Episode 20
“Thank you for the food!”
“I will eat well!”
“Erina, yum yum!”
The dragons’ appetite did not disappear just because they changed from reptilians to humans.
In fact, as more and more foods were available for children to eat on their own using forks and spoons, they began to eat more than twice as much as they had previously.
It seemed like they needed a lot of energy to shed their scales and support their growth.
Erina, who thought that it was because they had used up most of their energy, gave the children whatever they wanted to eat.
And the result was.
“Ack!”
“My stomach, my stomach is bubbling!”
“Erina, Mama!!”
A stomachache for the three of them.
Erina, of course, and even Dylan had to spend the whole day rubbing the children’s bellies, giving them water, and taking them to the bathroom.
However the children who couldn’t give up on food whined that they were hungry in the evening, but this time, Erina couldn’t indulge them.
“Resen, Lia, Poi. You will only get to finish this bowl for dinner tonight. You have to go far away with your uncle tomorrow, so you can’t get sick. Got it?”
The children who had been whining, at Erina’s firm words, had no choice but to nod their heads.
Then they looked at Erina’s kitchen with eyes full of regret.
They were so sad to realize that if they followed their uncle, they wouldn’t be able to visit Erina’s kitchen or eat the food she made.
Ever since Erina learned that the children had finished molting and could speak, she had always insisted that they follow their uncle back to the Empire.
The dragons weren’t all that obedient from the start.
They cried and said no. They got angry, they even hit their uncle, but Erina was strong-willed.
If they had known this would happen, they would have preferred to live their whole life as reptilian dragons who couldn’t communicate.
The children whined, regretting what they had done.
Dylan also looked at her with surprise at her determined appearance.
He thought she wouldn’t like to be separated from the children, but it seemed that wasn’t the case?
Dylan tilted his head at Erina’s inscrutable attitude.
Of course, it was a relief that he had less work to do since she had convinced the children in his stead.
However, he was even more upset by the fact that Erina didn’t seem to be sad at all about parting with the children.
“Mr. Dylan? Aren’t you going to eat dinner?”
“Oh, I’ll eat too if you don’t mind.”
While he was lost in thought, Erina had finished preparing the children’s meals and his own meal.
Dylan took his seat at the table with an apologetic look on his face.
“Okay, this is for Dylan. I didn’t put much in it because I wanted to make sure Dylan was comfortable on his way back home.”
“Ah…”
Dylan let out a heartfelt sigh of regret at being treated like a child.
Rather, shouldn’t she give him more to make the long journey more bearable?
As someone who usually liked the food Erina made, he felt bad that she only gave him a little bit of it.
And so the mealtime ended like this, filled with the sorrow of the dragons.
“Good night, kids. Sweet dreams.”
Erina gave the children a short kiss on the forehead.
“Good night!”
“Erina, have a nice dream!”
“Erina Mama, goo.”
The children also said their good evenings to Erina.
Erina met each child’s eyes and gave them a brief smile before covering them with the blanket up to their chest.
After eating dinner and drinking warm cocoa, the children quickly fell asleep.
Erina turned around to see the children snoring softly.
“Mr. Dylan.”
“Yes, Miss Erina.”
As if he had been waiting for Erina to call him, Dylan strode towards her.
His silver hair fluttered as he moved, dazzling like moonlight.
Erina looked at his cool and sturdy appearance and repeated to herself that it was okay.
If she really followed her heart, how could she not want to be with the children until they grow up?
But as time passed with the children, the boundaries between humans and dragons became more apparent.
She began to worry that if they continued to live like this, they would eventually fall behind in the dragon society.
So on the outside, she show her love for the children and concealed any sign of being upset or sad.
Despite the fact that no one told her what to do, Erina knew full well what attitude she should take.
Although the children were now sad that they will be separated from her, she believed that, as with all things, time will gradually resolve that sadness.
So in this situation, the only person Erina could rely on was the children’s uncle.
