The White Tiger Clan’s Baby Cotton Ball - Chapter 236

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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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Part 2, Chapter 28

“Cotton Ball woke up?”

As soon as Saeon heard the news, he pushed through the people and approached Soya.

“Father…!”

He knelt down toward Soya, smiled broadly, and extended his palm.

“Come here, my daughter.”

Soya habitually tried to climb onto Father’s palm, then hesitated when she realized her body wasn’t as small as before.

‘I must be heavy now.’

Noticing Soya’s hesitation, Saeon let out a small laugh.

“I’m hurt, grown-up Cotton Ball. Now that you’re all grown up, you won’t even come to Papa?”

“N-no!”

Worried that Father might feel hurt, Soya quickly scurried over and climbed onto his palm.

Though her body was now much larger than Saeon’s palm, he lifted her up easily without any difficulty.

“…Am I not heavy?”

“Not at all.”

When she asked carefully, Saeon gently stroked Soya’s body with his other hand as he answered.

“You’ve just gotten plump and cute.”

“I’m n-not plump!”

Soya flapped her wings as if she’d heard the worst insult.

“This isn’t plump, I just got bigger.”

At her desperate protest, Saeon’s laughter grew louder.

“Father, that’s too much…!”

As Soya was about to protest with a tearful expression, something soft and fragrant settled onto the feathers on her head.

Soya blinked her eyes and looked up at Father’s face.

Saeon touched the feathers on her head with a very careful expression, then smiled gently and withdrew his hand.

“Pretty.”

He showed a mirror to the red bird who was tilting her head.

A bright red flower blossom was nestled among the feathers on Soya’s head.

“Congratulations on truly becoming an adult, Cotton Ball.”

Taehwa Kingdom had a custom of celebrating women who had completed their Second Growth Stage and reached adulthood by giving them flowers and jewels.

Soya’s heart pounded as she looked at herself in the mirror.

Soya realized it once more.

Finally, she had undergone Second Growth Stage.

* * *

A red bird adorned with flowers and jewels flapped her wings and soared up into the sky.

“Amazing, Cotton Ball!”

“Really incredible, Somsom!”

“Wonderful, Young Lady!”

Every time Soya flapped her wings, praise poured toward her from below.

At the doting Elder Brothers’ chorus of compliments, Soya giggled and spread her wings wide to fly even higher.

Having completed her Second Growth Stage, Soya’s body had grown larger and her wings had become much bigger.

Her gracefully curved head feathers were also very beautiful, and most of all, the tail feathers that swayed whenever she moved were very long and lovely.

Even Gayul, who was extremely proud of his own spotted tiger tail, was so mesmerized that he said Soya’s tail feathers were much prettier.

‘This reminds me of when I first flew in front of people.’

When she was young, Soya used to deliberately flap higher because she loved receiving praise from the White Tiger Palace People.

Thinking back, it was a bit embarrassing to realize that the adults could clearly see through her pretense of keeping her beak tightly shut while fluttering about, trying to hide how happy she was from the compliments.

‘I was really young back then.’

While flying and flapping her wings, Soya spotted Irim in the distance and flew toward him.

“Your Majesty.”

Irim, who had been sitting on a rock watching wildflowers sway gently, looked up at her.

Pop!

Soya released her Beast Transformation and stood before him.

Perhaps because she had completed her Second Growth Stage.

She exuded a much more mature feeling.

Ah, maybe it was because of those eyes.

Due to the Suzaku’s energy that had once exploded and hadn’t completely faded yet, a subtle red glow swirled over her light pink eyes.

Those deep eyes, like red jade had been embedded in them, curved beautifully.

“I heard from Father. That day, Your Majesty helped me, didn’t you? Thank you.”

Soya, who greeted him with a bright smile, seemed to have no memory of that day at all.

However, Irim smiled gently without any disappointment and asked.

“Are you feeling alright now?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Thanks to you.”

“That’s truly fortunate, Soya. May I congratulate you?”

Congratulating someone on their Second Growth Stage was usually done between family members or very close relationships.

Irim’s question about whether he could congratulate her seemed to suggest they had a somewhat special relationship.

“It would be a great honor if Your Majesty congratulated me.”

Soya nodded with slightly flushed cheeks.

Swish.

Irim stood up and bowed toward Soya.

Then, just as Saeon had done, he placed a wildflower by her ear.

“Congratulations on becoming an adult, Soya.”

“Thank you. Your Maj…”

Soya, who had been nodding shyly, suddenly stopped.

