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Chapter 51
When Armiphera realized that the gift she had sent was in fact a real evil dragon’s egg, she was left speechless.
“Wow…”
And then, she gasped in admiration.
“As expected of me! I really am a woman who can do anything!”
At Armiphera’s frivolous reaction, treating it as if it were nothing, Kalleo finally lost his patience and rose from his seat.
“You wild rose!”
Then, just like Muniel had done before, he gave his younger sister’s sturdy back a loud slap.
“Why is your back so tightly packed with muscles again!”
“Ow, brother!”
“I hit you so it would hurt, you nuisance!”
“You used to say I was like a delicate rose in a garden, sparkling with morning dew!”
“And now you’re a wild rose that grows sprawling anywhere it wants! You weed-hearted thing!”
Still, a rose was a rose.
Celetina stepped back a little, watching with amusement as though it were none of her business.
But she couldn’t just let them go on bickering.
“Anyway,” she began.
At the sound of her voice, the Dei Amor siblings, who had forgotten their age and were squabbling like children, immediately stopped and turned to look at her.
“We need to deal with the evil dragon first, don’t we?”
How should they catch it?
“Wait, why is the evil dragon even still here in the first place?”
Armiphera finally let go of Kalleo’s collar, which she had been gripping tightly. She twisted her wrist idly.
“Mom and Dad live here. This place is filled with holy energy, as sacred as a temple—so it doesn’t make sense that an evil dragon would linger here.”
In the records of history, evil dragons were legendary creatures, spoken of as though they were myths. But since their very name carried “evil,” they were said to constantly emit wicked energy.
To such evil dragons, holy power—especially from someone with immense sacred energy, like a saintess—was supposed to render them powerless.
The Dei Amor estate was considered a “sanctuary.”
A saintess and a holy knight had built their home here, raising children with sacred energy.
Not only Armiphera, but even Kalleo possessed a little sacred power.
If anything, this home might be holier than a temple itself. For such a place to hide an evil dragon made no sense at all.
It didn’t match with what was written in the historical records.
Were the records wrong?
As that possibility crossed their minds, Kalleo spoke up.
“Mother said she found traces in the storage room not long ago. She said one of her engraved commemorative coins had fallen to the floor there.”
Armiphera frowned, her brows knitting.
After a brief moment of thought, she suddenly opened the study window wide.
“What are you doing?”
“Mm, just a sort of experiment?”
Armiphera stretched her hand out the window.
“You never know—maybe if I call, it’ll come.”
“It’s not a dog…”
Kalleo let out a helpless laugh.
If it actually shows up, I’ll hand over my marquis title to Phera…
“Ater! Are you out there? If you are, come out!”
Rustle.
The branches of a tall tree outside the study window shook, and from the dense leaves, something black appeared.
A pair of eyes, dark as obsidian gemstones, blinked rapidly.
Its wings stretched and fluttered like a cat waking from a nap.
Its body was only a little bigger than a fully grown cat.
It had four short but sturdy legs, and a thick tail, as big as a child’s arm.
“You called me.”
It was the evil dragon, Ater.
Kalleo silently congratulated himself for not having said his marquis title would really go to Phera.
“…Huh?”
Areph slowly sat up from his nap.
What’s that sound…?
Still half-asleep, he yawned loudly, smacking his lips.
The distant noise of confused shouting had woken him, but his mind was still foggy and stuck in dreamland.
Then suddenly, he snapped fully awake and turned his head.
Thankfully, Nibellia was still sound asleep.
Whatever she was dreaming of, the gentle curve of her lips made her look utterly happy.
Areph watched her for a while, then carefully pulled the blanket she had kicked aside back over her and straightened her crooked pillow.
Quietly, he climbed out of bed.
When he stepped outside, the noise he had heard earlier sounded even louder.
His gaze naturally lifted upward.
Areph crept silently up the stairs.
The sound was coming from Kalleo’s study—the very same room where he had received a brooch and reward for rescuing Azzel.
The door was slightly ajar.
Should I look?
He hesitated.
