Free Web NovelIf I remembered correctly, back on Earth, whenever a hail- or snowstorm happened, I would just stay cooped up in my room, enjoying hot cacao while playing some games or watching videos. Music would play in the background on a separate browser tab, while our apartment’s temperature control kept everybody inside warm.
Our electric fireplace would flare up during those winters. Even if it wasn’t real, the hearth felt just as genuine as real chimney fireplaces in those Christmas movies, as our family huddled up to watch the snowstorm raging outside our windows. During the night, the snow and hail all looked like bright stars, falling like a meteor shower.
During my first winter as a fire dragon, that lifestyle certainly didn’t change. Sure, I didn’t have any electronics to entertain myself, but spending my first year with Saori and Tasianna inside a village cabin we built ourselves was quite fun. Pretty relaxing since there wasn’t anything I had to intervene with.
My second winter was a bit more hectic since I was in Aureolis at that time, preparing for my battle against the Prince of Envy. Circumstances could change quite a lot in just a single year… and it wasn’t any different this time. The winter season was next month, and this time I was preparing for a… war. A war between dragonkin.
“Stop losing focus!”
Shit! I snapped my head to the side as a giant ice spike nearly separated my head from my body. Hikari, currently in control of our body, stomped the ground and flew out of the way before a [Dragoon Dive] could finish us off. Seriously, we were currently in our dragon form, but that silhouette of that dragonewt woman was scaring the heck out of me.
Why? ‘Cause that dragonewt woman was Mom trying to beat my ass!
“If you lose focus, then I will add another bell to our training! That was the deal, Hikari! Hestia!” Mom shouted as the ice dust settled around where she landed, pulling out a manatech pocket watch she commissioned from Jadhund. Honestly, she could have just downloaded the clock function for her party bracelet, but it seemed she enjoyed the pocket watch more. “Don’t forget to use your solar gas to slide along the ground. You don’t need to use your wings. When you need to fight inside a cave or underground, where flying is too cumbersome, freezing the ground can be both an offensive and defensive boon. It works with [Gale Steps].”
Although Mom didn’t have the Ability, she imitated the movements as she slid across the frozen ground. Cooling the air around her hands, she transformed the ice into a halberd, similar to how Tasianna would do it to form her rapier. In response, Hikari covered our body in silver powder, hardening our silver scales to the point they started to sparkle like gems.
“Just as Tasianna taught you, I will teach you how to properly use [Cyrokinesis]. You should have no issue since it works similarly to your corrosive fire’s obsidian state. In other words, when you are with me, we will practice your [Hellblade Dragon]. It is about time that you achieve level ten with the skill!” Mom stated before she pounced at me with a single wing beat.
Although not as fast as Quasdrakeen’s surprise attack or Nong’s jump scare, Mom was still too much for my body to perfectly react to. She was holding back just enough for my eyes and mind to see her attack, so I could analyze how to dodge whenever she landed a hit on me.
Two days had passed since we met in Coral Beard, but today was the first day of our training session after she was allowed to return home. Yesterday was a break day, since she had to chauffeur Grimnir over to Frozen Nest while I had to inform my retainer uncles about my plan with Wendriosa and Taim. They were probably still talking it through with the Senate, but Mom assured me they would answer soon. I just had to focus on training.
“You will train to become an ice dragon while I am here! I will break down your Profiles and fighting style, and integrate a new one into your mind. You will not appear as a crimson dragon when you train, meaning that Hikari will always be around. I will teach you how to become an ice dragon, Tasianna will teach you how to use ice magic, the dragoons will teach you how to move in your ice dragonewt form, and you will finish it off with your holy dragon training. During your free time, you must focus on leveling your various skills. That is homework, so prepare. This is the schedule for the weeks to come!” Mom shouted as we sparred. “You will eat what my chef will make for you. You will not hunt any monster while you train, for any experience you gain will go to waste. Your retainers will be the ones to hunt to allow them to level up. Once you defeat Tasianna and prove yourself before me, I shall allow you to meet your Father and train inside the dungeon. There, you will finish your [Battle Frenzy] training and finally start leveling your Jobs, again. Until then, focus on becoming an ice dragon!”
Mom being strict with my training wasn’t anything new. After all, these were the type of bonding that Mom liked the most, as it was already obvious enough that she wasn’t the most outgoing person out there. She did enjoy shopping and watching my concert, but I couldn’t forget that her mentality was still that of a dragon. Spending time teaching me was incredibly important to her.
