Chapter 2: The Dragon King's Daughter
"So… your dad wants you to study in Britain?"
The question—asked with a mix of genuine curiosity and mild confusion—made Naruto lift his eyes from the list he had been writing to look straight into the eyes of his oldest friend in the world.
In every sense of the word, Milim Weiss Pendragon—who was currently sprawled lazily across the sofa in the living room of Naruto's private wing of the Udgard palace… Yes, his family was wealthy enough that every single member had their own private wing.
As for Milim, she was, in truth, much older than him, having been born in the middle of the Third Era. And yet, due to her draconic heritage, she had the ability to take on whatever form she pleased. At the moment, she appeared as a girl his own age—eleven years old—with pale skin, bubblegum-pink hair tied into twin tails, and bright blue eyes that were now fixed on him in deep confusion. After all, despite being—technically speaking—the rightful ruler of Britain by virtue of being far older than her cousins Morgan, Artoria, and Mordred, Milim had never shown the slightest interest in politics.
"Tethys is another option, but you know she needs to stay close to her tree, and transplanting it would be far too dangerous," Naruto explained. After all, Tethys was only a couple of weeks older than he was, and she could certainly handle the situation—truth be told, far better than he could when it came to dealing with a school full of inbred idiots, given that she was far more patient than he was. But of course, the fact that his beloved older sister was a forest nymph meant she couldn't stray too far from her tree for long… Yes, family vacations were truly a nightmare to organize.
And the truth was, he didn't like the idea of traveling to Britain for his studies either. He wasn't sure how true his cousins' stories were—they completely despised their homeland—but they had told him the country was unbearably cold, with atrocious weather, and that their diets consisted of at least eighty-five percent fat, and the remaining fifteen percent sugar. He could only hope they were exaggerating—otherwise, he would strangle the house-elves at the castle for poisoning him. Oh, and the rest of the student body. But mostly himself.
Now that he thought about it, he had completely forgotten to mention that particular concern to his father. Well, it wasn't as though he couldn't do it later; it wasn't like his father was suddenly going to lock himself in his office for a week straight… right?
"Hmph," Milim grunted, shifting a little more comfortably in her seat.
Then, realizing what she really wanted was for Naruto to pamper her like a proper boyfriend ought to, she looked at the red-haired boy and gave him a single look that expressed everything she wanted in that moment—that he should get his cute butt over there and sit beside her.
Which he did, after letting out a resigned sigh. He walked over to the sofa where the girl sat, and once he settled down, Milim, with one quick, fluid motion, slid onto Naruto's lap before nestling herself against his chest. The boy let out another sigh. Truth be told, he liked Milim—but she could be far too clingy at times.
"So why did your father call for Artoria?"
The question actually threw Naruto off for a moment. Truth be told, he wasn't entirely sure how Milim knew his favorite cousin had been summoned by his father—until he remembered that Milim quite literally had dragon's ears, and most likely had been listening in on the conversation between his father and his beloved cousin.
"I think…" Naruto began, not entirely sure what he was supposed to say at that moment. "He must have called her to talk about a way to take Britain back from the goat's control."
Milim couldn't help letting out an amused snort at the way her boyfriend had referred to Albus Dumbledore. Not that he was wrong; according to her father, for some reason the Dumbledores always reeked of goats—at least the barons of that family did.
After that, she simply decided to let the matter drop and began humming softly to herself for a few minutes. She wasn't as good at singing as Naruto's mother, Kushina, nor even as his little sister, Wendy. But she still had a sweet, melodious voice—one that almost managed to lull Naruto to sleep. He never knew why, but Milim had always been able to send him drifting off with her singing.
"So… I won't be able to visit you?" she asked—or rather, complained. There were few things—about fourteen hundred of them—that could make her angry. And in the eleven years since she had met her little "tomato," nothing enraged her more than being forbidden from spending time with him.
This new question actually made Naruto shiver, as he recalled the last time his mother had tried to prevent Milim from getting her "cuddle time." Suffice it to say, the earthquake of '85 was a very good reason for his father to declare it a capital crime to deny "the daughter of the Dragon King her time with Naruto." And, of course, from that moment on, no one had ever dared to interfere with Milim's cuddle time whenever she wanted it. The fact that his father was also one of—if not the—most powerful beings in all existence certainly helped to ensure no one ever broke that rule.
"You really don't need to worry, dear. Minato may have tunnel vision right now when it comes to the whole Britain affair, but he would never let you trigger another mega-earthquake just because you couldn't spend time with my son, you know?"
The reply came in a soft, melodious tone—though with a hint of irony.
Which, of course, made both children turn their heads toward the source of the voice: Naruto's mother, Kushina Uzumaki of Udgard. She gave them a small smile—a perfect blend of affection for Naruto and mild disdain for Milim. After all, she still wasn't entirely comfortable with the fact that the eccentric daughter of the Dragon King was taking away her mother–son bonding time.
