Time Healer Ceres - Chapter 81

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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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There was no point in trying to stop her.
She could endure her own losses, but when it came to Grace or me—she wouldn’t tolerate that for a second.
‘She’ll probably try to restore the house leadership to me first.’
…I really don’t want that.
Seres shook her head without quite meaning to.
Taking back the position of head of House Elrsia—that was something she truly wanted no part of.
‘Do that again? That work?’
It had been a short life, if you could call it that. Not even thirty years.
Yet she harbored no regrets. During all those years as Grace, she’d lived with full intensity and no remorse.
And because of that, she had no desire to inherit Grace Elrsia’s life.
Her current existence was enough.
‘Though, admittedly, I’m broke as hell.’
Debt multiplied the moment her eyes opened each morning, yet somehow she found it more fulfilling than she’d expected.
So….
“Who is that?”
All Seres could do was give this answer to Kainel—to her oldest friend.
“Grace? Artia?”
I’m sorry for leaving you alone, Kai.
I’m truly sorry.
But just a little longer—just a little longer, I want things to stay as they are.
“…You don’t know?”
“Why should I know?”
…….
Seres didn’t flinch under Kainel’s piercing gaze.
A short sigh finally escaped his lips.
“That’s your answer?”
“Yeah.”
“You….”
Crack.
“…Crack?”
Just as Kainel was about to say something more, a strange sound cut through the air.
Both Seres’s and Kainel’s eyes snapped downward toward the source.
The box beneath Seres’s feet.
Something cracking inside it.
Tap-tap… crack…….
Tap, tap-tap……. Crack.
“That’s….”
The sound was coming from the Black Egg inside the box—the very thing Artia had brought three hundred years ago to bury in the ground.
‘Should I even call it a thing?’
‘You’re really going to put it in there?’
‘Yeah!’
‘Isn’t that the egg we found in the Black Forest last time?’
‘It is.’
‘Why are you burying it?’
‘Looking at it every day is exhausting.’
‘Then just don’t look at it.’
‘I can’t help it. My eyes keep drifting to it! This way I can forget about it and stop searching for it.’
‘Do you know what this is? Do you know what might hatch? Want me to destroy the entire Academy?’
‘Don’t worry, don’t worry. Someone found an egg like this in the Black Forest once, and it took over thirty years just to hatch. We definitely won’t have to dig it up again before that happens.’
‘And from this egg that took over thirty years to hatch, something crawled out?’
‘An S-rank Monster.’
‘…Kai, kill that bastard.’
‘Yeah.’
‘Wait, it’s fine! Really! It’s totally safe! It thinks the first person it sees is its mother, so it’s incredibly docile!’
It was an egg the three of them had found together when they first conquered an S-rank Black Forest.
An S-rank Black Forest operated by different rules than ordinary ones.
It wasn’t just black trees that grew there—the very environment inside underwent bizarre transformations.
The Black Forest where they’d found this egg was no exception.
A world of pure black.
The Black Egg they’d found in that place.
‘Why is it hatching now, of all times?’
Not thirty years later—three hundred years!
It should have rotted to pieces by now, shouldn’t it?
‘No, no, no!’
They should have come and dug it up before thirty years had even passed! Artia, you damned fool!
Crack. Splinter.
And yet the Black Egg continued to shatter with remarkable dedication.
Something inside tapped rhythmically against the shell, as if breaking through with deliberate strikes.
“Kainel! Forward!”
Whoosh.
At Seres’s command, Kainel stepped forward with instinctive obedience, only to throw her a bewildered look.
‘I pushed forward, so why are you backing away?’
“I have no intention of becoming a monster’s mother.”
You do it. You.
……
Kainel clicked his tongue inwardly.
‘Here she goes, talking about something only the two of us know, saying Grace doesn’t know about it. You’re something else…….’
With a slight shake of his head, he stepped back a few paces.
“Why, why?”
‘Why are you backing away?’
Seres’s confused gaze met his bland reply, as if to ask what kind of obvious question that was.
“I’m not interested either. Becoming a monster’s mother.”
