Chapter : 26
Meanwhile.
As usual, Del lingered near the tower and found, along with another puzzling note, a neatly grilled skewer of green onions and meat.
[If you’re a hostage, Mister… does that mean you’re a poor, pitiful person?!]
“…Just seeing this note makes me miss my daughter. If it weren’t for that damned dragon…”
The commander munched on the skewer and scribbled down a reply.
[A hostage? No, no. I’m the knight who came to slay the dragon and rescue the princess. Who are you, really?]
A smile tugged at Del’s lips as he wrote.
But the next day—
[Not a hostage but a villain?! You’re going to kidnap our princess, aren’t you?! Don’t need you at all!]
The basket, once filled with fragrant food, was empty.
And above the sharp, suspicious words was a drawing: a knight with triangular eyes, brandishing a sword.
In the blink of an eye, Del had been demoted from “pitiful hostage” to “wicked villain.”
He scratched the back of his neck.
“A kid living in the tower…? Maybe the princess brainwashed them.”
There were many orphans in Shadowm Village. He had assumed this child was one of them—abandoned, then rescued by the princess.
‘Looks like the kid has been completely steeped in her ideas.’
Just then—
“Commander! We’ve cleared all the trees. There’s now an entrance. Shall we go and escort the princess?”
The voices of the soldiers, who had been half-dead for days, rang with fresh vigor.
It was good news for him as well.
“Of course we should bring her.”
And yet…
“Commander?”
“……”
“Commander, are you all right?”
Del gave no order. He only stared up at the tower.
Something about it weighed on him.
‘That kid… they think I’m the bad guy.’
Shouldn’t they be thanking him instead of walking away with only bitter memories?
It felt like he was tearing apart a child’s pure heart, and it left a sour taste.
“Wait here a little. I just need to say goodbye to the kid before we go.”
“…A kid? Uh—understood.”
The soldiers, though obviously curious, saluted and withdrew without pressing.
Del stood there like a statue.
But how was he supposed to call the child out?
“…How do you even summon a kid?”
At the same time, inside Lulu’s room.
Young warrior, are you well?
“No, Jewel, I’m not well at all. I feel awful.”
Lulu’s cheeks puffed in a sulky pout, only her face poking out from under the blanket.
“The person Lulu gave food to turned out to be a villain who wants to take away Unni. Lulu ended up feeding the enemy.”
Kindness doesn’t always return as kindness. That is life.
The gem’s advice was harsh, but not wrong.
‘The world really isn’t easy, even for dragons…!’
Even the mysterious “counter” that had been climbing from 7.5 upward stopped moving the moment Lulu withheld food.
“Heeeng…”
How long would Lulu have to be the one always reaching out first?
The knights, Rian—everyone had only warmed up after Lulu’s efforts. No one had ever come to her first. Except for Unni.
And since that day, Chase hadn’t shown himself again.
He kept chanting “Not tasty, not tasty” and then vanished, as if giving up on his bucket list altogether.
“If Lulu doesn’t try, then no one will ever like me… it’s so unfair…”
In the end, the little dragon buried herself completely under the blanket, secretly sniffling.
That was when—
“Everyone, gather on the first floor! The knights have cleared the forest entrance. It’s time to depart!”
Her sister’s booming voice rang from beyond the door.
The time to leave had already come.
“Huh. This time I have to stick right by Unni—I can’t sneak off again…!”
Wiping her tears, Lulu crawled off the bed. She tiptoed to grab the door handle, intending to dash to the basement first and grab her fairy-tale book before leaving.
“…Warm fire melts the cold, melts colds, melts frozen meat…”
Suddenly, a familiar melody drifted from the window.
It was the silly song Lulu’s friends by the Black Lake had made for her.
“Little salamander melts the cold, melts the sickness, our kind little friend, little salamander…”
The voice was hoarse with age, rough and gravelly—yet…
wiggle
It was enough to make Lulu’s hips wiggle.
Her mouth fell open in a delighted “Heh.”
‘Who’s singing that? Only my friends know this song—?’
