To think I was being carried in a princess hold by my parent at this age.
Of course, this might be perfectly natural for the man currently holding me.
After all, I was his daughter.
Yet, the soul residing within your daughter was that of a man nearing thirty.
I gazed up at my father, trying to convey that very sentiment.
“Oh, my sweet little girl.”
“Your Majesty, please compose yourself. Your dignity is crumbling.”
“Ahem, Guard Captain, surely you understand, having a son yourself? They are precious beyond measure.”
“Nevertheless, such displays are unbefitting in a public setting.”
“…I shall compose myself.”
At the Guard Captain Haig’s resolute words, my father promised to compose himself, once again assuming the dignified bearing he had displayed when I first approached.
So, that man was indeed the Guard Captain.
He wore armor that, while not as ornate as my father’s, was certainly more splendid than that of the other soldiers.
‘…That armor is rather beautiful.’
“Princess, are you intrigued?”
“Hm?”
“Your Majesty, it appears Her Royal Highness is fascinated by the armor.”
He said this with a smile, perhaps because I had been staring for too long.
“Perhaps, upon reaching adulthood, she will become a magnificent ruler.”
“Indeed, a being destined to expand the dragon’s dominion, one who will vanquish the troublesome demons and humans.”
‘Troublesome? Demons and humans?’
‘Why would that be? I could understand if it were the Demon King, but are mere demons and humans truly such a formidable threat?’
“D-demons and humans?”
“Oh dear, perhaps that was too frightening a tale for the Princess at her age.”
“Indeed, for humans are truly wicked.”
“Do not fret, my daughter. We shall protect you.”
‘Sir, I am stronger than you.’
“Perhaps there will be no need. Though my status window is currently obscured…”
“Considering how she instantly obliterated that vengeful spirit earlier, I believe the Princess might well be a divine emissary.”
“That may very well be the case.”
My father and the Guard Captain Haig offered me warm, paternal smiles.
‘Hmm, this feels rather uncomfortable.’
Incidentally, was that eggshell still clinging to my head? I was about to meet Mother, and surely I should remove it beforehand.
Lost in this thought, I reached a hand to my head, intending to detach the remnant shell.
“Ah, Princess, you needn’t remove it. In fact, it would be best not to.”
“Her Royal Highness, it is tradition for a dragon’s mother to be the one to remove the eggshell.”
‘What? There was such a tradition? I was completely unaware.’
“I-is that so…?”
“Indeed, it is believed to ensure healthy growth, and it also serves as a means to strengthen the bond between child and mother.”
“Typically, the parental imprinting also occurs at this time, but Her Royal Highness is remarkably intelligent.”
“I wonder if the Queen will be disappointed. She was so eagerly anticipating the babbling of a newborn.”
“I imagine she will be pleased to have a genius.”
“That could also be the case.”
‘What kind of person would Mother be?’
I had heard that dragons expended an immense amount of magical energy until the laying of their eggs.
The lore books stated that during this arduous process, the female was left in an exceedingly vulnerable state.
‘Then surely, Mother must also be in a greatly weakened state right now.’
“My daughter, are you not cold? I worry because there’s still a bit of egg white on you.”
“I-it’s alright. A skill, perhaps? It’s active.”
“…A skill?”
The Guard Captain Haig, his expression alight with profound curiosity, gazed at me as he posed the question.
“Her Royal Highness, might I inquire as to which skill?”
“That… temperature change immunity?”
I uttered the words without a second thought, yet the astonishment on my father’s and the Guard Captain Haig’s faces was unmistakable.
‘W-what was that? Did I make a mistake?’
“A dragon with temperature change immunity, you say?”
“Remarkable! My daughter! Truly, my daughter is extraordinary!”
‘Th-that’s a relief.’
‘They were surprised in a good way, then.’
“Heh, heh heh.”
“Even your laughter is beautiful.”
“I envy Your Majesty.”
“Feel free to envy me even more!”
‘My father, it seemed, was even more of a doting parent than I had initially imagined.’
A long-standing connection appeared to exist between the two men, far deeper than I had perceived.
One might even say they exuded the distinct aura of having been friends since childhood.
“A-are you two friends?”
“Ah, yes, we are indeed friends. We graduated from the academy as second and third in our class, respectively.”
‘But their stats are in such a state? That truly makes even less sense.’
‘How could graduates of the dragon’s foremost training institution be so remarkably weak?’
“Even after hearing, my adorable daughter still does not quite grasp it.”
“U-uhh.”
My father began to rub his cheek against mine.
‘I-it’s scratchy because of his beard.’
“It’s s-scratchy…….”
“Oh, my apologies.”
Before I realized it, the towering cliff had vanished, and a multitude of soldiers came into view, along with three carriages and fifteen soldiers who had transformed into dragons.
“Let us board the carriage with the Princess.”
“Where is the wet nurse?!”
As the Guard Captain Haig bellowed, a gray-haired woman, trembling uncontrollably, stepped forward.
“I-I have committed a capital offense!”
Uttering these words, the woman prostrated herself on the ground, heedless of her garments becoming soiled.
She was trembling violently, so consumed by terror that it was agonizing to witness.
With every splash of mud around her, the woman’s desperate struggles intensified.
“I-I have committed a capital offense!!”
“F-forgiveness!”
“P-please.”
The woman’s clothing was becoming utterly ruined.
Her appearance was utterly caked in mud.
Soldiers encircled her.
