‘I don’t think I have any pink clothes…’
When Zhu Qiu pulled the out-of-place garment from the wardrobe, she was momentarily stunned.
‘Isn’t this my other pair of Little Dragon Pajamas? I remember I didn’t bring them with me. How did they mysteriously end up in my closet?’
‘Could it be…’
Zhu Qiu immediately thought of Zhu Xiaxia.
Besides her, who else would have the ability to send clothes over like this?
‘Although I don’t know what kind of strange magic she used, at least… I have clothes to wear now. It’s not a bad thing.’
Zhu Xiaxia was certainly being thoughtful.
“Hee hee hee.”
Holding the Little Dragon Pajamas, Zhu Qiu skipped toward the bathroom.
After traveling for so long, she needed to take a nice, fragrant bath and properly relax.
Opening the door, the bathroom was just as she remembered it, smelling of home.
About 15 minutes later, Zhu Qiu wrapped her wet hair in a bath towel and hurriedly poked her head out of the bathroom while wearing the pajamas.
She scanned the area and saw that her father hadn’t returned from buying groceries yet.
‘Safe!’
She dried her hair first, then gave her tail a shake and wiped it down before finishing dressing.
She felt refreshed!
At that moment, Sodlan returned.
He was carrying a large bag, and from the looks of it, he had prepared a lot of ingredients. Just the prep work alone would likely take a long time.
“Father, it’s been so long since I’ve eaten your cooking. I’ve really missed it.”
“Child, you must be exhausted. Go back and rest for a bit. Leave the cooking to me. I’ll call you once it’s ready.”
Sodlan walked toward the kitchen, then turned back to add, “Even though I don’t know what you were busy with when you left without saying goodbye, I will still support you.”
Hearing this, Zhu Qiu’s face unconsciously flushed. She returned to her room and closed the door, lying down naturally on her bed while twiddling her fingers.
‘Actually, it’s better if he doesn’t support me…’
As she was thinking, the Sword Spirit suddenly popped out, appearing by the bedside and lying down next to Zhu Qiu.
The Sword Spirit looked at the familiar ceiling and knew instantly that Zhu Qiu had succeeded; this was her home among the Human Race.
The Sword Spirit grabbed Zhu Qiu’s hand, wanting to celebrate, but the sight of the little girl caught her completely off guard.
“Wait! No! Why are you still a Dragon Loli?” the Sword Spirit shouted.
“Mmph—!”
Zhu Qiu reacted quickly, clapping her hand over the Sword Spirit’s mouth.
“Shh! Keep your voice down. Whatever you do, don’t let Father know you exist!”
The Sword Spirit: “???”
“Sword Spirit, why did you come out so suddenly without even giving me a heads-up? You scared me,” Zhu Qiu said, letting go of her hand.
“I’m a Sword Spirit; I come out whenever I want. I sensed that you were home and wanted to see it for myself. Is there something wrong with that?” the Sword Spirit replied in a whisper.
“There’s nothing wrong with that, but—”
“But what? Stop asking me questions. I should be the one asking you! What happened? Didn’t we return to the Human Race? Why do you still look like one of the Dragon Race?”
“Uh… it’s complicated,” Zhu Qiu said, finding it hard to explain.
“In short, in the eyes of humans, I’ve changed back into a human. But in your eyes, I’m still a member of the Dragon Race. So, there’s no need to worry.”
“I don’t understand. What does that even mean?”
A giant question mark practically appeared over the Sword Spirit’s head.
“None of that is important.”
“What do you mean it’s not important?! Your human appearance is very important to me! Which do you think is cooler? A dashing young man who is 1.8 meters tall, or a Dragon Loli who is less than 1.5 meters tall and only knows how to cry for her mommy?” the Sword Spirit questioned.
“That’s no way to describe me.”
“It doesn’t matter! The point is, your appearance is still that of a little girl, and I can’t accept it! Hurry up and explain exactly what is going on!”
“Alright, fine.”
Zhu Qiu didn’t hide anything else and explained the entire sequence of events.
“What? You were actually tricked by that Evil Dragon again? She brushed you off with a piece of junk communication gem?”
“Technically, yes. But if she won’t change me back, what can I do? This is actually good enough. At least I can continue living among the Human Race with my original identity.”
“No!”
The Sword Spirit stood up, chest puffed out as she looked out the window.
“This isn’t a question of being ‘good enough.’ This is a matter of the Human Sword Saint’s dignity! Turning into a member of the Dragon Race is a giant joke. Don’t you realize it’s a mark of shame from your defeat by Zhu Xiaxia? As long as you remain a dragon, this humiliation will follow you for the rest of your life. Even in death, you won’t be able to erase it.”
She grabbed Zhu Qiu’s hand and pulled her up.
“The Evil Dragon doesn’t want to change you back? Fine. Now that we’re back with the Human Race, we can find a way ourselves. With your status as the Sword Saint, surely you can get any resources you want.”
“But Sword Spirit, the Human Race hardly has any books about the Dragon Race. How could there be a record of something like this that no one has ever heard of?”
“Oh, please. Just because people say the humans don’t have them doesn’t mean it’s true. Who has actually verified that? We’ll go to the library tomorrow to look for information. Maybe we’ll find something.”
“We have to go tomorrow?”
Zhu Qiu hesitated. After everything she had been through to get home, the first thing she wanted to do was rest.
She had planned to sleep for at least two or three days.
“Yes! Tomorrow! The dignity of the Human Sword Saint cannot be trampled upon by that Evil Dragon!”
“Do I have to go too?”
The Sword Spirit looked at Zhu Qiu with disdain.
“Of course! Do you really expect me to go alone as a Sword Spirit? You are my Holy Sword Wielder. Shouldn’t we be moving forward together?”
“I mean, sure, but… if we don’t find anything, it’ll be a wasted trip…”
“So what if it’s a wasted trip? Even if we can’t find it among the Human Race, we can check other kingdoms. Besides, what happened to you?”
“Me? I haven’t changed, have I?”
“No, you have. You’ve become lazy. You’re slacking off.”
The Sword Spirit let go of her hand, climbed onto the windowsill, and shouted toward the sky.
“Evil Dragon! Don’t think that just because you captured my Holy Sword Wielder and locked her up for a while, you can change her mind! I, the Sword Spirit, will definitely save her from the abyss!”
“…”
Zhu Qiu looked at the Sword Spirit’s behavior with confusion.
*Knock, knock, knock.*
Just then, a knock came from the door.
“Soran, lunch is ready. Come out and eat.”
“Okay!”
Zhu Qiu quickly pulled the Sword Spirit back.
“Hurry up and hide! I’m opening the door.”
“Why should I hide? I’m the Sword Spirit. It’s a good time for your father to get to know me.”
“Are you serious? Did you forget you look like a member of the Dragon Race right now? That’s a death wish!”
“Oh, right.”
The Sword Spirit cooperated and hid. Zhu Qiu pushed the door open and gave an awkward smile.
“Father, let’s eat.”
“Wait a moment.”
Sodlan walked into the room and scanned the area before asking, “Soran, I thought I heard a young girl’s voice in your room just now.”
“Huh?”
Zhu Qiu was stunned by the question.
‘Why did that girl have to stand on the windowsill and shout?! You’re fine, but what about me? How am I supposed to explain this?’