Klein sat at the table, flipping through a maritime record provided by the Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce. The content was incredibly dry, consisting entirely of data on tidal changes along the west coast over the last twenty years.
Numbers, dates, and water levels were densely packed onto the yellowed pages. Staring at them for too long made his vision blur.
But he read them carefully.
Useful details were often hidden within boring data; this was a habit he had developed from his work in alchemy.
Ophelia had changed back into her home outfit and sat by the window, polishing her sword.
Neither of them mentioned what had happened that morning.
Yet, a certain subtle warmth seemed to linger in the air.
It wasn't physical—the room was well-ventilated, and the afternoon cross-breeze blowing in through the window was quite chilly.
It was something else.
Something they both sensed but tacitly chose not to touch.
Ophelia was polishing her sword much slower than usual today.
She had polished that blade countless times and could trace every line on it with her eyes closed, but today, the cloth slipped across the metal several times as her mind clearly wandered.
The cloth stopped mid-blade. Her fingers didn't move, and her gaze wasn't on the sword but floating toward some indeterminate direction.
After a moment, she seemed to realize what she was doing. She gripped the cloth tightly and resumed polishing.
She applied more pressure, her movements becoming significantly faster.
It was as if she were using force to push down certain thoughts.
Klein caught this scene out of the corner of his eye, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
He lowered his head and continued flipping through the records, but the bookmark at the corner of the page was clearly skewed.
…Alright, his mind had been wandering just now, too.
A knock sounded at the door, steady and rhythmic.
Klein closed the book. Ophelia sheathed her sword and set it beside her, her right hand lingering near the hilt.
Nelisa stood outside the door.
“Are you two resting well?”
She scanned the room as she entered.
Klein pulled out a chair for her. “Very well. The Chamber of Commerce has arranged everything perfectly.”
Nelisa smiled and sat down with steady movements, her skirts arranged meticulously. “Mr. Klein, you flatter us.”
After the brief pleasantries, she got straight to the point.
“Regarding the meeting with Her Highness tomorrow, I’d like to go over a few details with you again.”
The details remained the same as before, with no changes.
Klein and Ophelia remembered them clearly.
“There is one more thing.” After reiterating the Princess’s arrangements, Nelisa’s tone dropped slightly. “Although Her Highness invited you both for reasons unrelated to the Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce, I have a small favor to ask.”
Nelisa looked up, her gaze shifting between Klein and Ophelia.
“If the opportunity arises… I hope you might say a few kind words on behalf of the Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce.”
Klein didn't respond immediately; he looked at Ophelia.
Ophelia nodded slightly before adding, “If Her Highness truly cares for the west coast as you say, then the things the Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce does in the coastal regions are worth mentioning on their own. There’s no need for us to embellish anything.”
“The Knightess is correct.”
Klein picked up the thread. “We’ll see how it goes. If the topic comes up, it shouldn't be hard to mention. Ophelia is right; those who need to know what the Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce does on the west coast will find out eventually.”
Nelisa had no objection to this answer.
She hadn't expected Klein to give her a guaranteed promise anyway.
Getting a commitment to “speak truthfully” was already the best possible outcome for her—because she was confident enough in what her Chamber had done.
“Having your word is enough.”
She stood up, walked to the door, and beckoned to someone outside. Soon, a Chamber attendant entered carrying a wooden box and placed it on the table.
The box was small, about the length of a palm, made of dark brown peach wood with silver buckles on the corners.
The craftsmanship was exquisite but bore no markings of the Chamber, looking more like a box for a private collection.
Nelisa opened the box.
The lining was black suede, and in the center lay a single scale.
It was silver.
Not the silver of metal.
It was more transparent.
When light hit it, a faint ring of blue would shimmer around the edges, like the cold tone reflected off the surface of water at a certain angle.
The scale was roughly the size of an adult’s palm, perfectly shaped with no wear on the edges. Fine lines radiated regularly from the center.
