The Sword Spirit quickly discarded her fake expression and scrambled onto the bed in a panic.
“I… I was just talking nonsense. It’s not that I don’t believe you! Please don’t cry. I… I don’t know how to comfort people!”
“Waaaah! The Sword Spirit doesn’t trust me. She hates me! Wahhhhh!”
Zhu Qiu, buried under the covers, seemed unable to hear anything. She cried freely, letting her emotions flow.
“I don’t hate you! I… I…”
“I really didn’t mean it! Please stop crying. I… I… waaaaah!”
“Waaaah!”
“Waaaah!”
Zhu Qiu kept crying and couldn’t be consoled. The Sword Spirit finally broke down as well and started crying right along with her.
The Sword Spirit’s sudden crying caught Zhu Qiu off guard.
‘Why is this child crying just because I am?’
Originally, the Sword Spirit was supposed to comfort Zhu Qiu, but now it was Zhu Qiu’s turn to comfort the Sword Spirit.
She found her tail, wiped her tears dry, and crawled out from under the covers to embrace the sobbing little Sword Spirit.
Feeling the warmth, the Sword Spirit hugged her back, wanting to release all her dependency.
The two little lolis hugged each other tightly, neither lifting their heads.
“Waaaah… I just wanted to tease you. I don’t hate you. Waaaah!”
“There, there. I know. I know you’re doing it for my own good and that you don’t hate me. Don’t cry. A crybaby isn’t a good girl.”
“Waaaah… I’ll stop crying. Are we still best friends? Partners?”
“Of course! You’re my best friend. We’ll be together forever, and we’ll never leave each other.”
With Zhu Qiu’s promise, the Sword Spirit’s sobbing gradually ceased.
“Don’t worry, I won’t fall. I will forever be that resilient, unyielding Human Sword Saint you know. Besides, we can go home tonight. We won’t have to see that big, bad dragon Zhu Xiaxia anymore.”
“R — Really? Can we really return to the Human Race?”
“Of course! This is the liberation I’ve gained after nearly two months of enduring humiliation. Once we return to the Human Race, we can complete missions together just like before. When we get stronger, the next time we meet on the battlefield, we’ll defeat Zhu Xiaxia together and settle all our scores!”
The more Zhu Qiu spoke, the more excited she became, and the Sword Spirit’s mood improved along with hers.
“Believe in me, Sword Spirit. I won’t let you down!”
The Sword Spirit squeezed Zhu Qiu’s hand.
“Unstoppable Sword Saint User, I will always believe in you. Let’s defeat the Evil Dragon together!”
“Yes! Let’s defeat the Evil Dragon together!”
After the two little lolis hugged for a while, Zhu Qiu took the initiative to let go.
“Zhu Qiu, I know you still have tasks today, so I won’t disturb you. If you run into any problems, don’t forget me. I am your most trustworthy partner. Good luck!”
“Good luck!”
The two little lolis encouraged each other, determined to escape the Dragon Race Imperial Palace.
—
After the Sword Spirit disappeared, Zhu Qiu straightened her Little Dragon Pajamas and walked to the window, soaking in the sunlight.
It was very warm today, much like Zhu Qiu’s mood regarding her return.
‘I should go wash up first. I have Ilanka’s class later.’
She brushed her teeth, washed her face, folded her quilt, and put on her little dragon slippers before heading out for breakfast.
As soon as she stepped out, she ran into Zhu Xiaxia.
“Good morning, my dear daughter.”
“Good morning, Mother.”
“You look a bit unhappy. Are you still angry at me because of yesterday?”
“No. I just want to finish today’s lessons as quickly as possible. I’m going back to the Human Race tonight. You promised me — as long as I studied hard for this one month, you would let me go back. As the Dragon King, you’ll keep your word, right?”
“Of course. A Dragon King would never lie to her daughter. However, as the Dragon King’s daughter, you shouldn’t lie either. We agreed on two weeks. Once those two weeks are over, you must remember to come home. If you forget the way, you can use that Communication Stone to tell me.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. I’m an adult, not a child.”
“I hope so,” Zhu Xiaxia said, reaching out to hold Zhu Qiu’s hand. “Will you have breakfast with me? We aren’t having Nainai today. We have something special.”
“No thanks. I told you, I’m not a child. You go ahead and eat. I’ll just have some milk.”
“Well, all right then.”
Zhu Xiaxia walked down to the first floor. Xiaguang had already placed the fragrant breakfast on the table — four plates in total, one for each person.
Ilanka and Xiaguang had already eaten. The remaining two plates were covered to keep them from getting cold.
Zhu Xiaxia didn’t eat breakfast immediately. Instead, she went to Ilanka’s room.
Ilanka, who had been resting her head on her hand looking listless, immediately straightened up when she saw the Queen. She stood up to greet her.
“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
“Ilanka, you’ve been in the Imperial Palace for a month now, haven’t you? How has the teaching been going lately?”
“Your Majesty, the Princess has been very well-behaved recently. She studies hard, is motivated, and learns quickly. In short, from my perspective, the Princess has already learned many things.”
Hearing this answer, Zhu Xiaxia nodded with satisfaction.
“So, Ilanka, after saying all that, what exactly have you been teaching her?”
“…”
Ilanka was clearly taken aback, her mind blanking for a moment.
“Your Majesty, I have been teaching Magic. Since the Princess is still young, I only taught her some simple Magic that she could understand and learn.”
“Oh, Magic. Not bad. That’s quite good.”
Zhu Xiaxia patted Ilanka’s shoulder.
“Since you’ve been teaching for a month, it’s time to give you a vacation.”
“A vacation?”
‘Does the Queen think I’m not teaching well and wants to kick me out to find another teacher? This won’t do! If I get kicked out, how will I explain it to my father?’
“Your Majesty, I don’t need a vacation. Having two days off a week is more than enough rest for me. I’m not tired at all. Please, let me stay in the Imperial Palace and continue teaching.”
“I know, but Zhu Qiu will be tired. I want to give her a break, and I figured I’d give you one at the same time.”
‘Huh? I knew it. So it was the Princess’s request. That makes much more sense.’
Besides, the Princess had been very happy lately, so it was unlikely she was being fired.
“I see. Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“The vacation will last for two weeks. During these two weeks, you can go home or stay here in the Imperial Palace. I will leave that up to you.”
“Understood. Thank you, Your Majesty.”
‘This is perfect. I can take this time to go home and report the Princess’s situation to my father and let him come up with a follow-up plan.’
Upstairs, Zhu Qiu’s stomach was growling.
‘Where is that woman Zhu Xiaxia? Why hasn’t she sent the milk up yet? I’m starving.’
To ensure her little tummy didn’t suffer, she decided to head downstairs to forage for food.
She planned to finish her breakfast and the Nainai all at once.
As she walked downstairs, she saw Zhu Xiaxia eating breakfast.
‘Wait… does it really take the Dragon King this long to eat breakfast?’
The aroma of the food on Zhu Xiaxia’s plate drifted into Zhu Qiu’s nose.
‘What smells so good?’