Yet he kept his eyes fixed on the egg, ready to draw his blade at any moment—prepared to leap into action should circumstances take an unexpected turn.
Seres poked at Kainel’s back repeatedly, her frown deepening.
“Stop backing away. Stand in front of me.”
“No.”
“Come on. A genuine S-rank Monster could emerge from there. Raise it well.”
Even as the two bickered, the sound grew steadily louder.
Crack! Splinter!
At a sound distinctly different from before—one that almost seemed cheerful—Seres and Kainel went rigid.
Simultaneously, the Black Egg shattered into pieces, and something shot out from within.
[Bwooo?]
“…What is that?”
‘What on earth is that dark little lump?’
Seres ducked behind Kainel, studying the creature that had emerged from the egg.
A black being, slightly larger than an adult’s palm.
Small wings fluttered on its back.
‘No matter how I look at it…….’
…No. It can’t be.
Seres quickly shook her head.
‘Artia, you bastard! What exactly did you pick up and put in there?’
[Bwoo?]
The black creature, unaccustomed to the sudden brightness, blinked repeatedly as it surveyed its surroundings—then its gaze fixed sharply on Seres.
It fluttered its small wings and took flight, drawing near to her.
“What?”
Seres hastily shoved Kainel aside, trying to put distance between herself and the creature, but the black being simply wheeled around and settled gently atop her head.
“Artia seems to have misunderstood something. It doesn’t choose the first person it sees—it picks whoever suits its fancy.”
Kainel chuckled softly and took a step back from Seres.
Still, there was one thing that fellow had gotten right.
It truly wasn’t dangerous.
While Seres screwed up her face in every direction, the creature draped across her head emitted a contented, purring sound.
“No matter how I look at it…….”
“It looks like a Dragon, doesn’t it?”
“Have you ever seen a Dragon this small?”
“Never.”
‘I’ve never even heard that a Hatchling could be this tiny.’
Seres lifted the creature from her head and held it in her palm.
[Bwuu!]
Watching the black Dragon fuss, displeased at being removed from her head, Seres let out a helpless laugh.
“S-rank, then.”
I’m not entirely sure whether a creature called legendary should even count as a monster, but there it is.
[Squeak?]
The dragon was small enough to fit entirely in the palm of her hand. Like any newborn, it brimmed with curiosity.
Seeing this tiny creature throw a fit with everything it had was almost comical—I gave it a light flick on the forehead, and it wobbled like a roly-poly before righting itself.
[Squeak?]
Then, as if it had never misbehaved at all, it settled into the center of her palm with an innocent expression.
It waved its stubby arms to grab at her thumb, then struggled to bring it to its mouth. Seres let out a sigh.
‘What on earth are you?’
Chapter 22. The Little Black One
“Sister, what is that?”
“A mouth to feed.”
Flutter-flutter.
“An extra mouth to feed.”
[Squeak!]
The black dragon that had been sitting quietly on her shoulder flew up in protest, seized a strand of her hair, and yanked it mercilessly.
“You sure live up to being an S-rank monster.”
And it understands every single word perfectly, unfortunately.
Seres gave an exasperated look and grabbed the creature as it clung to her hair, lifting it to her palm.
“Monster?”
“Well, more or less.”
When she sternly told it not to pull her hair, the black dragon slumped, its wings drooping dejectedly.
Yulia’s eyes brightened at the sight.
The girl couldn’t tear her gaze away from the black dragon’s novelty.
“It’s so small and cute…. Are you going to live with us from now on?”
“Maybe.”
I’d tried handing it off to Kainel, but—
[Squeak! Squeak! Squeeeeeak!]
It wailed so pitifully and chased after me.
“Really? You’re really going to live with us?”
“Why? Do you not want it? Should I send it somewhere else?”
[Squeeeeeak!]
“No! I want it!”
…Like there was any choice in the matter.
Apparently stung by the threat of being sent away, it shot back into the air and burrowed into her hair again.
Perhaps because it had been scolded moments before, it didn’t yank this time, but it whimpered pitifully while gnawing at the strands—just as tiresome as before.
Seres pinched the back of its neck between her thumb and forefinger, dragging it back down to her palm.

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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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