Chapter 194: Completion Rewards

Perletti understood clearly that relying on curse arts alone to shake vampire rule—especially against an existence like Thyra—was nothing more than a fool’s dream.

After personally witnessing Thyra casually tear apart space, freeze time, and treat Sunrise-ranked beings as insignificant, she knew very well that once someone reached that level, ordinary techniques became nearly meaningless before absolute power and control over laws themselves.

In this world, there simply wasn’t another mortal race capable of standing beside Thyra.

Perhaps even for a god, killing her would not be an easy task.

To be oppressed to such an extent almost seemed… like an inevitable fate.

“No…” Olivia shook her head. The fire in her eyes had not gone out; instead, it had become calmer and more resolute.

“I study and struggle not because I naively believe I can immediately defeat that queen. I simply want to do everything I can to change the elves’ current… nearly hopeless situation. To accumulate strength little by little. To search for opportunities. Even if all I can do is reduce the number of elves taken away, or bring a little more peace to the border villages.”

“This is my responsibility—as a princess of the elves. One I cannot abandon.”

“Responsibility again. Seriously, why is your head always full of stuff like that?”

Perletti’s gaze drifted from Olivia’s determined profile to her own open palm.

Resting there quietly was a feather.

Not an ordinary feather.

Its entire body possessed a flawless white sheen, as though it absorbed all surrounding light. The texture was strange—cold and hard like metal, yet still retaining the softness and delicacy unique to feathers.

This was a sacred relic of the Winged Divine Race.

After the Winged Divines fell together with Sky City into eternal slumber, only a few exceedingly rare fragments remained in the world.

Once Sky City decayed into ruins buried beneath the depths of the sea, these relics vanished alongside that forgotten history.

When Masha departed, she hadn’t taken any relics from Sky City with her, leaving these ancient sacred artifacts dormant for countless years.

Perletti had no idea how this feather had been discovered, nor how it eventually ended up in Baro’s hands before finally being given to her as a reward.

She had tried to comprehend the power hidden within it.

Unlike the Authority of Time, whose practicality could be directly felt through manipulating the flow of time, the sensation this feather gave her was far vaguer and more abstract.

It radiated a pure and dense light-element aura, yet it wasn’t offensive or restorative in nature. Instead, it carried a strange warmth and familiarity, as though it were calling for something… or perhaps waiting for something.

“Stop eating already. At this rate you’re seriously going to burst.”

Watching Seviala practically sweep the entire plate clean like a hurricane, Perletti frowned and gently patted her round little belly.

“Mmph! You’ve got the nerve to say that?!” Seviala raised her head, violet dragon eyes full of grievance. “You starved me for five whole meals! Five meals! Usually you’re already stingy with portions, and now that I finally get a chance to eat properly, you still won’t let me! What kind of mother acts like this?!”

She seemed to have completely accepted Perletti’s role as her mother, complaining with perfect confidence.

To her, Perletti had not only lifted the curse binding her, but had also given her food and shelter when she had nothing at all. That kindness had long surpassed an ordinary relationship.

“It’s not like I’m stopping you.”

Perletti sighed helplessly and pushed the final rice cake toward her before taking out the pure white feather.

“I just wanted you to look at this. Do you recognize it?”

Seviala blinked and leaned closer, her tiny nose twitching twice.

“Sniff sniff… Mm! It’s something from the Winged Divine Race! It smells all floaty and light!”

“Then do you know what it does?”

“Not at all!” Seviala answered crisply before immediately turning back to attack the rice cake.

“…As expected.” Perletti held her forehead.

She hadn’t held much hope anyway.

The origin of this thing was extraordinary. Even she couldn’t fully understand the aura flowing through it. For a young dragon who cared about nothing besides eating and sleeping, merely recognizing its racial origin was already impressive enough.

“Titi, where did you get this feather from?”

Olivia stood up curiously and walked beside Perletti, carefully examining the faintly glowing white feather.

“The God of Decay gave it to me before leaving. Sort of… a reward, I guess.” Perletti smiled bitterly. “I don’t know its exact purpose either. It doesn’t look like a weapon. Calling it some kind of token or key also feels… not quite right.”

“Maybe you could ask Teacher Caroline,” Olivia suggested. “Or the ancestor. They’ve lived far longer than us and know far more ancient things. Maybe they’ll recognize it.”

Hearing that, Perletti unconsciously glanced toward Seviala, who was still desperately stuffing the final bite of cake into her mouth. The disdain in her eyes was practically overflowing.

“Living a long time… can also just mean being a particularly durable turtle. It doesn’t automatically equal being knowledgeable.”

“Hey hey hey! Who are you calling a turtle?!” Seviala immediately perked up and protested through a mouthful of food.

“Whoever answered.”

“Hah! I just don’t know much about other races’ stuff, that’s all! I’m not actually dumb! If Mother tested me on dragon knowledge, I’d answer perfectly!”

“The problem is, where exactly am I supposed to learn dragon knowledge from?”

Perletti grumbled as she rubbed the dragon girl’s messy hair.

In the end, Perletti still declined the suggestion of immediately going to find the ancestor.

She pulled Seviala into her arms, picked up the now-refilled plate of food, and followed behind Olivia toward the palace’s rear garden.

“You really can eat.”

Perletti couldn’t help sighing again.

“So what if I can?” Seviala snuggled comfortably in her embrace and patted her slightly bulging stomach. “Being able to eat is a blessing! It means I’m healthy!”

Walking ahead, Olivia smiled and pushed open an arched wooden gate wrapped in green vines and tiny white flowers.

Beyond the gate lay a carefully maintained garden that still preserved a sense of natural wilderness.

Afternoon sunlight filtered through sparse branches overhead, scattering mottled shadows across the ground.

The air was filled with the mixed fragrance of flowers and fresh grass, accompanied by the faint sound of flowing water.

Beneath an ancient tree blooming with pale violet flowers, Caroline lounged leisurely in a woven reclining chair.

A thick ancient tome rested open across her knees while one hand gently stroked the cat curled in her lap. More than a dozen books of varying sizes were piled near her feet.

Not far away on the grass, Isabena was crouching among several small animals.

Hearing the door open, Caroline lifted her gaze from the pages and adjusted the delicate monocle resting on her nose, a gentle yet pleasantly surprised smile appearing on her face.

“Ah!” Isabena’s voice was bright and cheerful. “Look who’s here? Two beautiful young ladies, and one adorable little Miss Seviala.”

Her gaze paused briefly on the dragon girl’s round swollen belly in Perletti’s arms, her smile deepening.

Caroline also looked up. The little bird perched on her shoulder fluttered into the air before lightly settling back down again.