I'll Stop Regressing and Raise a Baby Dragon - Chapter 38

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

Chapter 38
Liliana pulled out a white handkerchief and dabbed away the sweat beading on her brow.
“I hope I’m not keeping you from anything important.”
As I stepped closer, she raised an arm slightly.
It seemed a signal to keep my distance, so I stopped where I stood.
“There’s an unpleasant smell.”
A flicker of apology crossed her face as she spoke.
“I understand. Kai and I will wait over there!”
I pointed to the shade beneath a nearby tree and smiled.
“Very well. Please make yourselves comfortable.”
Liliana nodded reassuringly and gripped her sword properly.
As Kai and I withdrew, she resumed her practice, blade cutting through the air anew.
“Strange.”
The moment Kai reached the tree’s shadow, he spoke.
“What is?”
He gestured toward Liliana’s sword.
“There’s an aura surrounding it—not magic, but something else.”
Was he talking about Aura?
Unlike magic, it’s difficult to distinguish with the naked eye.
Kai must have the ability to sense it, it seemed.
‘She was a Sword Master.’
I’d been taken aback when I first learned it.
That she was one of those rare Sword Masters—so few in number.
Which made me want her as an ally all the more.
Whoosh—
Each time she brought her blade down, a sharp whistle cut through the air.
She seemed to have forgotten that Kai and I were watching.
As if she were alone in this world, she poured herself entirely into her practice.
“I want to try it too.”
Kai murmured, almost to himself.
“Aura?”
He nodded.
“Why?”
“I like becoming stronger.”
……But Kai.
Dragons didn’t need such things to be far, far stronger than any human.
‘Still, if Kai wants to learn, it would be good to give him the chance.’
“Should I ask her about it later?”
“Ask her to teach you?”
I nodded in agreement.
Kai stared at Liliana with a contemplative expression, as if lost in thought.
“It’s fine.”
He shook his head.
Perhaps he thought learning magic alone was enough for now.
“All right, if you’re sure.”
The awkward conversation ended just as Liliana stopped her practice.
After a brief rest, she approached us.
“Thank you for your patience.”
“No, it was fun to watch.”
“Please, have some.”
She handed me a Silver Water Container, pristine and gleaming without a speck of dust.
“Thank you.”
My throat had been parched anyway—the timing was perfect.
The container felt substantial when I took it in both hands.
The water inside was so cold it was refreshing when I drank.
“Would you like some, Kai?”
“Yeah.”
I handed him the container and looked toward Liliana.
She was drinking deeply from her own vessel.
It was an older water container of the same design, marked with numerous scratches and dents.
“Master, were you a Sword Master?”
I asked the question casually while she was closing the water container, as if I’d only just thought of it.
“Yes. Did the Magic Tower Master mention it?”
“No. Kai told me.”
Liliana glanced at Kai with an expression of mild surprise.
“Dragons seem to sense Aura, it seems.”
“Apparently so.”
With that, the conversation simply died.
‘She’s quieter than I expected.’
If I just let her rest without saying anything more,
she’d watch the training, and then we’d leave.
Then I’d have nothing to show for this visit!
‘What should I talk about?’
Touching on family matters felt like it would backfire.
And I can’t very well talk about swordsmanship when I know nothing about it — no topics come to mind.
“When did you become a Sword Master?”
In the end, all I could do was stretch out the earlier conversation a bit longer.
“It would have been about a year ago.”
“That’s not long at all.”
Given that she appeared to be in her mid-thirties, that was remarkably fast.
It was a realm not easily reached, even by those who spent their entire lives wielding a sword.
“Since all I can do is train…….”
There was something poignant in Liliana’s voice as she said it.
“……I was simply fortunate.”
Her words trailing off, she suddenly seemed to catch herself and hurriedly wrapped up what she’d been saying.
Her dark hazel eyes trembled violently.
Snap.
She bit her lip so hard that watching her made my own mouth ache in sympathy.
Her face bore the expression of someone regretting words she’d just spoken.
‘What do I do now.’
I hadn’t wanted to touch on something painful.
In moments like this, the best thing to do is…….
Act like I don’t notice anything.
Clap!
I clapped my hands loudly together.
Liliana jumped at the sudden noise, her eyes blinking rapidly.
“Wow, that’s amazing!”
I marveled with as much enthusiasm as I could manage without sounding forced.
“Anyone you protect must feel incredibly secure knowing you’re watching over them.”
“…….”
A suffocating silence hung between us.
