The Dragon of the Pleasure City - 3
Rene changed out of the formal suit and into her usual everyday clothes.
Even so, a lingering sense of shame still clung to her; she sat fidgeting awkwardly on the sofa.
Not that she needed to be so self-conscious about it.
Ever since the possession, even I have occasionally felt the urge to shout something dramatic like “Eternal Ice!” when casting magic.
In practice the sheer embarrassment keeps me from ever actually doing it, but the point is that everyone harbors a desire to show off now and then.
Rene must have been channeling that same impulse when she started acting like some noir crime-boss.
“So, when are you going to explain everything that happened while I was gone?”
“Ah…! I’ll explain right away!”
Rene moistened her mouth with black tea instead of wine, then opened her lips and began her story.
“It all started when I first met Sestia.”
“So you did meet her, then?”
“Of course! There’s no way I’d pick a fight with a complete stranger for no reason.”
Rene, accompanied by Lin, had visited Sestia’s residence.
They honestly stated that they needed the Mermaid’s Tear.
Sestia then grandly declared she would hand it over if just one condition was satisfied.
“Up until that moment I was happy, thinking she was someone I could actually reason with.”
“She made an unreasonable demand, I take it.”
“Exactly as you said—it was an insane request.”
“What was it?”
“……‘Sea-under-Wild.’”
“Sea-under-Wild? Never heard that term before.”
“The Wild Dragon under the Sea Dragon.”
“Wow!”
“She said she’d give it to me if I went around shouting that phrase to everyone in the city.”
“That really is an absurd demand.”
Among humans there are those who would sell out their own parents, but dragonkin would never do such a thing.
Unlike other dragonkin, Rene was not particularly warlike, yet she still took deep pride in her dragon bloodline.
She respected her mother Breeze and, even when she grumbled, remained a filial daughter who followed her well.
To tell someone like Rene to declare that her mother ranked beneath their father?
Even if I myself asked her, she would firmly refuse a proposal of that magnitude.
“So that’s why you sided with the rebel organization?”
“The decisive reason was the provocation that followed right after I refused.”
“What else did she say?”
“She said if I found it hard to accept that the Wild Dragon stood beneath the Sea Dragon, then I should prove it with my own hands. Challenge her and try to bring her down, she told me.”
“So you gathered people who held grudges against Sestia and formed the White Dragon Faction?”
“Yes! I wanted to crush that woman’s pride no matter what it took!”
Rene clenched both fists tightly, burning with determination.
Even though she was usually gentle, she possessed a fiercely competitive streak, so I could understand the motive that had driven her to this choice.
“Right. Then why is Lin serving in the Blue Dragon Faction that follows Sestia? If the two of you cooperated, things would have been much easier.”
“Ah, about that…….”
Sestia, who had thoroughly provoked Rene, had surprisingly treated Lin with great courtesy.
And as if she had already foreseen the present situation, she extended an enticing offer to Lin.
“She proposed that if Lin worked under her for just one month, she would provide the Mermaid’s Tear?”
“Yes….”
“Hah! She’s completely toying with the two of you.”
Whether Rene toppled her or Lin protected her, the Mermaid’s Tear would end up in their hands either way.
Sestia had goaded the two into fighting and intended to pay the Mermaid’s Tear as the price for watching the spectacle.
“Then it would have been over if one side simply lost. You could pretend to fight moderately and then declare surrender after a month…….”
“That won’t do!”
“Why?”
Suddenly recalling something, Rene began to hem and haw.
It was the behavior she often showed when hiding something that weighed on her conscience.
“W-well, if I back down, it would be an insult to Mother, wouldn’t it? So I absolutely must bring Sestia down!”
Well, if someone claimed that Breeze ranked beneath a Blue Dragon she had never even met, I would not find it easy to accept either.
Since I had inherited the Dragon Heart from Breeze, it would also be demeaning myself.
Leaving aside whatever secret reason Rene was hiding, I was in no position to advise her to surrender to Sestia.
“Got it. Then I’ll go find Lin and have her work behind the scenes to gradually dismantle the Blue Dragon Faction.”
“I’d be grateful if you did, but it would be best not to get your hopes up too high.”
“Hm? Why’s that?”
“Call it a woman’s intuition, maybe? Haha….”
Rene laughed awkwardly and glossed over it.
What on earth is going on?
If she was not going to tell me, I would hear it from Lin. I immediately sent a messenger.