“Even if the children whine a little, don’t get angry and try to comfort them. They’re still young. Also, be careful not to let them eat too much or they’ll get a stomach ache. The children also like to take baths, so please let them do it often.”
Erina started packing up their things one by one while talking about the children.
She also carefully packed the flower petals and ribbons that the children love, as well as her homemade sweets and jams.
Dylan, who had been silently accepting the item Erina was giving him, eventually couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked her.
“But suddenly… Ah, of course I am so grateful, but why did you want to send the children away so quickly?”
At Dylan’s direct question, Erina hesitated for a moment, then calmly stated her thoughts.
“I realized this time when I saw the children shedding their scales that I am a human, so there is not much I can do for the children. I have no proper knowledge or experience. I realized that I cannot properly take care of the children, regardless of wanting to be with them.”
“Well, is that so?”
“Yes. So, I can’t cage the children here, where nothing is prepared just for their own good. Resen, Lia, and Poi are special children… and they need an environment that can fulfill that specialness.”
Erina tried hard to hide her disappointment and smiled.
The books she had chosen to learn about dragons on her own ultimately proved to be of no help.
If she had gone through this without Dylan, she would have just cried helplessly holding the kids.
“I understand what you mean. I must work harder to live up to Miss Erina’s expectations.”
Erina responded to Dylan’s joke with a small smile.
“I thought I was studying quite a bit while taking care of the kids, but I realized I still have a lot to learn.”
“Hmm? What did you study? Do you have any textbooks on dragons?”
Dylan, who had no interest in human things, looked puzzled at Erina’s words.
Erina looked a little embarrassed, then took out a thick book from the bookshelf.
<Legend of the Strongest Dragon>
A chuckle slipped out of Dylan’s mouth as he read the book title: “Heh!”
Erina saw his reaction and laughed awkwardly, thinking, “I guess I bought the wrong book!”
She decided to keep it a secret that she had read the book twice.
“That sounds like a great book.”
Dylan’s answer was intended to relieve Erina’s embarrassment, but it didn’t provide much comfort.
“So, Mr. Dylan, you have a job, savings, a house, everything, right? You are not in a situation where you have too much debt and are worried about food, are you…?”
Erina asked Dylan with realistic concerns.
Looking at the clothes and accessories that he had brought a few days ago for the children, they all seemed to be high-quality items.
But at the beginning of their meeting, he said that he hadn’t been eating for several weeks.
When she recalled that he had said that he hadn’t even eaten properly, she couldn’t help but suspect that he was living off of debt.
The book Erina had read said that dragons were a wealthy and blessed race, but since her trust in that book had hit rock bottom, it was an issue that needed to be confirmed.
“Miss Erina?”
“Yes?”
Dylan, who had been pondering Erina’s question for several times, decided that he should not worry her any more and told her the truth.
“My family holds the status of a Duke in the Empire. You don’t have to worry about the children starving because of debt, or having no money because I don’t have a job.”
“Ah…? Really?!”
Erina was startled and took a step away from Dylan.
The Duchy where Erina lived wasn’t a place where nobility held absolute power.
On the contrary, she had heard rumors that the Silvian Empire was a strictly hierarchical society.
But a “Duke” from that empire…!
He must have come from a precious bloodline, so for him to come all the way to this remote countryside…
Erina was able to realize what a generous person, no, dragon, Dylan was, as he treated her kindly without getting angry at her even once.
Wait, she seemed to have been nagging that dragon too much.
She made him do a lot of work too.
And also grabbed him by the collar…?
Dylan, who had been watching Erina’s facial expressions change in real time with interest, eventually couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.
“I think I know what you’re thinking right now, but it’s okay. This is not the Empire and I don’t care, so don’t worry about it either, Miss Erina.”
“Oh, uh, yes. Thank you.”
Even in this situation, Erina, not knowing what fancy words to use, just nodded.
Dylan saw Erina’s cute reaction and the two of them laughed out loud, bowing their heads.
The quiet moonlight gently settled over the two of them. They sincerely hoped that only peaceful days like this would continue in the future.
