[Humanize (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]
“I thought I could rest easy, knowing Vifi was there to guard you, my lady, especially on Iceskale, but it seems like your bad luck is evolving. I should have realized this when you got attacked even in Iceskale!” Tasianna stated the mont we safely arrived back in Iceskale after yesterday’s disastrous encounter. Clapping her hands, two dragonewt maids approached Vifi and to put a warm coat around us. “My lady, I demand you to bring the twins and I with you no matter where you go, from this point on. It doesn’t matter if you are out shopping, training, or wanting to return ho, I will accompany you, yes? If you wish to go sowhere, I wish you to tell .”
Tasianna’s forced smile was unable to hide the worry in her eyes, making them squint as if she was glaring at . Maybe she was, considering the amount of trouble she missed out on lately, or maybe she was starting to lose sleep. Kargryx was a dangerous place, especially for a young rank B like , but saying stuff like “it is what it is” would be totally inconsiderate of Tasianna’s emotions and entirely miss the point of her care for .
“Considering what happened, you’re a permanent party mber now, whether you wanted it or not,” I said with a deflated sigh, making Tasianna smile for real this ti. “I can still feel the frostbite around my scales from yesterday’s blizzard.”
The dragon support I called using the subspace arrived around midnight or so, consisting of Siegragxus, as he promised, and a few Nordor dragoons. We actually had to stay inside the cave for a bit as it was still storming, and nobody wanted to risk getting frostbite while flying on Sieg’s back, and this wasn’t even ntioning how I had to defrost my body and scales during all that.
It took until morning for things to warm up. Survival shows already looked hard, but being in the middle of a blizzard, trapped inside a cave was kinda scary, admittedly. Although my core hadn’t regrown at this point, it still felt like my core wouldn’t be enough and I needed far more ti spent inside our ho’s basent to prepare my body for the upcoming expedition.
In a way, that ant that the scouting mission was a success. I finally had an idea of the kinda cold I had to deal with. My body could now simulate the pain as a reference; that pure, unbridled, destructive natural disaster unlike the “kind caress” of the blizzard underneath our ho.
“I would suggest you level your [Ice Resistance] up to level ten, if possible,” Sieg said after transforming back into his dragonewt form. “I did have Tasianna warn you to not enter the glaciers.”
“We didn’t!” I protested. “We were on the edge of it before a blizzard ca in, summoned by a group of elentals and that ape I told you about.”
“And as I have told you, while the greater ice elentals have the capacity to conjure up a small blizzard with their spells, the one we experienced together could not have been of their making. It was natural, another common occurrence for our ho, Princess Hestia. A fact you must understand as another hazard we must live with,” he argued. “That storm lasted many bells and I could see that it was widespread enough to be considered a normal blizzard, just stronger than the ones you may feel down here, in the south. The expedition north will not be a joke. Do not bla your careless weather watch on so elentals and a monster spawn.”
“And I also told you that Vifi’s lightning control is a good indicator of when mana is natural or not, as her ability can only work when the mana around her isn’t ‘tainted’ or molded by soone’s mana usage of any kind. If the blizzard was normal, we wouldn’t have an issue escaping that storm!” I retorted. “I’m not trying to sound like a brat here, or shift the bla. I’m just telling you why we got into that situation. I had no intention of willingly endangering myself!”
Suffice to say, Sieg and I didn’t get off on a good foot when he found Vifi and huddled together like two penguins to warm ourselves up. He thought I had disobeyed his warning, while I was angry he didn’t believe . While I did understand that he has lived here longer than I had and understood this land better as such, it felt like I was talking to a brick wall, right now.
Maybe he was just being emotional about it?
“I have a duty to protect her, Lord Siegragxus,” Vifi suddenly stepped into our sights, prompting the both of us to look at her. “I do not lie about my abilities to my comrades. Death awaits the arrogant and prideful, and to those distrustful to their own squad, a lonely death. Less you be a demonkin of pride or god, respectively.”
Sieg grimaced at her for a mont, before looking over at the dragoons, dismissing them before hissing at the sky. Seeing him giving up, I slumped my body forward, already feeling exhausted despite it being early in the morning.
