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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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After the battle, Rasel gathered her troops and eliminated the remaining enemies. Few, if any, of the demons who attacked Atlan survived.
“My lady, the demons now know the location of Atlan. We’ll need to increase security.”
Calciater sighed. The once beautiful plain was scarred by battle and lightning strikes.
She looked tired after casting such a powerful spell. But she was still smiling.
“Thanks to you, we were able to protect Atlan.”
She said she planned to lead the dragonkin and rebuild Atlan.
The hatchling, still in her polymorph form, stood behind Calciater, looking at us with concern.
“Arthur, I sense a unique mana within you.”
Calciater had also seen the golden mana Arthur had used during the battle. It would have been difficult to miss.
“My mana… I don’t understand it myself.”
Arthur replied honestly.
“I suspect… it’s the guidance of the goddess.”
“The guidance of the goddess… Perhaps.”
Calciater nodded. She turned her attention to me, placing a hand on the hatchling’s head.
“And Ethan, I have a request. First, let me explain a characteristic of our kind. We Indigo Dragons spend our lives searching for a master. And this child has chosen you.”
I had expected this. I had stolen the protagonist’s power-up. But it was too late for regrets.
“Please, become her master.”
“I’ve been attacked by demons four times this year alone.”
I wanted to tell her that it would be better for the hatchling to stay with Arthur. Atlan was safer than following me around.
But Calciater was adamant.
“That is also the fate of an Indigo Dragon.”
A dragon’s way of thinking was beyond human comprehension. The hatchling looked at me and smiled.
“Daddy!”
She took my hand. She was so cute.
Arthur was supposed to be taking care of her, but the situation had changed.
“It seems she’s quite fond of you.”
Everyone was looking at me. I nodded and looked at the hatchling.
“Do you really want to come with me?”
“Yes!”
And with that single word, I became a father.
“Calciater, I wish you good health. I’ll take good care of her.”
“You made the right decision, Ethan!”
Sepia looked ecstatic. She would be able to see the hatchling whenever she wanted. Sepia and Tesha had been the biggest fans of Yong-yong in the original story.
Sepia, in particular, had been convinced that Arthur was a pedophile and had gone to great lengths to “rescue” Yong-yong. There was even an arc where she had called the guards on Arthur.
She had been heavily criticized by the readers for that.
In the end, Arthur had claimed that Yong-yong was a distant relative, and Sepia, after being rejected in her attempt to adopt Yong-yong, had a mental breakdown. But they had eventually reconciled.
That was the arc where Sepia first started dreaming of marriage and a happy family.
“Calciater, what’s her name?”
“Sepia, we Indigo Dragons use the name given to us by our master.”
She had a name, but she wasn’t going to tell us. That was why Arthur had named the hatchling Yong-yong.
“So, Ethan, you’re going with Yong-yong…?”
“No! That name is terrible!”
Arthur’s excitement vanished. He couldn’t call her Yong-yong. He felt like Hong Gildong, forbidden from calling his father “father” and his brother “brother.”
“Then what should we call her?”
“How about Se…”
“Sepia Junior is even worse.”
Sepia Junior?
She’s my daughter, why are you naming her? I would never accept that name.
Calciater chuckled.
“You two seem to get along well.”
“What? Calciater, that was a good one.”
“Ethan, what’s with that reaction?”
Calciater laughed again. Sepia and I looked at each other, speechless.
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Calciater created a portal for us. It transported us to a deserted island.
And then the Draconians carried us into the air, flying us back to the port city.
The people in the harbor stared at us in amazement. It wasn’t every day you saw humans flying through the air.
“Draconians! Draconians!”
“Did the heroes fail to stop the disaster?”
“Idiot! Look! They’re the heroes who saved the city!”
The guards, who had been about to shoot at the Draconians, lowered their bows.
“Don’t shoot! We’re back!”
The Draconians landed and set us down on the ground, then flew back towards the sea.
Ted proudly showed off his dragon mark. He even summoned a Sea Serpent to prove his story.
“Haha! This is the dragon mark I received from the dragon! I can even summon a Sea Serpent!”