Spears were leveled at her by the soldiers.
The woman ceaselessly pleaded for clemency.
“I have committed a capital offense!!”
My father instructed the Guard Captain Haig to continue holding me, then advanced towards the prostrate woman.
His impossibly heavy footsteps seemed to exert an immense psychological pressure on both the surrounding soldiers and the woman before him.
He then crouched down directly in front of the woman.
A monumental rage, so profound that he remained utterly indifferent to his royal garments being soiled, emanated from his very back.
My father, his brow furrowed, questioned the woman in a low, measured tone.
“Surely, you are not unaware of the current state of our kingdom?”
“N-no, Your Majesty, of course not.”
“Then why did you act as you did?”
“I-it was merely that I was so utterly startled that…”
“Are you suggesting that if one is startled, then it is acceptable to endanger a member of the royal family?”
“I-I have committed a capital offense!”
My father straightened his crouched form, then pointed a finger towards me.
“Look at that child.”
“…….”
The woman’s unfocused gaze fell upon me.
“She is the child you nearly caused to perish.”
“Ah, a-ah…….”
Tears welled profusely in the woman’s eyes.
Turning his back on the weeping woman, my father issued a command to the soldiers.
“Here and now, I revoke that woman’s qualification as a wet nurse.”
“Henceforth, she is forbidden from all access to the Princess, and she shall be assigned the most menial tasks within the royal palace.”
“…This is the least consideration I can offer you, knowing you have a sick sibling at home.”
The woman collapsed with a thud onto the spot where she knelt.
A man and a woman, seemingly her colleagues, rushed to her side, helping her to her feet and guiding her into one of the carriages at the rear.
I found myself utterly speechless.
I did not even know what transgression she had committed in the first place.
Perhaps for this very reason, an overwhelming sense of pity washed over me for her plight.
My father returned to my side, receiving me back into his arms from the Guard Captain Haig.
“Time to go see Mother, then.”
He offered me a smile tinged with a faint, bittersweet undertone.
It was a smile seemingly born of concern, wondering if I had been unduly shocked.
In response to his worried smile, I simply gazed up at my father and offered a reassuring grin.
“I’m excited.”
“Indeed, Father is also quite eager to see your mother’s expression.”
“Your Majesty, many soldiers are observing. Perhaps it is time to moderate your words and actions.”
“Nonsense, we are about to enter the carriage; surely I may speak as I please for a little while longer.”
“Haa… then a sound-muffling spell it is.”
As if such occurrences were far from rare, the Guard Captain Haig shook his head wearily and cast a spell upon the carriage.
‘But what exactly is the difference between a skill and magic?’
‘If I were to ask such a question now, Father would only be surprised, so I should inquire when I am older.’
‘Asking about it here would likely delay my meeting with Mother.’
‘And besides, I was growing eager to remove that piece from my head.’
“F-Father, let’s go quickly!”
“Yes, yes, let us proceed, my Princess.”
While these were words a typical father might utter, hearing them from my own made them feel distinctly different.
After all, he called me that because I was, in fact, a true princess.
Feeling a slight aversion to the title, I watched as the carriage door slowly swung open.
And within, I saw.
A beautiful woman, her face pale and etched with anxiety, was seated inside.
“Your Highness!”
“Erses, you may speak as you normally would. I’ve cast a silencing spell.”
“Albinius! O-our child is…”
‘What? Can she not see me?’
[You have met your Mother!]
[Accessing Status Window!]
[Name: Erses Lascaris.]
[Race: Dragon.]
[Lv.102]
[Strength: 77(99)]
[Magic: 32(121)]
[Intelligence: 99]
[Stamina: 38(101)]
[Title: Dragon Lord.]
[The current individual is weakened due to childbirth.]
[Pre-weakening stats are listed separately in parentheses.]
‘What? Her level is higher than Father’s, and her stats are higher too?’
‘Even her weakened stats are by no means low.’
‘The average high-spec hero boasts 50 stats.’
‘The woman before me, Mother, possessed an estimated 60 stats.’
[Precisely 61.5 stats on average.]
‘It even calculates it for me. How convenient.’
“Albinius, where is the child? Surely not…”
“Erses, this is our child.”
‘Ah, Mother seems to have noticed me.’
‘What expression would she make?’
‘Would she perhaps dislike me?’
Feeling a surge of tension, I closed the status window that had been obscuring my mother’s face.
What met my eyes then was.
“O-our daughter? Is it really our daughter?”
She covered her mouth with both hands, tears streaming down her face.
I felt as though I ought to offer some comfort, yet no words would come.
Instead, I gestured for my father to set me down.
“Ah, of course.”
–Leap.
My two legs supported and steadied me.
How long had it been since I last felt this sensation?
To walk with my own strength.
It was something I might have given up on entirely.
I had pushed it into a corner of my heart, believing I could never stand again.
I had turned my head away, ignoring it to such an extent that I hadn’t even realized that hope still burned within me.
Because it was too painful.
But now, I would no longer shy away.
With that resolve, I bravely looked ahead.
“Mother!”
It was a name I hadn’t uttered in a very long time.
‘Mother!! Mother!!!’
The last time I had called out was from inside a burning car.
But this time, to that call which had gone unanswered before,
“Yes, it’s Mother….”
The woman before me replied, tears still flowing.
After ten years.
“Congratulations on entering the world, my daughter.”
It was the moment I truly realized I had been reborn.
