“Oh, Kabellin, you’re bathing; I’m intruding.”
The Elf Princess’s laughter rang out like silver bells, her bright and warm attitude like that of a girl next door, showing none of her noble status.
“The Holy Tree here showed your communication status was normal, so I contacted you directly. My apologies.”
Kabellin used a bath towel to cover her voluptuous figure and responded with some embarrassment, “Her Highness the Imperial Princess, it is quite alright. On the contrary, it is my own impudence to meet you in such an ungraceful state.”
“We are all beings nurtured by nature; there is no need to be so restrained with one another.” A glint of mischief flashed in the Royal Princess’s eyes as her fingers rested on the sash of her long dress. “Then, if I accompany you by stripping naked as well, you won’t feel embarrassed anymore, right?”
Kabellin instinctively reached out her hand, her voice hurried as she stopped her, “Don’t! Please don’t! Let us just communicate like this, Her Highness the Imperial Princess.”
The Royal Princess withdrew her hand and rested it against her cheek.
The curve of her lips carried the satisfaction of a successful prank, and her tone turned intentionally regretful.
“Then I will have to wait until Sister Kabellin returns so we can soak in the bath together.”
Kabellin helplessly covered her blushing cheeks, wishing she could bury her head in her chest. “Her Highness the Imperial Princess, please stop teasing me…”
“Haha, alright, alright. How is the situation with your visit this time?”
The Elf Princess waved to call over a Butler to bring her fresh fruit juice. While biting a straw made of tree branches, the Royal Princess listened with great interest as Kabellin gave her a simple account of what she had seen and heard over the past few days.
Her relaxed and pleasant appearance suggested she was treating this mission report as a bedtime story for her own amusement.
“…Later, after Kuchierkan provoked Humanity, we were all forcibly brought to a spacious Chapel by a sudden attack of Space Magic.”
“The person who took action called herself a Witch.”
A crisp “crack” drew Kabellin’s attention.
She looked at the stiff smile on the Elf Princess’s face on the other side of the screen, and a bad premonition immediately surfaced in her heart. After a brief hesitation, she continued tentatively, “It just so happens to be the one Her Highness the Imperial Princess specifically warned me to be careful of—that Mercury Witch. Her real name is Ailaira Green.”
This time, the bamboo cup holding the fruit completely shattered. The reddish-brown juice that sprayed out soaked the Royal Princess’s pure white dress. The Butler immediately rushed over to wipe it for her, and Kabellin was also startled by the Royal Princess’s violent reaction. The Royal Princess waved her hand, dismissing the surrounding Butlers.
“It is nothing. All of you, leave.”
Afterward, the Royal Princess stared intently at Kabellin with a grim expression. Her voice carried a spine-chilling coldness as she spoke through gritted teeth, “Regarding her matters, repeat everything word for word, in its entirety.”
Even while soaking in the warm pool water, Kabellin could no longer feel any warmth. Her limbs hidden beneath the surface were trembling, and she could only brace herself to continue the narration.
Listening carefully to the information regarding the Witch, the hatred engraved in the Royal Princess’s amber pupils was on the verge of overflowing.
Her body could not stop leaking Magical Power, and roots began to sprout while trees started growing throughout the entire room.
I finally know your name, you damned Witch!
—
“Ailaira Green. That is my name.”
Kuchierkan looked in a daze at Ailaira, who had returned to the Underground Chamber and suddenly started introducing herself.
Her mind was full of question marks as she asked in confusion, “Why has your attitude suddenly turned good again? Have you finally recognized my charm?”
You Black Dragon, how can you be even more narcissistic than me?
Ailaira suppressed the urge to mock her and continued to play the role of the humble subordinate.
Her acting was so good that Kuchierkan felt she was a completely different person. Ailaira lowered her head and placed her hands together in front of her, looking exactly like a maidservant, her tone becoming low and dejected.
“The previous actions were merely a test for Your Highness Kuchierkan. Because of our master’s cautious and meticulous character, we had no choice but to commit such a rude act. I am truly sorry.”
Even I am about to break character saying this.
But Kuchierkan clearly couldn’t see through it. Her brain was working rapidly now. Rattling the iron chains on her wrists, she said in surprise, “Master? Then you locking me here…”
“It was simply the master’s mission. Because Your Highness Kuchierkan’s strength is far too powerful, we had to resort to this inferior tactic before things were clear.”
Kuchierkan understood this sentence.
She accepted the praise for herself naturally and said carelessly, “I get it. You’re just a body double, and there’s actually someone else behind the scenes, right? I was wondering how I could possibly lose to a third-rank piece of trash.”
“Yes, I praise your wisdom.”
“Hahaha, I knew I was smart! Then hurry up and call that master of yours out.”
Ailaira turned and opened the door, inviting the person outside to walk in. Kuchierkan had originally craned her neck with effort, peering out curiously, but after she witnessed the person walking into view from the darkness, her face was filled with disbelief.
“Impossible! Why would someone of the Dragonkind appear here!!”
Andrea stood solemnly before Kuchierkan’s eyes, with crimson horns atop her head and a thick, long Dragon Tail thumping against the ground, making a loud noise.
Andrea looked down at her fellow kin and snorted coldly, “My fellow kin, what exactly is your business in coming to my territory!”
Kuchierkan was still deep in shock.
However, in such close proximity, the resonance of the Dragon Bloodline could not be faked, let alone those distinct Dragon transformation characteristics.
Kuchierkan was speechless; her meager brain simply couldn’t untangle the current situation. Only after a long while did she squeeze out a sentence:
“Outside the Dragon Valley, there is actually another of the Dragonkind besides me?”
Looking at her reaction, it didn’t seem like faked shock. Ailaira roughly knew that Kuchierkan—or rather, the Dragonkind—wasn’t coming for Andrea; she might not even know there was a Red Dragon wandering outside.
In a place Kuchierkan didn’t notice, Ailaira quietly made gestures with her fingers against the palm of Andrea’s hand which was behind her back.
This was a secret signal they had agreed upon beforehand, corresponding to different ways of responding. Having received the signal, Andrea was still immersed in the pleasure of this role-play. She could barely keep the corners of her mouth down and could only shout angrily:
“Even if you are honored as a Princess, in my presence, you are nothing more than a fledgling Little Dragon. I have been coordinating in this place for many years; how could you possibly discover me so easily!”
“Word came from inside the Dragon Valley telling me to give you whatever help I can without exposing myself, but look at what you’ve done! You provoked Humanity the moment you arrived! Are you so afraid that others won’t suspect we have an ulterior motive!”
After speaking, Andrea turned slightly, winking at Ailaira to ask for praise. She was then pinched at the waist by Ailaira and could only stop her antics to maintain her aura.
Andrea: Hehe, I acted well, didn’t I!
Ailaira: Wasn’t it because the lines I wrote for you were good?