Chapter 58
“Isn’t legitimacy something special? If you stay in one place continuously, that becomes legitimacy right there.”
With a single hand gesture as if brushing off trivial dust, High Priest Monlepe swept away the two high priests and openly fawned over Asil and Edenber.
“Hahaha, did you all enjoy your meals? His Holiness instructed us to escort the two of you on your way without any discomfort.”
In a manner unfit for his title of high priest, he even volunteered to personally guide them along the path.
“It’s fine. We can go separately.”
“No, His Holiness insisted! That we escort you directly. Come, this way.”
It was the first time receiving such hospitality in the Grand Temple since his father lost his divine power, so Edenber, completely unaccustomed to it, followed the high priest with a dazed expression.
Meanwhile, Asil hurried after him, then glanced back sharply.
And she slyly pulled down one eye while sticking out her tongue.
Nyah.
“Th-that, th-that, th-that monster!”
The high priests, their blood pressure surging, leaped up.
But what could they do, when the power dynamics of the Grand Temple had already shifted.
Asil stuck out her tongue once more.
Nyah.
“Guhhh!”
Nyah.
That day, rumors spread through the Grand Temple that the two high priests, their blood pressure rising to the top of their heads, had fallen ill.
* * *
After the birth of the saintess, Asil’s status within the family rose even higher.
Now, not only Moonrepe’s servants but even the vassals bowed their heads upon seeing Asil.
Thanks to that, Asil could live with her chest thrust out, as a single majestic and ferocious black dragon.
‘Asili is indeed the coolest dragon.’
That held true until, shortly afterward, before she saw Edenber looking utterly drained through the gap in the office door.
‘Why does he look so listless?’
With nothing but exciting events piling up, who is tormenting my husband!
Asil slipped through the door crack.
Edenber was peering into a small box with his adjutant, letting out a groan.
“A promissory note issued 500 years ago? What kind of nonsense is this….”
A promissory note from 500 years ago? What is that.
Asil ran over silently on all fours, then flapped up near the desk to confirm what Edenber was looking at.
The two were so absorbed in the box’s contents that they didn’t even notice Asil had entered.
[To the one who brings this, I promise to give as many — as desired.]
Inside the box was a 500-year-old promissory note that the first head of Monlepe had given to the head of Skya.
What it promised to give was obscured by Edenber’s finger.
‘What is it, what is it!’
Move that finger!
She waved her front paws frantically, but Edenber, his mind elsewhere, still hadn’t noticed Asil even then.
He opened his mouth in a gloomy tone.
“Is there any chance this is fake?”
“We confirmed it with the temple, and it’s genuine, issued 500 years ago. How about requesting mediation from Her Highness the Third Princess, who has connections to the Ska ducal family….”
“Forget it. How many did they say they want.”
“Total of 500. If we can’t obtain them, payment in money is also acceptable.”
Edenber was speechless.
An item that couldn’t be obtained even for billions in gold, and they want 500 of them? And if unobtainable, then money instead?
Is this a ducal family or a gang of thugs.
The adjutant, watching his expression, continued speaking.
“Given the enormous amount, it would be hard to prepare all at once, so they also said repayment could be done slowly over several generations.”
“Nicely phrased as repayment, but it means offering tribute.”
He was utterly exasperated. Even for a lower-ranked title, to pull something this absurd between fellow ducal families.
The first heads of the Moonrepe and Skya families had been close friends.
The absurd promissory note was likely written in the vein of promising as many roadside pebbles as desired.
‘They just didn’t expect those pebbles to skyrocket in value in the meantime.’
Edenber let out a sigh.
How on earth are we supposed to obtain something only beastkin can acquire….
Then, startled by the sound of a wail, he whipped his head around toward it.
“Piya-pyi- Piiya?” (Husband- what’s wrong? Is something the matter?)
Only then did he spot Asil, and he hurriedly shoved the box aside while forcing a smile.
