Chapter 20: The Yellow Bird (1)

The scene before Louis was gruesome—burned-down houses and scattered corpses littering the ground, including those of monsters interspersed among them. Sensing no signs of life or human presence, he muttered to himself:

“Was this village attacked by monsters?”

Based on what he observed, it seemed plausible. Hoping there might be survivors, Louis searched the village with Fin and the twins fanning out behind him.

It didn’t take long to scour the small settlement consisting of about thirty households. Soon, Louis and Fin reconvened at the center of the village.

“Did you find anything?” asked Louis.

Fin shook his head slightly. “No, I couldn’t discover anything significant either.”

“Hmm…” Disappointment flickered across Louis’s face.

I had hoped this village would be useful…

Despite being a dragon, Louis wasn’t immune to fatigue. He had hoped to rest briefly in this village after not fully recovering from his exhaustion yesterday, but unfortunately, what was left could no longer be called a village—it was merely ruins now.

We’ll have to leave once those two show up.

Louis and Fin gathered in the middle of the village while waiting for the twins, but strangely enough, there was no sign of them.

“…What trouble are they causing now?” With a long sigh, Louis was about to go look for them when he heard their voices approaching.

“Louis!”

“Look at this, Louis!”

Khan and Kani emerged from one side of the village with various trinkets in hand.

“Check it out! Check it out!”

“We found some treasures!”

The twins had indeed collected quite the assortment of items: candlesticks charred by fire and furniture still warm from the blaze. These belongings used to belong to villagers but were now ownerless since their masters lay dead. While some might have felt uneasy handling possessions of the deceased, it didn’t bother the twins at all. They gleefully claimed these abandoned goods as theirs.

Louis sighed softly watching them. “Sigh… Well, I suppose there’s nothing wrong with that.”

He patted their heads gently. “Khan, Kani.”

“Yes!”

“What is it?”

“Please put these things back where you found them.”

“Huh? Whyyyyy?”

“But we worked so hard to find them…” The twins pouted and whined.

Louis tried reasoning with them. “Imagine if you two died, and someone else came along and took your stuff. How would you feel about that?”

“I don’t like that…” The twins looked gloomy at Louis’s lesson.

“That’s right, isn’t it? So out of respect for the deceased, please put everything back where you found them.”

“…Okay.”

“We’ll be right back!” Persuaded by Louis, the twins quickly left.

Watching them go, Louis pondered:

If we hadn’t stopped them, someone else might have taken those items anyway…

However, he didn’t want to teach such lessons to the twins, whose personalities were still developing. Despite grumbling about their troublemaking ways, Louis cherished them as his first friends.

As instructed, the twins returned the items and plopped down next to Louis.

“Louis, I’m hungry…”

“Me too…”

Louis looked flustered at their whining. For growing hatchlings, elixirs were essential.

I do have some reserves stored in my pocket dimension for emergencies, but…

To be prepared for any situation where the twins might demand food, Louis had placed Genelocer’s entire refrigerator stocked with elixirs into his pocket dimension. However, the elixirs inside were meant solely for him, just one dragon’s portion. Due to being a four-attribute dragon, Louis required more sustenance than others, hence the abundance of elixirs. But if shared among three hatchlings, it wouldn’t last long.

At this rate, maybe two years—no, even less—before we run out.

Slightly worried, Louis decided to adjust his plans.

Okay, whenever I spot any elixirs during our journey, let’s collect them! The peace of the continent is important, but what good will that do if we don’t grow taller?

Louis’s eyes gleamed with determination.

Meanwhile, unable to bear their hunger, the twins started fidgeting restlessly.

“I’m huuungry.”

“Me toooo.”

“All right, you two…”

“Loouiss…”

“Loooouuuuiissss!”

“I’ll give you some, so stop whining!” As the twins’ complaints grew louder, Louis retrieved several potions from his extra-dimensional fridge and handed them over. Of course, he didn’t forget to keep some for himself.

Munch, munch.

The sight of children nibbling on elixirs while sitting amidst the ruins of a burned-down village was quite surreal, yet it seemed normal to those involved.

As they were finishing off most of the potions…

Click, click.

A sound caught their attention from somewhere nearby. Louis gulped down his remaining elixir and sprang to his feet, followed closely by the twins peering over his shoulder. Soon, he spotted a group of people approaching in the distance.

Who could that be?

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Louis swiftly hid behind a tilted wooden board with the twins in tow, revealing some space for them to conceal themselves.

The bewildered twins, who were suddenly dragged along by Louis, cocked their heads curiously.

“Louis, why are we hiding?”

“Yeah, why hide? Are you scared of humans?”

“I’m not afraid of humans, but I am wary of death flags.”

“Death flags?”

“What’s that?”

“It’s…coming. Shh! Be quiet. First, let’s mask our presence.”

Louis and his companions took cover, anticipating potential trouble ahead.

They also concealed their dragon energy completely.

Let’s just pass by quietly. No need to get involved.

Convinced they were well-hidden, Louis and his group observed a band of warriors entering the village.

Thirty soldiers clad in white leather armor known for its excellent insulation rode on snow horses, surrounding a carriage draped entirely in white as if guarding it.

Everything is white.

The soldiers’ armor, the carriage, even the horses—all were uniformly white.

