Chapter 50

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Chapter 50

The fledgling dragon, who was now known as Blanc, was left alone in the room. There, he recalled the time he broke through the egg that encased him—when he was born.

He wasn’t the only one who had gotten hatched. There were colorful hatchlings who broke through their own eggs as well, and they chattered about in excited voices.

“I’m going to fly around the world.”

“I’m going to travel through dimensions.”

Everything to him was strange. He looked around while his mind was blank, then he felt a gaze boring into him. As he raised his head, Blanc found a huge black dragon staring down at him.

The dragon was observing Blanc and the other hatchlings. Her eyes, which showed no affection, even felt goosebump-inducing.

“I have one piece of advice for you.”

What a cold voooice… was what Blanc thought.

“Do not be too obsessed with life. Not to the point that you’ll give up something for it.”

The black dragon spread her wings.

“That is how you can survive.”

Then, the dragon murmured.

“I don’t know if even one of you will survive.”

After saying this, the black dragon disappeared in an instant, leaving behind the newly hatched fledgling dragons.

The advice that the black dragon left behind was the first and last conversation Blanc had with his mother. That was the only thing Blanc knew, as he knew nothing about the world.

Blanc headed these words faithfully. Rather than obsessing over life, he already decided to prepare for his death in advance. Instead of getting attached to life, he slept away every moment of his. As a result, Blanc had survived thus far.

He knew about the pain that would come to him the moment he turned 500 years old. He didn’t want to grow into an adult. There’s no reason for him to want it.

After waking up, he decided to spend the last year of his life meaningfully. But really, he didn’t know what to do.

Although he survived by sleeping all this time, there were so many things he didn’t know. It was empty. So, in the end, Blanc decided to go sightseeing around the human world.

But sightseeing soon exhausted him. He just wanted to go back to sleep.

Because he was so tired, Blanc had been led to the tower where he soon met Rosé. In the meantime, he experienced what it was to live, and his plan for the rest of his life changed a lot.

The world around him, which had just been so gray, gradually became full of so many colors.

As Blanc’s time had come to a halt before, it began to turn little by little once more.

After I came back from meeting Albert, I went back to my room and started packing. Blanc rolled over in the bed and soon rushed to me. As I hugged him in my arms, Blanc spoke in a determined voice.

“I wanna go…”

The last word still sounded a bit stretched, but his tone was much more firm than how he usually spoke. Blanc was also changing little by little.

The two of us followed the servants outside. I put on my cloak and raised its hood.

Standing in front of the gate, I found Schubert. I greeted him with a determined curtsy.

“Hello, Your Lordship.”

“You’re here.”

Schubert’s expression was a bit stiff when he smiled at the white cat in my arms. It was a different reaction from what he usually showed—he even quivered as he whispered to me.

“…I heard he’s a dragon.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Schubert covered his face with one hand and let out a long sigh.

“Why didn’t you tell me…!”

“…Huh?”

“No. Never mind. This way then.”

I saw tears brimming in his eyes as he muttered something under his breath, as though he felt wronged. He was also acting differently compared to how he usually was.

Oh? Wait, tears?

Are you afraid of dragons?

Sighing, Schubert scooted away from me and then spoke in a small voice.

“Let’s go.”

Through the snowstorm, he led the way. Hooo, when I exhaled, fog came up.

“You’re here.”

In the same tone of voice as Schubert’s, Liam welcomed us. Come to think of it, the way they spoke was really similar.

Liam was waiting for us inside the magic circle. There were also three luggage bags by his side.

“You’re just in time.”

Liam instructed us to stand inside the magic circle. I was wearing many layers of clothes, but my face was cold in the snowstorm. Tightening my cloak around me, I looked back at the castle, Towards the window where Albert would be.

I couldn’t see very well because it was too far away, but there seemed to be a shadow standing by the window of his room.

It’s the first time I’ll be away from Albert. Even though it’s only a few days.

Then, I’ll come back safely. I bowed my head and said farewell to Albert one more time.

At exactly 8:30 AM, the magic circle shone.

Our surroundings turned upside down in an instant. My stomach lurched. I didn’t throw up, but I felt so nauseous.

“Urk…”

Now I realized just how meticulous Albert was when it was him who cast the spell.

“We’ve arrived.”

Liam spoke in a calm voice as he stepped out of the circle.

We found ourselves in a dark, humid room where water could be heard dripping down in the distance. Across the stone walls, there were dim lamps hanging. It was a very dreary atmosphere.

“This is Baron Bergen’s residence in the capital. The owner here will guide you around the manor, so I’ll be going up first.”

Liam deftly picked up his bag and strode through the basement, then up the stairs. It seemed like he’s been here more than just once or twice.

“Ah, seriously…”

Schubert was holding his head as he stared at Liam’s retreating back, then he let out a sigh afterwards. It was kinda funny to see him glare like that at Liam.

With an annoyed expression, his gaze turned from Liam to me, then he spoke with a stern tone.

