Ep 44. Lords Are Mean. (1)

  “Ugh…hought I’d work as an animal guide at two in the m.”

  “Iing that you sound so tired. Iris did most of the work.”

  “…”

  Patriced at his little sibling from the er of his eyes on their way home. Despite having worked for hours finding homes for all the animals and the missing people that had been found, the dragonlord didn’t sound tired at all.

  “…You’re in a better shape than I thought. Acc to your friends, you were fightis, apprehending Eisenhoff…all that up afterwards…you oughta be a little tired after all that.”

  “Again, Iris did most of the work. She held those portals open for hours on end while we merely walked bad fuiding the critters outside.”

  “…e to think of it, didn’t you say you use every magic element? How e you ’t use portal spells?”

  A judgmental stare was the first answer Patrick received. The verbal answered that followed showed raint in hiding Serenis’ disappoi.

  “’ use’ and ‘do use’ are different, Patrick. I am not omnipotent. Such spells did not eve in my time.”

  “…Ah.”

  Pig up the pieces after Doctor Eisenhoff’s arrest had ed up quite smoothly through the sector’s work ht, especially with Iris’ help.

  The animals that had escaped the b with Light were either transported back to the wilderness or care facilities. The missing people that were found had to be sent back to their homes – and in sustahat required massive amounts of traveling by rge number of people, a portal spell came in all too handy.

  Which, to Serenis, was unheard of. The spell itself was doubtlessly a human iion, likely developed to minimize the risks involved with teleportation spells.

  “It’s pleasantly surprising that humans have advanced magi some ways.”

  “Portals aren’t all that great, though. Difficulty is ohing, but they cost way too much mana to use. It’s even less effit than telep, so not many people pick it up in the first pce.”

  “Is that why you never lear yourself? Because it’s too difficult?”

  “…No. I just don’t have the right affinity for it.”

  “A ve excuse, that.”

  “Hey, you ’t use it either!”

  “The kin fly. Unlike you, we’re not abysmally slow without magic.”

  “…”

  Patrick’s hands folded behind his head as he stared up at the night sky, casually avoiding the judgmental eyes staring at him from the side.

  Another day, another case closed, no notable casualties besides his own injuries. It was a det night already. o make it worse by arguing with a dragon.

  “…By the way, what made you leave the house anyways? I get the whole thing about this Light-girl beied to Eisenhoff and that dragon girl going with her, but it didn’t sound like you had anything to do with the case.”

  “That dure was making those abominations using my mana.”

  “Your mana? How’d he get his hands on that?”

  “He possessed a stohat held some of it.”

  “A stone? We didn’t find anything like that in his b.”

  “I destroyed it before your arrival.”

  Patrick slowly nodded his head. If it was anyone else, he might’ve questioned why their mana was indug evolutionary disasters, or what their mana was even doing in the hands of a mad stist – but he’d long figured that questioning such things about his little sibling answered little to nothing. The best course was to nod and move on.

  “…So your mana was indug the evolution in all those animals then. Iing.”

  “It’s an embarrassment to call their suffering an evolution. Animals were not meant to carry such mana.”

  Serenis bit her lips as she finished her st sentence.

  ‘…Animals are not meant to evolve into halves in the first pce.’

  During her first meeting with Karas, Serenis had thought him to be a peculiar-looking monster. When she’d id her eyes on the numerous halves iy, she’d thought them all to be some alternate version of mankind. These so-called ‘halves’ were different from halves she knew.

  Half demon, half man. That’s all halves had ever meant to Serenis: halfbloods that were shunned by man and demon alike. They’d band amongst themselves to bee a tribe of their own, led by her own daughter that would ter e to be known as halflord.

  - ‘My pce isn’t with the dragonkin, mother. They need me, just as the kin needs you.’

  The dragonlord brooded in silence amidst the haunting memories. The walk home felt lohan it should have.

  When did the halflord stop calling her mother?

  She couldn’t remember. She didn’t want to.

  ? ? ?

  After the long night drew to a close, Serenis was greeted with another m sun, and another day of schooling. After what had transpired the night before, she’d been worried about Light’s dition, but…

  “You know, a few years ago I used to ask Ilias to carry me on her back all the time. Flying was super fun! But this oime, we went up really high and it was SO cold. I don’t know how she mao stay warm up there.”

  “…Right.”

  “My parents were freaking out because we were so high up. Both of them aren’t fond of heights…now that I think about it, I wonder if there are dragons that are scared of heights too? I heard baby birds be scared of heights, so maybe baby dragons are the same?”

  “…Right.”

  As per usual, Serenis was barely listening. trary to her worries, the half girl was pletely back to her old, chatty self – Light’s small talk once again occupied the vast majority of the dragonlord’s hearing throughout their day. If anything, the little girl seemed even more eager to talk than before.

  Once again, Serenis was realizing silence is gold.

  Meanwhile, Karas was busily tinuing his history lecture, highlighting the final bits of a tury-old war amongst humans. The crow-headed professor spared a momentary gowards the dragon in his css, and began to add on ara bit about the dragonkin’s involvement in it.

