Chapter 136: Dragon's Blood (2)
Lian glanced sideways, hiding a slightly awkward expression.
Right next to him, Cecilia was sitting in silence.
“…….”
She looked no different from usual, but her expression was tinged with dissatisfaction.
No, rather than just sullen, it was more like she was openly displeased.
He couldn’t figure out why.
She hadn’t spoken to him since earlier, but she wasn’t overtly showing discomfort either.
She just sat right beside him, maintaining an ambiguous distance, as if silently asserting, “I’m a little displeased.”
Lian let out a small sigh.
He thought he had wrapped things up quite well with Yuran, but now it was Cecilia?
As he pondered the cause, he began to retrace his memory from earlier.
‘Certainly…’
Just a moment ago, Lian had sat down for a conversation with Yuran.
The reason was simple, and the goal was clear.
It was to make Yuran recognize the Dragon’s Blood within her and help her control it.
The problem was, he couldn’t just bluntly tell her that Dragon’s Blood flowed through her body, which made things tricky.
That was because he didn’t have a proper answer to the inevitable question: “How do you know?”
At any rate, since he already knew the answer, he could immediately identify what Yuran was currently experiencing.
‘A typical phenomenon for mixed-bloods of different races.’
The clash of blood.
A reaction caused by the opposing forces of human blood and dragon blood.
The breakdown of balance had likely destabilized her condition.
The sudden emergence of horns was one sign, and judging by the fact she had covered her eyes, something must have changed there too.
He guessed, as he recalled, that her eyes had probably turned red.
The problem was that Yuran herself viewed this change as proof she was a demon.
Ultimately, Lian had to correct her perception while avoiding direct explanations.
Fortunately, she seemed a bit calmer now, but surely, she was still filled with fear and anxiety toward herself—
And doubt.
‘Sigh.’
What he had to do was already decided.
He needed to guide her toward correcting her misunderstanding without speaking too directly.
Lian quietly looked at her and cautiously opened his mouth.
“……Actually.”
At his mention that he too was of mixed blood, Yuran looked at him in surprise.
When she said she thought he was pure Imperial, he smiled and nodded.
“I thought so too until recently. But a few years ago, I read my mother’s journal and realized otherwise. She was probably from some ethnic minority or something.”
He added that as he grew up, the color of his hair and eyes gradually changed, and compared to his half-siblings, he had always felt a strange sense of difference.
“At first… I was really shocked.”
After a brief pause, he quietly added,
“They say that when people suddenly experience unfamiliar changes, they tend to imagine the worst.”
Yuran’s expression stiffened at his words.
Lian cautiously looked at her and spoke.
“When I saw you, I suddenly thought of that. The horns that sprouted, and perhaps something changed in your eyes as well. Honestly, I think I know what thoughts and assumptions you’re having. It’s impossible not to, after seeing your reaction.”
“…….”
“But I’m certain your assumptions are wrong.”
She slowly lifted her head.
Then, looking at Lian, she asked,
Her pupils were black, but shimmered with an eerie light, as if they could turn red at any moment.
“Why do you think so?”
“Because, even if it was a hasty move, I held in my hand the Mark I tore off.”
Lian showed her the cross he had just torn from his clothes.
“This is made of silver refined and blessed with holy water. It’s a deadly item to… those kinds of beings you’re imagining. But you were unharmed.”
Yuran’s gaze subtly wavered.
Her eyes lingered on the cross.
The way she unconsciously clenched and unclenched her fists spoke volumes about her ongoing uncertainty.
“And if you truly had the blood of such beings flowing through you, you’d instinctively avoid those who wield Divine Power. I would have felt that too.”
Lian added with a slight smile.
“But I don’t think we’re the kind of people who instinctively avoid each other.”
“…….”
Yuran didn’t say anything for a while.
Then she let out a soft sigh and murmured,
“……Once again, thank you. I truly appreciate your consideration.”
She nodded a couple of times.
“Thanks to you, I’ve regained my composure.”
With that, she rose to her feet.
And immediately walked away.
Watching her retreating back, Lian realized he had succeeded—partially.
Which meant, in other words, that he had also failed—partially.
“…….”
Lian didn’t bother to stop her.
He just looked in the direction she had gone and let out a deep sigh.
‘Still, I suppose this much went well.’
As he got up, thinking it was time to leave, a familiar face appeared before his eyes.
“Cecilia?”
It was Cecilia.
Lian flinched instinctively as their eyes met.
That was because she was looking at him with a strangely disgruntled expression.
“How are you here…?”
“A walk.”
To his cautious question, she gave a short reply and plopped down beside him.
……And that was how they ended up in the current situation.
“…….”
“…….”
The two sat in silence for a while.
“Please don’t misunderstand me when you hear this.”
Suddenly, she broke the silence.
“This is just a story about someone I know.”
“……Pardon?”
“That person has a close friend.”
“Yes.”
“Looking back, I think they somehow believed they were the only one close to their friend. Because the person I know only has one friend, but that close friend has lots of other people around. A whole lot.”
