Chapter 61 : Where’s the money? Where’s my money?

Enya floated down gracefully, folding the pair of dragon wings on her back.

At this moment, she held Estelle in her right hand and Priestess Milly in her left, standing before an abandoned Forest Hut that had long been left to decay.

Her golden-red vertical pupils gazed upon it, and she sighed softly.

“It’s been such a long time since I last came here.”

The Forest Hut was less than fifty square meters in area.

Moss had grown thickly on the walls, and some cracks even bore unknown flowers.

Fortunately, the structure was mostly intact, and there were no signs of magical beasts roaming nearby.

Enya stepped forward and kicked the door open.

Creak~

Inside was somewhat better, but due to severe leaks, many mushrooms had sprouted on the floor.

The first thing Enya saw was the crudely made wooden bed.

This was her creation from nine years ago, a project she had poured much effort into.

But ever since she left, she had never returned.

She had once planned to renovate and upgrade this place, to hatch eggs here, and live a life untouched by the world.

Yet the thought of her daughter growing up in the mountains, possibly developing a twisted personality, and being rumored as a malevolent dragon—well, that was troublesome.

A “malevolent dragon” wasn’t about personality; anyone who threatened humans was labeled as such.

So later, she decided to settle in Redwood City instead.

Enya pulled out a piece of cloth and spread it over the bed, placing Estelle and Priestess Milly on it before sitting down beside the simple wooden frame.

Her beautiful eyes quietly watched the sleeping Estelle.

In her heart was both joy and worry.

Joy because the child was unharmed and appeared healthy, and worry…

Enya glanced at her own arm.

She still had no news about the other bloodline, so she dared not recklessly lift the restrictions on her dragon blood and undergo a complete fusion.

The dragon blood was part of the Dragon God itself.

Once Enya lifted the seal, the Dragon God’s projection could directly manifest.

In her current state, she would only be at the mercy of wicked women.

This predicament had left her half-human, half-dragon—unable to fully transform into a giant dragon nor appear entirely human—stuck awkwardly in between.

Just like the Dragon Tribe…

“If Estelle were to see me like this, what would she think?”

Enya couldn’t imagine any reaction.

After much thought, she decided to first probe how Estelle viewed her.

Once she understood her eldest daughter’s feelings, she could make further plans.

Enya gently stroked Estelle’s face, watching her for a long time before leaning down to place a soft kiss on her forehead.

“If I hadn’t run away at the start, if I had gone back to see Vivienne, would things have been different?”

“Vivienne wanted to surprise me with you, but I…”

“I’m sorry, Estelle.”

Enya sighed softly.

She slowly stood, preparing to return once more to the ruins.

Two third-rank mana reserves still weren’t enough for her lavish use.

If she had been eighth-rank back then, able to unleash ninety percent of her power, now she couldn’t even manage half.

Her core mana was like her battery, but her current power supply was severely lacking, making it impossible to fully exert her strength.

If she pushed herself too hard, the two undeveloped mana cores inside her would be drained dry.

Core mana also had a refractory period—it couldn’t endlessly supply mana.

It required time to “recharge” fully.

When Enya hatched the dragon egg, she had given her massive eighth-rank battery to Rosily.

In Redwood City, Enya was connected to the power grid and could use freely, but outside, she had to scrimp and save.

Feeling restricted?

Unable to fight in prolonged battles?

Then just finish enemies off with one sword!

After resting a bit and regaining half her mana, Enya stepped out of the dilapidated Forest Hut, remembering her purpose here.

The hut was protected by a barrier, so there was no danger.

Anyone wishing to enter had to circle a tree three times left, three times right, reciting a special incantation.

Her dragon wings spread behind her.

Upon closer look, the black membranous wings were inscribed with tiny runes, like grains of fine sand.

Enya bent her knees slightly and leapt up.

After the first flap, her wings leveled out.

Even without flapping, she continued to accelerate.

Human runes were derived from the natural world, and in the beginning, the world belonged to the Beast Race.

Runes came from the Beasts, and dragons were one kind of giant beast.

With a second powerful flap of her wings, Enya shot straight into the high sky.

Enya returned to the ruins.

From behind the shattered statue in a ruined church of the abandoned city, she entered the basement.

Below was a wide corridor, pitch dark without any lighting.

Her vision was exceptional; even in such darkness, she could see.

Those golden-red vertical pupils could even catch longwave light invisible to humans!

The corridor was wide enough for three horse-drawn carriages to pass side by side, with a ceiling height of seven or eight meters.

Aside from the floor, both stone walls were carved with murals.

The Northern Mountains once held a nation worshipping the Night Goddess.

The mural on the left depicted peaceful, prosperous scenes of people living in a beautiful paradise—settling down, singing, dancing, enjoying flowers, and drinking together.

The mural on the right showed barren graves and tombs, scenes of cannibalism and grotesque horrors, depicting people living in a hell on earth.

Enya had once learned a little about the Night Goddess’s history.

Legend said this goddess possessed a Dream Realm, a divine kingdom full of infinite wonders and illusions.

Anyone who entered a dream had actually come to her divine realm.

Her believers’ souls would arrive in this realm after death, where the Night Goddess would reward them with sweet dreams or nightmares based on their deeds in life.

But apparently, a great event had occurred…

The entire kingdom had been buried underground.

Its history was scarcely recorded in later generations, as if deliberately erased.

This explained why there were so many underground ruins in the Northern Mountains.

Enya reached the end of the murals, where a stone door stood.

She had already opened this door nine years ago.

She squeezed through the narrow gap sideways.

Then, Enya stared blankly at the massive Chasm.

It took her quite a while to recover from the shock.

There had once been the Gold Mountain Treasury here, but now it was replaced by a gigantic gorge.

Where’s the money?

Where’s my money?!

At the cliff’s edge, Enya looked down.

The Chasm was bottomless, and an ominous aura quietly rose from it, causing her to furrow her brow deeply.

Suddenly, she spotted a few ancient coins still clinging to the edge, not yet fallen.

Quickly, she crouched down, reaching out to pick up the coins, muttering under her breath,

“I’m so angry!”