This was more than just a normal mother-daughter bonding session. This was her being a mother. She finally had a chance to pass down her skills and experience as an ice dragon to her own child, after all, so I could understand why she was being so invested in it. Furthermore, the masochistic side of me was fine with the pain, as long as I saw improvements in my skills!
“Winter will come soon, and that means we ice dragons will have a natural advantage due to the weather. The winter season just ended when you woke up from your coma, so you will soon learn what happens to our island as the ice-aligned mana becomes more ‘rebellious.’ Until winter ends, I do not believe Quasdrakeen will be able to send her army at us. The leviathans below her would disagree with any attempts for war when we have the advantage,” Mom lectured, showing no signs of exhaustion despite talking up a storm. “Unless Wendriosa or Gyadiosa says otherwise, set the end of the year as your deadline to finish my trial. If you cannot finish it in two months, then I will probably support Nongramos and Taimatrak’s decision. The faster you finish your trial, the earlier you may receive your reward and the more time you will have inside our national dungeon.”
“Y-yeah, I under—kriiiaaa!” Hikari yelped as Mom threw a javelin at us, ripping through one of our horns before we could even dodge. T-that just broke through our [True Draconic Barrier] completely.
“A perfect time to start leveling up your [Ruby Star] and [Sacred Magic], don’t you think? As I said, I disallow you from hunting, which means you won’t be able to get much real combat experience. So what? You have your healing, and we have Uriahn above, just in case,” Mom explained with a sinister smile.
Why was she enjoying this so much? We just started!
She continued as she materialized another polearm. “So let us take advantage of this fact, and have you experienced the constant threat of going unconscious? How long will you remain asleep? How many days will you waste before your precious deadline arrives? If you cannot fight, probably, then as your mother, I would rather have you stay inside your subspace than experience a war, dear. I became a rank SS to protect you. Not to have you experience such hardship… but we have fought together in a siege already. For working so hard during the Elyonda siege, I will allow you to prove to me that you have the strength to continue your journey!”
Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! Hikari yelped as Mom burst into laughter as she began throwing a barrage of javelins at us. None of them were made using true ice mana, to give me a chance, but the sheer force of every throw felt like her arm was a warhammer cannon. She probably didn’t even need to reinforce her arm with mana with how high her base strength was.
“Keep dodging! Train up [Foresight]. No need to waste your skill points when you still have time, right? If you can predict an attack before it happens, you can react to it early enough for your body to move in time! You cannot bridge the gap between a rank B’s agility and that of a rank S in the little time you have. You have to rely on your skills and experience! You do not have the innate affinity for sensory skills like Saori, so don’t believe that you can get a unique skill like hers without the help of your unique Jobs!”
Never too bad to repeat the basics, I guess? I shrugged as Mom told me the obvious. In any case, I healed our horn. Hikari, I got an idea. Remember how Tasianna parried our attacks with her ice, or how we let her ice blades slide across our scales? Let’s do that. We can technically emulate it against water attacks as well.
‘Got it. Adjust my movements if you think I’m misstepping. I’ll give you priority over [Foresight], while I’ll handle [Scale Manipulation],’ she agreed before raising her feet as if she was wearing heels, using the elevated stance to glide along the ground to minimize our movements. Having to focus less on her movements, she sent out our powder-hardened scales to parry each incoming projectile.
Yet, the moment we got a small success, Mom liked to throw a wrench into the entire plan. This time, she only needed to use her main aura attack to freeze Hikari for a moment, forcing me to use our solar gas to dodge two incoming javelins.
As our body slid away, ice caught our legs, pinning us down for a moment until Hikari could break free. Sadly, that was enough for Mom to land a javelin on my left front leg. The ice started to spread now that it broke through my [True Draconic Barrier], but the ice-form of [White Flames] froze right over my wound, neutralizing the ice’s spread since it wasn’t true ice.
“Good! Good! You’re starting to get it. Okay, enough of that. We took… ah, a bell worth of time. Good work, dear,” Mom stated as Hikari collapsed onto the ground. She looked at our Profile, noticing that half of our stamina had vanished from a single hour of training.
Too much dodging. Too much draconic energy needed to block everything. Haaaa, she’s draining our resources faster than our core could regenerate, I complained.
