The next day, Seth ca by the offices in Delta to inform Mary and Leana that he was going to pay a visit to the Adventurer Guild's Holy Land. he planned for it to be a quick trip so Mina and Fin wouldn't notice.
After all, it was to get a soul for his engagent presents for Fin, so the two couldn't know. If they knew, he would have to co up with so excuse why he suddenly wanted to hunt for souls. Maybe he could have co up with sothing like needing the souls for the Sky Dragon Set, but that was too construed. It was easier to make it quick and make sure the two didn't know.
“I think you should take Tatzel along. I think he needs sothing to do,” the princess told him, after the blacksmith ntioned his intentions. Seth looked at her in surprise. Wasn't Tatzel still asleep at the bones valley?
“Tatzel? Did he wake up?” the Tower Master asked, a little befuddled. Now it was Leana's and Mary's turn to look at him in confusion.
“Yeah? He has been stalking around here for the past four days,” Mary told him, doubt visible on her face. They were sure Seth knew about it, although it was a little suspicious that Tatzel was lurking around the Delta Headquarters instead of going down to the magic tower.
“So he is awake, but didn't co to imdiately? Sounds like sothing is up. You wouldn't happen to know where he is hiding? I think he is ripe was a conversation,” the bard mused, learning that the little pseudo-dragon had been lazing around instead of coming ho.
“He's probably sleeping in one of the guest rooms at this ti. Sebastian, do you know where he is right now?” Leana asked one of the head secretaries in the room.
“No. give a mont, I will ask so people,” he said and left the room after getting permission. 5 Minuted later he returned with an answer. “Master Tatzel is currently sleeping at guestroom 1408,” he inford Seth and the others.
“Well, if you will excuse . I need to have a talk with soone.”
...
He said he was going ho, and he technically was... Even though he had really wanted to et Mom, Tatzel simply couldn't get himself up to et his Mom. Having failed to directly beco a legend took away all his motivation. Especially since he had snuck away so many of the dragon bones and still couldn't do it.
Sowhere deep down he understood that it wasn't sothing he could force, but that didn't change his feelings about it. He had been so looking forward to eting Seth and gloriously reveal his ascendance to have beco a true dragon!
Mom would have been so surprised and proud of him! If he beca a true dragon, sothing like that stupid lich would be no problem anymore. Tatzel would even be able to take on the undead Kalzemir and protect his ho and mom!
But his level stagnated right at lv.199. It was the last step to inherit the full legend of a true dragon, not just so lower or lesser one, but a real one. Sothing like Kalzemir used to be. Maybe not exactly the sa, but a variant! A variant was enough to rule supre, or at least protect Mom and the others.
The greatness of the dream made the crushing failure even more frustrating. He could not see Mom like that... So he built himself into a fortress of solitude out of pillows and wallowed in self-pity, drowning his worries in snacks and sleep. Hiding from-
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Mom?” Tatzel exclaid, shocked when the door of the room suddenly swung open and the tall, muscular blacksmith stood in the door fra. Thoughts swirled in Tatzel's little head. What was he supposed to do now? What was he supposed to say?
He didn't beco a dragon, despite taking a core. To make it worse, he had also lied, and he had taken more bones. How was he supposed to explain this? Could he explain it? But if he told him everything.
All lines of thought shooting through his head ultimately led back to a single, resounding thought that echoes in his mind. “Mom will be so disappointed in ...” He didn't want to see Mom look at him in disappointnt or anger. The fear of disappointing them dropped his little heart to the end of his tail. He couldn't-
“Tatzel, you are awake. I'm glad,” his mother said with a warm smile. The words hit Tatzel like bombshells. Mom only reacted like this because he didn't know! He didn't know that he had taken more dragon bones! He couldn't know that Tatzel had failed to beco a dragon. Why else would Mom still smile like that? Guilt grasped his heart that had already dropped to the end of his tail..
While the Imugi was unable to sort his thoughts, Seth walked over and gestured for permission to sit on the bed, beside the pseudo-dragon that had shrunk himself to the size of a small, chubby snake. Tatzel nodded distantly, there was no way he could say no in this situation.
The big, rough hand of the blacksmith suddenly rubbed over his head. It was rough and a little too strong, but it was warm and sohow reassuring.
“Relax, Tatzel. It's okay,” Mom said in a warm, calming voice. “ Just calm down and tell... Mom, why you are hiding here? I promise, it will be okay,” Seth assured him. The Imugi looked up at his Mom. Mom had an awkward smile calling himself Mom, but there was no anger or lie. Mom just seed to genuinely care.
“Mom!” he cried, tears in his eyes, as he jumped onto his lap.
For a mont, the snakelet had hesitated, but then everything ca out of him. The mature facade he tried to build for his image as a dragon fell apart. The floodgates opened, and all his worries and confessions broke out of him in a huge, incoherent stream.
His dream to surprise him as a dragon and to be able to protect his ho from villains like Natina. His worries when it didn't work. His desperate attempt to force it. The cri of secretly stealing more dragon bones and hiding that he was awake. The depression when nothing worked. The sha that didn't allow him to co back. The fear of disappointing his Mom.
Seth simply listened to everything Tatzel threw at him. At no point did he seem angry or disappointed. He simply listened to everything, gently stroking the Imugi's head with his big, rough, warm hand.
When Tatzel had finally let go of everything, literally everything, and soaked his lap in snot and tears, the hand stopped stroking. The two strong hands slid under his little forelegs and grasped his chubby body, lifting him up in front of Seth's face, looking at him at eye level.
“You did great, Tatzel. To reach lv.199 in such a short amount of ti is aweso,” he said genuinely, lting away the small snake's worries.
“You can't disappoint , Tatzel. Just having you has already been far beyond my expectations. I know, lately it seems like everyone is suddenly rising to beco a legend, but you don't have to burden yourself so much with it,” he addressed his fears.
Tatzel realized that his Mom was right. Being thrown into a battlefield of legends, seeing everyone fight and seeing others like Python and the horseman suddenly beco legends or gods, Tatzel felt inadequate. He feared to be forced to stand at the sideline and being unable to help in the future. A little shake brought the Imugi back to looking his Mom in the eyes.
“Look at your...Mom. I'm much further away from becoming a legend, but that is okay. We are all growing at our own pace. Not being a legend doesn't an we are weak, right? I bet right now, you could already beat soone like the lich all on your own,” he joked with a big, warm smile.
“Right?” he asked when Tatzel didn't respond.
“I-I don't know. Maybe?” Tatzel pressed out, slightly embarrassed by the sudden complint.
“You are incredibly strong, Tatzel. I know that, but you don't seem to. I think you should co along with and see what you are capable of;” his Mom suddenly suggested an outing. It had been a while since he had the chance to do sothing with Mom. At this point all the knots that had kept him in the room had been cut, Tatzel couldn't even understand why he thought what he thought.
“Where are we going?” the Imugi asked, a little puzzled.
“We are just going to collect so materials at the Adventurer Guild's Holy Land,” he said with a wide smile.
“I'm sure it will be fun.”
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