Chapter : 127
“Good, good. You’re coming along after all.”
“Like this?”
“Anything’s better than being bored. This is going to be fun, isn’t it?”
“……”
“Let’s sleep soundly tonight and set off in the morning! You two will share a room, right?”
“……”
“And… are you going to borrow the wizard’s clothes, little one?”
“……”
“The bed might be a bit small! But that’s fine, isn’t it?”
The dragon I had seen in the novel wasn’t like this.
Abel laughed without spirit, shattering the illusion he didn’t even know existed.
Dragon.
A being said to govern the celestial bodies.
A mythical ally that gives wisdom when the continent is in danger.
And now…
“Waaaah! I’ve always wanted to do this!”
It was pure joy carrying the two of them.
There was only one reason the dragon was bouncing around like this.
‘Because there was a scene like this in some romance novel ending.’
After going through all sorts of crises, the princess and the hero return riding a dragon.
Trying to reenact that scene, the dragon inevitably continued flying low.
Abel wrapped himself in the blanket Cesya had draped around him and felt certain.
If all dragons had this kind of personality, they would be masters of image-making.
“What kind of dragon is addicted to romance novels…”
Well, it wasn’t that strange—there was also Bogum, who was addicted to housework.
“Eve, come closer. The air up here is cold.”
A strong embrace wrapped Abel from behind.
Abel leaned lazily against the back, lightly rubbing his hair.
“Have you traveled on a dragon like this before?”
“No. This is the second time.”
“How was it?”
“I went around looking for the dragon’s main habitat. Then I met one, had conversations for the most part…”
“And then?”
“I wrote you a letter. During the remaining time, I prepared what needed to be done.”
“The task you left to Miji?”
“No… well, it’s not unrelated.”
“Miji seemed like she was going to die from being so busy.”
“It’s fine. The busier she is, the more excited she gets.”
Abel’s cheeky laughter escaped at the blunt response.
Looking down while fixed in Cesya’s grasp, Abel shouted brightly:
“The capital!”
A magnificent royal palace came into view from afar.
‘Dragons really are fast.’
There was no comparison to a carriage or train.
If they just returned to the mansion like this, it would be perfect.
“Human! Human!”
It should have been perfect…
But the large dragon head turned busily.
Golden eyes rolled, taking in the two of them.
“Where should we land?”
There was nowhere to touch down.
Founding Festival.
A large-scale festival held across the kingdom.
It was also one of the few events where the royal family fully appeared before the people.
“Hurry, hurry, come on!”
“I’m coming, sister! Let’s go together!”
Unable to resist her sister’s urging, the girl hurried along.
What day was today!
Even commoners like them could enter part of the royal palace today!
“Do you think the First Prince will come?”
“Unlikely… he didn’t attend last year’s festival either.”
“So maybe he won’t appear this year?”
The sisters, having woken at dawn, were lucky enough to get front-row spots.
Although the best seats were already taken by high-ranking nobles, wealthy citizens, and some reporters.
“Please, First Prince!”
The girl tightly held her sister’s hand and prayed.
The Second Prince was attractive too, but her preference was clear.
‘He’s so kind.’
Her tanned cheeks flushed slightly.
“Um… would you like some candy? There’s strawberry and grape flavors.”
He was just a commoner child.
She still remembered the face she had tried to soothe so awkwardly.
‘I wonder how surprised she was later when she realized he was a prince from the newspaper!’
Now grown taller than before, the girl stared straight ahead with sparkling eyes.
“Waaaaah!”
Soon, the royal family appeared on the balcony.
The king stood at the center, the queen on the left, the Second Prince on the right.
“The First Prince isn’t here…”
“Sis, should I lift her up?”
“No need. First Prince isn’t here anyway.”
“Dear citizens of the kingdom…”
Whether the king began his speech or not, the girl, a little deflated, looked around rather than listening.
Then—something enormous left an impression in the chestnut-colored eyes.
