V6.C10 Request, Gahard’s fear, Half Dragon?
Inside the living room, Leo slumped on the cushion behind him with his legs covered in a fluffy blanket clasped to a low table on which colorful sweets were placed. It was the infamous 'kotatsu' table from Japan.
It was Eri's idea to recreate kotatsu. In the end, she and Yue ended up making a much better version with magic circle heating instead of electricity.
The women in question leaned on his sides. The other girls also surrounded the comfortable Kotatsu. Strangely, none of them looked particularly happy as they all gazed in one direction where a beautiful woman munched on sweets with a sluggish expression.
"Umm, I never thought sweets could be this delicious~ Now I really want my daughter to marry you."
Eri's deadpanned seeing another shameless woman. She never thought the elegant queen would act like this. Still, as Liliana's friend, it would be rude to not act respectfully.
"Queen-sama, can we know the reason for your visit?"
"Ara~ I really forgot about it. I need help regarding my daughter's marriage."
Leo quietly listened to their conversation. He didn't know anyone from the Royal family except Liliana. At best he was an acquaintance with the Queen as he never talked to her.
The point of the matter was like a fairy tale where the King betrothed a Princess to a Prince of another Kingdom or Empire in this case. The Queen, the woman in front, wanted to reject the marriage but her husband, the King denied any audience with her.
After discussing with the maid, Helina, also the one who had a crush on Leo, the Queen sneaked out of the palace with a guard who was standing outside because girls prohibited his entry.
"You want me to call Gahard to renounce this marriage?"
"Ara, you are quite the young man for saying the Emperor's name so casually. I'll reward you with anything you want. A-ny-thing~"
He chuckled at her blatant attempt to seduce him while ignoring Eri whispering something about Princess and Queen's flags.
"You know I never asked for anything. I'll do it for Eri who considers Liliana as her friend."
"Leo…"
Eri's gaze sharpened with a predatory glint. He sighed and patted her head to calm her down.
She is the one most affected by racial change…
Meanwhile, Queen was at a loss of words in this situation. She was prepared to sacrifice her body to help her daughter but all her resolve was in vain.
Am I not beautiful? She wasn't being egotistic. She saw how every man in the palace from young teenagers to old fogies drooled after her beauty. But any of the beauties gathered here didn't pale in comparison.
She watched as the young man vanished from the room. The girls around her didn't even bat an eye at this but thinking about this mansion that looked like a middle-class house at best from outside, reminded her these people weren't wrong.
Moments later, he reappeared with a middle-aged man floating before he fell on the butt.
"Oooh!"
The middle-aged man or Emperor Gahard stood and stared at Irene leisurely sitting nearby.
"Oh heavens. Irene-san, why are you here? Don't tell me this demon even bared his fangs at you..."
Irene scowled and aimed a finger at his face to shoot thin needles made of pure ice. It wasn't lethal but the feeling of mana filled ice really numbed one's mind.
"Watch your words, your majesty. I would rather not cripple an Emperor for insulting my husband."
Gahard shut his aching mouth and got back on his feet. Is this heaven, he thought while admiring the women gathered in a single room.
"Your majesty."
He turned his head to the voice to find an acquaintance. In his mercenary days, he really admired the most beautiful Queen in Heiligh Kingdom's history.
"Please don't bow."
Luluaria nodded her head and once again resumed her position in kotatsu.
"I'm sorry for Leo-san's rudeness but I'd like to request something."
Gahard nodded curtly while thinking what could the Queen want with him except…
"You want me to null the marriage between our families?"
"Your majesty is wise. Is that by any chance possible?"
Gahard sat on a side of kotatsu with a bitter smile and began speaking,
"It's not like I don't want to do it. But your husband forced the marriage on me. He even threatened to stop aiding the Empire against any Demon attacks. I can't afford it after losing many troops in the sudden attack demons did a few days ago."
Luluaria stood from her seat. Her mischievous nature disappeared and a furious expression took its place.
"How dare he!? All humans are supposed to fight against the Demons together and that man trying to run away from this responsibility. Even going as far as to suppress any news of this incident."