“Ah, no, when did you get here?”
Asil was a quick-on-the-uptake baby dragon.
No way it’s nothing. There really is something wrong.
As Monlepe’s greatest and utterly cool black dragon, Asili will have to solve this.
Her self-esteem was overflowing lately, thanks to all the humans hyping her up left and right.
Asil climbed up onto the desk, planted both front paws on her hips, and lifted her chin.
“Piya ppi ya.” (Smart Asil will help you.)
“No, it’s nothing. Nothing at all.”
But Edenber denied that it was anything.
True to the man who had shouldered every hardship alone until now, he showed no signs of opening up easily.
In the meantime, the adjutant slipped quietly out, muffling his footsteps.
‘Oh come on. I want to help, so why do you keep being like this!’
Kindergarten teachers said sharing hardships halves them. This is really not okay!
Asil yelled out with eyes turned fierce.
“Piya!” (Husband!)
“Yes.”
“Piya.” (Asil wants to help her husband.)
Edenber fell silent.
“Piiya pii. Piiya.” (No matter how hard it is, together it’s only half as hard. Asil wants her husband to suffer only half as much.)
At those words, Edenber’s expression went blank.
It was because it was the first time anyone had said something like that to him.
Ah…. What if this child really leaves me?
That thought made his eyes well up red for a moment. Avoiding Asil’s gaze, he smiled awkwardly.
“I wish I could be someone you could rely on too.”
“Piyaaa.” (Asili relies on her husband a whole ton.)
“……I’d like that.”
Edenber bit down hard on his lip.
He forcibly calmed his surging emotions, then reverted to his usual indifferent tone to explain.
“The Skya ducal family sent a letter. Demanding a bunch of something from 500 years ago.”
“Piiya?” (What’s that?)
“It’s a tree fruit called dinar.”
Dinar.
500 years ago, it was so common you could trip over it, treated like pebbles, but now, with all beastkin driven out, it was something unobtainable even for billions in gold.
Because it was a fruit that grew only in beastkin habitats.
Even as he said it, feeling bleak, Edenber let out a sigh.
On the other hand, Asil blinked her eyes with a puzzled face.
‘That’s something Asil knows about?’
Just as humans ate bread as their staple food, beastkin ate tree fruits called dinar as their staple.
The only issue was its short shelf life, so it wasn’t stored in sub-space.
Because if picked and even a week passed, it would shrivel and dry into powder.
……Hold on.
Dinar powder?
“Piiya ppi.” (Asil has that.)
“Huh?”
Edenber’s flustered voice didn’t even register.
Jumping down from the desk and slipping behind the curtain, Asil opened her sub-space.
She shoved half her body in and rummaged around vigorously, then pulled out a certain pouch with her front paw.
Then she toddled over and held it out to Edenber.
Completely unaware that this negated any point in opening her sub-space while hiding.
“Piya.” (Here.)
“……This is that tree fruit?”
Edenber, who had casually opened the pouch Asil handed over, grew even more flustered.
“It’s just some kind of powder.”
“Piiya ppi.” (It’s powder, yeah.)
Dissolving dinar fruit in water made it swell up in the belly for an excellent feeling of fullness.
That was why beastkin carried a pouch of it in their sub-space as emergency rations.
Asil’s had been packed by her mom so she wouldn’t go hungry while out and about.
Though in reality, Edenber fed her so well that she’d never once taken it out.
Edenber, hiding his regretful expression, spoke calmly.
“What they want is the fruit itself, not powder.”
“Piiya ppi.” (It all turned into powder after 500 years, see.)
“There’s no way they’d accept that…. Wait.”
Thinking it over, it was a story that made a certain amount of sense.
Since it was the other side acting ridiculously with a promissory note from 500 years ago, this side could counter that they had obtained the fruits, but after 500 years of time, all that remained due to erosion was powder.
……But why on earth does Asil have dinar fruit powder?
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By Anna 💓
