I Was Just Having Fun With The Time Limit - Chapter 148

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The mound of earth that had been protruding was completely gone.
“Your Highness?”
“Yuri, call Tangdangi for me.”
Yuri had contracts with both Bangwul, the water spirit, and Tangdangi, the earth spirit.
A mole-shaped spirit appeared before us.
“Ask him to carefully excavate this area.”
“Understood.”
Tangdangi began digging through the surrounding soil. And it became certain.
‘Bumblebee has vanished?’
Had someone stolen the corpse?
Why?
There was no reason for that.
There couldn’t be such petty thieves in the imperial palace.
“He says nothing is buried in the ground.”
“…Yes.”
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
Yuri gently wrapped an arm around my shoulder to steady me.
“I’m fine. Just a bit startled.”
“Let’s return to the palace. I’ll prepare you some barley tea.”
My mind had become turbulent.
“No, let’s go see Father.”
I headed toward Father with Yuri.
In truth, I wanted to see Mother, but she was far busier than Father.
Most of the work that substantively fell upon the head of the empire was concentrated on Mother’s shoulders.
Father was likely at the training grounds.
Of course, the role of the Vilotian Emperor itself was to serve as the empire’s strongest blade when great crisis befell the realm, but in peacetime, he did appear to have more leisure than Mother.
“Kim Beolkkot has disappeared?”
“Yes.”
Father had been training with the Black Whale Knights, but he stopped the exercises as soon as I arrived at the training grounds.
I wasn’t entirely sure, but the knights’ expressions brightened considerably.
They looked as though they’d been given a reprieve, but that was a matter between Father and them, so I decided to pretend I hadn’t noticed.
We sat on a bench and talked.
Over the past year, this had become a familiar situation.
Father was the type to be quite taciturn in one-on-one conversations, but he had improved considerably lately.
“There couldn’t have been a thief in the imperial palace, could there?”
“That’s right. Even if there were a thief, it’s even less likely they’d steal something like that. If some beast had dug it up, there would have been traces left behind.”
Father glanced toward Yuri.
Yuri flinched slightly.
She didn’t need to be so startled, but Yuri always froze up whenever she was around Father.
“You handle earth spirits, I hear?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Have you discovered any traces of the beast?”
“I have not found any, I apologize.”
“I never asked you to apologize.”
I gave my Biological Father’s thigh a subtle jab without drawing attention.
I know my Biological Father is far kinder and warmer than he appears, but others don’t see it that way.
Even when he says something as simple as a greeting, it sounds threatening coming from him.
That’s why I’ve already asked him to speak more gently to those around him.
“You have nothing to apologize for. There’s no need to say sorry.”
“Th-thank you.”
Their conversation was terribly awkward, but I decided to be satisfied with this much for now.
It seemed unlikely they would ever become close.
“You don’t think there was actually a theft, do you?”
“If that were the case, I’d have to reprimand Biatone.”
“Y-your Teacher? Why?”
“Why? Do you dislike seeing Biatone punished?”
“Viscount Biatonn doesn’t oversee security, though.”
“That doesn’t matter. I simply want to reprimand him.”
“…Is that allowed?”
“Biatone is allowed.”
I wasn’t sure whether to be grateful that Viscount Biatonn and my Biological Father got along, or if I even understood the situation correctly.
Soon, my Biological Father spoke again.
“Of course, there was once a theft in the imperial palace. Someone broke into the secret vault and stole gold ingots.”
“…Ah!”
I remembered.
There was a time when Bumblebee had stolen gold from the imperial palace’s secret vault and given it to me as a gift.
“Perhaps another thief has come again.”
“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”
My Biological Father rose from his seat.
And he said something slightly strange.
“I despise thieves. I abhor them intensely. In every sense of the word. If one appears before my eyes, I will never forgive them.”
* * *
Approximately one year ago.
The dormant volcano, Mount Magrot, erupted violently, causing the people of nearby villages to evacuate in chaos.
A volcano that had slept for five hundred years had erupted.
The reason for the eruption was simple.
The Black Flame Dragon had become enraged.
“Stop this. Are you trying to drive the world to the brink of destruction again?”
“What now? What’s the problem?”
“Come to your senses. It wasn’t Arun who died—it was Kim Beolggol.”
Originally, when a dragon transforms into another life form and meets death, the dragon’s true body also perishes.
Adult dragons don’t find this strange.
However, a different standard applies to young dragons.
“They’ll awaken in a few days.”
Young dragons must be protected, and they receive the protection of countless dragons until they mature into adult dragons.
Even if the transformed life form meets death, the soul remains unbroken and returns to a special space where it reconstructs its body.
It was a privilege granted only to young dragons.
Kadelina shot up from her seat.
“I need to wipe out Duke Bladog or whoever.”