If the stat difference wasn’t so high, [True Draconic Barrier] wouldn’t be used this often. Draconic energy, after all, needed both mana and stamina to be created, and I needed this energy to fuel all my draconic-related skills. I had no mana issues since my capacity was humongous for my age, while my stamina couldn’t be compared to it. A mismatch like that was never as problematic in my previous battles.
“This is the gap, dear. I don’t need to do anything fancy to overpower you, and you can spam as many spells as you want, but I will overpower all of them. I am, though, very proud that you understood the intent behind this training: it is to train your body, your control over your draconic abilities, and also to master ice. As I said, I will train you to become a powerful ice dragon,” Mom praised, caressing my injured leg before she pulled the javelin out.
[“Figured… that’s what limit testing is supposed to do, but it still feels annoying to lose like this. I could have continued if I started using my spells,”] I said in Hikari’s stead.
“It is fine, Hestia. You aren’t supposed to last longer or win against me. I need you to learn, analyze, and improve. You must try to last longer with only your body and draconic abilities. Right now, I am training you as a dragon, not as a mage or dragoon. Understood?” I nodded to Mom’s lecture, prompting her to smile. “True dragonkin with a strong bloodline will always be stronger than those of the same rank. A noble and a commoner do not start on the same foot. You might be able to beat the ‘commoner’ rank, like those ice worms or that ape monster, but Quasdrakeen is the daughter of Karhalantheel. There are many other ancients and prodigal younger scalekin who will fight. You do not have the advantage in mana, any longer. As such, your battle style must change.”
Mom’s really enjoying this, just like when she trained me how to molt.
“Then do I have to rely on supportive skills?” Hikari asked, prompting Mom to nod.
“Obviously, but you also have to know how to escape rank As and Ss. You won’t be on the frontlines, but you need to know how to handle yourself if somebody manages to breach through Alextraxus’s preparations. I can participate in the fight, but I cannot kill Quasdrakeen for Wendriosa’s sake,” Mom said. “Though who knows if I can even help if Kiedaceus decided to attack the mainland. I gave up my role as Dragon Ruler of Ice to become an empress. Even if my flight and wake consider me the de facto ruler, I cannot damage Alextraxus’s pride as an ancient. I anointed him as my successor, and he must show me that my judgment was right.”
“I would like it, just so we can avoid casualties,” I said, prompting Mom to nod. “Speaking of which, what should I do when rank Bs and so on manage to get past? I don’t think any of our rank As or Ss will care about the dragonkin lower than A.”
“Why are you asking? Simply kill them,” Mom answered in such a nonchalant manner. “You are currently a noble amongst nobles for rank Bs. You showed it with how you defeated Rhekkraxus and how you managed to escape the clutches of Inferno Nest’s dragonkin. I am telling you not to underestimate your opponents by reminding you that you aren’t the strongest, but don’t go overestimating them. Why would you need my training to kill people below you? Besides, those types of scalekin would never be able to match your current retainers. Tasianna, Vifi, and Shayatierus alone would decimate them. Don’t you have multiple fledglings willing to go under your service, now?”
Willing to go under my service, yes, but I haven’t accepted any of them.
That moment two days ago when I saw far too many dragons and drakes kneeling before my bedroom probably would scare any normal person. Like, seriously, they even admitted that they had been waiting inside the mansion once they got news about my altercation with Quasdrakeen in Lecullius. Well, only Rhekk, Kylu, and Fehrkatruk did, but the fact that they coincidentally got enough people in front of my door was the concerning part!
… Okay, that was a bit of an exaggeration. It would have been bad if they were stalkers, but all of them really were there to become my retainers. Not for [Hestia’s Retainer]—only Rhekk knew about it since we did talk about it during our glacial expedition—but as real, genuine subordinates.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Strength attracted those who sought it. Instead of an idol of music, it seemed the fledglings saw me more as the ideal dragon imperial. My decision to defy Maustoovaka despite my young age, the fact that I rallied Frozen Nest to fight the elemental emperor, and then my accident with Quasdrakeen roused many of the more belligerent dragonkin to my cause. It was mostly those under 100 years old, though, but the few rank A friends Rhekk had, and also Fehrkatruk were willing to give me their scales.
Honestly, I was most surprised Fehrkatruk was even there in the first place. He was part of Sieg’s generation. He was older than any of my siblings. To me, he was practically an ancient, yet he still decided to lower his tail to show his respect. Clan Kleodrastia willing to be loyal to me was a no-brainer, since I was the only fire dragon on Frozen Nest, but I had expected only their youngest son, Kyluvanus, to become my retainer. Not him and their heir apparent.
