-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Witches and Dragons
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"...Ah, witches."
They were there, sure enough.
The Evil Dragon Ater raised its body once more.
"A rare sight. Forest spirits and witches to boot. Precious races gathering in one place again. And this is near human lands, no less."
How had these two races, who shunned humans, ended up returning here?
Because of the Saintess?
Or...
"That cheeky kitten."
The Great Forest Spirit nudged the Evil Dragon's head with its snout one more time.
The Evil Dragon rolled over with a resigned flop.
"The day my aunt sent me to protect her, she chased me off with bared fangs. Spoiled little brat. Should I just not bother?"
"Protect her."
"Hmph."
"Didn't you see it too?"
That grotesque thing.
The unspoken words were clear enough to the Evil Dragon Ater. It had grasped exactly what the Great Forest Spirit meant.
It had been lingering around the Dayamor family for the same reason—that thing gnawed at its mind too.
Stray too far from the Saintess and her circle, and that grotesque presence might extend its claws toward it as well.
Even for an Evil Dragon steeped in ancient knowledge and wisdom passed down through ages, it was terrifying.
For it was something that had never existed since the world's creation.
"Does the Great Forest Spirit know what it is?"
"Something that swallows our world, twists it, and remakes it."
"Remakes it..."
That rang true.
The grotesque entity kept brushing against its targets, warping them into bizarre forms.
But it wasn't unleashing its true power yet.
Because...
"It couldn't hold a candle to the Saintess's blessing."
That's why Nibelria Dayamor and those around her remained unscathed, even as that thing circled nearby.
Muniel the Saintess's blessing shielded them.
"When camping, it's gotta be meat, right?"
The first night of camping called for charcoal-grilled meat at dinner.
Various cuts marinated in spices the witches had handcrafted were grilled to crispy golden perfection over the charcoal fire Ardores had sweated bullets to prepare.
"......"
"......"
Drool trickled from the corners of the children's mouths as they stood before the sizzling grill.
"Don't touch."
Kaleo swung the tongs in his hand to enforce a safe distance.
Today's chef was Kaleo.
"It's dangerous—stay back. Or else..."
No sooner had he spoken than a sharp gust whipped up, scattering glowing red charcoal ash like falling snow.
"Whoa!"
"Fire! Fire!"
The kids scattered when embers flew, then scurried back once they died down.
After watching the spectacle for a while, Nibelria suddenly shot Kaleo a suspicious glare.
"Daddy."
"Yes?"
"You grill well?"
"Of course I do. Ralph scarfed down everything I grilled."
"Who's Ralph?"
"Uncle Kalarop's nickname."
Solles chimed in from the side.
"Dad and Uncle Kalarop have been friends since they were kids."
Oho. Nibelria nodded.
Kaleo continued.
"Whenever Ralph and I went hunting in the woods, cooking was always my job."
He boasted that the guy was a total disaster in the kitchen and would've starved without him—every brag in the book.
Nibelria, listening with wide-eyed blankness, asked,
"Did you and Uncle love each other?"
"What?"
"Ahahaha!"
Seletrina's爆笑 rang out beyond Kaleo's flustered yelp.
Nibelria toddled straight over to her.
"Mommy, Daddy said he loved Uncle!"
Big trouble, she huffed indignantly.
"That's serious trouble indeed. What about Mommy then?"
"Divorce and sue for alimony."
"Where'd she pick up that gem?"
Seletrina planted a kiss on Nibelria's forehead with a soft voice.
But Nibelria's face soured, unsatisfied.
"Mates are only one."
"Exactly. No cheating allowed."
"Nini got mad too—Arep cheated today!"
Arep, standing nearby, frantically shook his head.
One pat toward a cat, and suddenly he was the cheating scoundrel. He spent all his energy watching Nibelria's mood.
"Nini waited only for Arep..."
"I see. But Arep likes Nini tons too, don't you think?"
Seletrina extended a lifeline.
Arep nodded vigorously again.
"Y-yes... I like the young lady the m-most...!"
He confessed shyly, his face redder than the coals.
"Hear that?"
"......"
"Nini."
Forgive him now, Seletrina urged gently.
Truth was, Arep hadn't done anything wrong. If you had to pin a crime, it was glancing at another cat with Nini right there.
