Terra Calendar 1096, April 8
2:42 p.m.
Within Victoria
"Talulah, Talulah!"
"Ah—mm, I'm here. What is it?"
Across the barren land, the column moved steadily forward at her side—yet Talulah abruptly stopped in place.
FrostNova, who had been keeping close, tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean, what is it? I called your name a dozen times and you didn't even hear me."
"…Sorry. I drifted off."
FrostNova immediately smacked Talulah between the shoulders, then pointed at the endless line of people stretching behind them like a long, winding dragon.
"We're about to reach the outskirts of a small mobile city. And this will be our first time stepping into Victoria."
"If you keep spacing out like this, you're going to walk all of Reunion straight into a pit."
Talulah lifted her gaze. Sure enough, the grand outline of the mobile city was visible in the distance. The entire Reunion column was visibly energized—after all, they would finally be able to rest, resupply, and breathe for a while.
They had crossed Leithanien, passed through Siracusa, and—without disaster—arrived on Victorian soil at last.
With Talulah and Patriot present, and with the elite personnel and supplies Ch'en Hui-chieh had arranged before they left, few dared to stand in their way on such a long journey.
Yet the smoother it went, the more uneasy Talulah felt.
She didn't allow that unease to show. Instead, she changed the subject.
"Sorry. I was thinking of my blood kin. I'll focus from here on out—no more careless mistakes."
"…You hopeless little-brother addict." FrostNova sighed, utterly exasperated by Talulah's stubbornness. "Say that to me if you want, but don't you dare bring it up in front of everyone else."
"You don't want my father to 'educate' you again, do you?"
Talulah shivered reflexively.
A Wendigo's "education" was never just a talk. Pain left stronger memories than words ever could.
She knew it was wrong—this excessive closeness she craved with her younger brother. But she couldn't stop herself.
That scorching affection, like a raging blaze, refused to be caged. Every time Chen Mo's face surfaced in her mind, Talulah's body betrayed her—an overwhelming urge to pull him into her arms, to entwine tails with him, to hold him until there was nothing left between them.
She loved him. She doted on him. And if people wanted to call her a deranged sister who was obsessed with her brother, she would bear the insult.
With that thought, Talulah couldn't help clenching and unclenching her hands in empty air, then letting out a long, weighted sigh.
She missed it—his smooth, glossy, thick draconic tail. She wanted to touch it again.
FrostNova saw the whole thing. Her expression twisted in disgust, and she actually took several steps back.
"You're beyond saving. Forget it—I'm not dealing with you."
"Go drown in those filthy thoughts for all I care!"
With that, she minced forward in quick little steps toward Patriot at the head of the column—clearly going to tattle again.
Talulah's tail flicked once. She smiled faintly, already resigned.
I just hope Patriot goes a little easier on me this time…
She was at the very rear of the column now. She prepared to quicken her pace and catch up—
Then, suddenly—
The long leg she'd just stepped out with snapped back.
Talulah's previously relaxed posture tightened like a drawn bow. The familiar features she shared with Chen Mo sharpened into a stern, vigilant mask.
Only after confirming the main force had gone far enough—far enough that nothing here would draw attention—did Talulah sweep her gaze across the desolate surroundings and speak out loud.
"Stop skulking. Come out. You've been following us—what do you want?"
The only reply was the wind, screaming across dead grass and brittle branches, as if her alarm had been nothing but an overworked imagination.
Talulah didn't relax.
Her black sword slid free with a clear ring.
"If you don't show yourself, I will treat you as an enemy with hostile intent toward Reunion—and I will not hold back."
Sword raised, Talulah stood alone. The temperature around her began to plunge.
A deathly cold rushed in, dense and absolute, and her grip on the hilt tightened until the blade vibrated with a low hum.
This wasn't FrostNova's Ice Arts. This chill felt wrong—wrong in a way that made the hairs on her neck rise.
Hot and cold at once. Silent and fervent at once.
What kind of—
Boom.
A lethal flame ignited.
With a whispering roar, violet fire swallowed the withered branches and sparse grass. A ring of ominous dark-purple heat formed and caged Talulah within it, the flames crackling like a living boundary.
Footsteps followed—light at first, then growing heavier, louder, until they felt like they were pounding against her eardrums.
Tap. Tap.
"Reunion Movement. Infected—Talulah."
A woman's voice sounded, smiling.
She walked casually through the freezing flame, as if it were no more than mist.
A Draco—unknown to Talulah—stepped into view.
Platinum hair. Draco traits unmistakable. A posture too relaxed, a smile too glib.
And behind her, in the dead firelight, it almost looked as though the shadow of an enormous dragon was rising and roaring in silent dominance.
Talulah's brows knitted instinctively.
She had never expected to meet another of her kind on this land—someone who shared her bloodline.
A pureblood Draco.
"Why the silence, my kin—daughter of Edward Yatlias?"
The platinum Draco's smile deepened, almost playful, almost intimate.
"You greet me with coldness? How heartbreaking."
She held a halberd in one hand. With the other, she extended a palm toward Talulah—an invitation that felt more like a command.
"If you don't want to waste time with me here, then step out of death."
"As a Draco… you won't disappoint me."
Sparks snapped. Dead branches and grass turned to drifting ash. The violet blaze pressed closer, creeping until it licked at Talulah's boots.
"I have nothing to discuss with you, stranger," Talulah said coldly.
In the next instant, deathfire was devoured—ignited, overwhelmed, erased by furious flame.
The dark violet vanished as if it had never existed.
Talulah lowered her blade slightly, eyes hard as she stared at the platinum dragon blocking her path.
"I don't care about my bloodline. I did not come to Victoria to contend for a throne soaked in blood."
"Move. Or you declare yourself an enemy of Reunion."
The platinum Draco didn't retreat. If anything, she looked more entertained.
"Reunion… heh. With you and a pureblood Wendigo, I'm not foolish enough to make an enemy of your organization."
Her gaze traveled over Talulah with open fascination.
"But look at you, red dragon. So powerful. So overflowing."
"I intended to speak with you properly—someone so strong."
"But then… then, in your conversation with that Cautus, I heard something that shook me far more than I expected."
Talulah's pupils tightened.
She heard it.
A bead of sweat slid down Talulah's temple. She had faced foes and disasters without flinching—yet she had not felt this kind of tension.
The platinum Draco's delight only grew. She made no attempt to hide the thrill in her voice.
"Heh—hahah. I came here expecting a simple meeting."
"But I never imagined… never imagined…"
"Ah—how fortunate. This surprise—so sudden—has my whole body trembling. My heart surges, my blood sings."
"Ah—ah—just thinking about it, I can't return to calm. The emotion inside me is roaring like your flames—burning, burning, burning!"
She tipped her head back, laughter threaded with excitement. Slender fingers traced down the line of her throat to her chest, pressing lightly as if to feel her own heartbeat hammering.
Under Talulah's clenched jaw and darkening expression, the platinum Draco's joy became almost radiant. She cradled the rise of her chest, her thick tail swaying with unrestrained pleasure.
"Red dragon Talulah—talk to me."
"Speak with me, and I will stop pestering you."
Her smile sharpened, glittering like a blade.
"About everything… about your blood-kin younger brother."
....
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