At the end of the corridor, two patrolling Temple Knights whispered during their shift change.
“Today, the cafeteria received orders that from now on, they must prepare cream cake with honey every day. Apparently, it was personally requested by Her Holiness the Saintess.”
“Who is it for?”
“Who else could it be?” The older knight gestured with his chin toward Yisela’s room. “That Silver Dragon Brat who used to kick the temple doors.”
“Just because she wants sweets? The Saintess personally arranges even such trivial matters?”
“Trivial? Take a look at the treatment she gets in the temple now. The Saintess personally shares her bed, and the Sylvanas stands guard at night. In nearly twenty years of patrolling this temple, this is the first time I’ve seen such a scene.”
The younger knight fell silent for a moment, then said in an extremely conflicted tone, “She used to be known as the Little Demon across the entire continent.”
“Yeah. But now…” The older knight tucked his helmet under his arm and turned to look at the closed door at the end of the corridor. “She’s the one person in the entire temple you absolutely cannot provoke.”
The two silently completed another patrol round.
Just before reaching the corner, the younger one paused mid-step, as if he had finally caught the thought that had been circling in his mind for days.
“Hey!” He looked around, ensuring no one else was nearby, then leaned in and whispered into the older knight’s ear, “Could the Saintess be… that… that kind of fetishist?”
The older knight stopped as well.
He turned to look at his younger companion’s face, which was plastered with an expression of “Have I just discovered some huge secret?” and fell silent for a moment.
“Which aspect do you mean?”
“You know! The small, cute kind! With silver hair! And a tail!”
The younger knight spoke faster and faster, as if afraid that stopping would make him lose the courage to speak.
“The Saintess bakes her cake every day, holds her while sleeping at night, and even when she goes to pick a flower in the yard, the Saintess stands by the window watching. I’ve served in this temple for so many years—when have I ever seen the Saintess care so much about anyone?”
“Shut up.” The older knight was silent for a moment before finally spitting out those two words.
“But—”
“I said, shut up.” The older knight took a deep breath and put his helmet back on. “How dare you slander the Saintess.”
The younger knight immediately shut his mouth.
But the silence lasted less than three seconds.
“So you think so too.”
“I don’t think anything.” The older knight quickened his pace noticeably. “I didn’t hear you say anything tonight. You didn’t say anything either. We just did a normal patrol tonight and discussed nothing.”
“Understood.” The younger knight nodded vigorously and quickened his step to keep up.
“Discussed nothing. The Saintess just happens to be especially gentle and attentive toward that Silver Dragon Brat. Coincidence. All coincidence.”
Their footsteps gradually faded away at the end of the corridor.
After a while, the younger knight spoke again.
“Speaking of which, the Saintess has pretty good taste.”
“Shut up.”
“Yes.”
***
Meanwhile, in the deepest chamber of the Dragon’s Nest.
Three massive silver dragon silhouettes stared intently at the crystal ball before them, the atmosphere heavy.
Da Zhanglao clenched his dragon claws, his voice lowered to the extreme: “Si Zhanglao, you’re absolutely certain?”
He paused, his gaze fixed on Yisela being gently cared for inside the crystal ball. “We forced her… sent her out. Will this truly allow her Dragon God’s bloodline to awaken completely?”
Si Zhanglao slowly adjusted the monocle on his nose. His human face was deeply solemn, with none of his usual glib evasiveness.
“There’s no other way.”
His voice was low, carrying an unshakable resolve.
“The moment that girl kicked the divine statue and was cursed, she became a target for all the restless forces on the continent.”
“Keeping her hidden in the Dragon’s Nest, protecting her by our side—not only would it fail to lift the curse, it would be like holding her over a fire, eventually inviting utter destruction.”
Da Zhanglao’s body trembled. “You mean…”
“The prophecy left by the Dragon God will not be wrong.” Si Zhanglao looked up, his eyes shining with insight that saw through everything.
“Yisela is the only True Dragon God lineage in ten thousand years, and the sole hope for ending the apocalypse calamity and saving the continent in the future.”
“But she has been too powerful since childhood, too wild in nature, and she will never grow up in favorable circumstances.”
He looked at the little silver dragon sleeping peacefully in the crystal ball and let out a soft sigh.
“Losing all her power this time, being taken away by an enemy, forced to undergo trials… It may seem like a dead end, but it is actually the only chance for her to awaken her bloodline and truly grow up.”
Da Zhanglao was silent for a long time. A mix of painful tenderness and resolute determination flickered in his dragon eyes.
“I hope we’ve made the right bet.”
“We have to make it right,” Si Zhanglao said softly. “Yisela, may the Dragon God protect you.”