From the moment Angelica was born, she was destined to be completely different from all other dragons in this world.
She should have been a lifeless dragon egg.
But when the Goddess of Light was still in the world, she was saved by Her.
Flowing within Angelica's veins was not only dragon blood, but also a pure holy light capable of illuminating the entire world.
During her infancy, she had to sit cross-legged on a cold white stone altar every day, learning about Dragonkind.
Angelica slumped over the table, her head drooping, the light completely gone from her eyes.
“I don't want to study anymore...”
“Your Majesty, these are things you must do. Please look here, this is about our Dragonkind... Your Majesty?”
While the old man was still rambling, Angelica had already slipped away unnoticed.
That was her first time “skipping class.”
When she stepped out of the temple, a burst of clamor drifted up from the mud pit below the cliff.
There, a group of young dragons around her age had gathered.
They had taken human form, but they insisted on wading through the thick mud, swinging their dragon tails without a care and splashing dirty mud all over their playmates.
A few had completely let loose, rolling around in the mud pits on their backs, looking exactly like a bunch of unruly children.
Angelica's eyes lit up. She hid behind the temple pillars for a long time before taking a deep breath and slowly walking toward the children.
The mud pit glistened under the sunlight, and the air was thick with the scent of earth and fresh grass.
Listening to the excited roars and squeals of the young dragons, she awkwardly tucked in her wings and carefully stepped into the mud, mimicking them.
As the mud wrapped around her ankles, she felt its cool texture, and her heart began to race for some reason.
It was an urge she had never experienced before.
Just as she was about to roll in the mud and throw all the rules out the window, another young dragon, chasing after a friend, almost crashed into her.
In an instant, the smile on that young dragon's face froze, and all the noise and laughter in the mud pit was abruptly cut short.
Angelica didn't know why, but the moment the young dragons saw her, they parted to make a path.
She had seen how the young dragons bowed to the Dragon King.
Respect, adoration, admiration...
But none of those were present in the eyes of the young dragons looking at her.
No one had ever asked her if she wanted this, or how she felt. Everyone simply took it for granted that, as the daughter of a deity, she should carry the hope and legacy of the entire Dragonkind.
She was expected to protect everyone.
She had once asked her mother why she had to take on this responsibility.
But her mother didn't answer directly. Instead, she offered another request.
“One day in the future, I hope you will offer your strength to the one I have blessed.”
“What is that? A human?”
“Yes.”
Angelica was extremely dissatisfied.
“Why should I care about such a weak life form?”
Angelica still remembered her mother's reply to this day.
“At least, that is the person I chose for you.”
Sometime later, Angelica accidentally wandered into human territory and witnessed a victorious army slaughtering a defeated village.
One of the men held a pitchfork, covered in blood, with his other arm hanging limply as if completely broken.
Behind him stood a trembling woman clutching a baby.
Angelica witnessed the entire event. She had thought her heart would remain unmoved, but when she saw the woman weeping in agony over the man's corpse, tears welled up in her own eyes.
They were such weak creatures, and that man couldn't protect anyone at all...
Angelica had already known how it would end, yet she still couldn't control her emotions.
Only then did she realize that the woman possessed something she had never had.
Someone who was willing to protect her, to care for her.
She deeply envied that woman.
She didn't want to be the one who protected others. She didn't want to be the hope of her entire clan.
She yearned for that feeling of being deeply needed.
She wanted to be the one being protected.
Recalling how Ain had risked his life underwater just to construct a third Tier 5 spell, Angelica's lips curled up into a smile once more.
“Humans aren't half bad...”
The next second, a pleasant female voice replied to Angelica's self-muttering.
“Good day.”
Hearing the voice, Angelica's eyes widened instantly, and she quickly turned her gaze toward the source.
Standing there was a young girl with deep blue hair, wearing a pure white nun's uniform and holding a magic lamp in her left hand.
Angelica stared intently at her. Even though she didn't sense any aura of strength from the girl, she still refused to let her guard down.
