The crowd was screaming. Agonized wailing tore through the sky.
"Cough—cough—hot! It's burning! Someone save me!"
"I curse you! I curse you! By the Emperor above—punish these damned Infected!"
"Dad… sob… Dad…"
Flames raged. Shrill abuse rose and fell like a relentless chorus.
Talulah's eyes brimmed with tears as she stared blankly at everything unfolding before her.
[You will watch all you desire and all you strive for turn to ash.]
No… no…
[You will watch them spit on everything you once revered. Life, dignity, ideals—none of it will mean anything.]
"Ah… ah…"
As the village was gradually reduced to cinders in the inferno, Talulah opened her mouth as if to speak—yet all that escaped was a hoarse, meaningless growl.
Amid the waves of furious curses, people died in the flames—while the whisper in her mind continued to echo.
[In the end, you will understand the meaning of what I taught you. You will become…]
"Your Highness!"
The bewitching whisper cut off abruptly.
Faced with the wildly excited Feline who had suddenly appeared before her, Talulah couldn't react at all.
So she simply stood there in a daze, watching the Feline woman kneel on one knee and stare at her, inspecting her as if afraid she might vanish—until the woman burst into delighted laughter and finally snapped Talulah back to herself.
"What fortune! Hahahaha! Victoria is blessed by heaven!"
"A female Draco—! To think I, Talren Goldas, could still find a sovereign!"
"Your Highness! Please come with me—leave this place! I will take you to your blood kin. Together we will return to Victoria and restore our mission!"
What was she even talking about…?
…Whatever. It didn't matter.
"Your Highness? Your Highness?"
Talren also realized something was wrong—Talulah's condition was clearly abnormal. She hurried forward, trying to support Talulah—
But the searing heat around Talulah blocked her, and Talulah raised a hand at the same time, stopping her from coming closer.
"You said… my blood kin?"
Something was off.
Talren frowned, eyes locked on the female Draco who had suddenly begun to smile. Just moments ago, this "Your Highness" had looked like she'd taken a crushing blow. Talren had been about to ask what happened, to soothe her carefully—
But now…
Talren shook her head, forcing the messy thoughts away. No matter what, meeting this "Your Highness" at all was an incomparable stroke of luck.
As the fire around them began to die down, she stood and—without hesitation—spilled everything about Chen Mo in Lungmen.
"Yes, Your Highness. You have a blood relative in Lungmen, waiting for you."
"Blood relative… Heh. Are you someone Hui-chieh sent to check on the sister she hasn't seen in years?"
"Hui-chieh? Who is that?"
The crackle of burning houses filled the air. The two stared at each other for a long moment before Talulah slowly raised the sword in her hand.
Humm—
A sharp, black blade—scorching hot—flashed up across Talren's throat. One more step, and Talulah could cut her open.
"Are you Wei Yenwu's clown? Sent here on purpose to mock my schemes?"
Talren was genuinely stunned. She didn't understand why news of "family" would provoke such hostility—but she immediately tried to explain.
"No! I am a descendant of Victoria's House Goldas. How could I have anything to do with Lungmen's Wei Yenwu?"
Talren dropped to one knee again. She wasn't afraid of death—she was afraid of letting hope slip away in her hands.
"You have a blood relative in Lungmen named Chen… Chen Mo! His appearance—and those terrifying fire-based Originium Arts—are exactly like yours!"
"He is also a Draco, just like you! He is an extremely rare male Draco!"
For a moment, it was as if only the blizzard's howl remained. After Talren finished speaking, the world seemed to fall into a strange, frozen stillness.
Maybe a long time passed. Maybe only a few seconds.
"I can't believe what you're saying," Talulah said at last.
A male Draco? What a ridiculous claim.
And yet—
Talulah withdrew her sword. A gorgeous, almost unreal smile bloomed across her striking face.
"You're not lying. I can hear your heart hammering—surging with excitement and joy, not the guilty rhythm of deception."
"I will send people to Lungmen to verify the truth. Until then, you will remain at my side. I will—"
"That won't be necessary, Your Highness."
Her words were interrupted again.
Talulah's practiced smile cooled by degrees. She turned, ready to deliver a cold, cutting remark—only to see the pitiful Victoria noble producing a phone and holding it up for her to see.
The phone was dim, the screen even scratched and cracked—but the image displayed on it reflected Talulah's likeness unmistakably.
…No. Not her.
It was…
"Chen Mo. Pure-blood Draco. Currently serving as a special operations member of the Lungmen Guard Department."
As Talren spoke, she deliberately checked Talulah's expression. Seeing Talulah still frozen, she continued.
"At present your blood kin is safe, Your Highness. It seems he's under Wei Yenwu's protection. If you want to go immediately—"
"…What is his name?"
Talren flinched at the sudden question, then answered carefully again.
"Chen Mo. Without question, he is your flesh and blood—your true family."
Even the blizzard seemed to pause for a heartbeat.
Only when Talren's hand, held so close, was nearly burned did Talulah finally begin to move—trembling as she reached out and touched the screen.
"Is this… real?"
