Side Story 2 — She Who Serves Her Master (Part I)

(3rd POV, Close Narrator; Shen)

Hours had passed by and Shen was rather surprised that it had passed by that quickly. Even the most intense battle with hundreds of combatants with all sorts of dragon kinds feels much slower than this.

The feeling of conquering the whole dragon society pales from hearing master’s worries.

It’s interesting to see her master being so open about himself. To see another side of him being so fragile. It rather worries her as to how master willingly exposes himself.

It leaves him with so many weaknesses and exploits left to the open. But that’s what makes it so special. The fact that he is so willing to share those vulnerabilities to her.

Nobody ever does that. Even the most weakest dragon who daringly and stupidly challenges her would keep barking and unshamingly blame others for their own failures. Unwillingly admitting themselves that they are weak.

She can now understand him, even if just a bit more. There’s so much more to him than she initially thought.

It made her feel special. It made her feel things she never experienced before. Like a girl experiencing her first romantic crush, fireworks lit up inside her heart as she can think of nothing else but only him. Warmth surges inside her. For the first time, she truly understands what it means to love and be loved.

A desire to protect. A desire to cherish.

Everything leads and points to one single fact.

Only she can fix him.

A small part of her is glad that master’s problem doesn’t come from her. Only those ungrateful female humans that were present in master's life. If she ever comes to meet them she swears she will grant them something that will make them wish for death at the very least.

But still… A big part of her still worries about how come she’s not able to make his heart just a little bit at ease.

She, who was reincarnated and molded by master desires, should've been able to erase and soothe master's worries easily. But no progress whatsoever in that regard.

She’s a failure…

…But there’s no time to wail in regrets. And no such thing as giving up. This is just a challenge that she can tackle and ultimately conquer just like those countless fights to the death in her previous life.

She has all the time in the world. As long as she can slowly learn the human ways. Everything should go smoothly with one end in mind.

Where she owns master’s heart.

It would’ve been the perfect night if only there weren't a few vermin stalking them. She has to admit, whoever tries to interfere them is no ordinary being, obscuring their body, heat, and even smell with mana spell. This way of obscuring any traces of theirs quietly reminds her of the weakling Chaun dragons likes to use.

Every physical element of them might be obscured but the slight difference of mana in the air is all it takes to detect them.

Master needs to take a rest. She can feel how uncomfortable and anxious master was throughout the ordeal. And with those pests stalking them it's best to not notify master and add to his worries.

Isn’t that what it means to love someone? To bear his entire burden and to do whatever it takes to make him happy. For his happiness is her sole source of happiness.

Although, she can’t help but admit that it is not done purely out of selflessness.

She’s been itching to test out her swordsmanship.

Full moon is up in the sky, shining down its serene white light in the midst of the dark night in this close but spacey courtyard, perfect for illuminating the blood shed that’s about to come.

They’ve tailed Shen and her master to their home, and now lingers out there in the house perimeter. She can sense it. There’s no turning back now.

She is now waiting for them. Blades in hand. These swords she’s holding, a dear bestowment from her master. With the very swords her master gave, she will put it to great use tonight.

Blood will flow endlessly in his blade.

The bedroom her master sleeps in connects directly to the courtyard. It provides a nice view when one wakes but can be a dangerously vulnerable route for invaders to attack from.

Leaving the door towards the courtyard open might work against Shen and her master. But cutting off the element of surprise to pesky lowly vermin who depended on them will definitely deter them.

With nothing left to do other than wait for the inevitable she does what she always does at night — observing her master sleeping.

Even in his sleeping state, she can’t help but admire him. It’s not the first time for her to see the master’s sleeping. Whether he sleeps inside his divine realm or outside, she’s always there to spectate him. It’s her best source of entertainment.

Just as her master tries to understand her, she also wants to understand him even just a bit more.

Then, there they’ve come. The ones who tailed Shen and master were two, but now there’s seven of them. They’ve brought reinforcement. Hugging the inner walls with their cowardly bodies, thinking they are not detected by her.

With the doors and gates open, the element of surprise is gone. Leaving them with no other options than to enter through normal means.

They clad in outfits nothing out of ordinary and look astonishingly very human as they hide their tail in their outfit. With only the distinctive yellow curving dragon horns that hints at their Chaun ancestry.

They might be in a humanoid form in this new human age but their way of life is the same as ever. Those Chaun kind sure like to sneak around with their innate shadow stealth art. Appearing friendly, face full of smiles, seeking for the right opportunity. For when their opponents lower their guard, they’ll bare their fangs and sink it deep into their enemies.

Hiding their faces like the weak kind that they are.

「 Greetings, young mistress. 」Says what seems to be their leader with flashy colors unlike the others behind him.

「 Hooooo… 」Now they display courtesy huh when seconds before they were brandishing their weapons,「 What’s your purpose here? 」She asks, already knowing what their answer would be.

「 Please put the sword down, young mistress. Don’t hurt yourself. We do not mean harm to you, young mistress. 」

They opt to divert the topic instead. She’s not surprised in all honesty. It's so like those weak insects to try to lure their prey to false sense of security.

「 I can say the same to you. Those blades you have on your body. Discard them. 」She plays their own words against them.

His mouth twitches slightly. Shen caught it, when a normal person wouldn’t.

「 I don’t know what you’re talking about, young mistress. 」He says, feigning ignorance.

Amidst his silent smile, his eyes wander throughout the house and ends towards looking at the man sleeping just around the corner.

「 Who is he? 」He says, not hiding his contempt,「 I genuinely wonder why would a young mistress like you run away from your family for a human? 」

What kind of foolish question is that?

There’s so many reasons. So many that it would require the whole day to list the summarized version at the very least. But why bother telling all of it to a soon dead insect?

「 Ah forgive me I forgot my manners. My name is- 」

「 You dare spout manners when you have trespassed my master’s establishment?! 」

He sure is testing her tolerance.

「 M-master?! 」He shouts, completely out of his mind,「 How can a dragonkin such as you be under him, a human?! Dragonkin should be paired with another dragonkin. That’s how the world works. I mean look at him. Only a weak man-  」

That’s it.

She can no longer hold back.

『 From The Shackles of Death, I Am Reborn. From Thy Wish I have Cometh. 』

Her solemn, devout-full-like prayers stops him from continuing his lecture. For the first time, he senses that something goes awfully wrong.

『 From The Forgotten And Forsaken Dragon, To A Servant To The One Who Gave Me The Light And Shows Me The Way. 』

Her swords glow and from within a blinding light surges. Searing light that screams honeness.

『 I Am His Sword. His Guardian. His Angel Who Dedicates Her Everything All To Him  』

She flicks her sword, untraced to their eyes. No after images, only a gush of wind that pierces through their thick fabrics. Alarming them that her words are not mere empty words.

『 I Am Shen. Renald’s Servant. 』

The vermin slightly step back. Fear and doubt clearly plastered in their face. Regrets fill them as the leader scrambles what he has just got himself into.

『 And I have Come Forth To Slay The Inferiors. 』