Every line was excessively clear, as if carved one by one by a power far exceeding human craftsmanship.
The object lay quietly on the black suede, doing nothing.
Yet, the air in the room seemed to change the moment it was revealed.
It wasn't a fluctuation of mana.
Klein sensed it carefully but couldn't detect any familiar magical signatures.
But something had definitely changed—as if the air pressure had dropped slightly, or the temperature had fallen by half a degree.
It was hard to describe.
It was a heavy, silent, and ancient “presence.”
The moment Ophelia saw the scale, her expression changed.
It was the look of an experienced warrior recognizing a weapon of their own kind in a crowd.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, and the gold in her pupils seemed to brighten.
“This is—”
“A dragon scale.” Nelisa pushed the box forward. “A token of gratitude for your long journey.”
She spoke with a calm expression, as if she were offering a box of tea.
Klein stared at the scale for a few seconds.
The spiderweb-fine patterns became clear in his vision—if he were to analyze it through the lens of alchemy, the complexity of the biological signatures remaining on this scale far exceeded any material he had encountered so far.
Then, he asked a question.
“The Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce—the name is related to this, isn't it?”
Nelisa wasn't surprised; in fact, a hint of a smile touched her lips. She had likely been waiting for this question ever since she decided to present the dragon scale.
“You likely heard the origin of the name from Eric.” She sat back down, her tone composed. “I can only tell you this—yes, there is a connection.”
She looked Klein in the eye.
“But it is not from this same dragon scale.”
She emphasized the words “this same.”
Klein understood.
The Silver Scale Chamber of Commerce was named after a scale, and the dragon scale before them was a different one.
A Chamber named after a dragon scale that could produce a second one as a gift—the implications were staggering if one thought too deeply about it.
Or rather, Nelisa wanted him to think deeply about it.
Klein nodded. Then, he reached out and gently closed the box. His movements were light, showing respect for the object inside, but his stance was clear as he pushed it back.
Nelisa raised an eyebrow.
“Mr. Klein isn't accepting it?”
“I shouldn't accept a reward for work I haven't done yet,” Klein said. “I appreciate your sentiment, Ms. Nelisa, but this is far too valuable. Tomorrow’s business hasn't even been settled, yet you’re already giving out the reward—”
He smiled.
“If we happen to mess things up, I’d feel guilty holding onto this scale, and it wouldn't be easy to return. It’s better to wait until we return from the tea garden tomorrow before we discuss this.”
Nelisa watched him for a few seconds.
“…Very well.” She took the box back, her finger tapping the lid. “Then I shall wait for your good news.”
She stood up, smoothed her skirts, and walked to the door. Halfway there, she suddenly looked back.
“Dinner has been arranged by the Chamber and will be sent to your room. Rest well.”
Klein wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but the way she said “rest well” carried a hint of something unidentifiable.
The door closed.
Silence returned to the room. The cross-breeze blew the corner of the curtain up and then let it fall.
Klein was silent for a while. His gaze remained on the spot on the table where Nelisa had placed the box. The peach wood base had left a faint indentation.
“Ophelia, have you ever seen a dragon?”
Klein’s tone was more serious than usual when he asked this.
Ophelia nodded at first, then shook her head. “I’ve only seen sub-dragon species with impure bloodlines.”
Her fingers unconsciously traced the patterns on her scabbard. “The Empire does have a Dragon Knight corps; they raise their own dragons. But those are wyvern sub-species, the largest of which are no more than thirty feet long. If you mean a true giant dragon…”
She shook her head. “I have never seen one.”
Klein asked again, “Then do you think that scale came from a sub-dragon, or from… a pure-blooded giant dragon?”
Ophelia pondered for a moment.
“The latter,” Ophelia said, her tone certain. “A sub-dragon’s scale wouldn't have that… feeling.”
“What feeling?”
She thought about it, searching for the right words.
“It makes me… itch for a fight.”
Klein couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle.
He really hadn't expected the Knightess to have such a side to her.
Rate on N.U.