“What is that—”
Whoooosh!
People’s gazes immediately converged in one direction.
A tremendous wind rose that could not be ignored.
“Eek!”
“Look at that!”
“…A dragon?”
“A dragon?”
Below the balcony.
A huge dragon landed on the lawn, which was cleared for ordinary people.
Its wings, large enough to cover several adults, were folded.
Tap, tap, tap.
“Ah, sorry. There was nowhere else to settle down.”
Rare black hair.
A strong jawline.
Eyes slanted like a painting.
“Apologies for the inconvenience.”
“Really, we’re very sorry. Please continue what you were doing.”
After that, the small woman leapt down.
No one here did not know who these two were.
At least in today’s world, it would be a lack of common sense to not know that pink-haired person.
“Magical girl and the prince?”
“Are they the ones controlling the dragon?”
Brazenly interrupting the festival speech, the two showed no sign of being intimidated.
“First Prince, do you understand what is happening now…”
The king’s voice trembled more from excitement at seeing the dragon than from anger at being interrupted.
Shhh.
Even the slightest turn of the dragon’s head made people step back.
“Huh? People these days don’t know me?”
“No, no, it’s not that, Your Grace. I was just curious about how you appeared with my son.”
“This person is the only human who can give me what I want.”
“Eh, what?”
“So I followed. Other humans need not worry themselves.”
The dragon closed its mouth as if done speaking.
Everyone present tried to interpret the dragon’s words.
“To have such joyous news at the Founding Festival.”
The dragon’s ‘only’ human, as decided by itself.
The king, quickly calculating, smiled pleasantly and organized the situation.
“First Prince, come and say a few words as a member of the royal family.”
“As Your Majesty commands.”
With the dragon’s help, Cesya lightly leapt onto the balcony.
People were once again astonished at how freely he seemed to command the dragon.
‘This was just like the novel I read recently.’
The First Prince raised the corner of his mouth, hiding his dry inner thoughts.
The crowd below responded tremendously.
The queen and Second Prince couldn’t bring themselves to stop him either.
‘He’s changed a lot.’
Even in an era when the temple’s power had weakened, dragons were considered auspicious.
If used wisely, he could become the crown prince.
‘Not that I care.’
His red lips slowly parted.
“It is an honor to meet you all on this meaningful day.”
What the king wanted was obvious.
Confirming the dragon as royal property to cultivate reverence for the royal family and increase actual influence.
‘That won’t work.’
The First Prince, abandoned in the secondary palace, delivered a formal greeting and then spoke.
His teeth were neatly aligned through the slight opening of his lips.
His typically cold aura softened considerably.
Cesya confirmed those favorable to him and said:
“We are planning to launch a Wizards’ Cooperative.”
Huh?
Huh?
Huhhh?
The next words were downright unexpected.
“The artifacts I released before, are you all using them well? A map to share locations was also recently released.”
Impossible not to know.
They sold out as soon as restocked.
People swallowed hard, focusing on the handsome prince’s words.
“However, I’ve heard that many are disappointed due to insufficient quantities.”
Acknowledging consumer demand.
His black eyebrows curved pitifully.
Even with such theatrical gestures, people held their breath.
“The cooperative will provide a wide variety of guaranteed magical artifacts as much as possible. You can also individually commission verified wizards.”
A concept difficult to grasp immediately.
A cooperative gathering all the kingdom’s wizards?
Never happened before in the kingdom’s history.
“Most of the kingdom’s wizards have already joined the cooperative. Ah, of course, new wizards can join if they meet the requirements.”
One thing was clear.
The First Prince was using the festival, which the continent watched closely, as a stage for self-promotion.
‘As expected of my kid! You’ve grown well!’
Abel was deeply impressed by the poise.
Standing by the dragon, hands clasped, his gaze fluttered like reeds in the wind.
‘Freelancers live or die by self-promotion!’