“Your Majesty, this hand…!”

There were burn marks on his hand.

Soya had seen hands with burn marks like that before.

Right after she had completed her First Growth, Father’s hands had also been covered with red wounds that looked like burns.

Burn marks that were larger and deeper than those remained on Irim’s hands.

Irim quickly hid his hands, but Soya had already seen them.

Soya’s face immediately became tearful.

“Was it because of me?”

“…”

He wanted to say no, but the words wouldn’t come out.

It couldn’t be helped. He was an Imperial Dragon who couldn’t tell lies.

“I’ll heal you.”

“It’s fine…”

Irim’s hand was caught as he tried to refuse, saying it was fine.

He stiffened for a moment, but Soya didn’t notice as she was concentrating on healing.

The red energy that bloomed from her fingertips traveled through their touching hands to Irim.

With a tickling yet warm sensation, the wounds remaining on his skin smoothly disappeared.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. Because of me…”

“I’m fine, Soya. You healed me so completely.”

“But healing the wound doesn’t make the pain from that moment disappear.”

“I was truly fine, Soya. Really, it didn’t hurt at all.”

Irim spoke again in a gentle voice to the upset Soya.

“There’s no way it didn’t hurt. When the wounds were that severe…”

“I told you before. Imperial Dragons cannot tell lies.”

“But still….”

Soya didn’t believe his words that it didn’t hurt, but since he said so, she couldn’t help but believe him.

“Your Majesty is just like Father. When I first suffered from growth pains at twelve, Father said the same thing. That it didn’t hurt at all.”

At those words, Irim burst into laughter.

“Oh my. Saeon would be angry if he knew. He’d say I’m stealing his father’s position.”

Soya gazed quietly at Irim’s hair swaying gently in the breeze, then suddenly spoke up.

“Your Majesty, I have something to tell you.”

Soya pulled out a teal hair ribbon from her sleeve.

Five years ago, in the Eastern Lands.

It was the very hair ribbon Irim had used to tie her hair while they watched the fireworks that beautifully colored the night sky.

“This is precious to Your Majesty, isn’t it?”

The Former Empress who had become a wraith had awakened upon meeting Soya because she had reacted to an object containing her living wishes.

Soya had thought at the time that it referred to Hyeonmu’s shield, but the Divine Beasts said it was impossible for a mere human’s wishes to dwell in a divine spirit’s essence.

So what had awakened the wraith that day was not Hyeonmu’s shield but something else.

Though it was already five years ago, now that Soya knew the wraith’s identity, she had a vague idea of what object had awakened her.

“Actually, I met Your Majesty’s mother. Five years ago… I went to the Northern Lands with Father to awaken Lord Hyeonmu. There I met a Shield Bearer of the Xuanwu Clan who remained as a soul.”

She deliberately didn’t mention that her soul had been corrupted.

If he knew that much, it might upset him.

“At that time, she told me. If I ever met Your Majesty again,”

That day, the Former Empress’s soul, purified by Soya’s power, looked at Soya just before disappearing and made a request.

[Please, young Dragon Emperor’s Bride. Stop him in my place. And, if you have that….]

Though the voice was intermittent and broken, so the complete sentence didn’t reach her.

[…love him very much, please tell him….]

So she hadn’t known who to deliver those last words to, and couldn’t convey them until now.

“She asked me to tell you that she loves you very much.”

Belatedly finding the owner of those last words, she conveyed them like this.

“…I see.”

Irim nodded with a calm expression.

“This was Mother’s belonging.”

“Why would you give me something so precious….”

“You also shared something precious of yours with me.”

“I did?”

“Oh my. You don’t remember this time either, it seems.”

Irim smiled warmly at Soya and pulled up an old memory.

“Long ago, during Duke Sanyu’s expedition ceremony. At the Imperial Palace.”

“Ah….”

At that voice tinged with gentle laughter, a fragment of memory from what had now become a very distant past came back to her.

[Three years ago. During Duke Sanyu’s expedition ceremony. At the Imperial Palace.]

[Even if I return this, you won’t remember me, will you.]

The memory of a boy who had been the only one to smile warmly at her in the Cold Mansion where everyone turned away.

“May I return a precious object to Your Majesty this time?”

At Soya’s question, instead of answering, Irim smiled slightly and turned his body a little.

Rustle. Rustle.

As Soya carefully combed up his platinum hair with her hands, a cautious expression appeared on her face.

* * *

‘Soya is… smiling.’

Meanwhile, gray eyes watching that scene from a little distance away sank gloomily.

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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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