Chapter 63: Staring
Three days later.
Livia returned to the Lava Dragon Court from the Molten Core Plains.
As usual, five heads were squeezed together at the cave entrance, but this time, the look in their eyes was different.
Kalendil stared at her belly, looking like he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Valerion held up a gemstone, but he did so absentmindedly, his eyes constantly glancing toward her abdomen.
Aetheriel squatted in a corner, his whole body emitting tiny electric arcs as he muttered under his breath, "Don't ask, don't ask, don't ask—"
Mihariel held a small notebook, her pen tip hovering over the paper, her eyes shining with frightening intensity.
Valensius disguised himself as a rock, but the rock's position was five meters closer than usual, directly facing her belly.
Livia swept a glance over them.
"What are you looking at?"
Silence.
The five heads shook in unison.
Livia didn't ask further; she walked toward the Lava Lake and lay down.
As soon as her tail touched the ground, Mihariel approached and squatted beside her, notebook open and pen tip ready.
"Mother," she began, her tone as well-behaved as a newly hatched chick, "did things go smoothly this time?"
Livia looked at her.
Mihariel blinked, her face full of innocence.
Livia was silent for a second.
"Smoothly."
Mihariel scribbled two lines in her notebook and continued, "How was the giant? Is he easy to get along with?"
Livia thought for a moment.
"Easy to fool."
Mihariel recorded another two lines and asked, "Then, did he say anything strange?"
Livia's movements paused.
Strange words?
The sentence the giant said while holding her after they were finished flashed through her mind—
"The look in your eyes when you shrink is just like my Pomeranian that was stepped on by a Frost Giant."
She was silent for three seconds.
Then she spoke, her tone calm: "He said I'm like his dog."
Mihariel's pen tip stopped.
Nearby, Kalendil's ears perked up, Valerion's gemstone dropped to the ground, Aetheriel forgot to control his current and shocked himself with a "snap," and Valensius's disguise nearly failed as the rock trembled three times.
Mihariel swallowed hard with difficulty: "A dog?"
Livia nodded.
Mihariel asked cautiously: "What kind of dog?"
Livia recalled: "A Pomeranian."
Silence.
Total silence on the scene.
Mihariel lowered her head and wrote in her notebook:
[Mother said she was described as a Pomeranian by the giant. Note: A Pomeranian is a small breed of dog, petite in size with fluffy fur and a lively personality. Mother must have been in her compressed form at the time. But to use a dog to describe a dragon, the giant's thought process is indeed quite eccentric.]
She finished writing, looked up, and continued to ask: "Then why did he describe you that way?"
Livia thought for a moment.
"He said the look in my eyes when I shrink is like his Pomeranian that was stepped on by a Frost Giant."
Mihariel was stunned: "He keeps a Pomeranian?"
Livia nodded: "Captured during the last war."
Mihariel pressed further: "And then?"
Livia's tone was flat: "He sat on it and killed it."
Silence.
An even longer silence.
Mihariel lowered her head and continued writing:
[The giant once kept a Pomeranian, captured, and later sat on it and killed it. Note: A giant's daily life is beyond a dragon's comprehension.]
She finished writing, closed her notebook, and silently retreated three steps.
Kalendil leaned in and lowered his voice: "Is Mother angry?"
Mihariel shook her head: "Can't tell. Mother's expression is always like that."
Valerion picked up his gemstone, looking confused: "What is a Pomeranian?"
No one answered him.
Aetheriel squatted in the corner, still trying hard to control his current, but the more he tried, the messier it got, his whole body crackling like a small mobile power station.
Valensius continued to disguise himself as a rock, but a small section of his tail tip peeked out from under the rock, twitching gently with unease.
Livia lay by the Lava Lake with her eyes closed, looking as if she were asleep.
But her ears twitched slightly, listening to the movements of that group of hatchlings behind her.
The tip of her tail swayed gently.
——————
Half a month later, an unexpected item was delivered to the Lava Dragon Court.
That morning, the Fire Hawk King flew in carrying a huge hide bag in its beak and landed in front of Livia.
