Episode 36
At Dylan’s response, which lacked even a shred of credibility, small sparks flickered around Hael.
She often expressed her emotions through lightning, and right now, it seemed she wanted to say, ‘Oh, come on.’
Dylan noticed the cute sparks and smirked.
“What will you do if you don’t believe me?” he said coldly.
Faced with their superior’s icy retort, Mitzu and Hael shut their mouths.
They knew that pushing the issue any further would only lead to them getting mercilessly reprimanded. For now, they would have to be satisfied with having taken a jab at him.
“Well, we were just wondering what you might be doing with a human so late at night.”
“So late at night.”
Unable to suppress their curiosity, they mentioned Erina again.
What could Dylan possibly be doing with a human that required a barrier spell?
As soon as they sensed his magic, they had loitered near the office, curious if the human was annoying Dylan, if he was punishing her with magic, or even throwing her out.
However, contrary to their expectations, the human had walked upstairs with a calm expression, and Dylan, trailing behind her, looked like he was about to drip honey from his gaze.
Yes, honey! They could practically see it in his eyes.
The sheer shock of it had delayed their arrival, ruining their plan to scare Erina before she reached the second floor.
“She praised the twins for being good at their studies,” Dylan said.
“Huh…?”
“W-what?”
“She said she wants to go to the bookstore tomorrow, so I told her that Mitzu would accompany her.”
“What?!”
Mitzu’s face contorted in displeasure.
He absolutely hated dealing with humans who lacked any sparkle or intrigue.
Sharing the same space with such a plain, dull human was irritating enough, but being tasked with ensuring her safety?
That was infuriating. His lips twisted into a sulky pout.
“You have errands to run at that bookstore anyway, don’t you? It’ll save you a second trip, won’t it?”
Dylan tilted his head as he folded his arms, feigning thoughtfulness.
It might sound like he was trying to save Mitzu from extra work, but Mitzu knew better.
This was just Dylan doubling his workload now so he could assign something else later. Yet, rank was everything.
Mitzu reluctantly nodded.
“Yes, yes, I’ll take responsibility and escort her. Even that pathetic bookstore owner can manage, I suppose.”
“Good.”
“But,” Mitzu added hesitantly, “if she doesn’t listen, can I… deal with it?”
Still clinging to the idea of some excitement, Mitzu couldn’t help but ask.
“What?! If that’s the case, I’ll go too!”
Hael, who had been standing a few steps back, indifferent to Mitzu’s plight, perked up at the mention of action.
She had been itching for some physical activity after being cooped up with paperwork.
“You’re staying here. Where do you think you’re going? If something happens to me, who’s going to take charge?”
“What?!”
“Oh, Dylan, your sense of humor has improved!”
Mitzu and Hael said, laughing loudly.
Dylan, a figure who had wiped out other dragons without so much as a scratch, was hardly at risk of harm. Yet Hael’s sparks crackled around her again at his overdramatic words.
“You never know when those rats who fled might return.”
“Oh, come on, we’ve got at least 200 years. Didn’t they barely escape with fatal injuries?”
“Fatal injuries?”
“They might recover and try to get one hit in on me, just to prove a point.”
Dylan smiled as though he were sharing a joke, but Mitzu and Hael could clearly sense the deep hatred behind his words.
***
“Alright, let’s go greet your uncle before we leave! Shall we?”
Erina suggested to the children as they prepared for their outing, with Dylan seeing them off.
However, the children frowned at her, clearly displeased.
“He came out on his own!”
“Lia didn’t ask him to come!”
“Let’s just go, Erina.”
Apparently, they found Dylan’s presence unnecessary and bothersome, claiming they hadn’t asked him to come see them off.
For six-month-old children, their assertiveness was remarkable. Perhaps it was because they were dragons.
Erina, wearing an awkward smile, glanced at Dylan.
He, however, didn’t seem to mind the children’s cold reception, maintaining his usual warm smile.
“Miss Erina, please have a safe trip. With Mitzu accompanying you, there’s little to worry about, but it’s still dangerous to stray alone. Please stay close to Mitzu as much as possible.”
“Yes, yes, don’t worry. I’ll stick close to the kids and make sure they’re safe.”
“Hmm, alright then. I’ll leave it to you.”
Dylan’s words were meant to ensure Erina’s safety, but she seemed to interpret them as concern for the triplets. Gathering them close, she tried again.
“Come on, say goodbye to your uncle. Good dragons always show their manners.”
“Ha!”
As soon as she finished speaking, a clear snicker came from behind.
Startled, Erina turned to see Mitzu standing there, his red eyes narrowed in mocking amusement.
Although she was annoyed by his rude behavior, she chose to ignore him and turned back to the children.
“We’re leaving!”
“Goodbye!!”
“Bye.”
The triplets half-heartedly waved at Dylan with little enthusiasm, clearly doing it only because Erina insisted.
Dylan, however, responded with a bright smile, looking every bit the doting uncle.
This display only soured the children’s expressions further.
As usual, Dylan ignored their reactions and helped Erina and the children board the carriage.
He then gestured for Mitzu, who had been silently watching, to come closer.
“Yes.”
“Take it easy. If the human runs away because she can’t stand you…”
“Got it. As long as she doesn’t run, we’re fine, right?”
Mitzu couldn’t understand why either Dylan or the triplets were so fixated on the human woman.
With the triplets, he could grudgingly accept that they might view her as a mother figure. But Dylan’s behavior toward her was utterly baffling.
Still, a superior was a superior. Mitzu feigned compliance and climbed into the carriage.
“As long as she doesn’t run, it’ll be fine, right?”
He muttered to himself.
As soon as the carriage left Harrison Street, Mitzu turned to Erina.
“Hey, human woman.”
Despite having been introduced properly, Mitzu continued to refer to Erina as ‘human woman,’ much to the triplets’ indignation.
“She has a pretty name, Erina!”
“That lizard man doesn’t know that?”
“Mitzu is dumb?”
Their blunt remarks made Mitzu’s face twist in frustration, while Erina stifled a laugh.
Her laugh was eerily similar to the one Mitzu had directed at her earlier. She didn’t even scold the children for their rudeness, which only made Mitzu more irritated.
“Quite the act you’ve got there,” he muttered.
“Act? What do you mean?”
Erina tilted her head, genuinely confused.
“You were all talk in front of Dylan, telling the kids to behave, but now you don’t seem to mind them acting up against me.”
“Hmm…”
Erina tilted her head again, as if pondering his words.
“Kindness for kindness, respect for respect. Isn’t that the basic rule of relationships?”
“What?”
“The kids seem to be doing just fine, as far as I can tell.”
Erina patted the heads of the children sitting on either side of her, smiling warmly.