“Sieg, could you at least look into the matter for ? That ape monster should be a native monster spawn of Frozen Nest, right? Then why did its description ntion its ability to shrug off fire and lightning attacks with its skin? How would it be able to train or gain that biological feature on Frozen Nest? Do you have any fire wyverns around, or lightning?” I asked.
“As a matter of fact, we do have a clan of ice-lightning dragons. Sadly, most of them were wiped out by a past feud with another clan, resulting in the latter’s extinction. The mother and daughter of this draconic clan should be sowhere in the glaciers, training to regain their standing on Frozen Nest,” he answered, illuminating his reason for distrusting my fears. “However … I shall do as you wish, Princess Hestia. To be honest, those very dragons and the other glacier-training dragonkin should finally fly south and show you the necessary respect! Our empress’s daughter has returned, and yet they do not answer my father’s call!”
… Oooooor, maybe it is stress. Yeah, every single bureaucrat I’ve t has had signs of sleep deprivation that results in a cranky attitude.
If our empire had been a conventional one with a more strict and enforced hierarchical system, Sieg’s blatant disrespect would be looked down upon by everybody around us. I was the daughter of one of the empire’s empresses, while Sieg was the heir of a dragon ruler, a king, in how the empire worked.
However, we were dragons. Age had to be given respect and how he treated couldn’t be considered disrespect at all. To everybody in attendance, Sieg was acting like an elder dragon to chastise a younger one for their mistakes. Regardless of how I felt about how he acted, at least I was comfortable with the way we could interact with each other disregarding our social standing.
Besides, I found Sieg far better than his younger brother, Rhekkraxus. Both had tendencies to be narrow-minded, a bit blinded by their own belief, but Sieg could find a compromise as he just showed . Rhekk, though, made feel like he was avoiding with how we hadn’t spoken since our last fight.
In any case, after Sieg accepted my proposals, he told he would ask his father for so dragoon scouts to find the mandrill I had just fought. Hearing this, I also had to add that he should also look into the elentals, as they might be the actual culprits to everything. Sieg gave a look as if he was getting fed up with , but with a disgruntled sigh, gave into my demand like an exasperated family friend, unable to say no to the cute youngest.
After he left, Tasianna, Vifi, the twins, and I entered the mansion, and after a bath and a al, I crashed on my bed, fully appreciating the joys of civilization and the warmth of our hearth once again. A part of never wanted to leave this place ever again, but such a reality was only wishful thinking as that scar of defeat still lingered in my mind.
That ferocious blizzard and the beast that dwelled inside like a veil; my competitive drive as a dragon compelled to fight on, pushing my survivalist side into wanting to train my cold resistance. A luxury of comfort was impossible with my impatient tail, smacking the ground softly to self-soothe myself.
“Lady Hestia, the empress had told us to inform you to contact her once you have settled back in,” Shay stated not a mont after I laid on my bed. “If you wish, we can speak with her in the afte—”
My body shot up before I pulled out my [Room] runes and threw them on the ground, to the surprise of my party. As the air was ripped apart, revealing the inside of Mom’s roost inside the subspace, I readied myself to speak with Mom after nearly a week of being apart, only to raise my brows when I heard an unfamiliar voice inside.
“Having a private space to rest and be away from all the bureaucracy and paperwork is such a privilege, lloxtressa. Becoming a void-touched at your age, and having a daughter who owns this subspace, you make jealous. I might have to step my foot on Altrust for a bit; certainly all the fun and growth is happening in the land of humans and beastn,” a woman said, sipping on tea while munching on pastries. “Wonderful treat. Marvelous.”
“I’ll tell Svena and little Priscilla your complints then, Forminaxtrass. Honestly, a mont of respite after all the writing and talking is sure to heal our eternal souls,” another woman replied. This ti I recognized that voice—it was Mom.
“Mom!” I called out after I looked inside, prompting Mom to jump from her seat. Her dragonewt ears wagged slightly as she snapped her body around, rushing over to with a wide grin.
“My whelpling! Ohh, if it weren’t for the rules of this subspace, I would jump out and give you a hug!” she said, elation in her voice, before her face distorted into a frown. “How are you?”