“Let’s go up. I’ll show you to the room you’ll be staying in, and I’ll tell you about the operation.”

“By the way, is there anything I can do to help during this operation?”

“Well, you’ll be talking to the dying dragon, so rather than strategy, you can just make sure to get the timing right.”

Schubert crossed his arms and shrugged.

“I have a pretty good hunch, but it’s probably…”

He tapped the wall with one foot, then murmured.

“It’ll probably die tomorrow at the latest.”

Blanc shuddered. I patted him on the back.

Schubert beckoned me out of the magic circle.

Schubert and I ascended the stairs after Liam. The basement was connected to the kitchen, which was full of dust. It seemed like it hadn’t been used for a long time.

“…It’s like a haunted house.”

Above all, there were no other people in this manor. It’s understandable though. He wouldn’t have let people in.

“This is your room.”

Even so, this residence was quite large. As we went upstairs, I entered the room right next to the staircase.

At least this room had been cleaned a little.

There was even one pair of pants and a blouse on the bed that I could change into. Wow, how long has it been since I last wore pants?

“We don’t know when we’ll need to run, so this is a better attire than a dress. Of course, if you’d prefer a dress…”

“No, I like this!”

Dresses were nice, but pants were definitely better when you know you’ll be moving actively. I felt regrettable about the fact that all the clothes I had in the tower were simple dresses that I could get into by myself.

“By the way, may I know what’s going to happen? I’d like to hear more about the operation.”

Schubert stared at me for a while, but he eventually explained.

“The civil dragon is currently staying at the place where the operation will commence. We will go there through the mage here.”

“If it’s a mage… Then is it one of the mages who trapped His Highness in the tower?”

Schubert nodded.

“His Grace has captured almost all the mages who imprisoned His Highness to the tower. After they had all been captured, everyone has been split into two groups—the liberal faction, who wants a new royal family to rule, and the conservative faction, who supports tradition and the current royal family.”

Rosteratu might have been able to pull wool over the eyes of citizens who didn’t know the full situation with the royal family, but it became an entirely different matter when he recruited mages. Especially since the opponent was Albert, who started to reveal through the liberal faction just how great his capabilities in magic were.

I wondered how Liam’s side found the dragon, but the question was soon answered.

The only people who could recognize the true form of a dragon were mages. The fact that Liam found a dying fledgling dragon this time was probably the mages who had sided with the liberal faction.

“Then, change your clothes and come out. Let’s head to the place where the dragon is together with the mage.”

“It looks like we’re running out of time.”

“No, it’s not like that, but… the Duke told me that you should have more time to talk to that dragon.”

…That meticulous prince is making a good effort to ensure that I won’t sign the contract, huh.

I nodded right away.

“I understand. Then I’ll be ready soon.”

The moment Schubert left, I changed my clothes. I wore pants for the first time in a long while, then changed into boots that didn’t have heels on them. There seemed to have been a spell cast on them because I couldn’t hear any sound accompanying my footsteps.

“…Amaziiiing…”

“It’s your first time seeing me wear pants, right, Blanc?”

Blanc nodded. It’s adorable how his eyes twinkled.

“I’m sure there’s a lot more of me that you haven’t seen just yet.”

As I said so playfully, I carried Blanc in my arms.

“Now then, let’s go out to meet them.”

Schubert and I headed to the basement again. There, a person I was meeting for the first time was standing on top of the magic circle.

…Who’s this?

I tilted my head to the side, but the other person took off the hood of their cloak first. It was a beauty with short red hair, smiling.

Schubert introduced her first.

“Let’s get the greetings out of the way first. This is Mercy, the leader of the mages on our side.”

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you.”

Wow, it’s been so long since I last saw someone else of the same gender. I greeted her with a slightly high-pitched tone.

“Over here is—“

“Oh my! Sister, is this a white dragon?”

Before Schubert could even introduce me, Mercy shot forward to my side with a glimmer in her eyes. Schubert sighed as he looked between me and Mercy.

“We’re in the middle of an operation right now.”

“Fine, fine, but can’t you do something about the way you talk, Baron? I think the other way is much better.”

“What a bold-faced lie. You said the other way wasn’t better—just that this way is creepy.”

“As long as you know it. If you brought her here though, it means she’s on our side.”

“Stop it with your nonsense.”

I got distracted by how naturally they bickered. Strangely though, it kinda suited them. This atmosphere, too… The atmosphere is kinda suspicious. And as I had accumulated enough experience as an office worker in my first life, something clicked in my mind.

Unintentionally, the question spilled through my lips.

“By chance, are you two dating?”

“Are you nuts?”

“Are you crazy?”

Huh. Since they answered seriously like that at the same time, it didn’t seem like they really were dating. I just shrugged in response.

“…Now, shall we go?”

After having been dazed by my words, Mercy coughed and then soon smiled again. With a renewed smile, she whispered.

“To meet the dragon.”

I stepped into the magic circle again. Mercy and Schubert were on either side of me.

Then, we teleported into a forest.

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