177
* * *
The lakeshore was neither too far from nor too close to the quarters, making it a perfect spot to naturally observe the humans coming and going.
The weather happened to be clear as well, making it a great day for a picnic.
“Byaa byaa bya—”
“Bbi bbi bbi—”
The fragrant scent of grass tickled the tips of their noses, and a gentle breeze softly wrapped around their bodies.
The baby dragons, who seemed to have become close enough to make one wonder if they had ever fought, each held a small lunch basket and hummed continuously.
Asil picked a pretty flower and tucked it into Ari’s hair.
She also pulled out a fresh stalk of grass with a snap and placed it firmly in Arin’s front paw.
“Bya bya bya—”
“Bbiik—”
While the two younger siblings hummed excitedly, they arrived at the spot she had scouted.
Asil took out the mat she had brought.
As she was about to spread it out in a sunny, prime spot, she felt a gaze from the side.
It was Todori’s baby rabbits, whom she had met a few times. They all looked just like Todori with their snow-white bodies.
As if they had been sunbathing, thoughts like ‘Are you going to sit there and block the sunlight?’, ‘Really?’, ‘For real?’ were clearly written on their faces.
‘There’s plenty of space.’
Asil slightly moved the mat to the side.
But just as she was about to set down the lunch boxes handed over by her siblings, Todori’s offspring appeared again.
“Gyu.”
“Gyugyu.”
“Gyu!”
The baby rabbits looked dejected, saying they wanted to sit next to their family but there was no room.
‘Normally, a strong beastman is supposed to yield in situations like this.’
Asil yielded the spot once more.
After that, when she tried to spread the mat again, even more baby rabbits appeared, seemingly from out of nowhere.
“Gyu!”
“Gyuu!”
“Gyu!!!”
“…….”
Todori, just how many did you give birth to?
She kept getting notifications that babies were being born, so she thought the same message had been sent multiple times, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.
No wonder she hadn’t seen him at all lately!
The last time she saw him, his fur was disheveled and his cheeks were sunken; it must have been because of childcare.
Perhaps they had come out for a group picnic because the weather was nice, as baby rabbits kept appearing.
They appeared when she tried to spread the mat, and they appeared again when she tried to open the lunch boxes.
After doing that for a while, she realized she was suddenly surrounded by a bustling crowd of white rabbits.
Since they were all babies, it felt like being surrounded by cotton balls.
“Bbichu! Bbiikchu!”
Arin sneezed at the rabbit fur floating in the air.
Ari also kept rubbing her nose and sniffing.
Furthermore, because the baby rabbits were sniffing around saying they smelled something delicious, Asil slightly distanced herself from the baby rabbits before all the lunch boxes could be snatched away.
Then she moved to a quiet place.
It was right under a giant, spreading tree.
Though it was a bit secluded, it seemed like a place where they could enjoy a quiet picnic.
Chap chap chap.
Having safely arrived in the shade of the tree, Asil and the baby dragons spread the mat and ate their lunch first.
Afterward, while they were patting their round, bulging bellies and dozing off in the warm breeze, Ari suddenly jumped up.
“Byaa!” (This isn’t why we came here!)
Ari stared intently toward the imperial delegation’s quarters.
It was to let her sibling know immediately that the human she saw yesterday was that person if he came out.
However, due to the location, the humans weren’t very visible.
“Bbiik!”
As she peered around for a long time, Arin tapped the grass stalk with a displeased face.
It meant to stop lying and tell the truth now.
“Byaa!” (I told you it’s not!)
Ari, who had no intention of losing to her younger sibling, glared fiercely at Arin.
Pajijijik. Sparks flew violently in the empty air.
Asil watched her two younger siblings with eyes heavy with sleep.
It was right then.
“Ah, this is a hassle……. Do I really have to go? Can’t you just go alone?”
“An attendant wandering around alone might arouse unnecessary suspicion.”
“Then we can just not wander around. Why on earth are you trying to go when you said she didn’t seem to understand anyway—”
Fear appeared in his humanized state.