“Most of them are rank Cs and Bs. They are too weak for a massive full-scale war with the Caedhulens,” Hikari answered in exasperation, standing up after we healed our wounds. “I don’t know, Mom. Giving some of them [Hestia’s Retainer] probably would be great, especially for Fehrkatruk, but I still feel conflicted about it since this will be for the war effort. At least Rego and his fire wyverns joined up because they wanted to serve me. The ones now are only doing it because they see me as strong and they want to finally put their eggs in my basket.”
“That is just how dragonkin vassalship works. You should feel lucky that none of those brats decided to attack you for the sake of courtship! Huuu, when I saw them this morning, I could really tell that some of them are attracted to you,” Mom replied, causing Hikari and me to shiver in disgust. “Oh, don’t act like that! Beat them up if they try anything, but don’t make that reaction. The ones I noticed were below 100 years old. They’re still young and foolish.”
“I know, but the way you’re describing it is the problem. I already have to deal with the fact that Uriahn was ordered by his dad to court me, and now my own citizens are trying to beat me up? Hestia can deal with it, but I’ll tap out when that happens,” Hikari complained, causing Mom to burst into laughter.
“Fine, fine, I won’t speak about it again. It is your youth, dear. You have to deal with it yourself. In any case, have you rested enough?” I nodded to her question before she told me to transform into my [Humanize (Minor)] form. “Let us have a break hour. We’ll solely focus on practicing your ability to use your scales and mana barrier to block, parry, and deflect. In addition, I want you to use this chance to freeze my attacks to create openings, and also to create ice weapons to protect yourself. Essentially, I want you to train your [Scale Manipulation] and get used to [Cryokinesis]. Here’s a tip: your main ice ability is your solar gas, so [Aerokinesis] should work. You’re better with that skill.” fгeewebnovёl.com
[Humanize (Minor)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]
So lucky Mom is actually a good teacher. Honestly, I’m really blessed with good mentors.
Creating weapons made from ice was simple, since I already had experience making daggers with [Unheiliger Engel]. [Hydra] required me to mold it in its various forms, although the golem’s “intelligence” did handle most of the attacking and defending once I gave my order. Though unlike Tasianna, who had mastered creating weapons using ice, I never needed to train it much. My fighting didn’t rely on it, after all.
Releasing some molted scales, I had them form the shape of a halberd before freezing everything within it, creating our “Nordor Silver Blade.” As Hikari adjusted the design to look the same as our personal halberd, Burn My Dread, Mom created her own polearm. While I got into my dragoon stance, Mom took a haphazard pose, either to show that she had no idea how to properly fight with a polearm or that she didn’t need to do it. Regardless, learning how to use a halberd isn’t the point here.
“Mom, you don’t exactly look like the type to learn martial arts. Why did you want me to learn it?” Hikari asked, since we didn’t have a chance to do so when Mom first suggested these ice weapons.
“That is true. I have no formal training as a dragoon, although I do inspect their training whenever I feel bored. I can tell you how to improve your movements or when you are messing it up, but I cannot tell you the ideal stances or motions to wield your halberd,” she answered.
Hikari nodded. “Then why are you so adamant about doing the training this way? Instead of inside my subspace, we’re in your lair now. Where you sleep, even. Why don’t we try this as dragons?”
“Because you first learned how to use weapons as a humanoid. I will teach you how to fight better as a dragon, but I believe this would help you more, Hikari. Learn with your humanoid form first, and then we’ll transition into your dragon form. It’s a process!”
Mom then giggled, stroking her hair as she closed her eyes, looking like she was reminiscing about something. “Though I do understand your concern. I do rely more on a beat-down type of fighting style, where I rely on my claws and true ice to defeat my enemy. Your uncle didn’t manage to create any true ice, sadly, but he is the more proficient weapon user between us. His bond with his dragonewt descendant allowed him to become a strong dragoon, and that seeped into his draconic battle style. All those javelins I threw at you? He taught me the proper form for it,” she explained as she opened her eyes, causing me to awe out of surprise. She then struck the same pose she made when she threw her javelins. “Dragonewt and dragon forms are different due to our differing physiques. Furthermore, unlike your father, our bodies are more front-heavy, right? We need our long, heavy tail to balance us out, while your Father and Alextraxus have no issue standing on two feet. Well, I learned how to throw in both of my forms, so it doesn’t matter at this point. Ready?”