Huh.
Lian murmured to himself inwardly.
“They said they felt left out, like they were always meeting other people. The two had a talk before and seemed to resolve things, but now it’s happening again. ……Even though they made a promise.”
Only then did Lian realize what she was really trying to say.
At some point, she had forgotten it was ‘someone she knew’ and had started sharing her own story just as it was.
“So, um…… that person is feeling pretty hurt.”
Cecilia murmured quietly.
“And so, since Lian has a lot of friends, I wanted to ask… What should that close friend do to make it up to the person I know?”
She quickly added,
“Hurry and tell me. If you get the answer right, your score goes up.”
“What happens if that score goes up?”
“I’ll be happy. A whole lot.”
Lian went quiet for a moment, as if thinking.
“Hmm, maybe it’s because they’re close.”
“Because they’re close?”
“Yes. So maybe they didn’t think being a little distant would make the relationship shallow or strained.”
He spoke slowly.
“Actually, I have a friend like that too. Someone I’m close enough with to say we should introduce each other to our families.”
Cecilia’s eyes wavered slightly.
“……Really?”
“Yes. And to add a little more… I’m really looking forward to the day that happens.”
“…….”
As if chewing on his words, she stared at Lian silently before softly speaking.
“……Since when did you know?”
Instead of answering, Lian let out an awkward chuckle.
“Smooth talker.”
Cecilia gave a small cough and turned her gaze away.
Then she muttered in a somewhat serious, but also slightly melancholic voice.
“……I happened to overhear the conversation earlier.”
Cecilia nodded, as if saying she understood without needing the details.
“Just like Allen Amiel and I went through before, Yuran must be in some kind of trouble too, right?”
Lian silently looked at her.
Cecilia turned her gaze away as if suddenly shy and added quietly.
“So I thought, ah, here we go again—can’t leave things alone.”
She soon let out a sigh and gave a bittersweet smile.
“I knew it, but… I still felt a little weird. So I wanted to whine to my friend a bit.”
“Anytime.”
Lian looked completely unbothered.
“If it were someone else, I’d be honest and say it’d be annoying, but if it’s Cecilia, then it’s totally fine—anytime.”
At his words, Cecilia muttered softly,
“……You keep spoiling me like that, so I end up whining to you all the time.”
Cecilia, who had been grumbling, quickly straightened her tone and said,
“I don’t know the details, but Yuran is in a difficult situation and doesn’t have anyone to turn to for help or advice. Right?”
“Something like that.”
“What about asking someone else for help?”
“There’s no one suitable.”
Lian replied firmly.
And he was right.
Everyone capable of helping with such a complicated matter was currently unavailable.
“Besides, Yuran doesn’t want others to find out, so it’s not like I can go asking around. Honestly, what I’m doing now is already overstepping.”
“Hmm……”
She stared at the ground for a while in thought before nodding slightly.
“There is one person who might be right for it.”
“Who?”
“The person who nearly killed us.”
“……Airos?”
“Yes.”
She nodded calmly.
“That’s against the rules, Cecilia. If we’re caught entering the Forest of Secrets without permission, we could be expelled.”
When Lian said this, dumbfounded, Cecilia responded as if confused by his reaction.
“That might apply to me, but Lian, you were already granted entry before. So it’s not a violation.”
“……That’s true, but still.”
Lian unknowingly nodded slightly, looking troubled.
“Even so, going to the center where Airos is all by myself would be too much. It’d probably take a few days to even reach him.”
At that, Cecilia let out a small whistle.
Suddenly, a gust of wind swirled around them.
Within that wind, a massive stag revealed itself.
Its eyes, as if wrapped in a vortex, shone gently.
“If you ride this one, you’ll be there in no time.”
Cecilia spoke smugly, as if showing off.
“What do you think? Amazing, right?”
Lian looked at the spirit in awe.
The aura it gave off clearly showed that this was no ordinary spirit.
Now, she was truly closing in on the image of the Cecilia Everglenn he remembered.
Whether she realized or not, Cecilia added again with a slightly boastful tone.
“Aren’t you glad you’ve got me as a friend?”
Lian nodded reflexively.
Seeing that, Cecilia let out a small cough.
“……But there’s one condition.”
“A condition?”
“Yes.”
Cecilia said.
“Tell me one of your secrets that no one else knows.”
“A secret?”
“Yes, even something small is fine.”
After thinking for a bit, Lian opened his mouth.
“……Actually, I absolutely love peanuts.”
“Okay.”
“But I get hives when I eat them, so I use Divine Power to eat them anyway.”
Cecilia burst into laughter.
After laughing for a while, she returned to a serious expression.
“Don’t tell anyone else.”
She said as if making a vow.
“Promise me.”
At her gesture, the stag began to wrap a breeze around its body.
“……Don’t you ever get tired of this?”
Looking at Lian, who had returned once again, Airos wore an expression that said he didn’t even have the energy to sigh anymore.