Since parting ways yesterday, Enya hadn’t seen Henna again.
She had no idea what the lady lord was up to.
Is the lord very busy?
Maybe… probably… she must be busy, right?
All matters big and small in the territory had to pass through the lord’s hands for approval before proceeding.
Just thinking about managing the development of an entire territory gave Enya a headache.
She still preferred a carefree life, doing whatever she liked, whenever she liked.
She rolled down the carriage window and looked out at the clean, tidy streets.
The contrast between the wealthy district and the poor one was stark—glaringly so.
Enya sighed softly.
The air was indeed much fresher, but she didn’t feel particularly happy about it.
Class divisions really are a natural instinct for social creatures. It’s the same everywhere.
Suddenly, Enya sensed something strange.
She quickly turned to look northwest, her brows furrowing.
Not far from here, there was a surge of unusual magical energy—and both sides of the clash were powerful.
Her thoughts immediately went to Vivienne.
“Those people really are targeting Vivienne.”
Redpine City might have only been one of their contingency plans—those people had clearly made extensive preparations.
Should she go?
Enya fell into deep thought.
Just as she made up her mind and lifted her hips about a centimeter off the seat, she sat right back down.
She was still mentally struggling with whether or not to act—but it seemed the fight was already over.
After confirming that Vivienne was unharmed, Enya visibly relaxed.
Her attention then shifted completely to the dragon egg.
Ever since she’d lifted the restrictions on its nutrient flow, the egg had been constantly drawing source magic from her body.
And as it absorbed more nourishment, it was visibly growing.
Yes—it would grow bigger.
Dragons weren’t ordinary bloodline creatures—they were magical beings.
Just like how humans are mostly made of water, dragon eggs were full of both water and magic, so of course it made sense for them to grow.
Even after removing the suppressions, the little one still seemed endlessly hungry—hungry for Enya’s source magic.
She looked inward at her own magic core.
Compared to the nine-layered structure at her peak, it now had one less layer and was visibly dimmer.
The once-condensed silver magic had become thin strands, trickling toward a tiny speck of light not far away—no bigger than a grain of rice.
As one waned, the other waxed.
Enya was becoming more and more depleted, while the egg was growing strong and healthy.
Enya gave a helpless smile and muttered to herself:
“Such a greedy little thing…”
…
In the castle’s study, Lady Henna had shed her formal attire and now wore only a maroon nightgown.
But instead of resting in bed, she was lying on the floor—one hand holding a paintbrush, the other clutching a handful of burnt paper ash.
Her tired eyes blinked open.
Just awakened, Henna sat up and called for a maid.
As she washed up, she asked about Phil Clorcy.
“Lady Phil? She already left earlier this morning.”
“I see…”
Henna narrowed her eyes, then forced them open wide.
A wave of dizziness hit her.
Yesterday, after their encounter, she’d sought out someone to spar with, practicing swordsmanship until the stars blanketed the night sky.
Then, she sat in the study staring blankly at a piece of paper until dawn.
Only when the morning sun shone through the windows did she finally collapse onto the floor for a brief rest.
She massaged her aching temples and asked the nearby maid a peculiar question:
“That Lady Phil… is she a succubus?”
“……”
The maid froze, not knowing how to respond.
Henna gave a tired smile and dismissed her.
“I’ve got hands and feet, I don’t need you to do anything.”
As she reached down to pick up the crumpled papers on the ground, a report came in:
“My Lady, there was a massive tremor detected to the northwest—but it has already subsided.”
“What?”
Henna’s heart skipped a beat.
That was exactly the direction Vivienne had gone.
…
Northwest of Redpine City, in a wide mountain valley pass.
The once lush green grasslands and a small hill had been completely shattered.
The ground was scarred with terrifying explosions and deep cracks.
The remains of soldiers were scattered everywhere—among them lay a group of men in bloodstained white robes, sprawled in awkward positions, along with countless demon corpses slowly dissipating into nothing.
A striking maid in a black-and-white long dress, sword in hand and exuding martial grace, sheathed her blade and tossed it to a nearby surviving knight.
Letting out a quiet breath, she ordered:
“Clean up, reorganize the troops. We’ll move out again shortly.”
“Yes, Captain!”
Her expression somber, the maid approached a well-guarded, intact carriage in the center of the formation.
Stopping just outside, she addressed the passenger within:
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
Inside the carriage, Vivienne rubbed her chest, frowning unconsciously.
“Grey, I still have a bad feeling in my heart…”
Grey, the knight captain and also Vivienne’s personal maid, hesitated before asking:
“Your Highness, shall I go fetch that woman we met earlier and bring her to you?”
“No… You’re being too extreme.”
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
Even Vivienne couldn’t help but feel her maid might be a little too extreme.
By comparison, her Enya was much gentler.
If Enya were still around, she could’ve taken over Grey’s duties—put on the maid outfit—and then Grey wouldn’t have to act like this in front of the other subordinates.
Grey remained silent for a moment, then replied with a single word:
“Oh.”
“……”
Vivienne opened her palm, revealing a black cube the size of a thumbnail.
Delicate golden lines crisscrossed its surface.
As she dropped it to the floor, the interior of the carriage was suddenly stained in a layer of gray shadow.
At that moment, she produced a mirror with a platinum frame.
With a tap of her finger on its surface, a soft sound echoed—and Vivienne was transported to a deeply shadowed space.
The only visible structure there was a round table not far away.
She walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
Before long, several other chairs around the table were pulled out, and faint, indistinct figures took their seats.
From each other’s perspective, none of them appeared clearly—including Vivienne herself.
“Have any of you found information about Enya?”
Silence.
Vivienne frowned, her displeasure evident.
Then a pale cyan figure spoke up:
“We did find something… but it’s not directly about her.”
“?”
The others turned their attention to the cyan figure.
Before they could explain further, a petite black-haired girl cut in first:
“I heard from within the Council of Sages that the Dawn Scholars are also searching for Enya. And even the reclusive dragon clans have started looking for her.”
“The Dawn Scholars… and dragon clans…”
Vivienne narrowed her eyes.
The only people who truly believed Enya and the dragon had perished together were the commoners—because that’s the story Vivienne herself had spread.
When the barrier over the battlefield had dissipated, there was nothing left inside—no Enya, no dragon.
But from the vast amounts of dragon blood remaining at the scene, it was clear the dragon had likely been slain.
Yet that dragon blood held no supernatural properties.
Whoever had killed it—Enya—was now missing.
And that dragon’s bloodline must have been taken by her.
Those who understood the secrets of bloodlines were extremely interested.
After all, this was the bloodline of a true dragon.
If someone could obtain it, they might ascend to even greater heights of power.
Which is why… everyone was looking for Enya.
The more Vivienne thought about the possibility that Enya might be seriously injured—and with so many eyes watching and waiting to strike—the more deeply worried she became for Enya’s safety.
Tftc!
The problem is bigger than I thought