Inside the house, Sodlan pressed his ear against the door, quietly eavesdropping on the situation outside.
In just one minute, three people had suddenly appeared inside his home!
His eyes widened in disbelief. “Three people?”
He could make out two voices: his son’s. There were also two female voices, and they had just been talking. Based on his memory, one of the female voices belonged to a dragon he had seen before—the young dragon that had delivered the steamed buns this morning.
Unfortunately, even though only a single door panel separated Sodlan from them, he still couldn’t hear exactly what they were saying. Roughly, he could tell his son was discussing something intensely with them.
Wait!
Sodlan snapped to attention.
Soran was with that young dragon? And there was another woman nearby? All three of them had appeared almost simultaneously.
Could it be…
Sodlan’s pupils dilated as an almost impossible thought surfaced in his mind.
That woman was likely a dragon too. And that young dragon… was probably Soran and that woman’s child.
“Why would I even think that way?”
He shook his head frantically, trying to shake off the absurd idea, sinking into deep self-doubt.
First of all, dragons and humans were different races. There had to be reproductive isolation. Even if some strange method had broken that isolation, the incubation time for a dragon egg would be much longer than the time needed for a human baby to be born.
So, in the two months Soran had been gone, there was no way a new dragon cub could have been born. They couldn’t even have produced a dragon egg.
“My god…”
Sodlan felt dizzy. For some reason, sweat was pouring down his face. Maybe he was getting old, too anxious. His head was now filled with such unrealistic thoughts, even dragging his own son into these terrible guesses.
He smacked his head hard.
Even though the thought was unrealistic, he was still curious. He wanted to see what was happening outside. So, Sodlan gently set down his sword, crouched down, and quietly opened the door a crack. Closing one eye, he peered through the gap.
Sure enough, the moment he saw that distinctive dragon tail, he was half-certain—the female voice outside was indeed a dragon’s.
But…
Shifting his view through the crack, Sodlan scanned the entire room but couldn’t spot his son. Only the two dragons were there.
No way. He had just heard his son’s voice. How was that possible?
“We should go. Let’s not dawdle here.”
“Okay.”
After much struggle, Zhu Qiu had finally managed to get Ilanka to leave, barely avoiding a slip-up.
Thankfully, everything was fine.
She quickly put the necklace back on and carried a box of seeds from outside into the house.
By the time she returned, Sodlan had already come out of his room. His expression was stern, and he was holding his rusty sword.
Zhu Qiu hadn’t yet recovered from the earlier scene. Forcing a smile, she awkwardly said, “Father, I brought you something.”
She hadn’t expected her father to still be hiding in his room.
This was bad! Had he heard everything they said just now?
But Sodlan remained stone-faced. Without answering, he walked toward Zhu Qiu, sword in hand.
Zhu Qiu’s heart jumped into her throat.
No! I still want to live a little longer! Please don’t let him have heard anything! Don’t let anything go wrong!
Zhu Qiu silently prayed. If her father found out she had turned into a dragon, not only would it be hard for him to accept, but on top of that, she was now a female young dragon? That just couldn’t happen! And even if it did, it couldn’t be discovered!
She was so nervous she couldn’t even speak smoothly.
“F-Father, w-what’s wrong? Is something the matter?” Zhu Qiu stammered.
Finally, Sodlan stopped a sword’s length away from her.
“Son, I hope you can explain to your old man exactly what just happened. Otherwise—” He thrust his sword forcefully into the ground. “You’re on your own.”
It was clear that Sodlan was genuinely angry. And it was that quiet, simmering kind of anger.
It was better when a father yelled. It was when he got quiet and serious that things were really bad.
“Father, what do you mean?”
Zhu Qiu tried to play dumb, even scratching her head convincingly, hoping to get away with it.
“Don’t play stupid with me! I know you were there! Explain those two dragons to me right now, or I’ll pack up and move out of here, taking all my things with me!”
Sodlan angrily hoisted his sword and threw it at Zhu Qiu. The blade grazed her scalp and embedded itself in the doorframe.
“Father, don’t do this.”
“If you don’t want this, then just say it! Are you planning to keep it a secret forever?”
Hearing the word “secret,” Zhu Qiu lowered her head and was silent for a moment. Finally, she decided to come clean with everything.
“Father, to be honest with you… they’re actually my friends.”
“Your friends?” Sodlan was taken aback. “You, the Sword Saint, have two dragon friends? Are you joking?”
He deliberately emphasized every word.
Clearly, Sodlan didn’t believe his son’s story.
The Sword Saint, who had once fought dragons, had become good friends with them again in just a few short months? And he was bold enough to let them into his home?
No one would believe that.
“It’s true. We really are friends,” Zhu Qiu added.
“Do you think I’m that easy to fool? I don’t believe it.”
“I’m really not lying to you. They are my friends. I even know the Dragon King.”
Sodlan fell into another deep thought.
Zhu Qiu waited anxiously beside him. Her explanation was flawless, with no weak points. It should be fine.
Sure enough, after thinking for a long while, Sodlan finally decided to believe Soran.
After all, she was probably the only family he had left in this world. Among family, there really was no need to hide things.
“I’m sorry, Soran. I got carried away just now. Your father apologizes to you.”
Hearing this answer, Zhu Qiu felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders.
“It’s okay. It’s okay.”
“But son, that necklace around your neck looks quite unique. Did your friend give it to you?” Sodlan shifted his focus to something else.
“Yeah, yeah.” Zhu Qiu nodded along with a smile, completely immersed in the joy of having fooled her father. She answered without a second thought.
“Hmm, I’ve never seen a necklace like that. Can you take it off and let me have a look?”
Zhu Qiu’s hand bypassed her brain entirely: “Of course!”