Gahard shook his head and sighed. "The dragon-riding commander of the army easily tore our defenses with his army and dealt some serious damage. Just when we were about to lose, instead of continuing the attack, that demon retreated with his army.
Leo heard his statement with a frown. He couldn't help but feel suspicious about this.
"Well, when is this wedding set to happen?"
"Tomorrow."
Gahard and Luluaria answered together.
"I'll be there to see if I can knock some sense into the King. If he doesn't agree then I just need to usurp the throne from him."
Luluaria thought Leo was joking but she couldn't find any lies in his words. A sudden thought of him acting as the King flashed in her mind. Her face turned crimson at her own shameless thoughts.
Leo thought about telling them the truth of Holy Church and Ehit. The thought didn't linger much longer as he decided to take the matter in his own hands and wipe out the fanatics in Church after the battle with Demi-Gods.
"I'm gonna go and do my work then."
"Go ahead and try not to overexert yourself. We'll be conquering another Labyrinth today."
Leo shook his head at Eri's intention. "I'll try to create something like the magic circle Liberators used. Just relax for today, okay?"
"Ohh."
"...Nn. Great."
"And Tio and Eri, come with me for a minute. I need something."
The Queen rose from her position and bowed elegantly. "Thank you very much for taking your time to meet me. I'll be returning to the Kingdom or he might become suspicious from my absence."
"Yeah, send me back to my Empire."
He opened two separate gates and pushed both of them with his spiritual hands. Queen's one led to Eri's room while Gahard one, he didn't care where it opened up.
Eri and Tio stood up and obediently followed him to the corridor where he gave Tio 'Rook', the Evil piece for increasing strength and defense. After the crimson light receded, he sighed in relief when she emerged without any change.
'Analyze'
[Tio Klarus]
Level ?? (Tier 3)
Age: 563 Female
Race: Half-Dragon
Title: Dragon Princess, The Strongest Dragonman, The Wise one, Perfect wife, Masochist dragon, Perverted dragon
Personality - Kind, strong, loyal, curious, sharp, compassionate and masochistic pervert
Likes - Leo, Venri, Adul Klarus, Shea, Yue, Myu, Irene, Eri, Remia
Hobbies: Knitting, receiving punishment from Leo, Training
Strength: 12000
Vitality: 14000
Defense: 14000
Agility: 10000
Magic: 15000
Magic Defense: 15000
Skills: [Draconification] [+Dragon scale Hardening] [+Mana Efficiency up] [+Physical strength up] [+Draconic Roar (II)] [+Wind Veil] [+Partial Draconification] – [Mana Manipulation] [+Mana Emission] [+Mana Compression] [+Remote Manipulation] – [Fire Affinity] [+Decreased Mana Consumption] [+Increased Efficiency] [+Increased Duration] – [Wind Affinity] [+Decreased Mana Consumption] [+Increased Efficiency] [+Increased Duration] [Lightning Element] – [Spell Melding] [Dragon's breath]
"I feel stronger, far stronger than before. Goshujin-sama, what kind of race did I obtain?"
Tio asked and looked at Leo before her eyes turned soft.
'Jen, Half-Dragon and Dragonmen are different?'
(Of course, they are. Dragons are peak creatures in every world they reside in. They are recorded as a symbol of power and arrogance. Every Mature Dragon holds the power to bring the end of the world. However, Dragonmen is different from Dragon. In Tortus, they were the result of an experiment with Metamorphosis magic. The difference between can't even be put on the same scale.)
"Oh, you are a Half-Dragon now instead of Dragonmen…"
He recited the explanation given by Jen. Tio nodded with a surprised face while Eri was shocked.
Tio tapped her cheeks with her index finger adorned with a black ring. "Even though this one wants to live as Goshujin-sama's bride, becoming strong enough to destroy a world doth not sound too bad... This one won't lose her family again..."
He nodded at her determination and gave a kiss on her forehead before taking Eri's hands and walking toward his room-cum-workshop.
