Inside the residence, in that room which originally belonged to the master but had never been used, Vera, who had fallen into a deep sleep, was lying on the bed.
“What do we do now?”
Sephy asked.
“What do you mean, what do we do?”
Meliya replied without taking her eyes off Vera, who was lying on the bed.
“You’ve been staring at her anxiously all morning. What about those activities you’re supposed to attend this afternoon?”
“I’m not going.”
“That’s exactly why I said you’re all just a bunch of kids… This afternoon is the opening ceremony of the Invention Expo! If you don’t go, those Noble investors at the Company will start gossiping!”
“Can’t you help me, Sephy? Like you did at this morning’s Unveiling Ceremony.”
“Easy for you to say…”
Sephy collapsed powerlessly into her chair, white smoke streaming from her eyes.
Vera was now able to sleep soundly on the bed… all because she’d repeated the Flow of Healing she used years ago.
It was an incredibly complex process, requiring hundreds—thousands—of magical combinations to cast.
The results were as remarkable as ever, but the cost remained unchanged—a tremendous drain on Magic Power.
“Even these ‘Eyes’ probably won’t hold out much longer… Let’s hope they can be repaired. Anyway, you’ll have to handle things yourself next. If I spend any more Magic Power and stamina, those Doppelgangers of mine are going to start acting up.”
Lying in the lounge chair, Sephy closed her eyes in exhaustion and then sank into the crevice in the chair’s backrest, vanishing completely.
With her gone, only Meliya and Vera were left in the room.
“You’ve worked hard… Sephy.”
As she thanked the departing Sephy, Meliya reached out to gently touch Vera’s sleeping cheek.
“So warm… This is how you should feel. I’m really scared… so scared that I’ll lose you like I lost Lian.”
She gripped Vera’s hand tightly, just as she had on that dusk sixteen years ago—
…
……
………
“Everyone, get up…!”
An urgent shout shattered the morning silence. As the candlelight flared, a few slumped figures stirred in the darkness.
“Ugh… what’s going on… Alon… I told you I can’t drink anymore.”
“You’re such a lightweight, Linxi… And you call yourself the Holy Maiden? Bring the bat girl to drink with me!”
“The Holy Nation’s commandments… forbid drunkenness… drink, but only in moderation… As for that smelly Demonkin… she passed out ages ago and went home… hic!”
The great heroes who had saved the world lay sprawled like heaps of mud in Lian En’s living room.
After yesterday’s wedding banquet, the world’s closest brothers and sisters had gathered for a second round of fierce drinking—inevitably, the Dragon King Laide’s formidable constitution ensured his victory.
Among the four present, only he was still upright.
“His Majesty the Dragon King, His Majesty the Dragon King…!”
Through bleary drunken eyes, Laide saw a pale-faced, anxious young woman. He shook his head, trying to focus.
“Ah… isn’t this our bride? What brings you out here… Do you want to have a drink with us too? No, no… this is immortal wine from the palace… just a drop would knock out an ordinary person like you for half a month… you should call that guy out to drink with me… he’s the only one in this world fit to be my rival…”
“That’s what I came to say!” The girl—Meliya—shook him fiercely, almost in tears. “Lian… Lian is missing! I can’t find him anywhere!”
“Hic… then maybe… he’s in the bathroom? He drank quite a lot yesterday too… urgh…!”
Laide turned his back to Meliya and began to vomit uncontrollably. Realizing he was no help, Meliya sought aid from the others collapsed on the floor.
The Sage Sephy was clearly out of commission, lying face-down and unmoving.
The Holy Maiden Linxi, who just moments ago had bantered with Laide, seemed to have exhausted her last reserves—she was now snoring loudly.
“……”
So Meliya hurried to the girl slumped in the corner of the living room—the one she had met several times before—and patted her cheek.
“Wake up… Princess Vera!”
“Mm…”
Summoned by Meliya’s anxious voice, Vera finally opened her eyes. She looked at Meliya and smiled.
“What is it…? Why are you so flustered… a wedding only comes once in a lifetime… you shouldn’t let him see you like this…”
“The wedding’s over! It’s the next day! Lian is missing! I can’t find him anywhere!”
Meliya’s streaming tears finally brought Vera back to her senses.
Realizing something was wrong, she staggered to her feet, channeled her Magic Power, and forced out her drunkenness.
“Gone?”
“Yes…! That’s why I wanted to ask if you had any idea where he might have gone…”
“I haven’t seen him. Wait a second, let me deal with these drunks first.”
Vera quickly regained her composure. With a slap brimming with Magic Power, she snapped Laide out of his retching, then gave Linxi a swift kick, flipping the Holy Maiden over.
Finally, she gently lifted Sephy from the floor and sat her in a chair, channeling her magic to clear her head.
“You little brat… how dare you lay hands on me! If this isn’t truly urgent, don’t blame me for punishing you for your insolence!”
“Oww… my butt hurts…”
“…Where am I?”
The three forcibly assembled looked at the blue-haired girl before them, each with their own mix of anger, resentment, or confusion, as well as at Meliya by her side.
Though they were her husband’s dearest friends, Meliya still felt a little intimidated by the presence of such legendary figures.
But just then, Vera gently took her hand—
Don’t be afraid. They’re not bad people. Especially that blockhead dragon—he’s just a big, sharp-tongued softie.
The look in the girl’s eyes seemed to say all this. Then, wearing a serious expression, she turned to the three and said,
“Lian En is missing.”
…
……
………
“Then I… I’ll go now. I will mobilize the full might of the Dragon Race to find him for you—even if I have to dig three feet into the earth, I will bring him back… ‘By the honor and soul of the Dragon Race, I swear it.'”
At sunset, Laide took his leave from Meliya, Vera, and the others.
A brilliant golden light shone around the expressionless, tear-stained Meliya and himself—this was the sign of a sworn oath among the Dragon Race, a magic nearly equivalent to a Life Contract.
“Laide… you…”
Beside him, Vera stared in shock. He was the third person that day to make such a promise to Meliya, but the weight of what he’d done was thousands—millions—of times heavier than mere words.
“My fault. I got carried away and made a mess of things… Miss Meliya…”
Laide wanted to say something more to Meliya, but seeing her only nod lightly, he held his tongue.
“Take care, little one.”
With those words to Vera, he transformed into a giant dragon and soared westward into the sky.
In the vast wheat fields, only Vera and Meliya’s slender figures remained.
“Don’t be sad. They all have things they must do…”
“I know. They’re the greatest people in the world. For them to make such promises for an ordinary mortal like me, I’m already more than grateful.”
Vera held Meliya’s hand, searching for words to comfort her. But in that moment, she couldn’t think of anything that would truly bring her peace.
“But what about him? Did he also have something he had to do… that made him leave without saying goodbye to me?”
Meliya gave Vera a sorrowful smile.