I Raised A Black Dragon

“He went out in the morning yesterday, right? Hasn’t he come back since?”

“No, he said he’d be right back…”

“It can’t take a whole day just to send a radio. What the hell is he doing?” 

Noah was beginning to get anxious. She bit her lips and drank a cup of tea to ease her nervousness. According to Muell, Kyle had left around half an hour after she fell asleep at dawn, and he still hadn’t returned.

Considering that one of the two of their room keys was missing, it was evident that he took one with him, and no matter how deep asleep she was, she could have heard him if he had opened the door and walked in.

Noah fixed her wide-brimmed hat and quickly looked inside the dining area. After their breakfast, she and Muell ascended to the fifth floor to look for Kyle. The room was quiet and only a few passengers occupied the tables, as it was already past breakfast.

She handed a scone filled with blueberry jam a common mother and her child, and peered through the deck beyond the window. Kyle’s height and physique would stand out from a distance, but there was no sight of him anywhere. 

Is he on an undercover investigation?

If he was trying to conceal his identity, it wasn’t a problem, but if he actually did, he would have told her in advance. Somehow, things didn’t feel very good. 

Muell, who had less restrictions on his actions than she did, was sent to the third floor to search for the butler. 

Pretending to take a walk around the deck, Noah glanced at the passengers’ faces, but she only saw groups of men loitering about. She had intentionally wore a veil to cover her face, some men still attempted to approach her. 

She turned her back from the fourth man who blocked her. However, she could not take further steps. Across her was a plain ivory dress. 

Noah never thought she would be a person with a good intuition, but this time, she could accurately guess the woman’s identity without a glance on her face.

“It’s dangerous to be out alone.”

The woman was shorter than her, so Noah could see her face clearly under the veil draped around her. It was her first time seeing her, but she was a woman with all the features she knew well.

Blonde hair, but dark enough to appear brown, and blue eyes.

It was none other than Lenia Valtalere.

Noah offered a tight smile, her heart beating fast. Lenia Valtalere had an outstanding appearance, befitting to be their world’s main character. She wore a bonnet that tied a ribbon under the tip of her chin and even raised a wine glass in one hand. She looked as if she had merely come out for a walk as the other ladies, but her tone was strangely awkward.

“You stand out pretty well even when you cover your face. Many middle-class men in the second-class cabin are headless men who aim for the title of nobility, targeting widows of noble status, lady.”

Lenia need not ask Noah her name. She recognized her at first glance — the same reason Noah didn’t ask, too.

“…Lenia Valtalere.” Noah glanced around, making sure no one was paying attention to their conversation, and firmly pressed her hat to her head.

Strands of her apricot waves fell on her cheek, and as expected, the woman was not surprised. Noah skipped the introduction and asked bluntly. 

“Did you steal the dragon’s egg from the Imperial City?”

Lenia’s face was a little stiff. Noah asked again, barely waiting for her answer.

“The first contact with an egg that had shown no sign of hatching for five hundred years. The first person to know that the egg was nearing hatching. It was you, right?” She confronted her and hastily looked around. 

Mu, Mu! I can’t believe I’m meeting Lenia at this time of all days when Mu is away! It’s a great chance to break the resonance between Mu and Lenia!

“There’s only one way, lady.” Lenia suddenly uttered. 

Noah stared at her face more closely. Then, she noticed Lenia’s face was turning pale and her eyes were shaking uneasily. 

“Remember. There is a way down, but you cannot come back up that way. There is only one way up, only the emergency exit used by the crew. I came to say this.” She spoke, her voice trembling. 

“What are you talking about?”

“The man on this ship with you, hasn’t he come back yet?”

Her words creeped Noah. 

Lenia bit her lips and spoke quickly. “I don’t know why we’re all in the same boat. I thought it would be safe because it was a passenger ship used by aristocrats, but I guess it wasn’t. Still, I can’t deal with it, but you can. Because you, you brought the dragon.”

Noah couldn’t absorb every word she had said at once, but there was one thing she was certain of. Their assumption had been proven true. The egg thief was the heroine, Lenia Valtalere.

“I saw him drop a bead in the hallway yesterday that appeared to be for wiretapping. I never dreamed we’d be on the same boat, but if I get caught, I’ll die. I’m going to die this time.”

“Wait, wait a minute. The bead…” Noah wanted to understand, but there was no time to spare. Someone had called her name.

“Lenia, what are you doing there? Come on in.”

“I’m coming, Father. Lady, I don’t have time to talk right now. I’ve climbed up to the deck, but I can’t stay here for long, and I don’t want to be buried in this vast ocean.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Tomorrow at three a.m. to five o’clock in the afternoon, Room 409. I’ll leave the door open.” Lenia hurriedly whispered. Although Noah wanted to ask more, she didn’t. Even the woman’s eyes seemed desperate.

“Come to me after the man you were with returns. If I’m sure it’s safe on this ship, I’ll let you know everything you’re curious about.”

“No, you have to tell me where he is… Hey!”

Lenia turned her back and returned inside the ship quickly, leaving Noah more anxious than before. Noah bit her lips, conscious of the gaze around her. 

Is that all you have to say?

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