Since it would be a private conversation, I arranged to meet at a quiet teahouse with few people around.
Time passed, and after receiving an affirmative reply, I left the White Dragon Faction’s hideout and headed to the shop Lin had recommended.
Inside the empty shop I even erected a noise-blocking magic barrier, then recounted the story I had heard from Rene.
“Everything Master heard is true. I currently hold the position of Grand General of the Blue Dragon Faction, appointed by Lady Sestia, and am fulfilling my role.”
“Looking back, I recall your subordinates at the entrance addressing you by that title. As Grand General, where do you stand in the organization?”
“To put it simply, I have the authority to issue commands to all the Blue Dragon Faction’s forces except for Lady Sestia herself.”
“Oh! You’ve risen in the world.”
“Even if it’s a promotion, it’s only a post I’ll step down from after one month.”
“If you tell Sestia you want to stay longer, wouldn’t she extend it?”
Sestia would certainly have recognized Lin’s value.
That was why, when she let Rene go, she at least held onto Lin and recruited her into her faction.
Given how highly she evaluated her, if Lin said she wished to remain, Sestia would gladly accept.
“Please don’t say such things. Though I’m away for now, my place is always only here.”
Rising from her seat, Lin naturally sat beside me.
She clasped my hand tightly with both of hers, as if enveloping it.
Her warmth traveled up through my hand, bringing a sense of calm to my heart.
“Sorry. I was jealous and said it as a joke.”
“Jealous, you say?”
“Yeah. I took it sensitively that my person had entered someone else’s service.”
It was unsightly, but I possessed a fairly strong possessive streak.
If something was mine, I made sure to hold onto it firmly; even with circumstances involved, lending it to others felt awkward.
When I revealed that, Lin smiled brightly and pressed her body close against mine.
“Don’t you worry! The moment the Mermaid’s Tear is in hand, I’ll return straight to Master’s side!”
“Really?”
“My body and heart belong to Master for life. They will never become anyone else’s, so you can rest easy. And if you’re still uneasy, I’ll cut down every man who approaches me from now on!”
“Ah, no. There’s no need to go that far.”
“Hehe, understood!”
Lin was wonderful in every way, but she occasionally had a tendency to go overboard.
She would stop at a reasonable line, only for her alone to take one more step forward, you could say?
If she fixed just that point, she would be an utterly adorable lover.
“Ah, right. I meant to talk about something important but got sidetracked.”
“What is the important matter?”
“Well, you see….”
I explained Rene’s circumstances and asked whether she could undermine the Blue Dragon Faction’s foundation from behind.
At that, Lin’s expression, which had been bright just moments before, hardened coldly.
“I’m sorry. I don’t think I can grant that request.”
“Is there no way?”
“No matter how much it is Master’s request, this time I have no choice but to refuse.”
“The reason?”
“Before receiving the Grand General position, I temporarily swore to become the sword that protects Lady Sestia. As Master knows, a swordsman who breaks a sword’s oath must pierce their own heart with their blade. For that reason, regrettably, betrayal is something I simply cannot do.”
“Is that so…….”
“Instead, no matter what happens, I will definitely bring the Mermaid’s Tear!”
“……Alright, I’ll be looking forward to it.”
“Just leave it to me!”
In the end, I could not unite Lin and Rene as one.
Both sides had circumstances that left them unable to back down.
The White Dragon Faction and the Blue Dragon Faction. One of the two must fall for the situation to end.
I don’t really know either.
Considering my bond with Breeze, helping Rene was the correct choice.
But if I did that, I would inevitably have to fight Lin.
She would understand my decision with her head, yet her heart would surely be wounded.
Because it would mean I had never held any expectations for the girl who boldly declared she would bring the Mermaid’s Tear.
I loved Lin as well, so I could not do something like that.
“Both sides have complicated circumstances tangled up. What should we do now?”
“There’s nothing we can do. Bring the popcorn, Marianne.”
Since it had come to this, I might as well watch the show peacefully and leave.
Just as I resolved that and laughed hollowly—
From across the way, a woman in a blue cheongsam was strolling leisurely toward us.
Long, double-layered horns and blue scales peeking here and there from the side slits of her cheongsam.
Her appearance was unmistakably human-like, yet her essence was of an entirely different caliber.
The ruler of Yuran, called the strongest among the dragonkin—Sestia.