What Does That Evil Dragon Live For?

And his eyes seemed to shine blue, and a strange light began to shine in the middle of the small attic.

 

The light, which looked like stretched worms, wriggled for a while in the air, then began to swell up little by little and form a certain shape.

 

‘What is that?’ 

 

The light seemed to be dyed in different colors here and there, and in the meantime, the light continued to grow like lumps.

 

And when the tip of the lump reached the floor, Elaine realized that it was the shape of a person.

 

As it took longer than expected, Rabes explained as if he was perplexed.

 

[Be patient! It’s a little late to bring the souls of the dead.] 

 

“The souls of the dead?”

 

Elaine was even more frightened by those words and took a step back.

But at that moment, the light shone brightly and transformed into a fully human form, and Elaine froze in place.

 

“Mother…?”

 

Blonde hair and green eyes that are a little darker than Elaine’s, her slender but elegant body curves, and her aura were somewhat gloomy….. It was exactly what Elaine’s dead mother, Mariel, looked like.

 

[Elaine!] 

 

And her voice, too, was the same as Elaine’s memory.

 

“Mom!”

 

Elaine approached Mariel, wanting to hug her, but she couldn’t be grasped as if she were made of light particles.

 

Rabes, who was looking at the situation, calmed down Elaine with a much calmer and lowered voice.

 

[The thing in front of you is the soul. but I’ve shaped it into a human form to make it easier to communicate with..she can’t last long because I brought the souls of the dead. If you have something you want to say, say it now.] 

 

But Elaine couldn’t say anything.

 

There were so many things she wanted to say, but she couldn’t think of anything, just tears welling up.

 

“Mom…mom…”

 

[Elaine. my poor baby….] 

 

Her hand wrapped around Elaine’s cheek and crying. Even though she knew she couldn’t touch it, she felt Mariel’s hand warm up wherever she touched Elaine.

 

Mariel continued to stroke Elaine, and Elaine looked at Mariel’s face even with her eyes clouded with tears and filled with longing.

 

‘You don’t know how much I’ve missed you.’

 

Elaine was too young when she lost her mother to remember the details of her mother’s face and Rubaine was not kind enough to show Elaine a portrait of her mother.

 

“I missed you so much. I never forgot you. I love you. And I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

 

The words that came to her mind belatedly came out. The most recited among them was the word sorry.

 

‘It seems that the seven years my mother was imprisoned were only because of me, so I thought my mother would have been a little more free if it wasn’t for me, and how much I blamed myself for my mother’s death…’

 

But Mariel just shook her head.

 

[I am the one who should be sorry. You are suffering because of me.] 

 

“I’m fine. I’ve never been sick anywhere, and I didn’t do any work these days. I’m not hungry. Oh! I have friends, too.”

 

Elaine pointed her hand at Rabes and said.

 

Although Rabes seemed a little taken aback by Elaine and Mariel’s gaze, Elaine had no time to examine his feelings in detail.

 

Because she didn’t know when her mother in front of her would disappear.

 

“Mother is no longer sick, right? Are you happy there?”

 

[Don’t worry, Elaine. Mother is at peace by Lord Bara’s side.] 

 

The soul of Mariel, who was stroking Elaine dearly, shook for a moment. While Elaine and Mariel were both startled and confused, Rabes whispered.

 

[There is not much time left.] 

 

At those words, Elaine came to her senses. Now she would never see her mother again.

 

At that moment, it occurred to her that she had always wondered about the existence of her father.

 

“Oh, Mom! Could you please tell me who my father is?”

 

If it was before returning, she wouldn’t have dared to look for it even if she knew who her father was, but now it’s different.

 

In this life, she was going to break off her bad relationship with the Newt family and leave in search of freedom.

 

In addition to her thoughts, Elaine still had two more wishes as a dragon contractor.

 

If she could find her real father and let him know about her mother and become a real family, it would make her lonely life feel worthwhile.

 

However, Mariel’s expression was a little strange to think of her old lover. She wasn’t sad, but she didn’t smile or show any signs of longing.

 

She just stared into Elaine’s eyes as if she was estimating something.