“Ted! You were telling the truth! There really is a dragon!”
The Sea Serpent tilted its head curiously, then disappeared beneath the waves.
We were greeted as heroes, the citizens cheering and celebrating.
And Ted regaled them with his tales of adventure. Now, everyone believed him.
Airasvan was a beautiful city, a place I could have stayed for a long time. But all good things must come to an end.
It was time to leave.
“Farewell, heroes!”
“May the goddess bless the heroes who saved our city!”
Ted saw us off at the transfer stone, accompanied by the city guard.
“Take care!”
“Thanks for the adventure!”
We said our goodbyes and stepped onto the transfer stone platform.
Arthur and I returned to the academy in Eastvan.
The first thing I did was find a place to live.
It wasn’t difficult.
I asked Tia for help, and she found me a decent apartment within hours.
I stored my belongings from the dormitory in my shadow and moved them to my new apartment. It was almost evening by the time I finished.
I wanted to share the apartment with Arthur and split the rent, but he was so shy that I decided to live alone for now.
“So, this is the hatchling?”
“Yeah. I haven’t even named her yet. Naming her is harder than I thought.”
Tia smiled at the little girl hiding behind me.
I hadn’t told anyone else yet, but I planned to tell Anya and Tesha soon.
I didn’t want the other heroines to misunderstand and think I was a father.
Sepia and Tesha had kept Arthur’s golden mana a secret. And they had also kept Lien’s existence a secret.
I could trust them.
“She’s cute.”
“Yeah, she is.”
The hatchling giggled at my compliment.
“What are you going to name her?”
“I was thinking about Yong-yong… Is it that bad?”
“…”
Tia didn’t answer.
“Be honest.”
“No… your reaction says it all.”
“Think of a better name.”
I laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
“Can you give me some suggestions?”
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
I couldn’t think of anything. Simple names were the best, but I wanted to give her a special name.
And I couldn’t think of anything special.
“How about a normal name? Like Rachel, or something…”
The hatchling shook her head vehemently. Hatchlings didn’t like common names.
“Her mother is an Indigo Dragon, right?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s the Indigo Dragon’s name?”
“Calciater.”
Tia’s eyes lit up.
“Wait a minute… Calcia…?”
“Yeah, it’s the name of the dragon who fought alongside the legendary hero.”
300 years ago, the hero Luke Amos had sealed away the Demon Kings. And Calciater had fought alongside him. She had lost her wings in the battle, and Luke had died from exhaustion.
And then the dragon had disappeared. It was a famous story.
The name Calciater wasn’t widely known, but Tia, with her elven heritage, seemed to know it.
“Ethan, you’ve had quite the summer break.”
It was true. I had been busy.
“Did you know that ‘ater’ means ‘dragon’ in Elvish?”
“Really?”
Tia was a walking encyclopedia.
“How about Hessiater? Since she’s still a hatchling?”
The hatchling’s eyes sparkled. She seemed to like the name.
“‘Hessi’ means ‘potential.’ We can call her Hessia for short.”
So, her name meant “dragon with potential.” An Elvish name! I liked it.
“What do you think? Do you like it?”
The hatchling nodded enthusiastically.
“Okay, Hessia! I’m glad you like it.”
“It’s definitely better than Yong-yong.”
“Yong-yong isn’t that bad…”
I mumbled.
“Doesn’t she need a mother, though…?”
“A mother? What?”
“I heard it’s good for a child’s emotional development to have a mother.”
I hadn’t thought about that. Arthur had raised Yong-yong without a mother in the original story.
“But she already has a mother.”
“That’s true, but… if she wants to adapt to human society…”
Her words were strangely persuasive.
“If you’d like… I could…”
The doorbell rang, interrupting Tia. Was it Arthur? Or Tesha?
“Just a moment.”
I opened the door. Sepia was standing there, along with a slightly flustered Tesha.
“Heehee, Ethan, we came to visit your new place!”
“Hello, Ethan. How have you been?”
“Can we come in?”
“Is it a bad time?”
I glanced at Hessia. She was just blinking at them.
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