“Listen…… Even if I did something behind your back, if it’s ultimately for you—”

“I don’t care. Whatever you do, as long as you’re not leaving my side, I don’t care. So what is it?”

“Ha!”

Dion folded his eyes in half and raised both corners of his mouth in a big smile. It was a comfortable smile she hadn’t seen in a very long time.

Rustle, rustle.

The sound of grass brushing together was heard. Dion hurriedly turned his head and glared at the forest where the sound came from.

Swish, swish.

The thin grass swayed and a dark shadow appeared. Clementina gulped. If it were a dragon, it would have flown… was it a demonic beast?

Dion took Clementina’s hand and hid her behind his back.

The grass reaching Clementina’s chest shook mercilessly, then two shadows suddenly tumbled forward and backward onto the ground.

“Kyaah!”

Though Clementina was behind Dion’s back, she’d stuck her head out, so she screamed at the two giant shadows.

“Ack!”

“Aah! Ow ow.”

“Lillian! Sir Berche!”

The moment Clementina recognized the two people’s identities, she quickly emerged from behind Dion’s back. Clementina ran over and grabbed Lillian’s hand, who was sprawled on Berche’s back, and helped her up. But Lillian simply pulled Clementina into her arms and lay down.

“Really! What’s with just one letter?! Do you know how worried I was? How can you leave like that saying you’re dying? I thought I’d never see you again!”

Dion stood with his arms crossed, watching the tearful reunion between Clementina and Lillian with a displeased face. This was the first time he’d seen Lillian tearful, and he resented Clementina’s affectionate gaze too. He didn’t think Clementina had ever looked at him that way—was Lillian really that important?

Though he felt a little jealous, Dion ended up smiling helplessly. He thought himself fortunate that Lillian had been by Clementina’s side while he was away.

Berche raised his upper body, brushed the dirt from his hands, stood up, and helped the two women to their feet.

“Why did you come here? Didn’t you come with Kitan?”

Dion spoke while brushing the dirt from Clementina’s clothes.

“His Majesty sent us secretly. We tried to hide first in case we got you in trouble by appearing.”

“You say you’d hide, then show up this noisily?”

“Well, we came without even using swords to be quiet. The grass is incredible.”

“I’m glad you came, Sir Berche.”

“Of course I had to come. Duchess.”

It was the upright knight’s unchangingly warm greeting.

“When did you call them?”

“I sent Kitan when you said you wanted to save the dragons. They came just in time.”

〔Hmph! I’m that fast. That’s why you sent me, isn’t it?〕

Kitan snorted toward the pond and began walking toward the waterfall.

〔I could just freeze everything myself—I don’t know why you told me to bring everyone.〕

“Haha. It’s good to prepare for anything. Where are the others?”

Finding Kitan freezing the pond’s edge absurd, Dion turned to ask Berche.

“Sir Ray Luium was also at Issiliad Palace. After receiving Your Majesty’s letter, he headed straight to Drasia, so all the dragon riders remaining at Aeskis Castle should be coming.”

“Di, ah…… Your, Your Majesty. Do we really need that many dragon riders to capture Sue?”

Clementina hesitated, about to call him as she did when they were alone together. Lillian and Berche’s appearance made her feel returned to reality. Of course, it had never not been reality, but it was enough to remind her of Dion’s position that she’d briefly forgotten.

Dion noticed Clementina’s stammering speech. But no matter how much he insisted, he was still Emperor.

By any means necessary, he had to step down from the Emperor’s position soon.

Dion had lived as a conqueror for a long time. When he’d discovered Sue here, he’d instinctively almost drawn his sword immediately.

But during the past year as Emperor, Dion couldn’t live by his conqueror’s instincts. The Emperor’s position was like that. It wasn’t a position where he could do as he pleased.

“I’ll extinguish even the smallest spark. It’s better to be certain. Both Jerbek and that mage are criminals. The greatest criminals of Ronakia Empire. Naturally it’s best for all the Gold Dragons to gather and finish this. Even if it’s excessive, it doesn’t matter. They deserve it. Kitan!”

Kitan seemed ready to freeze past the pond’s edge all the way under the waterfall. At Dion’s shout, Kitan slowly stopped blowing.

〔What?〕

“You didn’t forget. Stop being petty and come here.”

Dion shook his head and rubbed near his eyebrows with his finger.

〔I know you’re glad to see me after so long, but I worked the hardest. Do you know how fast I went?〕

“So that’s why you weren’t around since yesterday?”

Clementina asked while looking down at the pond. She could see fish moving back and forth under the frozen surface. Since this place received Toter volcano’s energy, it would melt soon even without Kitan crying.

〔I went because your batum asked.〕

“Kitan, you? Uh…… since when did you listen so well?”

Clementina found Kitan unfamiliar, like meeting a dragon for the first time.

〔He said he’d give me a gift if I came back quickly.〕

“What gift?”