“… A lesson learned.”
“Every Frozen Nest whelpling has to, and I am very glad you ca out of it wiser. Although, I had hoped you wouldn’t have to experience it so early, especially with your still immature skills!” Mom chastised, her voice clearly waning from worry to outright anger. It made Sieg’s fury seem like a precursor. “I won’t continue arguing this point to you, for I believe you are capable enough to understand the lesson here.”
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“Well, hopefully I did learn the correct lesson here, but it sure lit a fire under … The expedition can’t happen any ti soon. I am just not ready,” I stated. “[Ice Resistance] takes a while to level up organically, and I truly think level ten is the minimum I need to reach until I can enter the glaciers. Seriously, the snow doesn’t even lt when I touch it!”
“You still have two years left before you may leave Kargryx, Hestia. You can spend a few months purely dedicating that ti to self-improvent before you depart on the rest of your adventures. Aside from the succession crisis, there is no need to rush anything here like you did on Altrust. Ti and patience is the correct choice, to make sure that even the coldest region in the world cannot extinguish your fla. If you can bear this blizzard, then even the oceans will kneel to you!” Mom stated with full pride, causing to laugh awkwardly.
“Maybe not so ambitious, when even Kramps wasn’t so willing to go into the sea with all the scary stuff down there,” I replied, prompting Mom to giggle.
“That may be true, but we Nordors do no shy from this asly cold, correct? You can conquer it because you are my child. You are a Nordoramsul, Hestia.”
Hearing Mom say this in front of everybody was embarrassing, but it did fill my chest with pride as strong as an erupting volcano. Being called a Nordor, instead of just a Kargryxmor, felt like it had blown away any doubt I had about my ability to actually awaken my ice dragon bloodline. Frankly, a part of did believe I had lost the majority of my Nordor heritage due to my early birth and evolution mutations.
Not a single ti did the System give the option to pivot to beco an ice dragon, unlike how often Kramps’s choice reappeared ti and again to remind I was of his blood. It felt like I had to prove her words to myself, and that was another reason for to enter the glaciers.
I wanted to call myself not only a Kargryxmor, but also a Nordor. Proudly, at that.
“You must all prepare yourselves,”—Mom clapped her hands as she looked at my party mbers with expectations, prompting them all to nod sternly. No signs of hesitation could be seen in their actions or eyes. “Good. Take the thought of the expedition off your mind for the next few months, and channel your energy into every single way you could prepare for your journey. You have all seen the glacial wastes, and the one destination you must reach—the spire where the greater elentals dine in hopes of achieving apotheosis.”
“There lies my chance to beco one with your true ice, Your Majesty,” Tasianna stated, clutching her arms, probably reminding herself how they froze and broke off when she used Mom’s spells.
“Our trial to beco worthy to protect Her Highness,” the twins both declared, sharpening their gazes.
“Vengeance,” Vifi spat out a single word, her demonic features imdiately showing as rage fueled her voice.
And for , sowhere there, I will need to find my grandparents’ relics. Maybe that, along with the empress’s crown, will shed so light into everything.
“Awww, you are growing into your role as a mother, lloxtressa!” Interrupting this mont, the unknown woman from before suddenly revealed herself, pushing Mom to the side to show herself to us.
Clad in a black-violet one-piece dress that almost looked like the gown of a stereotypical witch, this dragonewt woman smiled with her pale elven face, gazing warmly at us with a single red eye as the other was hidden by her long purple hair, adorned by multiple dried-up scale accessories. She seed like a pretty normal goth woman, if you ignored the fact her chest showed her organs and skeleton.
Everything below her head was devoid of any skin or flesh, replaced by a purple-glowing gel-like substance that kept her innards together in a dragonewt form. You could see her lungs, heart, and bone-structure if it wasn’t hidden by her dress or the patches of black scales, freaking out a bit, as it seed like I was looking at those human anatomical models you saw in science classes.
However, this wasn’t the most surprising aspect of her appearance. It was the fact a skeletal dragonewt head rose from behind her back, floating around her through a purple gas. With a fat grin, the skeleton head also could speak … with the sa voice the woman had.