“He’s already been swept away.”
Ravina sighed and relayed news from the human world.
Duke Bladog’s house, one of the Empire’s two great ducal families, had attempted treason, and ultimately Emperor Ron himself had annihilated the entire Bladog family.
“The forests around Duke Bladog’s territory are still burning.”
“That’s not enough. Everything related to Bladog must be erased.”
“If you rampage like that again, you think the ancient dragons will stay quiet?”
“What will they do if they don’t stay quiet?”
Kadelina let out a scoffing laugh.
“I fight better anyway, so what.”
“What does ‘so what’ even mean?”
“I don’t know. Arun taught me.”
“The nuance is really off.”
“So should I go rampage now? Can I sweep everything away? Can I show how incredibly strong I am?”
“You’re already doing that, so please stop. Controlling just one Ron is difficult enough.”
“Ron? That Emperor?”
“Yes.”
“Why are you controlling him? Just let him rampage.”
“We have to prevent the world’s destruction.”
“If he rampages, the world gets destroyed?”
“He’s nearly at your true body’s level.”
Kadelina was momentarily at a loss for words.
“Don’t lie. There’s no way a human could be that strong.”
“Humans are life forms that constantly transcend common sense.”
“Even so, that’s too much.”
Kadelina stared at Ravina in disbelief before asking again.
“How does he compare to Duke Robena?”
“Back then, if we used magic and swordsmanship, we could still hold our own against her.”
“And?”
“I don’t know when it happened, but he became excessively strong. Nearly as strong as the greatest black flame dragon on the continent.”
Kadelina’s anger subsided somewhat.
Ravina knew exactly how to handle Kadelina, and Kadelina had begun to show great interest in Ron.
“Is he really that skilled in combat?”
* * *
The eruption of Mount Maglot had ceased.
The volcano that had once hurled ash to the very edge of the sky now lay dormant, and from the crater still warm with residual heat, Kadelina strolled with her son.
“How is your body feeling?”
“I’m fine. My head feels a bit heavy and aches, though.”
“A few more days of rest and you’ll be better. It seems you lived a very happy life as a ratel.”
“I suppose so.”
“Do you remember anything?”
“Nothing at all. It feels like I experienced something precious, but….”
It was a lie.
Arun wanted nothing more than to leave Lair immediately and travel to the imperial capital of the Villorian Empire.
He feared that if time passed, he would forget everything.
There was an obsessive need to meet Isabel before that happened.
Yet he did not let it show.
Young dragons were not meant to retain memories of their lives as other creatures.
Several more days passed.
“I’m thinking of living as a human this time.”
“That’s a good idea. There aren’t many races as capable of diverse thoughts and experiences as humans.”
“What sort of background would you like?”
“Wouldn’t the secret son of the Northern Duke suffice?”
“That’s not a bad thought.”
“Though I’m uncertain if the Dragon of Wisdom will permit it.”
“She’ll likely say it’s a poor idea. But I think it doesn’t matter.”
Arun and Kadelina shared many conversations.
There were points where their opinions clashed.
“Why do you insist on using the name Arun? Usually people change it.”
“Because it’s a proud name you gave me.”
“Now that I think about it, using that name is an excellent choice.”
“May I work out the specific details myself?”
Kadelina felt slightly disappointed.
It seemed her son was slipping from her embrace.
He was becoming more independent than before.
Yet she comforted herself, thinking this was a natural part of his growth.
“Very well. I’ll tell your sister myself.”
“Thank you.”
Arun embraced Kadelina once.
That alone was enough for Kadelina to laugh softly and let all her defenses crumble.
At least, that’s how it appeared on the surface.
‘No matter how hard you try to hide it, I see everything.’
There was no doubt that he retained all his memories as a ratel.
His insistence on becoming Duke Robena’s son surely had its reasons.
‘He must have thought that level of status was fitting for Isabel.’
He was quite a cunning son.
‘Why does he act exactly like I did when I was young?’
Though he tried not to show it, his steps were noticeably light, which made me feel a little disappointed.
His infatuation with Isabel was plainly visible to all.
“I’ll be going.”
Arun departed from Lair.
Shortly after, Robena contacted me directly using the communication circle.
She was furious about why I had a hidden son, but Kadelina responded in a tone that suggested she didn’t care about such trivial matters.
“I know I did something shameful. But if you curse me, I won’t let it slide.”
Of course, “won’t let it slide” meant the ‘world’ itself.
Somehow, the black flame dragon was still suffering from the same affliction as the fifteen-year-old Kaman.
* * *
Robena, ultimately defeated(?) by Kadelina, sought out the imperial palace with Arun.
“He is my hidden son, Your Majesty. I apologize for the late introduction, but what do you think? Handsome, isn’t he?”
However, Ron’s reaction was quite different from usual.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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