Chapter 33: Mamba, Otto!
A week later, the Melkway family gathered once again at Isar’s Red Dragon Holy Temple.
This was truly the biggest gathering in history—except for Roswiser’s parents, who had never met anyone, everyone was present.
Leon held Moon in his arms, looking around at the house full of dragons and thought, if he were still with the Dragon Slayer Army, handing these elite accomplishments over would have made him rich!
Ah, but alas, now he had three little first-class accomplishments from one of those elite achievements—
Times have changed, Lord Leon.
“Grandma, how long are you planning to stay this time?” Roswiser asked at the dinner table.
“Probably for a while,” Veronica replied. “There have been some unexpected developments regarding the Extreme North Land Exploration Monthly Fee Group 694931537 project. I’m sure Aulete has already mentioned it to you.”
Roswiser nodded.
The unexpected developments Grandma referred to were that part of their exploration results had been snatched away by the Iron Wing Dragon King.
Leon and Roswiser exchanged glances; they both knew perfectly well where those “exploration results” ended up—right in the Empire’s hands.
But they had no idea what those results actually were. Grandma Veronica and Principal Aulete were both playing riddle games; trying to ask them would yield nothing.
All they could do was wait until they met with Master and Rebecca again in a while, hoping to get some useful information.
But one thing was for sure—whatever it was that made the Empire go to such lengths to acquire it was definitely very important.
It might even relate to the reason for the Empire’s cooperation with the Dragon Race.
Leon needed to figure this out.
“After the incident, we paused the exploration project; there’s no set date for a restart yet,” Veronica continued. “At least we need to figure out who took our exploration results and what their purpose is.”
For the first question, Leon already had an answer.
As for the second one—that was the truth he was eager to uncover.
However, due to his human identity, even though his goals were the same as Grandma Veronica’s, he couldn’t lay his cards on the table directly.
Even though in that terrible future, Roswiser had confessed to her daughter and grandmother about Leon’s human identity, and everyone understood and accepted it.
But that was a result born out of an extremely special situation.
If Leon revealed his identity now, it would lack various steps, and no one could determine whether the final result would be the same as that future he had experienced.
He could not gamble the present goodness on an uncertain outcome.
That would only hurt his daughter and—for goodness’ sake—Roswiser.
So… let’s just wait and see. At least everyone’s goals were the same for now.
“Hmm, well then, Grandma, you’ll have time to spend with Moon and the others,” Roswiser smiled.
Veronica smiled back, taking Little Light from Isar’s arms and pinching her soft cheek. “Look at you, Little Light, you’ve grown so much since we last met!”
The pink-haired little one squinted her eyes and smiled, cuddling her great-grandmother and instantly forging an unbreakable bond.
From the ancient dragon of hundreds of years to the two- or three-year-old little sister, the Silver Dragon’s third princess, Aurora, was all about catering to both the young and the old.
“By the way, Grandma, since you’re not in a hurry to leave this time, how about we all take a family portrait in Sky City tomorrow?” Isar suggested.
Veronica had no objections. “Sure, it’s rare for our family to be so complete.”
When Isar heard the word “family,” she blinked, put down her kn*fe and fork, pursed her lips, and tentatively asked, “Grandma, even though you’ve never wanted to tell me and Little Luo about our parents… after all these years, could you at least tell us if they’re still alive?”
Feeling the time frame, it was over two hundred years ago, during a pretty tumultuous period in the Dragon Race.
Today’s allies could be tomorrow’s enemies, so the d*ath of the Dragon King wasn’t uncommon.
Isar had always thought the reason Grandma had seldom mentioned their parents was likely because they had died in the Dragon Race’s internal strife.
Hearing this, Roswiser also looked up at her grandmother; she had been waiting for this question’s answer for all these years.
Seeing her granddaughters bring up this topic again, Veronica sighed softly.
“Alright, you both have become qualified queens now, so it does make sense to understand your parents’ situation.”
“Isar, you just asked whether they’re still alive.”
“I can assure you, yes, they’re alive.”
With such a definitive answer, the sisters became slightly excited.
Isar opened her mouth, wanting to ask further, but was interrupted by her grandmother waving her hand.
“I know what you want to ask, Isar, but I can’t tell you in detail where they are or what they’re doing. I can only tell you that your parents are engaged in a great endeavor, far greater than what we have going on in the Extreme North Land.”