“Hahaha! Taimatrak not assuming the sa form I have will always cause such a splendid reaction. Marvelous glee indeed,” the woman stated, naming Taim, my fourth eldest half-sibling, and causing to notice a similar ‘stench’ around her as I slled around him. “Dear? Who am I? Hmm?”
The lichdragon of the empire of Kargryx.
“Will you stop teasing my daughter, Forminaxtrass!” Mom shouted, pushing the cackling woman out of the way. “Your son might act too modest for my taste, but at least he knows how to act properly!”
“Pah, a quality I wished I managed to have gotten rid of before my perfect little whelpling grew all up. So cold and reserved, even to his own beloved mother. I am teasing you to show you how lucky you are, my friend! Such a mont between mother and child is a rarity for us, outside when we finish a project together!” the woman spoke through her elven head, while her skeleton one let out a deep sigh.
Seeing the two act like this, I could only force out a ek answer, “Third Empress Forminaxtrass?”
The spoken woman snapped her attention back to . “The question was a given at this point, but yes, you ‘guessed’ correctly! Ahh, my dear little Hestia … I would love to embrace you or show you as much affection as your mother showed you, but your scent disgusts .”
My eyes twitched, but I managed to keep my smile up. “Holy dragon?”
“Yes … Taimatrak reported how much you slled like those ambitious traitors. Haaaaaaaa, what a nuisance.” Forminaxtrass caressed her neck as she looked away, self-soothing herself with a pained smile before she turned around, closing her eyes to force a grin. “I’ve nothing against you, of course. You’re not a part of those treacherous snakes, and I even heard you told them off. Unlike your mother, though, I would have preferred if you had completely rejected them! Do not deal with Sacred Nest!”
Ahh, I see. Mom did say the empresses hated the forr dragon ruler of light. I guess Forminaxtrass hated her a bit more than the others.
“Yuilengreill should have not broken so easily!” she continued complaining. “I would rather deal with those skinks and their crass words if I could prevent them from influencing another damn imperial child! Hestia, I do not care what they promised you, you stay away—Mrhmph!”
Mom suddenly froze Forminaxtrass’s skeleton head as she grabbed her elven one, shutting her up completely. “And you have nothing to say to my daughter! Dealing with Sacred Nest’s ambitions is mandatory, and this is sothing the rest of us agreed on. My daughter evolved into a holy dragon, and that is sothing we cannot change. She wants to lead this civil war into a peaceful conclusion, and this is her decision. Do not stop her from doing what she believes is best.”
A dark aura began surrounding the frozen skull before it started to disintegrate, reforming itself outside with the help of that purple gas. It replied, “Fine! Release .”
Mom did just that.
“Our discussion has gone on for too long, anyways, with the amount of tea we’ve drunk. This is your responsibility, lloxtressa. Not just your daughter’s. Rember what Sacred Nest did to Eltharion and how they pivoted and stabbed their own dragon ruler in the back to preserve themselves. They cannot be trusted with any modicum of power,” Forminaxtrass hissed.
Mom frowned, nodding her head slowly to the discontent dragon empress. “I know.” She then turned to . “You caught us at a very tense mont, Hestia. I do apologize for her.”
Considering how Mom treated the first and fourth empress before they went ballistic at each other, I was starting to fully understand how the dragon empresses behaved around each other. Very dragon-like, but with love. But very dragon-like.
Mom then patted Forminaxtrass on the shoulder. “Co now, I did promise you in case my daughter spoke to while you were around. Shouldn’t we see how much progress they have made?”
The lichdragon empress let out a deep sigh before she moved away from the portal’s opening, going by her loneso through another door, leaving Mom to let out an exhausted smile. Crossing her arms, she began to pout. “Aside from that, we had another discussion. It also concerns that shipnt of fire stones.”
Hearing ominous stuff was part of the course of Aurora, so I was already preparing myself for the inevitable. What was happening now?