“Sure, let’s begin.”
“Good!” Mom turned around. “Bethlieranha, make sure to hold the recorder correctly! You can’t waste any moment!” Mom ordered.
“Yes, Empress! I shall make these the best videos, ever!” my wyvern retainer agreed, steadying the video recorder’s lens on me.
Mom, why are you making more videos? I know you’re trying to show them to your friends! I wanted to shout out of embarrassment, but letting go of my focus would immediately disappoint Mom. I was training to react to the adjusted speed of a rank SS dragon here. I had to take it seriously if I wanted to live.
… Though even with focus, Mom was seriously far too harsh! She could dumb down her theory for me to understand, and she was experienced enough to explain flaws in my movement and scale manipulation, but she really was a drill sergeant who was doing all of this for “love.” I couldn’t even complain about how harsh she was ‘cause she was trying to keep me alive!
“Speed up your scale movement! Unlike your body, what determines how fast you move your scales is your mana control and speed of thinking. It is telekinesis! Not your agility or intelligence. It relies on your other skills. You need to know when to increase the amount of dragon energy you feed [Scale Manipulation] and understand where and when to use them. The little details matter as well. Look.” Mom pointed at a sheet of her own scales, telling me to look at the direction the silver powder was covering.
“… It’s all aligned downward. No, wait, in one direction.”
“Correct. This sheet of ice is made to let attacks slide past it. Useful when you have to block a physical attack. When you need to block a spell, don’t layer them together. Have some elevated higher, and some below. Cover the ice on the top to form the shield,” Mom explained before she thawed the ice, revealing a checkerboard-like formation of scales. As she said, there were two layers of scales. “When you block an attack, let the ice break—this is very important. Then trade the spots of the upper ones with the ones behind, and then immediately reform the ice. You disperse most of the impact with the ice shatter and minimize the damage to your scales. That way, you don’t need to reform the shield. You only need to refreeze it.”
“What when it’s a cut?” Hikari asked.
“Easy. Either make ice harder than the attack, in this case, you must have higher intelligence, or separate the scales the moment the attack comes, while you prioritize dodging. If you wish to minimize the number of scale molts, as it does weaken your defence a bit, you need to learn how to better manage your scales. It is just like your magic, Hikari. It is all about the small details and how you use your scales. Fool people! Unlike your fire scales, your ice shields have two layers. The scales and the ice. Use them!”
It was so detailed, and once she explained how she would use a move or technique, she would immediately force me to learn and practice what she told me. If I failed to do so, I would get hurt. She was motivating me through pain to succeed.
<Multiple proficiency requirements fulfilled. [Foresight Lv. 8] [Tracking Lv. 6] gained>
And these focused training sessions surprised me with what it leveled. [Tracking]? Really? How? Then I realized that until Mom gave me all these tips, I had only trained on how fast I could deploy my scales. Kahalameet’s training, when he was on Frozen Nest, was unfocused, as I had wanted to level up a lot of skills. As such, he pushed me with a general training plan.
Mom, on the other hand, was so detail-focused that it felt more like a theory lecture. She cared more about how to master the usage of a fully leveled [Scale Manipulation]. Limit breaking without raising the level, in other words.
“Each of your siblings uses their scales differently. Fargryneill uses her in conjunction with her dragon paths, which you can’t copy. Kahalameet and Wendriosa are half-leviathans, which is why their preferred method of scale manipulation has to differ from yours. Honestly, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to teach you my way of scale manipulation, since you were a fire dragon for so long. If it came to it, I would have asked Eltharion to teach you, though, considering your two forms, maybe it would be better for you to do it anyway. Argh, but two separate scale manipulation techniques would just confuse you! Goodness, what to do…?”
… Yeah, that was why she emphasized that I would level my skills during my break time, as if it were homework. My goal here wasn’t to level up anything but [Ruby Star] and [Hellblade Dragon]. If any other skills increased, it was just a side effect of the training.
Goodness. I’m about to get a headache after all of this!
Two more hours have passed since the start of my training schedule with Mom. Technically, it should have just been a three-hour session, but Mom didn’t lie about adding another hour for losing focus for a mere second… Bootcamp Drill Sergeant Mom, for real.
In any case, I was an hour late for lunch, but it was still lunch time! As Mom’s personal chef—she literally picked him up the day she arrived at Frozen Nest—was a Marsh Nest dragonewt, I was really expecting something delicious! Neill’s return festival had so many good food stalls from Marsh Nest that I was already salivating at what they would cook. I mean, this was an imperial chef, after all! … Even if Mom technically hired him today.