After that, Veronica lowered her gaze, calmly continuing to cut her steak as if the question-and-answer session had never happened.
Seeing this, Roswiser and her sister exchanged a knowing look and tacitly decided not to press further.
Just knowing that their parents were alive was enough.
As long as they were alive, there would surely be a day they could meet.
After the slightly heavy topic, the family started to chat about the kids’ matters.
After all, it was a rare family reunion; it was much better to talk about happy things.
After dinner, the maids came to clean the dining room.
Leon’s family also went to their room to rest early.
Back in their familiar couple’s suite—the two were already used to it.
Midnight, on the rooftop of the Red Dragon Holy Temple, Isar leaned lightly against the railing, holding a bottle of red wine without a glass, taking swigs straight from the bottle.
Her beautiful face slightly flushed from the alcohol, the cool night breeze lifted her long hair like a fire burning in the night.
Soon, the rooftop door opened, and Veronica stepped out.
“It’s so late; you’re not asleep yet, Grandma?”
“You’re sneaking a drink again.” Veronica stood beside Isar, her tone slightly stern.
Isar’s mildly tipsy face broke into a smile as she sheepishly set the bottle aside. “Not drinking anymore, not drinking anymore.”
“You used to sneak Little Luo into the wine cellar to steal my stash, and now she’s just like you, always wanting a drink whenever she has free time.”
“Oh come on, Grandma! What kind of rulers don’t drink? It’s one of the ways to win people’s hearts!” Isar retorted, her quick wit suggesting she wasn’t really drunk.
Veronica shot her granddaughter an exasperated glance before ultimately giving a resigned laugh. “You two… always giving me worry.”
Isar hugged her grandmother’s shoulder, cheek to cheek, “In front of others, we’re high and mighty queens, but in front of you, we’re still just little girls who understand nothing~”
“A little girl who’s over two hundred years old?”
“Pfft~ As long as I’m not married, I’ll always be a little girl.”
“Your sister, however, is not; she has been married for three years now.”
Upon hearing this, Isar suddenly thought of something. “Oh right, Grandma, when Little Luo was here last time, I saw that new necklace; she said you gave it to her as a wedding gift.”
“Yep! What, do you want one too?”
“Absolutely!”
“Well, get yourself married, and then I’ll gift you one.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the Red Dragon Queen began jumping up and down, throwing a tantrum. “I’m anti-marriage, Grandma; you know that! Just give it to me, please~”
Bolstered by a bit of alcohol, otherwise, no matter how close Isar was with her grandmother, she wouldn’t act like this at all.
It was like if you gave her a bed, she’d start rolling around on the floor begging for presents.
Veronica shook her head and chuckled, then pulled out a delicate little gift box from her pocket.
“Here, this is for you.”
Isar paused mid-tantrum, suddenly jolting sober. “Oh, Grandma, you’re really giving it to me?”
“Open it and see.”
Isar nodded and opened the gift box, revealing an emerald ring with a milky-white crystal embedded, sparkling with transparency.
Isar recognized the emerald, but the crystal material… seemed unfamiliar. “Grandma, what’s this crystal…?”
“Original Crystal,” Veronica said without hiding anything.
“Original… Crystal?”
Isar’s thoughts flickered, suddenly recalling, “I remember when Constantine attacked my Holy Temple last week, Little Luo also used something called Original Power… Grandma, does this mean—”
“My gift to her also contains the same crystal,” Veronica said, “but I didn’t tell her.”
Isar frowned, “Why not?”
Veronica slowly looked at her granddaughter, meeting her red eyes.
The two exchanged glances for a moment before Isar realized, “Because my brother-in-law… right?”
Veronica chuckled lightly. “You’ve always been so clever, Isar. The Original Crystal allows you to more easily harness Original Power for stronger magic. However, since it involves a lot of dragon history, I didn’t want Little Luo’s husband to know too much.”
“Grandma, do you also think my brother-in-law is a bit… of an unknown origin?”
“Indeed.”
Veronica turned around, resting her hands on the railing, gazing at the distant night scene,
“In just a few short years, Little Luo’s Silver Dragon Temple has faced multiple invasions from various Dragon Kings, which is quite unusual.”
“Even if the Silver Dragon’s territory is rich in resources, it shouldn’t be mired in such frequent wars.”
