Volume 6 Chapter 30

Volume 6 + Chapter 30: Her Time

Xia Yi felt as if her soul had separated from her body.

She couldn’t see anyone else, she simply walked to Xia Lulu’s side.

Xia Lulu lay on the bed, her eyes closed, a look of pain on her face, as if trapped in a nightmare from which she could not wake.

“Xia Lulu…”

Xia Yi softly called Xia Lulu’s name.

She extended her hand and took Xia Lulu’s hand.

Unlike before, she felt no warmth. Her skin seemed covered in frost.

So cold.

“Royal Physician, you say you cannot save her. Why?”

Lucia, upon hearing the royal physician’s answer, lost her usual composure, her emotions nearly spiraling out of control.

“Why is Her Majesty the Queen in mortal danger? Didn’t her body collapse from overwork?”

“If it were merely overwork, then proper rest and recuperation would suffice. If possible, that is what I would hope for as well.”

The royal physician’s brows were tightly furrowed as she explained to the others.

“I do not know whether this qualifies as an illness. I have yet to see any disease similar to Her Majesty’s condition… Her body reached its limit a very long time ago.”

“What do you mean? It’s not an illness?” Lucia grew increasingly perplexed.

“Allow me to use a simple analogy. Among all the races in this world, whether it is us dragons with our powerful physiques or frail wild beasts, the load that a body can bear has a limit. Once that limit is reached, it needs to stop and rest. For example, even we cannot fly indefinitely without landing. A rabbit cannot run forever.”

“That is obvious.”

“Her Majesty’s condition is such that her body’s endurance has reached its breaking point. Yet she did not stop to rest. Instead, she continued to drive her body with an intensity that ordinary people cannot comprehend. This did not happen overnight, it has lasted for hundreds, perhaps even a thousand years.”

“This…”

“Under such circumstances, the body will inevitably shut down. That is akin to the body’s self-protection mechanism. Sometime in the past few years, this must have happened to Her Majesty at least once… However, Her Majesty used some means to override that self-protection mechanism and forcibly continued to drive her body. Ultimately, the accumulated damage became irreparable.”

“That Her Majesty has survived until now can already be called a miracle. Anyone else would have died countless times over. But she is, after all, not a god. She is not immortal… I am very sorry. This is beyond the ability of my medical skills to resolve.”

The royal physician bowed her head deeply.

The words had been spoken. Now everyone understood what kind of suffering had been carried behind Xia Lulu’s invincibility.

A tyrant who ruled the Dragon Kingdom through absolute strength, who kept power firmly in her grasp, facing the desires that stirred in the shadows, knowing full well it was self-destruction, yet still unwilling to let go of her power.

But…

Was that truly the case?

“Her Majesty…”

Lucia looked at Xia Lulu with sorrow.

Having followed the Silver Dragon Queen for many years, she knew in her heart that while Xia Lulu might once have acted to hold onto power, now she was surely doing it to protect Xia Yi.

No one needed power more than Xia Lulu.

Without strength, who would provide shelter for her young daughter?

Consider Raymond, the governor of Loran Province. Even knowing how powerful Xia Lulu was, he still raised a rebellion.

If Xia Lulu’s strength had been insufficient to suppress that rebellion, the flames of war would have reached the northern imperial capital, and Xia Yi could not possibly have remained safe.

On the grassland, if an aging lion king cannot fend off other challengers, his fate is grim.

If this is true for lions, how much more so for the Dragon Clan?

The Dragon Clan, after all, differs from other higher races. They put more faith in power, they have never relied on virtue to win respect.

If Xia Lulu showed even a hint of weakness, other challengers would bare their ambitious claws and would surely drag her down from the throne, taking everything from her.

“Is there truly no way at all?” Serra asked the royal physician, unwilling to give up. “If Her Majesty falls, what will become of the Princess?”

“I am sorry.”

The only answer the royal physician could give was those three words.

This royal physician’s qualifications and skill were already beyond what any other doctor could match. Other physicians probably could not even deduce the cause of Xia Lulu’s illness.

If even she spoke this way, then it was effectively a verdict of Xia Lulu’s.

Everyone understood it in their hearts.

But no one wanted to speak that sentence in front of the little princess.

For Xia Yi, it would be far too cruel.

Although she always liked to make excuses with her words, her feelings for Xia Lulu were something the entire Dragon Clan royal palace had witnessed.

“Royal Physician,” Xia Yi suddenly said.

Everyone’s attention turned to Xia Yi.

“Princess, please speak.”

“How much longer can Xia Lulu hold on?” Xia Yi asked the question nonetheless.

“Her Majesty… may still have some time…” The royal physician’s words were very hesitant.

“I want the truth.”

“…One week. After seven days, Her Majesty will leave this world. In a worse-case scenario… perhaps only five days…”

“…”

Xia Yi fell silent.

She became unusually quiet, so much so that even Serra felt unsettled.

If this were the usual Xia Yi, she would surely have wailed and thrown a tantrum, unreasonably demanding that everyone must save Xia Lulu, or else she would blow up the Dragon Clan royal palace.

But…

She did not do that.

“I’m back. The chaos outside has mostly been stabilized by the head guard.”

Atiya had returned and was reporting the situation.

She observed the extremely heavy atmosphere in the room and sensed that something was wrong. Wisely, she refrained from making any odd remarks.

“The head guard would like to see Her Majesty…”

“Atiya, leave this matter to us. Let’s go. Let’s not disturb the Princess.” Serra took the initiative to lead everyone else out of the room.

The door closed, leaving Xia Yi and Xia Lulu alone together.

“Xia Lulu…”

Looking at Xia Lulu’s face, Xia Yi’s tears broke free. Tears blurred her vision.

She tightly grasped Xia Lulu’s hand, feeling as if a hole had opened in her heart, blood flowing ceaselessly.

“Xia Lulu, are you unwilling to wake up?”

“There’s still one week left. Maybe only five days… Could you wake up, just for a little while, and talk with me…”

“I’m really angry, you know. Why are you even more willful than I am?”

“Your body clearly couldn’t take it anymore, yet you still forced yourself to carry on…”

“I don’t want you to leave.”

“There are so many things I haven’t told you yet. For example, the wish I made in front of the birthday cake.”

“I want to be with you forever.”

“Mother…”

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