Is this camouflage?

On a continent where winter lasted most of the year, there was no better color for concealment than white. As Louis pondered this, he continued watching the group closely.

Several riders broke from the halted procession to quickly scout the village before returning.

“There’s nothing here, sir.”

“It looks like they were attacked by monsters.”

“Understood. I’ll inform His Grace.”

The superior officer approached the carriage after receiving his subordinate’s report.

“My lord.”

A deep voice emerged from within the carriage.

“I’ve heard your report. Let me see for myself.”

As he spoke, the door swung open to reveal a majestic middle-aged man with golden hair. The grand duke wore a thick cloak and a white fur collar around his neck. He appeared to be in his forties as he surveyed the horrific scene with dispassionate eyes before turning back toward the carriage.

“You must go inside?”

“…Yes.”

“There is nothing good that can come of seeing this. Especially considering your condition…”

“I am the grand duchess. I cannot wallow in sorrow forever. As the mistress of these lands, it is my duty to console those who perished here.”

“As you wish, madam…”

A delicate voice emerged from inside the carriage. The middle-aged man reached toward it, and a slender white hand took his. A beautiful woman in her mid-thirties stepped out after him. Though she appeared somewhat haggard, it did little to detract from her beauty.

The grand duke spoke gently to the lovely lady holding his arm. “Take care, dear.”

She wore a fur collar like her husband’s over her cloak, but as soon as her feet touched the ground, she swayed unsteadily. Startled, the grand duke quickly steadied her.

“My dear!” Seeing her husband’s worried face, she smiled gently.

“…I’m fine.”

“You should go inside and rest—”

“Would you embarrass me like that?” She feigned offense at his concern.

The grand duke sighed deeply and raised his thick wrist, indicating for her to lean on him.

“Oh boy… We’ve been together for ten years now, yet I still can’t sway your stubbornness.”

“Heh-heh. The one who loves more always yields to the other.”

“I cannot let that slide so easily. Surely it is you who love me more?”

“Well, perhaps not? Heh-heh.” Despite their surroundings, there was warmth between them.

They gazed lovingly at each other before turning away and walking side by side.

Tak-tak-tak.

Thirty bodyguards followed closely behind them. Louis’s eyes twinkled at the sight.

Oh? A defensive formation.

The guards moved along their designated paths without straying from their assigned positions for even a moment. It was clear that they had been trained to maintain this formation and respond accordingly to any situation. Whenever the grand duke and his wife stopped walking, the guards halted as well and scanned the area.

The grand duchess gazed sadly upon the burning village. “Are there…any survivors?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“How tragic.”

“If only we hadn’t been training village youths to become soldiers during this period when monster activity usually dies down… We should’ve taken immediate action as soon as there were reports of strange behavior among these creatures yesterday.”

“This is not your fault, my lord. However… Please do not forget those who tragically lost their lives here.”

“I assure you I won’t.”

As Louis listened to their conversation, he scratched his cheek.

Oh no… Could it be because of us?

Louis and his companions had traveled with dragon energy emanating from them to ward off any potential monster attacks. It was possible that startled monsters then turned on the nearby village instead.

I feel slightly guilty.

Just as remorse began creeping into Louis’s mind…

“Ahem!”

“…?!”

A loud burp sounded from behind Louis, startling him. He turned to see Khan covering his own mouth with both hands and making eye contact with Louis.

Sorry, Louis…

Dammit!

Louis glared at Khan, but it was too late.

“Who’s there?!” The soldiers hastily repositioned themselves for better defense, their swords drawn and reflecting sunlight as they scanned the area. Tension filled what had been a peaceful square.

“Show yourself! We’ll cut you down if you don’t come out immediately!” A warrior who seemed more skilled than the others pointed his sword directly at the source of the noise.

…What should I do?

As Louis hesitated, the tension continued building.

In the end, it was the warriors who made the first move.

“I warned you. What happens next is on your own heads.” With that proclamation, the sword of the high-rank warrior swung with incredible force, creating a gust powerful enough to blow away the plank concealing Louis and his friends. The children were instantly exposed.

The sight stunned both the warriors and the grand duke’s family.

“The children…?”

“Oh no…!”

Especially the grand duchess appeared distraught as she watched helplessly, her hand covering her mouth.

As Louis observed this turn of events, an idea struck him out of nowhere.

Yes! That’s it!

It was such a brilliant plan, even he couldn’t believe it himself.

“Waaaah!” He started to cry crocodile tears.

“Ahhhhh!”

For the first time since birth, Louis gave it his all and let tiny droplets of tears fall from his eyes. Normally, crying first during a confrontation meant admitting defeat, but this was different.

“Boo-hoo!”

Tears were his only salvation now.

Meanwhile, Fin had disappeared, and the twins stared at Louis with shocked expressions.

“Waahh!” Still pretending to sob, Louis signaled to them.

Hey, hey, start crying too!

The twins weren’t usually perceptive, but they caught on immediately. In no time, they were bawling their eyes out as well.

“Waaaaaah! Papa!”

“Mama!”

They were even more dramatic than Louis, wailing loudly for parents they rarely acknowledged otherwise.

To top it off…

“Moooooom!”

“Hooooww!”

As they cried, the children buried their faces in the grand duchess’s pristine white cloak.