  “Now, when the Akeian empire rose to power aated the ti, many remaining fas rallied to resist their advances. What we don’t only note is that the empire not only challenged nations, but dragons. The kin’s seclusion was temporarily terminated as they joihe fray uheir leader against the empire’s advance.”

  Karas cleared his throat. He looked to the css, sing the room for any bright students.

  “Now, let’s see if any of you know this. What is the name of the dragon that led their kin during this period?”

  Serenis began to recall her brief quest on finding the current dragonlord. Raizel and Ilias had spoken of this particur subject.

  ‘This must be that dragon the younglings had spoken of.’

  During their first enter, the younglings had told Serenis of a war leader that was elected among the kin. Or, in the words of the steel dragon, the ‘crazy old hag.’ Unfortunately, the name hadn’t beeioned.

  Silenentarily befell the room as other students failed to ahe question as well. The question practically had nothing to do with human affairs, nor the history of magic; there was no way a normal student would know such things.

  But when silence tinued on, a familiar voice soon spoke up from outside the open window.

  “Ephea.”

  The css turowards the source of the noise in unison.

  A peculiar individual stood outside, peeking ih their crimson eyes. Her light purplish hair was a mess from flying. Her scaled red tail wagged left and right iement.

  “It’s Ephea. Father told me her name before.”

  Ilias stood outside the window, her eyes fixed on Serenis who was fortunately(?) sitting right o it.

  When their eyes met, the youngling rapidly waved her hand from the other side of the window towards both her lord and her little sister sitting beside. It was almost as if she was reuniting with family she hadn’t seen in ages.

  Light’s eyes twitched in disbelief.

  Her sister had spoken then and there of wanting to visit the institute, but not even in her dreams did the half girl expect the visit to take p the middle of css.

  ‘Does she not know she ’t just intrude like that?!...Wait, she’s a dragon, she probably never went to school…I guess it’s kinda normal…’

  Then, the half girl’s eyes slowly shifted over to the fellow student beside her. A dragon who, for some reason, was attending a human institution.

  ‘…On sed thought, I don’t know what’s normal anymore.’

  Meanwhile, the other students were eader a small panic attack of their own.

  An odd peer, they could grow used to. Students schooling teachers, they could grow used tons outside their css window? Nope.

  Following Ilias’ sudden interruption, a pair of the institute’s security members appeared in the distance, running after the dragon standing outside.

  “There she is!”

  “M…miss! You ’t intrude ongoing csses like this!”

  Ilias turo face them in dismay. She raised her hands defensively as she stammered to answer.

  “Huh?…But I’m outside!”

  Once caught up, the two threateningly raised their staffs at the dragon girl.

  Serenis watched the se unfold in mild amusement.

  ‘Do they actually think that’s threatening to her?’

  She still vividly remembered Ilias pummeling a steel dragon into the earth with a sirike. The youngling could probably level the entire facility here if she wao.

  One may question why the institution’s security had elected to challenge a dragon with only a single pair of security guards, but truthfully, the pair was doing what they could; the question should be where the rest of the security was, while the only two that had shown face were shivering as if they were trapped in a blizzard.

  At least these two were trying to do their jobs properly. One of them opeheir trembling mouths, barking out a respohat could’ve sounded much better without all the stammering.

  “O-outside or not, you’re disturbing the css. This is n…n…now allowed!”

  “Now allowed?”

  “I meant not allowed!”

  Ilias puffed her cheeks in distent. Then, she turowards the window and spoke to the css in its ey.

  “Am I really that disturbing? I’ll be quiet out here, I won’t say anything anymore…”

  Normally, one would expect her to look towards the instructor to give her such permissions. Failing that, the two securities.

  Instead, Ilias’ puppy eyes were directed towards a very unfortable pair of students who were both trying their hardest to say ‘I have nothing to do with this situation’ through their expressions. It erhaps the very first time where Light had so adamantly refused to meet her big sister’s gaze.

  Puzzled by the evident ck of attention, the red dragon pressed further.

  “Light? Lord S-?“

  “???.”

  “…Mnf? Mngh!”

  Ilias’ mouth immediately shut itself, cutting her off mid-sentence. Her muffled voice tried to formute additional words, but to no avail.

  The dragonlord would’ve preferred not to use the binding spell again, but she had to – for fear the youngling would destroy her human ruse. Serenis gred at the red dragon outside, dearly wishing that no one had heard what she’d just whispered under her breath. Or was about to whisper under her breath.

  “Go. Away.”

  As the binding took effect, Ilias’ crimson wings spread out in an instant as she took flight, s off into the distance.

  “…”

  The securities watched Ilias fly away, relieved that they were successful in aplishing their jobs. Though, her of them were exactly sure how they did it.

  Tap. Tap.

  After tapping the chalkboard twice tain attention, Karas nontly tinued his css as if nothing had happe all.

  “…Let’s resume css, shall we?”

  Dragons in his css? Nothing neens every day.