Chapter 93

The water dragon lord, who had become friends, pressed his huge head against me happily.

While stroking his head with Sara, I asked,

"Water dragon lord, why were you all slimy?"

"It's a long story... but will you listen?"

"Sure. Tell me."

The water dragon lord began to speak slowly.

"It was five hundred years ago, no, a thousand years ago, maybe even two thousand years ago."

"Really? That's a long time ago."

A long, long time ago, an extremely powerful curse caster appeared and spread curses around this area.

The previous water dragon lord, who ruled this land, defeated the curse caster with a holy maiden, but could not dispel the curse.

"So, I took the curse into my body and had the holy maiden seal it with me at the bottom of the lake."

The water dragon lord who had just succeeded his father was the one who made the sacrifice.

Thanks to the holy maiden's seal, this land became a place overflowing with the power of spirits.

On the other hand, the curse continued to erode the water dragon lord.

"...It was much harder than I imagined. It hurt and was painful..."

For decades, even a hundred years, he could endure it for the sake of the people living in this land he ruled.

But it didn't end. Two hundred years, three hundred years... an unimaginable amount of time passed.

The young water dragon lord grew over the long years.

Still, the pain, the suffering, and the hurt didn't change.

"Why do I have to go through this?" he began to think...

"It must have been tough," "Good boy, good boy," "Wow."

As Sara and I stroked him, and Daru licked him, the water dragon lord shed tears.

"Uh, uh... uh. Thank you."

When he does this, the water dragon lord seems like a child.

Maybe it's because he was sealed when he was young and had to live alone.

"But suddenly, a crack appeared in the seal... and then the curse disappeared."

'Ah, both were due to Lady Lulia.'

I couldn't answer Crow in front of my mother, so I just looked at him silently.

'After clearing the rocks from the waterway, Lady Lulia broke the barrier.'

Crow explained carefully.

'Someone used the ancient holy maiden's barrier, rather misused it, to create a barrier to repel spirits.'

When the barrier to repel spirits was broken, a crack appeared in the holy maiden's barrier.

'And the water dragon lord's curse was lifted... when Lady Roa's curse was lifted.'

The evil person had used the water dragon lord's curse to curse Roa.

When Roa's curse was lifted, the water dragon lord's curse, which was magically connected, was also lifted.

'To curse a guardian beast like Lady Roa, it would normally be impossible without special power.'

That special power was the curse of the water dragon lord, who was a noble and benevolent being.

In his pain, the water dragon lord cursed the world, which became an extremely powerful curse.

'I believe my curse was definitely used to turn Roa into a curse caster. I'm really sorry.'

The water dragon lord bowed his head again,

'I was about to be used for my curse. I was about to become a curse caster myself.'

If that had happened, the great achievements of his father and the long years of endurance would have been for nothing.

For the water dragon lord, that would have been worse than death.

"Lady Lulia, no matter how many times I express my gratitude, I cannot convey my thanks."

The water dragon lord spoke in a grand tone, bowed his head again, and said his thanks in human language.

"It's okay. I'm glad you're safe, water dragon lord."

"Sara, and everyone. I'm sorry for startling you with the lightning last night."

The water dragon lord bowed deeply to Sara, my mother, and everyone else.

"Even though the seal was about to break, it was the ancient holy maiden's barrier, so I had to drop lightning multiple times to break it."

"I see. That must have been tough," "You did a good job. Good boy, good boy," "Wow, wow."

"Um... uh... uh..."

The water dragon lord was shedding tears again.

Indeed, he must have been pushed to the limit to yell at my mother like that.

Out of fear of loneliness, he clung to the connection with me.

So, when that connection was about to be denied, he used strong words with my mother.

"You've been working hard for a long time. Good job," "Rya~"

If I were in the same position, I would probably cry too.

I hugged the water dragon lord gently. Roa also hugged him tightly.

The water dragon lord was also being licked and comforted by Daru.

After a while, I said to the water dragon lord, who had perked up,

"Water dragon lord, are you hungry? Do you want to have breakfast together?"

"Hehehe. Thank you. I'm happy, but I'm too big to join."

"I see."

"Besides, I need to purify the filth I spread."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, after I came out of the seal... I walked around and dropped some rotten skin."

"I see. That's tough. Lulia will help too."

"It's okay. It's not difficult. Thank you, Lady Lulia."

He said, "Hehehe," and smiled.

"...Lady Lulia, can I come and play again soon if I behave well?"

"Sure. But, Lulia and the others will only be here until tomorrow!"

Immediately, the water dragon lord's tail drooped sadly.

"Originally, Lulia and the others lived in the capital."

"......Can I come and play there?"

"Sure? We're friends!"

When I said that, my mother looked a bit troubled and said,

"Water dragon lord, as a parent, I don't want Lulia to stand out."

"Hmm?"

"The water dragon lord's body is very impressive, so if you come to the capital's mansion, there will be a commotion."

"...I see?"

"I'll think of a way to avoid a commotion, so please wait a bit before visiting the capital's mansion."

"Understood! Amelia is reliable!"

The water dragon lord's tail wagged happily.

The large tail hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Sara is also a friend of the water dragon lord," "Wafu wafu," "Rya~," "Kyu," "Ko."

"Thank you. Sara, Daru, Roa, Caro, Korko."

After saying his thanks, he shyly asked,

"Can you hug me again?"

"Sure. I'll hug you."

Sara and I hugged the water dragon lord again.

Then, the water dragon lord walked away, looking back many times.

"Please wait, Lord Water Dragon."

His attendant chased after him.

"What's wrong? Lady Lulia's attendants?"

"Some people might be frightened by your appearance, so we will accompany you to explain."

'Ah, Crow also has something to say!'

Crow apparently decided to accompany the water dragon lord.

Crow would surely explain my situation in detail.

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