“The leviathans are starting to cause trouble for us,” she stated, sending a chill down my spine. “They call themselves Wendriosa’s supporters and are starting to make their presence more known inside Coral Beard, all while shouting out their support of her while denouncing Kahalaet and his fire and volcanic dragonkin supporters. Sohow, the events concerning you and Maustoovaka were leaked.”
“I … I’m sorry, I know this must be important, but I can’t really think of the reason why,” I admitted. I wasn’t trying to play dumb here, I knew this was a sar campaign and so on, but I couldn’t exactly understand what sort of trouble this could really cause.
I an, Kahalaet and Wendriosa were already competing against each other as heirs, right? This felt sorta normal between two claimant factions and unless the two of them started duking it out, I couldn’t imagine what Mom felt so exhausted about.
“Hestia, do you rember how Yuilengreill told you that all of Kargryx’s incoming ships enter through Caedhul first for inspection, before they are allowed to co close to our empire and also Kel’Thun? The elves’ island just in front of Coral Beard’s coast?” Mom asked, prompting to nod. “Well, an influx of aggressive and stubborn leviathans ans the oceans will be disturbed. Their re presence ans fishing and import and export operations are completely halted due to the mini-tsunamis they can cause.”
“… So this is more than just a bunch of insults?”
“Yes, as you know, Wendriosa’s support cos mostly from the leviathans her maternal clan are acquainted with. Your encounter with Maustoovaka not only reduced his prestige as a dragon ruler, but it also diminished the presence of the two dragon rulers of Inferno Nest due to my intervention,” she answered, causing to groan. “Fortunately, that part wasn’t leaked, aning whoever did it was strategically aiming at weakening Kahalaet’s support group, and not wanting to harm your reputation among the masses. Aside from also preserving Eltharion’s and my standing.”
Due to this whole event, Mom and the empresses had to maintain the peace as this blatant disrespect from nurous leviathans had caused a massive discord within the southern part of the empire. Dragons and drakes of various nests were gathering there, unnerved and agitated by their rude guests. Even those who didn’t have anything to do with Inferno Nest couldn’t let this slide.
Dragons and leviathans always had a standoffish rivalry. Was the sky and land better than the sea? Was the massive ocean of Goddess Plesia stronger than the empire founded by the Black Tyrant of the Skies? Yet, neither could really compete against each other, as it was impossible for leviathans to rule the skies and dragons the seas.
Yet, aside from this relationship, the respective countries—Kargryx and Caedhul—had a pretty amicable relationship, almost similar to an alliance. At the very least, they had a non-aggression pact and were actively trading with each other, as both realms could offer goods the others could never procure by themselves.
So this wasn’t an international issue, this was purely a dragonkin issue. An issue between two forces that could destroy an entire island, as I saw with Maustoovaka and Arkanator’s fight. Also, they were disturbing trade.
“I thought my stay was only to repent for my tantrum, but I think I would have had to go to Coral Beard anyways with how everything is going on,” Mom said. “Solving this without having to severely hurt any of the angered dragonkin will take our attention away. Hopefully, nothing will escalate.”
“That’s a flag.”
“Don’t jinx it!” Mom complained, making laugh as she understood my Earth pop-dia lingo. After we shared a small laugh together, Mom snapped her fingers, actually having so good news this ti. “As such, the fire stones your brother promised you cannot make it safely to Frozen Nest, since the wyverns do not wish to fly with everything going on down south. However, the objective was to transport the stones to Grimnir, right?”
The air behind Mom rippled open as she put her hand through it, pulling out a steaming, red stone. With a smirk, she said, “As such, I had everything ordered to be delivered to , so I could bring everything into the subspace for him to receive.”
“Mom, you’re a genius!” I cheered.
“Common sense, my dear whelpling! Your mother has plenty of it, ohohoho!” Mom laughed in an exaggerated manner, causing Tasianna and the twins to clap in celebration. “As such, Grimnir has been able to start making that armor for himself, Saori, and Ellaine. With your promise concluded, progress for your recorder project has finally begun. Would you like to see what they’ve been doing?”
“Yes, please!”
“Then co, my dear! Let your mother be the one to surprise you with your next advancent in your music career!”
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From a cold reception to a warm one with the help of mom!
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