The Return of Lilietta - Chapter 216

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 216

“The constellations are completely different…”

Sion’s eyes narrowed slightly. Jurlene interjected in surprise.

“What, the stars are different? That magic you used earlier was something I’d never seen before too… Are you really saying you came from another world?”

“That could be possible. I’m not entirely sure myself either.”

Just as Rita was about to brush it off vaguely, Sion spoke up again.

“But for someone from another world, don’t we understand each other far too well?”

[Observation: Seeing how unnecessarily sharp he is, he’s definitely cut out to be a hero who founds a nation.]

[Advice: You’d better claim it’s translation magic, User.]

“…That seems to be thanks to a translation magic tool I possess.”

“There’s magic that can instantly translate even languages from unknown worlds?”

“I didn’t know it would perform this well either. I’m not even certain whether this is truly a different world from what I knew, or if it’s the same world but just a place distant enough for the constellations to be different.”

“Hmm…”

Sion narrowed his blue eyes and let out a thoughtful hum, then smiled gently.

“In any case, since your injuries are severe, it would be best for you to stay with us at least until you recover. You don’t need to feel burdened about supporting one more person though. We have that much to spare.”

He wasn’t completely trusting her, and was being reserved about the issue of her staying permanently, but he was saying he’d accept her for now since she was a patient.

At the same time, it felt like he was being cautious about revealing too much of their circumstances to a strange outsider. Judging by how he kept emphasizing they had ‘plenty to spare’ while carefully watching her reaction.

“Spare what? This person should at least know this isn’t an easy choice! Really, Sion, you’re too kind-hearted.”

Jurlene grumbled from the side, not catching Sion’s underlying meaning. Rita thought to herself.

‘Jurlene really does seem unfamiliar with people, just like Sion said. How has she been living, and how did she end up meeting the first Emperor?’

The first Empress Jurlene in history had her aspects as Coronator, the incarnation of the Black Dragon, emphasized so strongly that there were almost no records of her before becoming Empress. Even her encounter with the Emperor was replaced with the meeting with the Black Dragon.

From her actions after becoming Empress, it was clear she had little interest in politics or power struggles and loved magic and the arts.

‘Seeing that she’s lived in the forest all along, did she hide away from childhood because she’s part elf?’

For the founding myth to proceed as it should, Gid would need to play the role of the Black Dragon, while making people believe Jurlene was the incarnation of the Black Dragon in the future.

In many ways, she needed to understand what kind of person Jurlene was.

‘I’ll be able to find out once I gain more trust.’

Suddenly, Sion opened his mouth with a troubled expression.

“Um, Lady Lillieta.”

“Just call me Rita, please.”

“Well then, Lady Rita.”

His gaze reached the Black Dragon crouched behind Rita.

“The place we’re staying is a cave, so it might be difficult for the Black Dragon to enter.”

“Ah.”

Rita turned to look at the dragon following his gaze. A massive body so huge that people looked like finger-sized to it.

Sion continued in a troubled tone.

“It’s not just the size… People who’ve never seen a dragon before will be frightened. How about having the Black Dragon wait here for now? I think it would be better to introduce you first, Lady Rita, then gradually let them know about the dragon’s existence.”

“That does make sense. Just a moment.”

Rita left Sion and Jurlene behind and approached Gid, whispering.

“Gid, I think I need to follow those people. Can you wait here alone?”

The spikes covering the Black Dragon bristled sharply. Then a massive front paw suddenly approached and settled down around Rita, blocking her off from the other two people.

She looked at the dragon’s hand surrounding her like a spiked wall for a moment, then looked up at Gid.

“You don’t want me to?”

The dragon nodded vigorously. She could see red liquid filling the empty eye sockets again.

“I’m not saying I’ll abandon you and leave. I’m just saying I’ll go for a little while… You’ve really become a crybaby. Aren’t you going to be embarrassed to death when you return to normal later?”

Rita sighed and muttered as she reached out her hand. As her hand approached, the spikes in that direction flattened one after another. She smiled bitterly and stroked those flattened spikes along their grain.