“And all of this probably began after Leon awoke.”
“So, I think… this unknown man must be hiding a secret.”
“Certainly, he has saved Little Luo and the kids from danger multiple times, and some even call him a ‘hero of the Dragon Race,’ but similarly—”
“He also attracts danger.”
“Little Luo must be aware of this as well, but… she loves her enigmatic husband so much that even if it means being in peril, I believe she wouldn’t leave Leon.”
“So, I can only gift her the Original Crystal, hoping she can master this powerful force.”
“Of course, one for you too, so you don’t call me biased.”
Isar smiled, carefully storing the emerald ring with the Original Crystal.
“I understand, Grandma.”
“What do you think Leon’s real purpose is?” Veronica asked.
Isar pondered for a moment before answering, “This mysterious brother-in-law loves Little Luo, and Little Luo loves him; that much is unquestionable. But if I had to say there’s a purpose… I’d say he’s biding his time?”
“Biding his time?”
“Yeah, I think he’s waiting for an opportunity.”
Isar replied, “You said just now that my brother-in-law attracts danger, and I believe that’s only half right; Little Luo wouldn’t burden everything on a man who just brings danger.”
“His charm lies in the fact that he attracts danger, resolves it, and gives ‘danger’ an even more painful retaliation.”
“As for why I think he’s biding his time, it’s probably because I feel that one day in the future, he will resolve all the present crises and troubles, even… change the entire world’s landscape.”
“Given what he’s shown so far, I believe he can do it.”
Listening to her granddaughter’s analysis, Veronica nodded thoughtfully. “A mysterious and dangerous man… No wonder Little Luo is so smitten; your mother was also won over by your father like that.”
Isar raised an eyebrow. “Grandma, tell me more; I love it.”
Veronica chuckled, “We’ll discuss that later; the priority now is your mysterious brother-in-law. Since we can’t determine his true intentions, let’s talk about his… background.”
“Background…”
“Yeah, or should we say… race?”
Isar was taken aback. “Grandma, are you suggesting that my brother-in-law might not even be a dragon?”
Veronica shrugged. “Well, just taking a wild guess; might as well guess boldly.”
“Alright, alright, Grandma; you’re getting bolder as you age!”
“Do you have any leads, my clever granddaughter?”
Isar rubbed her chin, thought for a moment, and then a light bulb lit up above her head. “Got it! Grandma, wait a moment!”
With that, Isar spread her dragon wings and flew off the rooftop.
A few minutes later, she returned with pencil and paper.
“I actually have some clues about which race my brother-in-law might come from.”
As she spoke, Isar unfolded the white paper, writing as she explained.
“I clearly heard my brother-in-law refer to his move as ‘Thousand Birds’ during my duel with Constantine.”
“But judging by the move’s performance, it should really be ‘Thunder Strike.’”
“Afterward, I looked up some information and found that they’re actually the same move; only different races have different names for it.”
“And the races that call ‘Thunder Strike’ by ‘Thousand Birds’ include…”
Isar finished writing a few race names and handed the paper to Veronica.
“The Howling Wolf Tribe, Garuda Tribe, the elf branch ‘Thunder Elves,’ Mamba Tribe, and… Humans.”
Veronica looked at these names, briefly lingering on the words ‘Humans’ before moving to ‘Mamba Tribe.’
“The Mamba Tribe is probably a branch of the Giant Serpent Tribe, right?”
“Correct! This branch is also quite skilled in using Thunder Magic.”
Veronica frowned slightly and then shook her head. “I think we can rule this race out.”
“Eh? Why?”
“Though Mamba Tribe can transform into human form, most of their human forms are primarily black-skinned. Your brother-in-law only has black eyes and hair, so he’s unlikely to be from the Mamba Tribe.”
In the continent of Samael, all major races tend to resemble ‘humans’ when they transform, but no one knows why they have this strange biological characteristic.
A more scientific guess would be:
The human body is the most coordinated, the most harmonious structure, and is a manifestation of the ‘beauty of simplicity.’
A more mystic guess might be:
The creator has the human form, so all races and beings on the continent of Samael eventually evolve toward the human shape.
But back to the point.
“Oh, is that so… well, let’s rule this one out then.”
As she spoke, Isar marked that race off the list.
“Mamba… out!”