"Arep just thought the cat was cute."
"That's the problem! With Nini right in front of him!"
"Nini's not a cat—she's human. Can't you cut him some slack?"
"Nini is a cat."
"But human?"
Seletrina fiddled with Nibelria's plump hand. See?
Nibelria stared at her own hand.
No pink, squishy paw pads. No hidden claws popping out when she pressed her palm.
Soft skin instead of fluffy white fur.
"...Yeah."
She's human now.
Sometimes, when Nibelria confronted the fact she wasn't a cat, a strange feeling washed over her.
"Arep."
Shaking off the hard-to-name emotion, she approached him.
And hugged him tight.
The adults cooed warm laughs at the young lovers' embrace.
Kaleo alone fidgeted wildly. 'Isn't this too fast? Not that I'm worried—no, actually I am...!'
"Arep."
"Yes."
"If you cheat, I'll kill you."
"...Yes."
He had zero plans to cheat.
He didn't even grasp the situation.
Still, Arep gave Nibelria the answer she wanted. And he'd do exactly as she wished.
Only then did Nibelria pull back slightly, flashing an innocent smile so pure it melted hearts on sight.
Arep's heart turned to goo.
That night, Kaleo's grilled meat melted like honey.
The first night of camping faded into twilight.
"Damn it!"
Petra, heir to the Earl of Petra, crumpled the newspaper in a fit.
His impeccably trimmed mustache quivered with each heaving breath, as if it might fall off.
The discarded paper bore details of Seletrina Lubeo, President of Lubeo, from her recent press conference.
'This scheming woman made me out to be a liar!'
Seletrina had drawn a clear line: she and Petra weren't close, and Lubeo was swamped with upcoming ventures.
Petra, who had held a slight lead in the succession race, reeled from the article.
His sister pounced on the opening.
The Lady of Petra had unveiled a new product called "insurance," which garnered positive buzz from its initial rollout in the north.
She hadn't forgotten to announce expansions in various types across the capital and regions soon.
It felt like mockery aimed straight at her brother.
"Insolent nobodies strutting around...!"
Petra loathed his sister for constantly blocking his path and Seletrina for turning his efforts to dust.
As he fumed like they'd slain his parents, a voice spoke from beside him.
"It's alright. It's not over yet, is it?"
Petra turned.
There stood the broker they'd recently brought on board.
"Pelsone."
The sturdy man, with his notably squared shoulders, was a renowned figure in finance.
Any venture or stock he flagged exploded in value.
To recruit such a Pelsone, the Petra siblings had pulled every string imaginable.
Petra especially had craved him with a thirst that drained his blood.
On skill alone, he couldn't beat his sister.
He needed an ally.
By sheer miracle, he'd encountered him at his favorite tavern and pulled him to his side.
"Lubeo's cautious and conservative by nature. Think Seletrina became president at her age for no reason?"
"And look what it got me—a liar's label!"
"Just brush it off as a communication mix-up."
Pelsone shrugged his massive shoulders. Isn't that what those phrases are for?
Pelsone's knightly frame had half his face obscured.
No one knew what he looked like. He always hid his eyes behind a white mask.
"The point is, you can snag the multiples Lubeo might've passed on."
"Easy for you to say."
Petra let out a dry chuckle.
But his gut burned all the same.
The Prok Kingdom's magic stone mining venture was a surefire win.
Quality magic stones could fetch millions of Uba even pinky-nail sized.
When Pelsone tipped him off about Prok, Petra had discreetly consulted an information broker to verify.
It checked out.
"Prok Kingdom recently discovered a magic stone mine, that's confirmed. They're cash-strapped, so seeking investors makes sense. Forty years back, they tried stabbing the Saintess in the back and got walloped instead..."
Leaving the broker, Petra scraped together his liquid personal assets and handed them to Pelsone.
Soon enough, Pelsone returned with securities proving the investment's success.
"Invest a million Uba, receive magic stones worth ten times that in physical goods."
Pelsone whispered the line he'd used before.
Even so, Petra's anxiety gnawed at him.
If he could scoop up the shares Lubeo had foolishly abandoned, in a few months he'd hold wealth surpassing theirs.
