Chapter 9: The Combat Sister and the Maid’s Offer

Once the guards departed, Eileen and Yarlola were the sole occupants of the infirmary.

After tidying the infirmary with her tools, Eileen approached Yarlola.

“Is this… truly an infirmary?” Yarlola asked, though she hadn’t overheard their conversation. Yet, Eileen’s actions had clearly indicated she was tending to another dragon.

“What reason would I have to deceive you?” Eileen retorted, pulling Yarlola by her manacled hand and leading her towards the exit.

Yarlola’s perception of Eileen shifted once more. ‘Could it be that she truly didn’t do it? And she even saved me?’

‘No, no!’ Yarlola quickly dismissed the thought. ‘Entertaining such ideas would be incredibly dangerous.’

‘Dragons are a highly perilous and cunning race. I must never forget that; I cannot allow myself to be swayed by her.’

Eileen, however, remained oblivious to the strange dragon slayer’s internal musings.

She continued to guide Yarlola down the corridor.

Numerous dragon slayers had been stopped at the entrance. Yarlola felt a strange pride in becoming the second person to step inside the Golden Dragon itself.

As for the first?

That, of course, was Eileen, who was currently leading her.

Their footsteps echoed through the hallway as they steadily ventured deeper into the Golden Dragon.

Yarlola curiously observed her surroundings, committing every detail to memory.

She knew this journey was a suicide mission, yet, what if? If she survived, the intelligence gathered here would be crucial for the Empire.

“Where are you taking me?” Yarlola inquired.

“Sister… wait, I don’t even know your name,” Eileen suddenly realized. “My name is Eileen Calibot, the Golden Dragon Queen’s maid. And you?”

Eileen’s earlier kindness had garnered some goodwill from Yarlola, who also felt she had misjudged her. Moreover, revealing her name was a minor detail, not something worth concealing, especially since Eileen had volunteered her own.

“Yarlola, a combatant from an A-rank Dragon Slayer Squad,” Yarlola stated.

“?” Eileen paused, perplexed. ‘Wait, a sister? A combatant?’

While Eileen wasn’t intimately familiar with all human professions, in the past five years, she had intercepted at least eighty, if not a hundred, dragon slayer squads.

Within all those squads, characters dressed as sisters had, without exception, been healers or support providers.

This was the first time Eileen had encountered a combat sister.

“What’s wrong? Is it strange?” Yarlola observed Eileen’s expression, which mirrored that of other dragon slayers upon first learning she was a combat sister.

‘It seems I still have much to learn.’ Eileen thought. ‘How can I assist Lady Faltis if there’s so much I don’t understand?’

Yarlola watched Eileen, then tentatively asked, “Your strength, it must be at the Dragon King level, right?”

The Dragon race had five distinct ranks: C-rank, corresponding to dragons hunted by C-rank slayer squads; B-rank, for mighty dragons targeted by B-rank squads; A-rank, for Dragon Kings engaged by A-rank squads; S-rank, for Calamity-tier beings fought by S-rank squads; and the mythical End-tier.

Eileen, however, was unaware of these classifications. “I am merely a maid.”

‘Merely a maid…’

‘Just a maid, yet she single-handedly incapacitated our A-rank Dragon Slayer Squad? Wiping us out in a single encounter?’

‘Even if we had just been promoted to an A-rank squad, it shouldn’t have been this overwhelming.’

“Where are my teammates?”

“Perhaps they died, or perhaps they’re like you, locked away in the dungeon,” Eileen replied without pretense.

Yarlola found it difficult to accept, but this was the harsh reality of dragon slaying. Failure meant only death.

However, Eileen’s honesty was somewhat surprising to Yarlola.

“Why did you bring me out? What do you want to do to me?” They had arrived in a small, immaculately furnished room.

It was clearly a maiden’s chamber.

Eileen unlocked Yarlola’s handcuffs. “You are free to move around in here, but only within this space. If you attempt to escape… the guards outside won’t be as accommodating as I am.”

Along the way, Yarlola had seen several presences whose aura was no less formidable than the Dragon King they had previously defeated.

‘This truly is Faltis’s Dragon Palace, the Empire’s greatest adversary,’ Yarlola thought, curiously exploring the room.

“If possible, it would be best not to approach my bedroom,” Eileen suddenly interjected.

“Apologies,” Yarlola instinctively said.

But then, she quickly realized, ‘What was I just saying?!’

‘I actually apologized to a dragon?!’

‘This is a dragon slayer’s disgrace!’

‘What kind of magic did this creature use to make me act like this?’

“You must be hungry, right? I’ve prepared a few things, though I’m not sure if they’ll suit your taste.” Eileen emerged from the kitchen with some food and two cups of tea.

‘Damn it, this trick again? This time, I won’t fall for it!’

Yarlola knew that Eileen must have laced the food with some kind of poison or tranquilizer.

All to control her!

“I’m not hungry!” Yarlola’s stubbornness was confined solely to her mouth—oh, and another certain part that would stand erect.

“But your stomach says it’s very hungry.”

Yarlola stared at her stomach, which, much to her chagrin, rumbled. Yet… the food looked so delicious and smelled so enticing…

‘No, no! What am I thinking?!’

‘The scent! The scent must be the problem!’

Yarlola quickly covered her nose.

“What are you… doing?” Eileen looked at Yarlola’s peculiar behavior, utterly bewildered.

“Tell me! What do you want from me? Don’t beat around the bush!” Yarlola demanded.

“Whatever it is, let’s discuss it after you’ve eaten,” Eileen replied. “And perhaps you could help me taste these dishes?”

Yarlola stared at Eileen’s food, momentarily stunned. These were entirely human dishes.

Pumpkin pie, fresh fruit crepes, blueberry cheesecake, corn and bone soup, and more.

By no means did these look like food a dragon would eat.

“So? Want to try some? This is my first time making them, and I’m not sure how they taste, so I need your help to try them out.” Eileen placed the food before Yarlola.

The aroma assaulted her taste buds, and saliva involuntarily began to pool in her mouth, but she held firm. “I will not eat your dragon food!”