Xiaolongbao.”

“Yay!”

Xia Yi jumped up at once, about to fling the blanket aside.

But she quickly realized something, stiffened her cute little face, and shrank back again.

“No! I—no matter what—I just don’t want to go out!”

“You’re not eating breakfast, then?”

“I’ll eat. But Serra, you have to bring breakfast to my room. I’m not going out to see anyone.”

Serra frowned.

During this period, Xia Yi had been hiding in her room, unwilling to see anyone at all.

No matter the circumstances, she refused to step outside even half a step, always having Serra bring the food in.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?”

“It’s because… because…”

At this point, Xia Yi’s voice grew increasingly aggrieved.

“It’s too embarrassing, way too embarrassing! The fact that I acted spoiled with Xia Lulu—everyone in the Dragon Clan imperial palace knows about it! They all think I really, really like Xia Lulu!”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“All my dignity is gone! Everyone treats me like a mascot now!!”

Xia Yi hugged her blanket and began rolling around on the bed, rolling as she kicked her legs wildly in midair.

This appearance…

Though a bit improper, Serra felt that the word “dignity” truly had nothing to do with the adorable silver dragon loli before her.

“Ah!! Serra, you laughed!!”

Xia Yi pointed at Serra, biting her lip.

“You were laughing at me just now—you must be thinking the same as everyone else!!”

“Not at all, Your Highness. I smiled because I believe you’re worrying far too much,” Serra replied calmly, her expression unchanged.

“Serra… you also see me as the Dragon Clan’s… mascot, don’t you?”

“How could that be, Your Highness? If we look at your age, your current achievements surpass those of every Dragon King in history. It’s no exaggeration to say that even Her Majesty the Queen had not achieved such outstanding feats at your age.”

“Whether it was thwarting the fox clan’s scheme to invade a vassal state, purging the newly risen southern nobles, or suppressing the rebellion in the far north—”

“Across the entire history of the Dragon Clan, even the most exceptional Dragon Kings would need decades to accomplish what you have. Yet you achieved all this in less than six years. Isn’t that proof enough of your excellence?”

“Th-this… Serra, do you really think I’m that amazing?”

“Of course. In my heart, you are the embodiment of dignity itself. I have always seen you this way. Every movement you make exudes an imperial dominance, along with a touch of… appropriate childishness. It is precisely this balance that gives you a temperament entirely different from Her Majesty the Queen.”

“Hehe~ I knew it! How could I possibly be a mascot in Serra’s eyes!”

Xia Yi was overjoyed by Serra’s praise, completely failing to notice that something about it was slightly off.

“Your Highness, it’s simply that your growth has been too rapid, leaving everyone momentarily unable to adjust. Once they realized it, all that remained was boundless admiration and reverence for you.”

“Mhm, that makes sense!”

Xia Yi nodded, agreeing with Serra’s explanation.

Thinking it over carefully, after Serra’s guidance, she felt far less resistant inside.

She couldn’t keep staying in her room forever, after all.

She stood up and planted her hands on her hips.

“Alright then, Serra. Help me wash up and get dressed—I’m going to taste the soup-filled Xiaolongbao you made for me!”

“As you command, Your Highness,” Serra replied with a smile.

……

“Serra really is a genius—the flavor of these soup-filled Xiaolongbao is so authentic.”

After finishing breakfast, Xia Yi couldn’t help but sigh with admiration.

The taste was quite similar to what she had eaten in the human world, though Serra had made new adjustments based on dragon dietary habits.

“Ahh~ I’m full. Why do I suddenly feel a bit sleepy?”

Xia Yi leaned back in her dining chair and yawned.

She kind of wanted to go back and take another nap…

No, no, no!

I’m a steadfast and unyielding Sword Saint—how can I be so decadent?

I can’t keep living such a lazy life. I have to train my swordsmanship and grow stronger. Otherwise, how will I ever surpass Xia Lulu?!

“But that said, the most important thing right now is…”

Xia Yi took out something she carried with her.

“Miu Miu, hold on a little longer. When the time comes, I’ll find a way to reclaim your body.”

This was the seed Miu Miu had given her.

This seed now carried Miu Miu’s soul and was the only way to save her.

After whispering a few quiet words to the seed, Xia Yi put it away again.

What she needed to do now was wait—wait for the subsequent changes in the Crimson Empire.

“I wonder how Joshua is doing over there…”

Just as she murmured to herself, the dining hall door was pushed open. The person outside was Atiya.

“Your Highness—this is bad, really bad, something terrible has happened! Please take a look!”

Atiya shouted as she rushed in, arms full of items, which she placed in front of Xia Yi.

They appeared to be intelligence reports, and on the very top lay a letter.

“What is this?”

Xia Yi was puzzled. She opened the envelope, and upon reading its contents, her expression turned to shock.

“…I’m not seeing things, am I?!”