Nearly one month had passed in the blink of an eye.
In the Dragon Territory, the Little Princess had been studying diligently under Ilanka’s tutelage.
It couldn’t be said she had mastered everything, but she had certainly learned a great deal.
Zhu Xiaxia maintained a two-day weekend system to ensure Zhu Qiu balanced work and rest.
Today was Ilanka’s day off, which meant it was also Zhu Qiu’s day off.
Inside the Dragon Race Imperial Palace, the Little Princess didn’t sleep in as she usually did.
Instead, she woke up early and prepared to wash up and eat. She had a major task today: testing the results of her recent studies.
At eight o’clock in the morning, when Zhu Xiaxia passed by Zhu Qiu’s room, she saw the door was already open.
Peering inside, she didn’t find the little dragon hatchling who usually refused to get up before noon.
‘My daughter actually woke up early?’
Zhu Xiaxia was surprised. She stepped into the room to look for her. Just then, the bathroom door swung open.
A little girl in pink dragon-themed pajamas emerged, clutching a towel and toiletries.
Seeing Zhu Xiaxia, Zhu Qiu greeted her happily.
“Good morning, Mother!” Zhu Qiu took the initiative to greet her.
Zhu Xiaxia was stunned for one second before responding.
“Good morning, my dear daughter.”
Although she was surprised by the unusual behavior, who wouldn’t love such a well-behaved and cute daughter?
“You’re up so early. Do you have plans? Today is your day off; shouldn’t you be sleeping in?”
“Sleeping isn’t what I should be doing. I’m going to self-study Dragon Script today.”
Self-study Dragon Script?
The sun must be rising from the west.
Zhu Xiaxia thought getting Zhu Qiu to study with Ilanka was hard enough, but now she wanted to learn the Dragon Language on her day off?
It stunned Zhu Xiaxia for one minute.
“Why the sudden interest in Dragon Script?”
Zhu Xiaxia asked, puzzled.
“Ilanka Teacher said that as a Princess of the Dragon Race, I can’t fall behind on my academic subjects. But she’s usually busy teaching me Magic, and there isn’t much free time, so I decided to self-study.”
“I see. Then go ahead and study. I won’t disturb you. I’ll bring your breakfast to you in a bit.”
“Okay! Thank you, Mother. But I don’t want to be interrupted while I’m studying, so make sure to knock before you come in.”
“I will!”
After their brief conversation, Zhu Xiaxia left the room. Once she was far enough away, Zhu Qiu immediately locked the door and pressed her ear against it.
‘Safe!’
Zhu Qiu sat at her desk and pulled out the Dragon Dictionary.
She also took out the Black-covered Book that Xiaguang had given her through Zhu Xiaxia.
Both books contained Dragon Script. Since Zhu Xiaxia knew about them, they were the perfect props.
“Now, I’m going to begin!”
Did the Little Princess actually start studying?
Of course not. It was just an excuse to get rid of Zhu Xiaxia.
Zhu Qiu summoned the Holy Sword and called out the Sword Spirit within.
A second later, a little girl glowing with golden light appeared. She looked exactly like Zhu Qiu.
She stood with her hands on her hips, looking quite grumpy.
“Sword Spirit, Sword Spirit! You’re finally out. I’m going to show you something fun in a bit.”
“You have the nerve to call me out?”
Zhu Qiu was confused. “What’s wrong?”
“Keep acting. You love playing dumb, don’t you?”
The little Sword Spirit laid all her cards on the table, venting all the frustrations she had accumulated.
“Don’t think I don’t know what you’ve been up to just because I didn’t come out! You’ve been secretly learning Magic behind my back with some stinky dragon woman I don’t even know. You even called that Evil Dragon ‘Mother’! You’ve completely disgraced the name of the Sword Saint! You… you’re an unrateful brat who’s forgotten her roots!”
“And you promised me you would never learn Magic! You’re a liar! You lied to me! You’ve played with my feelings! Your actions will lead us both to ruin!”
The Sword Spirit’s face turned red with rage. She looked like she wanted to summon the Holy Sword just to chop off Zhu Qiu’s Dragon Tail.
“Sword Spirit, don’t be so angry. Learning a little Magic isn’t as serious as you’re making it out to be. Besides, this is all part of my plan. I’m still that steadfast Human Sword Saint. I haven’t forgotten my roots,” Zhu Qiu explained.
“Hmph! I don’t believe you. Does your plan require you to call an Evil Dragon ‘Mother’ or learn Magic? Do you think I’m that easy to fool? As I see it, you’ve just become too comfortable here. You’ve completely fallen and are on the verge of becoming her obedient little daughter!”
The Sword Spirit was still dissatisfied.
“How is that possible? I’m just playing along because I’m under her roof. Once this weekend is over and I study for one more day, completing thirty days total, I can go home! I’ll return to the Human Race!”
“Go home?”
The Sword Spirit’s eyes flickered with doubt.
“Yes, I’ll be going home soon!”
“But you haven’t changed back. How can you go home?”
“Zhu Xiaxia said she would help me solve that.”
“So… this ‘going home’ is the reward that Evil Dragon promised you for studying for thirty days?”
“Exactly!”
Although the Sword Spirit was still dissatisfied, making a deal with the Evil Dragon seemed like the best way to get back.
“It’s good that we can return. But I’m warning you, Sword Saint User Zhu Qiu: if you ever dare touch Magic again, I will get up in the middle of the night, summon the Holy Sword, and chop off your tail! Do you understand? This is very serious!”
“Of course I understand. I have the Holy Sword and my Swordsmanship. Besides, I have no Magic Talent. The path of Magic is a dead end for me anyway.”
“None of that nonsense! I want your promise! From now on, you. Will. Not. Touch. Magic!”
The Sword Spirit summoned the Holy Sword to threaten her.
“Fine, fine. I promise. I won’t touch Magic ever again.”
“Hmph! Good.”
The Sword Spirit withdrew the sword.
“Speak. You didn’t summon me just to talk about going home. What else is there?”
“Sword Spirit, we really are a match made in heaven. We’re perfectly in sync.”
‘A match made in heaven?’
Hearing Zhu Qiu’s compliment, the little Sword Spirit’s face flushed bright red. Her heart skipped a beat.
“W-who said… things like that…?” Her voice became soft and shaky.
“Isn’t it true? You already guessed I had more to say. How could we not be a match made in heaven?”
“If… if you say so… then… I guess we are…”
Seeing the Sword Spirit’s face as red as an apple, Zhu Qiu couldn’t resist reaching out to touch it.
“Sword Spirit, your face is getting warm. How magical.”
“Ugh, I hate you! Don’t touch me like that!”
The Sword Spirit was incredibly shy.
“Alright, alright. I’ll stop. I wanted to tell you about my next plan and show you the results of my learning.”
“Learning results?”