Christina gently covered her mouth with her hand and smiled.
“Look, the child is hugging another child. How cute.”
Although Imugi could guess how he looked, he decided not to push her away for fear that the bird would start crying again.
Suddenly, Imugi looked at Christina and pointed at the bird with his index finger, trying to solve the mystery.
“Kyu, kyu-kyu?”
“What kind of bird is this? Why is a bird coming out of a cooked egg?”
Although they couldn’t communicate through words, Christina nodded her head, understanding his gestures and gaze.
“Are you asking me? It seems like this child has been reborn as a new phoenix in this generation.”
The black hatchling tilted its head and expressed its confusion.
Christina said,
“The phoenix is such a precious bird that they say it’s a divine bird. There’s only one in a generation. When the living phoenix dies, another phoenix will appear within at least 100 years.”
Imugi understood the speculation about the bird and nodded his head.
However, Christina stopped speaking as she felt something strange.
“…Something strange is happening. Surely, the phoenix of this generation is still alive.”
Her murmuring was very faint, but Imugi heard it clearly.
As he blinked and looked at Christina, she also got lost in her thoughts.
“Has something unusual happened in the world? Or is it a sign that the world is changing?”
She couldn’t determine whether it was a positive direction or a bad omen.
The phoenix guards the darkness. It was just a hint that this encounter was not ordinary.
“But the young phoenix and the hatchling are still young… Nevertheless, it’s not something I can just overlook.”
As she pondered, she thought of someone who could help with this matter.
“Rai.”
At Christina’s gesture, Rai, a white light spirit, appeared.
[ㅇㅅㅇ!]
Rai seemed happy when called and scattered small clusters of light, circling around Christina. Then it settled gently on her outstretched hand.
Christina looked at Rai and smiled softly as she spoke about her plans.
“I need to meet Pasyas, the Elder of the Red Dragon.”
Pasyas, the father of the Red Dragon hatchling and the current Elder of the Red Dragon.
Imugi’s expectations rose when he heard that Christina was going out, and Rai shook its body lightly, sparkling with light.
“Pasyas is not only the Elder of the Red Dragon with the power of fire, but he also happens to be raising a hatchling. I’ll discuss about this child with him.”
Rai, after hearing Christina’s words, showed an expression on its light face.
[( *｀ω´)ゞ]
“Thank you, Rai.”
Christina’s Lair was an inviolable area even for the Dragon Lords. It meant that there was no possibility of an external attack causing a catastrophe.
“Will you be fine, little one?”
“Kyu!”
Christina chuckled as she heard the energetic response.
“I worry about leaving Rai and the child alone, but for some reason, I feel that this child will be fine.”
Even though it was a hatchling, the child she had been watching had a dignified aspect to it.
“Is it because it’s a Black Dragon hatchling?”
Christina herself was a prodigy with exceptional talent and maturity compared to her peers.
However, that was largely due to the influence of her parents and mentors who taught her.
Innate qualities and mindset, experiences gained from the environment, and the fruits of her contemplation were all factors.
“Even though this child hasn’t had those experiences yet, it seemed to have its own set of values.”
The child didn’t cry or throw tantrums instinctively after hatching from the egg. It was capable of quite complex communication and had a sense of what actions were allowed and what were not.
That’s why it instilled in her a strange trust that she couldn’t have from a normal hatchling.
“When the young phoenix showed hostility toward me, I tried to resist. Besides, dealing with mana is another matter altogether.”
The mana that surrounded the child changed steadily every day.
Watching the child skillfully manipulate mana was astonishing.
“Even though dragons are a magical species by nature, this hatchling was too skilled to be called an ordinary hatchling.”
The relationship between mana and dragons was like giving clay and toys to a child.
The young hatchling, who could handle it as he pleased, manipulated mana freely. Depending on his aptitude, he could explode bombs or shoot wind blades, causing various accidents.
To protect such a hatchling, it was essential to have a guardian dragon like a Guardian Dragon or a mentor.
However, the hatchling in front of her was different.
It seemed neat and adept at shaping mana as desired.
“I thought the child I was carrying wouldn’t be an ordinary genius, but…”
A talented, kind, and cute child.
And it was too exceptional to be called an ordinary hatchling.
Now she sighed, remembering her long-lost mentor from ancient times.
“Did you do something for this child before leaving it to me, Master?”
Now she could no longer ask and get an answer from the one who was no longer here. She gazed at the sky for a moment, thinking about it.
Her current role was to take on the role of her mentor.
When she realized that, Christina smiled wryly.
“Yes, now I am the protector and mentor of this child.”
She petted the light that was looking at her with a curious expression.
“By the way, they say that Pasyas’ child is an incredibly talented prodigy. Maybe it will be helpful.”
She withdrew her hand lightly and whispered to Rai.
“Take care of the children until I return. I don’t think anything will happen, but let me know if there is any problem.”
[٩(•̀ᴗ•́ )و]
Encouraged by the pure spirit’s support, Christina smiled gently.
She also entrusted Imugi with a request.
“I won’t take long. Stay with Rai.”
“Kyu.”
Imugi, who blinked his eyes curiously, nodded his head.
She lightly kissed the forehead of the squirming hatchling, who had been lying down in the crib, and wished it well.
“Kyuuuk!?”
Pa-ba-ba-bat!
With a surprised look, the cute sight of the hatchling rubbing its forehead made her heart melt.
“I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
After placing the hatchling back in the crib and looking at it with a slightly regretful gaze, Christina left the room.
“Is she gone…?”
Imugi jumped up and clenched both hands, raising one hand to the ceiling.
“Finally, I’m free!”