While grumbling at the attendant accompanying him, he gaped at the sight of the three black dragons that appeared before him without warning.
“Nu, nu, nu, three big sisters?!”
“Byaa?!” (Human?!)
“Bbik?!”
The two baby dragons, equally surprised, jumped as well.
Asil also stared at Fear with wide eyes, then turned her gaze to the attendant beside him upon feeling a heavy stare.
It was the very attendant she had seen when the delegation arrived yesterday.
She had been uncertain when seeing him from afar, but seeing him up close, she knew.
Though his appearance had changed a lot, that atmosphere and those intense eyes.
Furthermore, even the earring made of a Basilisk’s tooth, worn on only one side.
Asil’s mouth slowly drifted open.
“Eden—”
“Byaaaa!” (It’s this human!)
But she was immediately drowned out by Ari’s cheerful cry.
Ari grabbed the attendant’s pant leg with her small, fern-like front paw and shook it.
“Byaaa byaaaa!” (This is the human who defeated the monster with Ari yesterday!)
“…….”
A shocked Arin froze. Ari’s words were true!
But that was only for a moment; she soon regained her senses and hung onto the other side of the attendant’s pant leg.
“Bbiik, bbiiik!”
It meant for him to go defeat monsters and eat strawberries with her too.
Ari shot a sharp look.
“Byaaat!” (This human is Ari’s!)
“Bbiik!”
Arin also sent a terrifying gaze to Ari, saying she refused and would never back down.
However, that fierce confrontation ended with just one word from Asil.
“That red-haired one is strong too, so he will go with you.”
“Eh?”
“Byaa?” (Really?)
“Bbik?”
The two baby dragons looked up at Fear with twinkling eyes.
While Fear, who had not yet recovered from the shock of there being three big sisters and was now the center of sudden attention, broke into a cold sweat, Asil nodded confidently.
“He is a younger sibling I had under me when I was in the human world. Go along without worry.”
“What? Wait, what does that—”
Fear hastily swallowed the words he was about to say.
It was because the gazes of Asil and the attendant looking at him were so overwhelming.
“Byaa!” (Human! Let’s go defeat monsters with Ari!)
Ari quickly clung to Fear’s pant leg. Not to be outdone, Arin did the same on the other side.
“Bbiik!”
“Monsters, what monsters—”
Fear, who had barely managed to interpret the difficult beastman language and trailed off, met Asil’s eyes once again.
‘Go, quickly.’
Asil was speaking with an intense gaze.
Feeling a stinging gaze from the side as if being pricked by an arrowhead, he felt like he knew what kind of expression his attendant would have without even looking.
Dammit. That’s why I said I wouldn’t come……. A victimized Fear clenched his teeth.
If it were his usual personality, he would have just ignored it, but the opponents were too much.
He had to show manners to Asil as she was a big sister, and Edenber was a human who was simply uncomfortable to deal with.
What a struggle this was just for bringing along one wrong attendant.
With a pouting mouth, he tucked Ari and Arin under each arm and lifted them up.
“Byaaaaaa!”
“Bbiiiiiik!”
Accompanied by the joyful shouts of the baby dragons, the sound of Fear’s footsteps, full of dissatisfaction, quickly grew distant.
Like that, after a long time had passed and the surroundings became quiet.
Asil looked up at Fear’s attendant.
The attendant, who had been looking in the direction where Fear disappeared, also looked at Asil.
As their eyes met, her heart began to thumping, and Asil swallowed hard.
And she carefully spoke the name she had been thinking of.
“Edenber?”
“Yes.”
With his eyes curving gently, he removed the earring he was wearing.
Then, as he returned to blond hair and violet eyes, he transformed into the appearance Asil knew well.
Asil’s mouth hung open.
‘Is this a dream?’
How is Edenber here?
But that was only for a moment; Asil hurriedly humanized.
The small dragon disappeared, and a woman with long black hair and cotton-candy pink eyes appeared.
Edenber faltered at the sight of Asil’s adult form for the first time.
Taking advantage of that gap, Asil threw her arms around Edenber.
“I missed you!”
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