“Oooh, this is really good! Though you really have to learn how to zoom in more, Bethlieranha. You missed Hikari’s expression when she finally understood how to layer her scale barrier,” Mom pointed at the recorder with a big smile.
“Oh, of course, Your Majesty. I shall learn to be better,” Beth replied with sparkling eyes, enjoying this far too much.
… Who is she gonna show these videos to? Oh gosh, I’m doomed.
<[Humanize (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
As we left our mountain, the sound of clashing steel, thunderous magic, and shrieking roars replaced the ASMR-sounding cracking of the ice inside the lair. Piercing hail wasn’t stinging my skin any longer, as a mild breeze started to cool me off after that exhausting training.
Only two skills leveled up, but it felt like my [Scale Manipulation] had leveled up twice with how much Mom helped Hikari use her silver scales. Sadly, she also confirmed that unless the skill fused with another skill, there wasn’t an evolved version of it.
So, unless stated, it was a battle between if my [Scale Manipulation Lv. 10] was better than others. That also meant that if I had the stats, I really could just bulldoze even far more experienced scale manipulators. Well, that was the theory I learned from how Mom was beating me up.
In any case, ignoring how the elemental’s village was slowly turning into a drilling camp with how many dragonkin were training here, which included all the people who wanted to become my retainers, we entered the dragoon’s barracks, where our chef was staying until I built his home.
However, instead of the chef, Tasianna was waiting for us.
“Chef Makul said that the cold was too much even in the kitchen. He finished the meal with the ingredients you gave him, Your Majesty, before retreating into his room. If I may give a suggestion, it would be best if we built his home next to Master Grimnir’s house. The warmth coming from his forge will most likely make it more comfortable for him,” she reported.
Mom frowned, looking a bit guilty. “Hmm, the number of clothes I gave him wasn’t enough, I see? Hikari, could you ask Hestia if she could borrow him one of her heater balls? Or even one of her flame catalysts to warm him up until we have his house ready?”
“Mom, Hestia has stopped making the heater balls because we don’t need them anymore. I think we should still have some in the storage, though,” Hikari said before pulling one of the crude stone balls out. “It should still work, I think? It’s been over two years since we last made one of them. We’ll handle the building later on, but please make it comfortable for him. Switching from the warm, swampy Marsh Nest to this icy hell will probably kill him, at this rate.”
“I will, I will. In any case, please, eat your meal before it is done,” Mom urged me as Tasianna placed three dishes before me, causing my mouth to start watering. “You need to eat a lot, so I made sure to order some more exotic meat to excite you. Your soul may be young, but some stimuli now wouldn’t hurt, right? Hehe. Don’t worry about the cost, dear. My vault of treasures has to be used for something, so why not for my dear daughter?”
“I’m not that much of a gourmet, Mom. Though I won’t say no to what is placed before me.” Hikari picked up a fork, eyeing the steak placed before me. “Hmm, what is this silver sparkling stuff?”
“Oh, you noticed? Well, you see, I have to find a way for you to gain true ice mana easily, so while I’m mulling over the idea, Gaistrus reminded me how she helped her sons grow their earth-aligned mana, since Eltharion’s bloodline was overwhelmed by hers quite a bit. ‘Of course,’ I said, but I also figured that it might not be completely to your taste. Hikari, you didn’t like that rock I gave you last time, correct?” Mom teased, causing Hikari and me to freeze up. “So, to hide the taste, I bought some good meat from the warthogs of Marsh Nest, eggs of cockatrices, greeneries from mana-rich treants, and, most importantly, spices directly from Kel’Thun and Saelariel. I bought more, but those were the ones I asked to be prepared for today.”
“… That sounds quite expensive.”
“Nothing of the sort. Money has to be spent! In any case, the chef I hired should be skilled enough to use most of it to hide the taste of my molted skin. Enjoy, dear! Eating them should help your body adapt to my true ice mana more efficiently for when you start learning true ice spells!”
Hikari looked down at her dishes, noticing far too many silver sparkles.
… Does this count as child abuse?
“Oh, and don’t forget to stream while you eat! Tasianna mentioned that Earth had people record themselves eating before their viewers, right? Why not try that now?”
… Maybe inventing the video recorder was a bad move, after all.
