“Dragon in the west?”
Mommy Vyvyan bit into a berry. The juice resembled blood when it ran down from her lips. She picked up a napkin to wipe her lips. She smiled and explained, “That’s a legend. To our West is scorched land. No plants can grow there; or rather, no living organisms can grow there. All that’s there is tumbleweed. The entire area is bright red as though the Earth is burning. Living organisms there are abominations whether it’s wolves with ingrown fangs or huge birds with sharp claws. The place is forbidden grounds for living organisms and the scorched earth for spirits. Elves should not be there. That place is the home ground of huge dragons. The last dragon resides there. It’s a huge dragon that can cover up the entire sky just by spreading its wings. Its scales are the same as city walls. It can flatten an entire village with its claws. The fire it breathes can leave an entire forest burning for an entire week. That huge dragon resides there, protecting the dragon race’s final pride and treasure.”
“Mom, have you personally seen it before?”
Mommy Vyvyan basically used the equivalent of half of a sheet of paper to tell a fairy tale story with a huge dragon in it. It was impossible for me to believe the existence of such a creature, because Mom sounded so confident when I didn’t even know if she had seen it before.
Mommy Vyvyan shook her head with a smile, and then took a bite of the berry. She maintained her smile as she replied: “Of course not. It’s just a story Mommy heard. All children in the North will hear the story once. It’s a fun story. There’s a story of an adventurer going there, which is the same story. Of course, Mommy hasn’t seen that place. It’s out of bounds for elves, the same way the North is. That place is not out of bounds due to mana or something but simply because it’s dangerous there.”
“Didn’t you say it was a story?”
“The dragon is real, though,” replied Vyvyan.
Vyvyan licked the juice running down her fingers. Voice soft, she continued, “The dragon truly exists, and so does the dragon race. Dragons have a long history as elves do. Dragons and elves initially had a decent relationship. However, the dragons faced the crisis of extinction at one point in time due to their inability to reproduce. The dragons opted for the most unwise option, which was to kidnap male elves.
They kidnapped male elves to reproduce with them. The issue was that elves couldn’t satisfy the high volume of mana required by dragons. In addition, elves began to resist the invasions of the dragon race. War and a struggle to reproduce gradually led to the disappearance of dragons. The Northwest is their territory. We will pay a big price if we attack that place. Additionally, we don’t want a race as old as ours to be exterminated. That is why we forbid anybody from going there. We don’t know what became of the dragon race thereafter.”
“Then, Dad…”
“Onii-sama wanted to go and try to slay a dragon. Slaying a dragon is the greatest glory an elf can attain. The reality is that we don’t know how things are over there. The dragons might be extinct already, for all we know.”
“But can an Elven King go to such a dangerous place so easily without bringing guards along?”
“No,” answered Mommy Vyvyan, supporting her face with her hand. She pointed at me: “Of course not. Did you think I’d let my husband waltz into danger? Have you seen the Elven King’s ring? That ring is the same as the necklace I gave you. I can teleport to it if there is danger. Plus, he had the elven imperial guards with him, but he never called for me. The team of imperial guards that went with him all went missing, as well. Do you understand? They all vanished.”
“How did his ring come back, then?”
Mommy Vyvyan shook her head: “I’m not sure, either. I don’t know what exactly happened, but the ring appeared the next day, so I knew that he couldn’t come back.”
“Mom…”
Mommy Vyvyan laughed in a soft voice then stroked her blonde hair. Interest piqued, she said, “Son, the question you asked is very interesting, but I’m telling you now that if you want to go there, Mommy will break your legs without any hesitation, and then tie you to Mommy’s waist. Then, Mommy will take you wherever Mommy goes.”
I looked at Mommy Vyvyan’s smile. Afraid, my body shook. I forced out a smile and asked, “Mom… You’re joking, right…?”
“Look at my eyes, Son. Do you think I’m joking?”
There wasn’t a tinge of playfulness in her eyes. There was nothing but anger and anxiety in her eyes. She was absolutely serious. She emphasised each and every word: “Son, if you want to go there, Mommy will break your legs without any hesitation, and then tie you to Mommy’s waist. Then, Mommy will take you wherever Mommy goes. I told you that it’s dangerous there, so I won’t allow anybody to approach it, especially you, Son. I will not allow you to go there. I told you, it’s very dangerous. We’re talking about a dragon, Son.”
“So what if it’s a dragon?”
“Do you think you can beat me in a fight, then?” Vyvyan looked at me while fiddling with her hair. She smiled and explained, “Son, you must know that not even I have the courage to face a dragon head on, because dragon armour can nullify magic. You can only defeat a dragon in close-quarters combat using a sword imbued with magic. I am very skilled with a sword despite not using one. What about you? Son, what about your swordplay? Sorry, Son, but your swordplay is poor. That’s my fault.”
“What about Mommy Elizabeth, then?”
Vyvyan stood up: “You want to get the Empress of an empire to go and solo a dragon for the sake of a nation that was her enemy a decade ago? Honestly, Son, you ended up doing what I feared most, but I guess that’s what makes you, you. You insist on doing what I tell you not to. You’ve always been going against me ever since you grew up, but what can I do? Son, you’re my child. My most beloved child, so I must protect you.”
“Mommy Vyvyan?!”
Mommy Vyvyan grabbed my chest with one hand and yanked me over just as I went to move. I was right at Mom’s globes. My eyes met with her blue eyes. It was the first time I felt Mommy Vyvyan was so frightening. She peered into my eyes: “Son, I can’t let you ruin yourself. I can’t let that happen as your mom. You’re still a child. There are lots of things you still don’t understand.”
“What do you want to do, Mom?!!”
“I told you. I won’t do anything that makes you unhappy,” replied Vyvyan. She placed her hand on my forehead and kissed my eyes. She then smiled and added, “But you won’t know. I mean, you won’t remember…”
Next instant.
‘I seemed to have just arrived at the dining hall. Wait. No. I just finished eating… Mm… I should go and see Freya now. Something… Something feels wrong. I seem to have forgotten something… No. No. I haven’t forgotten anything. I went to the ball with Mommy Elizabeth yesterday. Then… Then I went to see my wives. Everything was fine. Nothing was different.’
“Son, you have to go work now, right?”
I looked at Mommy Vyvyan and nodded: “Yes. What about you, Mom?”
“I’m going to go look for Elizabeth.”
“Don’t fight, okay?”
“Of course we won’t.”
Previous Chapter l Next Chapter
