Chapter 11: A Dragon’s Predicament

Each of them exuded an aura ranging from second to third tier, leaving Gern no hope of escape, even if she sprouted wings.

“Is anyone home?”

The striking young woman leading the group called out towards the house. She was clad in a deep blue academy uniform, her two silver-white ponytails, tipped with a faint ice-blue hue, swaying gracefully behind her. Her pale golden, slit pupils betrayed not a hint of emotion, making her seem like a cold, unfeeling automaton.

“If you don’t emerge, we’ll be forced to breach the door. I’ll count to ten, starting now: Ten!”

“Nine…”

“Eight…”

‘What am I going to do? What am I going to do?’

Inside, Gern frantically raked her fingers through her hair, turning her already somewhat disheveled long black locks into a wild tangle. Her gaze fell upon the stove in her home. It might offer a hiding spot. Yet, her current form was far too large; the opening was simply too small for her to squeeze through.

‘Perhaps… this is the only way.’

Gern gritted her teeth, her senses keenly aware of the smooth, lustrous orb nestled within her body.

*Bang!*

The front door burst open with a resounding kick. The leader’s eyes swept across the room, noting its sparse furnishings: a single table, a chair, and a rudimentary stove were all that filled the space.

“Search!”

The young woman’s voice was sharp and cold. As she moved to stand by the stove, intending to take a brief respite, a faint breeze brushed against her feet, catching her attention. She glanced down, her eyes catching sight of several soft, downy tufts dancing gently in the air.

“Hm? What could this be?”

Leaning closer, her gaze followed the faint movement until it settled upon a sight that stole her breath: a shimmering… silver dragon tail.

*Thump…*

It felt as though something had just struck her mind, and her heart gave a sudden, violent lurch within her chest.

“A dragon? How could there possibly be a dragon here? And a silver one, no less.”

Being a dragon herself, she was intimately aware of the dire situation facing silver dragons. Aside from the select few residing in the Sky City, purebred silver dragons were now virtually extinct.

The young woman swallowed, then instinctively reached out to brush her fingers against the small, still-wiggling tail.

“Eek!”

A tiny squeak of a scream erupted from within the stove, only to be abruptly stifled after a mere fraction of a second, as if a hand had suddenly clamped over a mouth. The small tail instantly recoiled, vanishing into the shadows of the stove.

These endearing, timid movements brought a profound sense of satisfaction to the young woman. From the sound, it was undoubtedly a girl. Her favorite pastime, after all, was playfully teasing her younger kin.

With a mischievous glint in her eye, she extended her ‘demonic claw’ further into the darkness. A peculiar sensation shot directly from her rear to Gern’s brain. It was a tingling numbness, laced with a subtle ache, that proved utterly intoxicating. The large hand gripping her tail felt like a devilish tormentor, relentlessly teasing Gern’s every nerve ending. Having lived as a human for so many years, Gern had never encountered such a bewildering sensation, and she found herself instantly captivated, utterly lost in its grip. Her pale golden dragon pupils began to roll back, and soft, involuntary hums escaped her lips. The young woman, growing increasingly enthralled, continued to toy with the tail, eventually coaxing more of it out of the stove so she could explore it with both hands.

Gern, at this point, had completely short-circuited. Her mind was blank, utterly incapable of thought, as she passively allowed the large hands to continue their intimate exploration.

After what felt like an eternity, the strange sensation finally subsided. Gern, who had been on the verge of unconsciousness, suddenly snapped back to awareness, scrambling desperately to retreat deeper into the stove. But in the very next moment, the large hand seized her tail directly, yanking her entire body unceremoniously from the stove.

With a lingering, hazy sensation still coursing through her tail, Gern’s eyes remained somewhat unfocused. Yet, she managed to steel her resolve, her gaze falling upon the silver-haired young woman who appeared upside down from her perspective. Her eyes, like Gern’s, were a striking pair of pale golden dragon pupils.

“Eek?! A dragon… a dragon!”

Gern thrashed her four limbs wildly, but she couldn’t break free from the young woman’s grip. It was then, amidst her struggle, that she finally sensed the aura emanating from her captor: a knight and mage who had long since ascended to the third tier.

“A dragon?”

The young woman’s eyes were filled with utter bewilderment. She glanced at the small dragon-girl she held aloft, then at her own body, before asking, bewildered,

“Aren’t you a dragon too?”

“Ah? Ahaha, I… I’m not, don’t just spout nonsense.”

Suppressing a chuckle, the young woman gave Gern’s tail a firm squeeze before finally setting her down on the ground.

Gern, still somewhat disoriented from the squeeze, hastily slapped her cheeks to regain her composure, then immediately tried to burrow back into the stove.

Witnessing Gern’s timid demeanor, the young woman felt a pang of sympathy. This must be a lost dragon orphan, she mused; only those of their kind who lived in constant fear, isolated within the human world, would exhibit such skittish behavior.

“Don’t be afraid, little one. I’m from the Ice Dragon clan. Can you tell me where your parents are?”

At the sound of the young woman’s gentle voice, Gern finally dared to poke her head out, her eyes still wary as she observed the person before her.

“I don’t have parents. So, may I ask you to leave?”

Gern’s reply was swift and unhesitating, imbued with an undeniable sense of detachment. For some reason, the young woman before her seemed increasingly familiar. Gern felt as though she had encountered her somewhere before.

‘Then it clicked. This one’s a yandere too, though not as severe as Lilia. In my past life, she dated another silver dragon, and their romance was absolutely saccharine. Gern had even ‘shipped’ their pairing back then, feeling a sudden urge to experience romance herself. Unfortunately, their opposing stances meant they were destined to be enemies. Gern had narrowly escaped death at this very individual’s hands on several occasions.’

As her memories resurfaced, Gern instinctively drew her head back, the wariness in her eyes intensifying.

“Don’t misunderstand, little one. We’re merely here to track down a cultist named Gern. Have you happened to see him?”

As she spoke, the young woman produced a portrait of Gern: black hair, violet eyes, clad in a simple linen tunic—though the artist had, regrettably, rendered the face rather unflatteringly.

“No, I haven’t seen him, Big Sister. Has he committed some offense?”

“No, we merely suspect him of being a member of the Heretic God Cult, which is why we’ve been ordered to apprehend him.”

“I see…”

Just then, the student who had been dispatched to search the inner room returned.

“Captain, we only discovered a sleeping contestant inside. There was no sign of the cultist.”

The young woman’s gaze then settled on Gern, and she inquired,

“What is your relationship with that individual?”

“Ah… she’s a friend I only recently made. She was feeling a bit unwell, so she’s just resting here for a while.”

“Very well, let’s go.”

Gern exhaled a silent sigh of relief, but the young woman, who had only taken a few steps, suddenly paused and glanced back at her.

In that instant, Gern felt her heart leap into her throat, watching the young woman with bated breath.

“My name is Eliza. Should you ever find yourself with an opportunity to return to the Sky City, you are welcome to seek me out.”

With that, the silver-haired young woman departed.

‘The Sky City?’

Gern stood in the living room, her brow furrowed in thought. She had never encountered that name before; it must be one of the dragon race’s many closely guarded secrets. ‘A pity, then, that she was merely a false dragon, cloaked in a dragon’s skin.’ Gern shrugged, dismissing the thought. She had no intention of ever visiting the Sky City anyway, so why trouble herself with such matters?

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