Should she open the door? Check the window?
Curiosity won. Lulu turned her head sharply toward the window.
She wouldn’t actually go outside.
She’d just peek to see who was singing.
Meanwhile.
“Commander! What are you doing?!”
“Ah—just wait a moment!”
Del wiped the cold sweat from his brow. He had hummed the tune he remembered hearing in Shadowm Village, but at the window there was neither shadow nor a tuft of the child’s white hair.
“Damn it. I don’t even remember the next verse.”
Still, maybe that was enough.
The child would be listening.
He was a father, after all, who had once raised a daughter and a son. And he knew from experience—kids heard and noticed far more than adults assumed.
“…Ha, what am I doing at this age.”
Rubbing the back of his neck, he cleared his throat.
The only way to win the child’s trust now… was to tell the truth.
‘This kid reminds me too much of my daughter. If I leave it like this, I’ll regret it.’
So he decided to make up the rest of the lyrics himself.
“Sir Knight came to take the princess and capture the dragon~
But truth is, he didn’t want to at all~”
The soldiers waiting nearby recoiled.
“That’s… supposed to be a song?”
“You think I’m giving a speech or something?!”
Del shot them a glare and kept going.
“He didn’t even want to hurt the dragon~
In truth, the knight was trembling in fear of it~”
At that moment—
rustle
Something shifted near the fourth-floor window.
Del pretended not to notice, leaning casually against the wall as he continued humming.
“But the knight had no choice but to set out~
If he disobeyed, then the wife and daughter locked away in a place scarier than the tower would be…”
“Gasp!”
A round face popped out of the window.
“If you don’t take Unni and Lulu away, then your family will be in danger?!”
As he thought—she had been listening all along.
Her huge eyes bulged even wider in alarm.
‘…Should I catch her if she falls?’
He chuckled bitterly and held out his palm playfully, as if to catch her. At least the misunderstanding was—
“You idiot! You should’ve said that earlier! You can’t just obey because the king threatens you! What’s wrong with you?!”
A sharp voice cut in.
Angela’s stern face appeared right above Lulu’s.
“To think the Kingdom of Lydia has sunk so low—commanding its knights with hostages instead of trust. Unbelievable.”
Another shadowed face appeared above hers—Duke Velix.
And then—
“Make the princess our true sovereign!”
A boy’s voice, full of adolescent bravado, rang out. Rian popped into view beside Lulu.
“……”
Before Del knew it, half a dozen noble faces were crammed together in the tiny window.
He nearly fainted.
“…Just how many nobles live in this tower? Don’t tell me there are more hiding in there…?”
Lulu fidgeted, then raised her hand shyly.
“Lulu! Actually… Lulu is a dragon!”
thunk
That was the sound of Del’s jaw hitting the floor—
and of the soldiers’ swords clattering down as their will to fight evaporated.
The adults, having now all shared each other’s secrets (Lulu’s “confession” was practically self-destruction), huddled together in urgent discussion.
Meanwhile, Lulu and Rian were excluded—on account of being children.
“One ant…, two ants…, three ants…”
“Lulu, want to have a contest to see who can count more ants?”
“Okay! Then starting over—one, two, three…”
They were busy counting ants scurrying along the floor when—
“…So Lulu really is a dragon?”
‘They’re talking about me!’
Lulu’s little ears perked up instantly.
Boredom forgotten, she hopped to her feet.
“Where are you going?” Rian asked.
“The adults are talking about Lulu! I’ll be right back!”
And off she scampered, sticking her head out from between the knights’ legs.
“Uh… Lulu?”
The knights looked down in bewilderment.
“Yeees! It’s me. And Lulu really is a dragon!”
“…Really?”
“Yeees!”
“Other than that white hair… you just look like an ordinary kid.”
“…Hm?”
Their doubtful stares made Lulu tilt her head.
‘But I told them myself! Why don’t they believe me?’
Apparently, the knights had no idea dragons could transform into humans.
Well then—wasn’t it only natural for Lulu to enlighten them?