“Someone from the Church?”
“Yes. You may call me Grace.”
As if to show her intentions, Grace lightly flicked her finger, tossing a magic stone glowing with brilliant golden light toward her.
“This is the core of the magic circle that bound you. I am terribly sorry; I only managed to find it at the very last moment, causing you to suffer.”
Angelica caught the stone. After examining it closely, she let out a soft chuckle. “So that's what happened. No wonder that guy's magic circle vanished ahead of time...”
Angelica sized Grace up and spoke.
“It seems my mother's Church isn't entirely made up of bastards.”
Grace lowered her hood and asked, “Have you... met that gentleman?”
Angelica frowned.
“That gentleman?”
Grace's face showed a mix of worry and anticipation.
“The one blessed by Her Ladyship the Goddess! Have you met him?”
Grace gently brought her hands to her chest and closed her eyes, trying to dispel the anxiety in her heart.
“I could clearly perceive that beneath those deep waters, there was always a holy radiance akin to a deity...”
Grace smiled softly, as if she had waited a long time for this day to come.
“I wish to offer everything I have to that gentleman.”
Angelica frowned and said indifferently, “I don't know what you're thinking, but I have no interest in weak life forms like you.”
Grace was visibly taken aback.
“Is he not the one in your destiny...”
Angelica's face was filled with disdain.
“Huh? What destiny? How could a weak life form like a human ever be worthy of Dragonkind?”
Grace flushed red, covering her mouth as if forcing herself not to speak, but she ultimately couldn't help but let the words slip out, albeit in a quiet voice.
“That guy is actually pretty impressive for a human, so it's not like it's completely out of the question...”
Angelica tried to ignore the other girl's muttering, but after hearing the entire sentence, her right hand began to tremble slightly.
Soon, Grace composed herself, returning to her usual dignified manner, and spoke again. “But in the end, didn't you still dive into the sea to save—”
“Huh? Who wanted to save him?”
Angelica averted her eyes and pointedly added, “I didn't come here for him this time. I only came to retrieve my mother's holy spear.”
Grace covered her mouth again, but this time, the voice seemed entirely uncontrollable, coming out even louder than before.
“That guy is mine from now on, and no one else is allowed to take him. His life belongs to me and me alone...”
Staring at the girl who kept saying these “strange” things, Angelica couldn't help but demand, “What on earth have you been babbling about this whole time?”
This time, Grace didn't cover her mouth. Instead, she covered her face with both hands and shouted bashfully:
“The way he risked everything to use magic for my sake was just too cool!”
“I didn't! I wouldn't! Stop talking nonsense!”
A flush of crimson crept onto Angelica's cheeks, the unhideable embarrassment instantly throwing her into a panic.
The “strange” things Grace had been saying just now were indeed her inner thoughts.
Grace's voice trembled slightly, the blush on her cheeks deepening.
“P-Please don't do this...”
“The more you deliberately suppress your emotions, the easier it is for my magic to capture the truth you can't hide...”
Grace hadn't wanted to activate this magic at all.
But Angelica was suppressing her feelings so intensely that, despite Grace's best efforts to resist, the dragon's truest inner thoughts still flooded into Grace's mind without any obstruction.
Angelica pointed at Grace in frustration, her lips parting, but she couldn't bring herself to utter a single curse.
How could anyone possess such a bizarre magic!
Grace knelt on the ground as if begging for forgiveness, turning her head aside, while her mouth rapidly blurted out:
“I really want that guy to kneel on the ground and kiss my instep every day, and then call out passionately in a gorgeous voice: ‘Lady Angelica! Please allow me to offer you my everything, and let me be your most loyal servant for all eternity!’”
Because she spoke so fast, by the time Angelica realized what was happening, the girl had already finished.
Grace didn't dare to meet Angelica's gaze.
Angelica's pupils dilated. Her embarrassment was now completely impossible to hide, and she fidgeted awkwardly, not knowing what to do with her hands.
“D-D-Don't say another word, ahhhh!!!”
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