 

“Mom…?If you don’t want to think of him, you don’t have to tell me.”

 

[Elaine…] 

 

Mariel, who hesitated after calling Elaine’s name, opened her mouth as if she had made up her mind.

 

[You don’t have a father]

 

“Is he dead?”

 

[No. Literally, nothing.] 

 

“What…?”

 

[Elaine…, you are a child I gave birth to alone.] 

 

Elaine couldn’t guess whether Mariel was denying her husband’s existence because she didn’t want to think about it, or whether she was referring to something else.

 

But Mariel suddenly asked something else.

 

[Didn’t Rubaine look for something?] 

 

“Looking for what….ah!”

 

For a moment, she remembered Rubaine had asked her a question not long after her mother’s funeral.

 

“Did Mariel give you something? Like a small black stone.”

 

“Ah, no. There is no such thing.”

 

“Don’t lie! This little one is already lying to adults!”

 

“I’m serious!”

 

After going on like that for a while, Rubaine stripped Elaine down to her underwear and went through all of her things.

 

Even a seven-year-old child knows it’s humiliation.

 

The memory of being searched like a sinner even before the shock of losing his mother disappeared bothered Elaine for a long time.

 

However, Rubaine, who searched Elaine’s room like that, couldn’t find anything in the end.

 

Elaine really didn’t get anything.

 

“That’s right. Not long after Mom died, he asked if I had ever gotten a black stone or something from you. How do you know?”

 

[It’s a dragon stone that was entrusted to me by the former Count Newt. It was a very unique and precious item among the dragon stones, So I had it because that person suddenly died.] 

 

It was the first time Elaine had heard of it.

 

“But uncle went through mom’s stuff and couldn’t find anything like that.”

 

[That’s because it doesn’t exist in that form anymore.] 

 

And Mariel whispered closer to Elaine.

 

[I ate it. Because it was too unfair to take it away from me.] 

 

“What?”

 

[And I gave birth to you.] 

 

Elaine felt like she was gradually falling into a labyrinth.

 

She couldn’t understand why the story about her father suddenly fell into the story of the black stone called the dragon stone, and she couldn’t understand why Mariel gave birth to her after eating it.

 

“I have no idea what you mean. By any chance, Did mom hide it somewhere else? Am I supposed to find it?”

 

[no. From now on, just say you don’t know about the stone. And no matter what anyone says, you are my daughter and a human being. Just don’t forget that.] 

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Of course, Elaine was Mariel’s daughter and was human. It’s a fact that she can’t forget even if she wants to forget it. Why can she forget that?

 

[When you know everything later, you can blame me, but don’t blame yourself. And please remember that I loved you so much, that I only had you.] 

 

“Mom…!”

 

As Elaine was about to reach out to Mariel, Rabes said in an exhausted voice.

 

[She has to go back now.] 

 

‘I knew she had to go.’

 

Mariel added urgently.

 

[I love you, Elaine! you are my everything I’ve never regretted giving birth to you…!] 

 

But before she could finish speaking, Mariel’s figure disappeared. In an instant, like a candle blown out by a sudden wind.

 

“mom! mom!”

 

Elaine looked around and called out to Mariel, but the warmth she had just felt was gone.

 

Just like when she first saw Mariel, tears formed around her eyes again.

 

[Sorry, it’s not easy to avoid the eyes of the gods…] 

 

Rabes looked at Elaine, feeling sorry for the short reunion.

 

However, Elaine hurriedly wiped away the flowing tears and shook her head.

 

“What are you talking about!”

 

A bright smile was spreading across her face as she had wiped away her tears.

 

“Many people wish to see the dead at least once again, but only few people can experience such a miracle.”

 

[That’s it…I think so.] 

 

“But I just experienced that miracle! It’s the best gift of my life. No, no one in the world would have received a gift greater than me.”

 

Then, Rabes’s face slowly became arrogant.

 

[Of course. It’s much better than that ribbon, right?] 

 

“Yes! It was a gift that was incomparable to anything else. Thank you, Rabes.”

 

[Well, it’s nothing. hahaha!] 

 

Rabes flapped his wings and shook his body as if he was really in a good mood.

 

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