It was a reaction similar to that of children escaping their parents’ watchful eyes, but for him, spending the whole day in the crib was quite a hardship after lying dormant for thousands of years.
Christina covered her mouth with her gently held hand and smiled.
“Oh, the child is holding another child. How adorable.”
Imugi could guess what his appearance looked like, but he decided to keep quiet for now, fearing that the bird might cry again.
Imugi suddenly looked at Christina and asked, pointing at the bird with his index finger.
“Kyu, kyu?”
“What kind of bird is this? Why does a bird come out of a roasted egg?”
Although they couldn’t communicate through words, Christina understood his gesture and expression, nodding her head.
“Are you asking me? It seems like this child was born as a new phoenix of this generation.”
The black hatchling tilted its head and expressed doubt.
Christina spoke again.
“The phoenix is considered a precious bird, to the extent that it is called the bird of the gods. There is only one in each generation. When a living phoenix dies, another phoenix appears within at least 100 years.”
Imugi, who understood the speculation about the bird, nodded his head.
However, Christina stopped speaking as she felt something strange.
“…Something strange is happening. I’m sure the phoenix of this generation is still alive.”
Christina’s mutter was barely audible, but Imugi heard it clearly.
As he blinked and looked at Christina, she too fell into deep thought.
“Has something unusual happened in the world? Or is it a sign that the world is changing?”
She couldn’t determine if it was a positive development or a bad omen.
The phoenix protects the darkness.
She could only sense that this fact was far from ordinary.
“Although it’s still a young phoenix and hatchling… it’s definitely not something to overlook.”
As she pondered, she thought of someone who could help with this matter.
“Rai.”
At Christina’s gesture, Rai, a white light spirit, appeared.
[ㅇㅅㅇ!]
Rai happily fluttered around Christina, scattering small specks of light. Then it settled gently on Christina’s outstretched hand.
Christina looked at Rai and spoke softly.
“I have to meet Pasyas, the elder of the Red Dragon.”
Pasyas.
The father of the Red Dragon hatchling and the current elder of the Red Dragon.
Imugi felt a sense of anticipation when he heard that Christina was going out, and Rai shook his body slightly, emitting flashes of light.
“Pasyas is not only the elder of the Red Dragon with the power of fire, but also takes care of the hatchlings. I will discuss this child with him.”
Rai, upon hearing Christina’s words, showed an expression on the light orb.
[( *｀ω´)ゞ]
“Thank you, Rai.”
Christina kissed the forehead of the squirming hatchling lightly, wishing it well.
“Kyuook!?”
Papabat!
“Pya! Pyaat!”
Startled by the hatchling’s cute behavior of patting her forehead, Christina couldn’t help but feel her heart melting.
“I’ll be back soon.”
After gently placing the hatchling back in the crib and looking at it with a disappointed gaze, Christina left the room.
‘Is she gone…?’
Imugi stood up, clenched both hands tightly, and raised one hand to the doorknob above his head.
‘Should I try to open it by jumping?’
Staring at the rod-shaped doorknob, he swallowed his breath and lifted his front leg.
Then, with a burst of strength in his hind legs, he jumped up forcefully.
Thud.
‘I got it.’
As his weight pressed against the grasped doorknob, the latch tilted downward.
Clunk.
With the sound of the lock being released, Imugi let go of his hand.
Episode 9: Where Am I?
The door opened without any hesitation.
‘Good.’
Imugi started walking outside to explore the surroundings.
Rai circled around him as he walked down the corridor. Although it looked worried, it didn’t try to stop him from going outside.
After all, without teleportation magic, it was impossible to explore even half of the vast lair.
Rai believed that as long as he guided him back on the return journey, there was no safer place inside the lair than this.
Moreover, Imugi tended to get tired easily when he was hungry, and he was clever enough to crack open eggs to eat when he was alone.
Although there were occasional flickering lights as a signal to go back, Imugi confidently continued forward.
However, he acknowledged that even with brisk steps, he couldn’t explore even half of the lair.
‘I won’t be able to see much if I keep moving like this.’
But would it be right to just stay in the room when he didn’t know when he would get another opportunity like this?
‘As expected… it’s inconvenient without teleportation magic.’
In his current form, he was just a helpless “baby” without Christina’s help.
Imugi grinned.
‘I’ve been observing closely. The flow of power I feel whenever Christina uses teleportation.’
Smirking, Imugi raised his hand to observe it.
Although he had never tried the magic himself, he had witnessed it being cast several times, so it was already a familiar magic to him.
‘It felt like this kind of sensation.’
Woong.
He could feel his own mana moving inside his body.
The surrounding mana responded like well-trained soldiers.
The feeling of sensing the mana of the entire lair was like wielding a power possessed by a transcendent being.
‘It’s possible.’
With one side of his mouth curved up, Imugi narrowed his eyes.
“Kyu huhu.”
[ㅇㅁㅇ;]
Rai, facing his face and sensing an inexplicable eeriness, flinched.
The faint malice emanating from Imugi amidst his adorable hatchling appearance seemed mischievous.
Meanwhile, Imugi, who laughed, narrowed his eyes, like a shopkeeper pondering where to place his merchandise.
He realized that he could choose where to move using the mana-based area around him.
Huff. Imugi took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
“Kyu, kyu kug!”
‘Teleportation.’
Swoosh!
In an instant, they disappeared.
Thud!
“Ouch, damn it!”
As they suddenly appeared in mid-air, each of them appeared in a different state.
Imugi, who happened to fall behind and rolled awkwardly, couldn’t assume the proper landing position, and Rai, who was floating in the air, just stayed there without grasping the situation.
The baby bird flapped its wings in surprise.