“You’re too big to come with me right now. I won’t go far, and I’ll just say hello and come right back, so don’t cry and wait just a little- Huh?”

The dragon’s eye sockets filled with bloody tears narrowed, and the spikes rippled. At the same time, black energy began rising like smoke from the dragon’s entire body.

“Wh-what? Why is that dragon acting like that!”

“Lady Rita?”

The panicked voices of Jurlene and Sion could be heard from beyond the dragon’s paw that was like a spiked wall. Before Rita could answer them, something strange happened.

All the spikes contracted at once, and the Black Dragon wrapped in black energy rapidly shrank. Until it became the size of a cat.

Soon the small silhouette shook its body as if shaking off moisture. The black smoke scattered, revealing the now-small dragon covered in hedgehog-like spikes, stretching out its neck and letting out a short cry.

-Grroong.

The blood-filled eye sockets and slightly open mouth looking up at her from her feet seemed to be asking cautiously.

Can I follow you if I’m like this?

Rita gaped in bewilderment.

“You could control your size…?”

-Grrurung.

Instead of answering, the tiny Black Dragon made a rumbling sound in its throat and rubbed its body against her legs with its spikes flattened. Its wings and tail swayed gently.

“Wow, what? You got so small! You’re so cute like this!”

Jurlene approached in admiration, crouched down, and reached out her hand to the dragon. As her hand approached, the small Black Dragon bristled all its spikes at once and bared its teeth.

“I can’t touch you, I see. Got it, sorry…”

The dejected Jurlene drooped her long ears, apologized, and stepped back several paces. Only then did the Black Dragon flatten its spikes and cling to Rita’s legs again.

Rita looked down at the adorable dragon rubbing against her legs in a half-dazed state, then bent her waist.

“Gid?”

As her bandage-wrapped arm approached, the Black Dragon let out a thin cry and rubbed its head against her fingertips. Then it spread its wings and flew up slightly, carefully avoiding her wounds as it coiled around her arm and climbed up to rest its front paws and head on her shoulder.

‘…It’s surprisingly light. And warm.’

[Bewilderment: Does this lizard have no self-awareness or pride about originally being a big, dark-skinned human? It’s not even a pet monster, what is this…]

Gnewg muttered as if dumbfounded. Rita stroked the head of the Black Dragon clinging to her shoulder with complicated feelings, then looked back at Sion.

“This size should be fine, right?”

“Uh… Yes. It’s about the size of a dog or cat, so there shouldn’t be any problem with this.”

Sion replied in bewilderment, then let out a breath that could have been either a sigh or admiration and added.

“Dragons really are mysterious creatures.”

With the major problem resolved, they soon headed to the cave together.

Since Rita had difficulty walking long distances due to her injuries, they moved slowly, walking at a leisurely pace and resting frequently, but thanks to this, they were able to share quite a lot of conversation during the process.

Sion hardly talked about himself, being kind but wary of her, and Rita also watched her words for fear of being discovered as someone from the future, but Jurlene readily opened up.

“I’ve actually picked up many humans like you. I had no choice because of my late Mentor’s dying wish… What was my Mentor’s dying wish, you ask? Well, that was…”

By gathering and combining the stories Jurlene told in this manner, she could understand how Jurlene had lived.

Jurlene lost her parents in childhood and was pursued for being part elf, then entered this forest and met her ‘Mentor.’

Her ‘Mentor’ was a part-elf mage who rescued people who had been chased into the Black Forest by the Holy Empire from monsters, then sent them safely out of the forest.

In the process, she also dealt with the Holy Empire pursuers who had followed, so the Empire came to call her the ‘Witch of the Black Forest’ and she gained notoriety.

The ‘Witch’ would drive out all other humans from the forest no matter how young or pitiful their circumstances, but Jurlene was an exception since she was part elf like herself and had magical talent.

She took Jurlene as both an adopted daughter and disciple.

After time passed and her mentor died, leaving Jurlene alone, she became the new ‘Witch of the Black Forest’ who rescued humans entering the forest, following her mentor’s dying wish.

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