Cold sweat seemed to form between my clasped hands.
I could feel the corners of my mouth twitch slightly.
I just hoped this awkward expression didn’t show…….
“Thank you for the kind words.”
Liliana regarded me quietly for a moment, then offered a gentle smile.
She seemed to have recovered some of her composure.
“Of course!”
I broke into a full grin and lightly took hold of Kai’s arm.
Kai held out the water container to her.
While she took it and began putting things away, I asked cautiously.
“If I have any outside appointments later, would it be alright to request your assistance?”
“If you speak with the Magic Tower Master, I will do my best to accommodate the schedule.”
“Excellent!”
With permission granted, I’d have to create appointments if none existed, just to persuade her to come along.
“Do you have frequent outside appointments?”
“Yes. The Magic Tower Knights receive commissions constantly.”
Liliana gave a brief explanation.
Nobles submit commissions to the Knights when the need arises.
Usually it’s for protection during business travels, journeys, and other outside activities.
Nobles with weak forces who can’t afford to employ strong knight orders favor them, or so I’ve heard.
The Magic Tower benefits quite handsomely from the arrangement as well.
Apparently the research requires far more funding than the Imperial Court can provide.
“As the reputation accumulated, eventually even the Imperial Court began calling upon us.”
“Really?”
“Yes. If I recall correctly, it was during the Imperial Princess’s birthday celebration last year.”
What?
“The Imperial Princess?”
My heart began racing the moment I heard those words.
If it was her, surely she might know something… useful?
‘Calm yourself.’
Don’t get your hopes up.
I’d been so certain Edward would know something too.
All that came back was disappointment.
“…Have you perhaps spoken with the Imperial Princess before?”
“I do recall exchanging a few words with her, though only briefly.”
“Then!”
Thump—
I quickly seized her hands in both of mine.
Liliana’s lips twitched slightly.
She seemed caught off guard by the sudden closeness.
“Then, do you happen to know what the Imperial Princess enjoys?”
“Is this because of the Imperial Princess’s birthday coming up this year?”
“Yes!”
Please.
I’m truly in trouble here.
I looked up at her with desperate longing.
Even the smallest detail would help.
Anything except ‘she has a peculiar personality.’
“Let me search my memory for a moment.”
Liliana thought briefly.
“Now that I think of it, she mentioned a book she liked at that gathering.”
“What book?”
“It was an ordinary romance novel, but among the characters who appeared in it—”
She trailed off and hesitated.
Then she glanced at me cautiously.
Curious about what was wrong, I tilted my head slightly while meeting her gaze.
She cleared her throat softly and continued slowly.
“…There was a character who resembled me, and she complimented that person.”
Liliana’s ears had turned crimson as she finished speaking.
It seemed she felt embarrassed saying her own praise aloud.
Unbothered, I pressed her further.
“Do you know the title of the book?”
“I believe it was a book called ‘A Midsummer’s Dream, and Reverie,’ if I remember correctly.”
“Thank you!”
This was an enormous lead.
I could choose a gift based on the passages from the book that she’d likely appreciate.
I’d need to spend the next month reading it and analyzing it as carefully as possible.
“It’s the book from the Duke’s Residence library.”
Kai, who’d been sitting on the ground to rest, interjected casually into the conversation.
“Kai, have you read that book?”
Fanning myself with my hand, he shook his head slightly.
“It was boring.”
Well, a romance novel, after all.
Kai couldn’t empathize deeply with human’s personal emotions anyway.
“I’ll find it for you in the library when we get home.”
“Ah, yeah. Thanks.”
Kai smiled gently.
Golden sunlight poured down over that warm smile.
The shadow cast by the great tree had long since moved to another place.
Looking up at the sky, I realized much time had passed—the sun was already setting in shades of crimson and gold.
Luke’s words came back to me then: don’t be late.
“Kai, shall we head out?”
Kai nodded.
He rose to his feet and brushed the dirt from his trousers with quick, practiced pats.
“It does seem time to go.”
“Of course. I’ll see you safely back to the Mansion.”
She extended her hand with deliberate courtesy, as if offering an escort.
Over that scarred, weathered hand—marked by countless wounds both large and small—I placed my own.
***
“……What on earth is this about?”
I closed the book with a troubled heart.
Kai’s complaint about it being tedious wasn’t wrong.

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