Setting aside the woman's obvious disdain for Milim—who merely kept flashing her dazzling, toothy grin—the lady of the Uzumaki clan was undoubtedly one of the greatest beauties in the world. Her hair was an even brighter, more vibrant red than that of her own son—although unlike Naruto's, which seemed to ripple with nonexistent winds (winds Kushina was more than certain he conjured himself just because he was a bit vain), Kushina's hair fell like a smooth, flowing crimson waterfall. She had flawless alabaster skin that seemed to give off a faint glow, making her appear almost divine, and a heart-shaped face made even lovelier by her brilliant violet eyes.
"Mother… mother-in-law," both Naruto and Milim greeted at once, making Kushina's left eyebrow twitch. She was still not ready to accept her son's supposed relationship with the overly spirited girl; Milim was simply too intense for her sweet, calm baby.
"So… can I break into the castle for my cuddle time?" Milim naturally wanted to know if she would be allowed to do so. She was going to anyway—nothing and no one would ever keep her from her cuddle time. Still, it was better to have permission; it would spare her the trouble of coming up with increasingly flamboyant ways of sneaking into the castle, just to prove that the great Milim could never be stopped.
The tic in Kushina's eyebrow grew even more pronounced at the girl's brazen question. In the end, she simply let out a weary sigh. Perhaps Miray was right—perhaps she should simply allow her son to associate with whomever he pleased. After all, with the exception of Milim—who was, to put it gently and kindly, "a hyperactive little sugar ball"—all his other friends were certainly decent and well-mannered people… even if Char-Char did have the unfortunate habit of bursting into song at the slightest provocation.
"It'll drive Dumbledore mad," Kushina said, as though that alone were enough of an answer. And, in truth, it was. After all, what better way to test the competence of a headmaster than to see how he would handle a problem the size of Milim? Besides, it would be amusing to see what schemes the girl would invent to irritate the old man.
After that, Kushina paused briefly as she sank onto another sofa in the room, thinking of the best way to continue the conversation.
"Besides, we'll need ways to distract him, since Britain has a fair share of… deficiencies and shortcomings Naruto isn't used to," Kushina declared, prompting both Naruto and Milim to exchange a glance before asking a simple question.
"How bad is it?" Milim didn't really care—she was only interested in how the situation would affect Naruto. And Naruto himself only wanted to know which deficiencies he might be able to compensate for before being forced to go to Britain.
"They're racist, they have a stagnant, isolationist economy that's one breath away from collapse, and… they're inbred idiots."
None of this really bothered either of the two youths; after all, they were perfectly aware of it. The insult "inbred English pig" had become popular for good reason a few centuries back.
After that, Kushina let silence blanket the room for a good while, one neither her son nor the Dragon King's daughter had the slightest intention of breaking. After all, neither had any idea what to say… Well, Milim had plenty she could say, of course, but at that moment, she honestly didn't want to annoy her… at least not yet.
Finally, after about half an hour, Kushina let out a sigh and fixed Milim with an intense gaze, making the dragon princess immediately realize she was about to ask something of her.
"I need you to give me one of your fangs."
Though she knew her request had been quite abrupt—after all, for the High Dragons, their fangs were essentially priceless treasures—Kushina knew two things about Milim:
Number one, the girl appreciated people being direct with her.
Number two, she would do absolutely anything for her son.
Well, it was all for her son's sake. After all, the Britons were so idiotic that they still used wands to perform magic, and her son would burn through any wood simply by the sheer force of his power.
"What for?" Milim asked with curiosity. Normally people asked her for blood, or even hair—but a fang… this was only the second time, and the first hadn't gone particularly well.
"Because the ivory of your fangs is the only material strong enough not to burn when my son channels magic through a wand made from it," Kushina explained simply.
"You'll need a very powerful core, and several focusing gems to make it functional," Milim said calmly as she regarded her mother-in-law. After all, wands made from tooth-ivory were much more resistant, but they channeled magic less efficiently. That was why wood was used instead of ivory… Well, that, and the fact that very few people had the courage to try hunting creatures with fangs large enough to make a wand.
"I've got that covered," Kushina replied as if it were nothing.
After that declaration, Milim simply hummed to herself for a couple more minutes before looking Naruto directly in the eyes. Her boyfriend only shrugged, making it clear that it was entirely her decision.
Finally, she opened her mouth wide and signaled to Kushina that she could take whichever fang she wanted. And since Kushina didn't particularly care which one, she conjured a pair of tongs, gripped one of the teeth, and gave it a sharp tug—yanking it out in a single motion. A new fang instantly grew in its place. Soon after, the small fang—barely more than a centimeter long—expanded to nearly fifty centimeters, once the magic that had kept it small and proportional to Milim's current form dissipated when it was no longer attached to her body.
"Miray will take you to Britain tomorrow for the rest of your supplies," Kushina said before leaving the room. Now she needed to find a core strong enough not to burn out.
"I think she's starting to accept me," Milim chirped happily, earning a smile and a slightly tighter hug from Naruto. Leave it to Milim to think his overprotective mother would accept that her son had a girlfriend.
End of Chapter.