He’d always been told peeking at others was bad.
…Then I’ll just say I came to visit!
Not sneak a look—just see openly!
Resolved, Areph knocked gently on the study door.
At once, the noisy room fell utterly silent.
Startled, Areph almost backed away, but then gathered his courage and spoke.
“It’s me, Areph.”
The door opened, and Kalleo appeared.
“I thought you were napping. Did we wake you?”
Thankfully, Kalleo smiled kindly as his eyes met Areph’s.
He reached out and smoothed down Areph’s messy, nest-like hair.
Feeling that warm touch, Areph shook his head.
“N-no, I just woke up. But I heard some noise…”
“Sorry. We didn’t mean to frighten you. It’s nothing serious…”
Bang!
“Nothing serious? How dare you dismiss me so!”
Bang! Bang!
Just like a cat smacking the floor with a puffed-up tail, the evil dragon Ater thumped its thick tail on the floor.
“……”
Areph froze, his body stiff at the sight of the strange creature he’d never seen before.
Kalleo sighed and rubbed the frightened boy’s back.
“We just caught the evil dragon, Ater.”
“A-an evil dragon?”
Could it really be that evil dragon?
Areph’s red eyes trembled.
He suddenly recalled the furious expression of the Tower Master.
Although the Tower Master always looked stern and unfriendly, whenever he saw children, he would stuff their hands full of candies and chocolates.
Yet that same man had spoken with quiet fury about the evil dragon.
“…”
Areph’s lips drooped as he muttered angrily.
“Evil dragons are bad…!”
Ater let out a squeaky cry.
“I’m not bad!”
The sound was as cute as a kitten’s mewl—but the voice that came out was that of a gruff man.
Areph shook his head firmly.
“The Tower Master got mad! That means you’re bad…!”
The evil dragon, about to argue back, suddenly tilted its head curiously.
Areph secretly thought the gesture was cute, but quickly reminded himself this was the Tower Master’s enemy and forced his hostility back into place.
“Tower Master? You mean Magia?”
“What, you know him?”
Armiphera slipped her hand beneath the dragon’s forelegs—its armpits, probably—and lifted it into the air.
Dangling like a dog, Ater wagged its tail lightly and squeaked.
“He’s not in me, but in the memories of the previous evil dragon.”
At those words, everyone naturally leaned in to listen.
Meanwhile, Armiphera regarded the dragon thoughtfully.
She was currently channeling her sacred energy into her hands.
And yet, even touched by sacred power, it feels nothing…
It was completely unlike the evil dragons written in history.
“Mm. Yes. I see…”
As Ater sifted through inherited memories, he suddenly found something.
“The previous evil dragon cast a curse of immortality on someone. That someone is now your Tower Master.”
Magia’s secret was revealed so casually that Kalleo and Celetina weren’t even sure whether they should know this information at all.
Armiphera asked,
“Then can you undo that curse?”
Ater snorted.
“There’s nothing I cannot do.”
“Perfect. Tomorrow, when the kids go to kindergarten, I’ll bring you along to break the curse. Grandpa will be happy, right?”
“…I’m not sure this is the kind of matter you can treat so lightly.”
Still, Ater snuggled a little more comfortably into Armiphera’s arms.
Its jet-black eyes stared intently at Areph.
When their eyes met, Areph flinched, but didn’t look away.
“…This place is quite entertaining.”
With that cryptic remark, the evil dragon yawned so wide it looked as though its mouth might split in two.
Then, it closed its eyes and fell asleep.
Armiphera gazed at the slumbering dragon in her arms, then asked Kalleo,
“Brother, do you have a leash?”
“For people, or for animals?”
“Just give me both for now.”
Hearing the Dei Amor siblings’ exchange, Areph tilted his head and asked with innocent curiosity,
“Why do you have a leash for people?”
The evil dragon Ater awoke to find himself wearing an animal leash.
“….”
Inside a chicken coop.
“I swear, this place is far too shameless for me.”
The furious dragon slammed its puffed-up tail against the straw-strewn ground.