Kitan’s glare and Clementina’s puzzled gaze quickly swept over Dion’s face.

“Kitan, you don’t need to follow human words. You even abandoned your batum—why would other humans matter?”

〔After I went all that way, you’re picking a fight?〕

“I’m just saying. You’re a free dragon. You belonged to humans but don’t try to belong. Yet you followed my words. Thank you, Kitan.”

“……”

Amid everyone’s silence, Kitan laughed hollowly.

〔Hmph! Can an Emperor say such things to a lowly dragon?〕

“Lowly? It’s natural gratitude to a dragon saving humans.”

〔Well, fine. So when will you give me the gift?〕

“What’s the gift?”

Clementina bent forward with her hands behind her back and looked up at Dion. Her slightly raised golden eyes sparkled. Her heart fluttered at Dion’s grateful words to the dragon. Whenever she felt certain the man she’d chosen was excellent, she felt good, like she’d become a decent person herself.

“I promised him an ice house that won’t melt all year. You choose the location. I’ll build it wherever you want.”

Kitan now wore no ornaments at all. In Kingdom of Leila, he’d worn so many ornaments there was nowhere left to put them. Even when they’d met at Dicon Mountain, he’d habitually tried to thread golden ribbons through his mouth into decorative strings.

But the longer Kitan stayed at Aeskis Castle and at Clementina and Custus’s teahouse, the fewer his ornaments became.

Here on Diahart Island, the dragons’ homeland, Kitan’s body wore only a string made from Clementina’s lemon-colored hair around his neck, revealing his true form without other ornaments.

Kitan’s body with ice-like pale blue scales had bright white stripes drawn on it. He needed no ornaments. Kitan was a beautiful dragon as he was. The ear wounds that had been severe enough to ooze pus had healed long ago.

Though he didn’t miss the ornaments that had bound him in pain, he missed the Kingdom of Leila. He liked the stinging feeling of bitingly cold wind piercing between his scales.

Kitan smiled faintly.

Cunning batum.

〔Hehehe. That’s good.〕

“It’s really a wonderful gift.”

“Right? It’ll be a good home for you, Kitan.”

〔Don’t let your guard down. Whatever that woman is doing, batum, you must protect this one well. If even a hair is harmed, I’ll freeze you.〕

Kitan flapped his wings and pointed at Clementina. Dion made an openly displeased expression and pointed at Kitan with his index finger.

“I’ll protect Clementina more thoroughly than my own life. I don’t want to hear that from you. You’re a male too!”

〔Oh! How did you know? Batum usually can’t tell dragons’ genders.〕

“I can tell from your attitude. Kitan. You can’t have Tina.”

〔Who knows. If you knew what her true form is, you should be nervous. Hehehe〕

“What!”

“He, hey! What are you two doing!”

Clementina stretched both hands before her face to stop them. Her head suddenly throbbed, wondering what absurd conversation Dion was having with the dragon.

Then Kitan giggled, quickly kicked off the ground, and flew nimbly into the sky. Dion threw a phantom punch at Kitan’s retreating back.

Dion only felt frustrated about why he should be intimidated by Kitan’s confident tone.

“Competitors everywhere.”

While waiting for the remaining dragon riders, Dion, Berche, and Lillian gathered things that could serve as weapons. Though they didn’t know what situation might arise and didn’t think they’d lose, Dion assumed the worst-case scenario. That way, even if something unexpected happened later, there’d be no hesitation.

The three entered the nearby forest and gathered sturdy branches. Straight, long branches as thick as forearms had their tips sharpened with swords, and thinner, shorter branches were similarly sharpened at the front but had grooves carved in the back.

The thick ones would serve as spears for the three, while the thin ones would be Clementina’s spare arrows.

Meanwhile, Clementina read the last volume of her mother’s diary. As Tahan had said, her mother was betrayed by Sue. Though she’d trusted her, her mother was heartbroken and struggled with Sue’s transformation. Moreover, her mother’s condition seemed to rapidly worsen after Sue’s change.

The diary ended abruptly. Perhaps she no longer had strength to hold a pen.

After reading what seemed like an unfinished diary, she flipped through the book written with dragon magic. Her mother’s handwritten translation was utterly unhelpful. Some parts had no translation at all.

At least the very first page showed signs of care.

Perhaps that’s why. Though better than having no first page, it showed violent kindness telling her to use whatever magic she could read the spells for.

Among them was magic for drinking dragon blood. There was one of the few translations, along with profanity, saying that casting magic on dragon blood was effective for treating dragon riders’ wounds. It came with the note to never use such a spell.

Every spell Dion read caused explosive reactions. But for Clementina, it was completely useless. Rather, the spells she recited mostly produced smoke like thin threads. Once, a spell to light a fire on dry branches turned a branch that had never been burned into charcoal. Though only embers remained before going out, it proved Clementina had dragon power.