"Chen Mo… Chen Mo… I… I really still have…"
So something like this really existed.
Tears mixed with shock and joy slipped down Talulah's cheek. The strange, oppressive atmosphere from earlier vanished in an instant.
But it only lasted an instant.
Almost immediately, Talulah seemed to become a different person. She snapped her hand back, standing in place with a thoughtful, calculating expression—as if the tears at her eyes had been nothing more than snowflakes landing on her skin, disappearing the moment they touched.
"…How curious. To think he managed to hide this man so silently, all the way until now."
"Unexpected variables must be eliminated, but…"
Under Talren's puzzled gaze, Talulah pressed a hand to her chest, feeling the furious pounding of her heart within—like something straining against a seal, about to burst free.
"…Fine."
Talulah turned and walked away, leading the still-confused Talren toward Reunion's direction.
After a long silence, Talren finally couldn't hold back her question.
"Your Highness… where are we going next?"
Against the wind and snow, leaving behind deep, scorching footprints, Talulah looked toward the distance and answered with forced calm, suppressing the turmoil in her heart.
"Chernobog. It's the place we will control in the future."
"But right now, I still need more preparations."
Talren nodded, doubts fading. This female Draco had plans, resolve—and the kind of presence that could convince the people of Victoria.
If she served this sovereign, perhaps she really might live to see Victoria's glory return.
Watching Talulah's tall, resolute figure leading the way, Talren opened her mouth—then swallowed her thoughts.
Originally, she had wanted to advise Princess Talulah to marry Chen Mo, to join bloodlines and bear Victoria's rightful red-dragon heirs for the future.
But Talulah's bizarre shift just now made Talren decide to keep that idea buried—for the time being.
There would be a chance to persuade her later.
Completely unaware that she had already stepped into a deep pit, Talren thought so to herself.
-------
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (190 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (130 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (200 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (89 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (140 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (90 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (150 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (70 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (70 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (130 Chapter)
Arknights : Batman System (30 Chapter)
Chat Group: Swapping Bodies with the Bad-Ending Herta from the Start (80 Chapter)
DanMachi: Why Did My Dungeon Turn Into a Soulslike Game? (130 Chapter)
Losing Money on Uma Musume...What Do You Mean You Actually Won? (120 Chapter)
I'm Gotou Hitori—Who Are You? (40 Chapter)
Were You Ever Even a Uma Musume? Stop Making Things Up! (78 Chapter)
Moon Project: A Full-Time Love Adventure for the Lobotomy Corporation (75 Chapter)
The Leisurely Days of the Hyuga Main House (65 Chapter)
Arknights : A Draco Surviving in a Matriarchal Terra (209 Chapter) *Endning*
Arknights: What if My Luck Is Too Good? (135 Chapter)
Honkai: The Romance System Only Shows Up After I Marry Mei (55 Chapter)
Arknights: Who Are You Calling Repressed, X?! (145 Chapter)
The Chat Group Only Arrived After I'd Cleared the Game (102 Chapter)
Gojo Satoru Flat-Out Refuses to Admit He's a Supporting Character (40 Chapter)
Chat Group Isn't Supposed to Be Like This! (30 Chapter)
If You're Moriarty…then Who Am I? (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: Since I "Can't See," They Take Turns Stealing My Underwear (50 Chapter)
Arknights: Why Are All My "Brothers" Girls? (54 Chapter)
Danmachi: Start Training Haki (59 Chapter)
Emiya Shirou's Rebirth (30 Chapter)
I Can Get Stronger Just by AFK'ing—So I Joined a Chat Group (50 Chapter)
Endfield: I Can Always Pull Out One Yuan (65 Chapter)
Limbus Company : I Started a Company in Project Moon (50 Chapter)
Lobotomy: Do Cooks of Alley 23 Dream of Bloodfiend Knights? (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: Freya Familia's "One-Blade Shura" (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: Emiya, the Great Hero Becomes the Protagonist (90 Chapter)
TYPE-MOON: One Special Instance Every Week (40 Chapter)
From Danmachi: The Abundance Apothecary (70 Chapter)
Lord Shadow Descends on DanMachi (90 Chapter)
Fuse with Me, Exusiai! (41 Chapter)
Honkai: Star Rail — After I Die, I Forge Their Madness (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: The Last Zeus Familia (75 Chapter)
Endfield: Arknights Heroic Spirit Summoning (75 Chapter)
Toyokawa Family Finances (105 Chapter)
Starting From DanMachi to Become Stronger (80 Chapter)
DanMachi: My Familia Is Made Up Entirely of Heroines from Every World! (65 Chapter)
Arknights: My Intel Refreshes Daily (90 Chapter)
Digimon : I Never Meant to Do Evil, Even Though I Wasn't Chosen (40 Chapter)
Miss Holmes Could Never Be the Losing Heroine! (40 Chapter)
Takayama Gamu at Tracen Academy (40 Chapter)
Legendary Trainer Takes on MYGO (40 Chapter)
Arknights : Yandere Game: The Operators Have Come Knocking (70 Chapter)
Arknights: This Dating Sim Is Seriously Wrong! (70 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it