"Gah."
One cry, a double-gah—very much in agreement, meaning "this thing is important."
Livia took the hide bag and opened it.
Inside was a letter.
The stationery was made of animal hide, and the handwriting was crooked, every character looking like a drawing by a giant child who had just learned to write.
[To Livia:
After you left, I thought about it and felt that what I said that day might not have been very appropriate.
I mean that Pomeranian metaphor.
I didn't mean to say you were like a dog on purpose. I just said it offhandedly at the time. That Pomeranian of mine really did have eyes very similar to yours, both with that 'try saying that one more time' look. I've always regretted it after I sat on it and killed it.
So don't be angry.
Next time you come, I'll prepare more treasures for you. I have two more Fragment of Molten Core Heart left, and I'll save them both for you.
Also, I've sent people to look into that Blue Dragon and Copper Dragon. When I find out more, I'll tell you.
—Odrich Seran Dilmullong
Note: Remember to bring more roasted meat]
Livia stared at that letter for a long time.
Nearby, Mihariel approached, standing on her tiptoes trying to see.
Livia handed the letter to her.
Mihariel took it, read it carefully, and then wrote in her notebook:
[A letter of apology from the giant regarding the Pomeranian metaphor. Note: The giant's way of apologizing is very direct: sending treasures + helping to gather intelligence + asking for roasted meat. Simple and crude logic, but effective.]
She finished writing, looked up, and looked at Livia.
"Mother, are you going to write back?"
Livia was silent for three seconds.
Then she walked toward the pile of treasures, fished out a blank piece of animal hide, and wrote a few words with a charcoal pen:
[Understood. Bringing roasted meat next time.]
[—Livia]
She rolled up the hide and handed it to the Fire Hawk King.
"Deliver this to the Molten Core Plains."
The Fire Hawk King nodded, took the letter in its beak, and flew out of the cave.
Mihariel watched the distant red figure, then looked at Livia and asked softly, "Mother, do you have... feelings for that giant?"
Livia looked down at her.
Mihariel felt her skin crawl under the stare and quickly waved her hands: "I was just asking! Just asking!"
Livia withdrew her gaze and lay back down by the Lava Lake.
There was a long silence.
Then she spoke, her tone flat: "He eats roasted meat with great relish."
Mihariel was stunned for a second, then began to record frantically in her notebook.
——————
One month later.
Livia's abdomen began to bulge slightly.
The five heads squeezed in again, this time with even more complex looks in their eyes.
Kalendil took a deep breath, trying to make himself look steady: "Mother, what breed is it this time?"
Livia thought for a moment: "Fire Giant mixed with Red Dragon. There might be some residue from before."
Kalendil was silent for three seconds, then asked softly: "Then... how big will he be in the future?"
Livia looked at him.
Kalendil felt his skin crawl under the stare and quickly explained: "I'm just curious! Just curious!"
Livia withdrew her gaze: "I don't know."
Valerion offered a gemstone, newly excavated and of excellent quality.
"Mother, to nourish your body."
Livia took it and patted his head.
Aetheriel squatted three meters away, his whole body flashing with electricity as he desperately controlled himself not to discharge. He succeeded for three seconds and jumped up excitedly—only to step on his own tail. With a flash of electricity and a "yowl," he lay on the ground twitching.
Mihariel recorded in her notebook:
[Mother is pregnant again. It's a Fire Giant hybrid this time. Brother Aetheriel shocked himself again, the 47th time this month.]
Valensius disguised himself as a rock, squatting at Mihariel's feet, secretly looking at his mother's belly.
A small section of his tail tip peeked out from under the rock, swaying gently.
Livia lay there with her eyes closed, her tail resting loosely on the ground.
The chattering of the hatchlings reached her ears:
"Do you think it'll be a brother or a sister this time?"
"Don't know, but definitely smaller than us."
"How much smaller?"
"Don't know, but definitely smaller."
"Nonsense..."
"Snap!"
"Ow—!"
The tip of her tail moved slightly.
Then she continued to lie there.
At the corner of her mouth, there was a tiny upward curve.