Home/The very suspicious chick of the Blue Dragon clan/ch 37

Chapter 37

"Oh, it's so cold…"

Winter had come again to the Blue Dragon Palace.

This was already the third winter she'd experienced, yet she couldn't get used to this level of cold.

Even with the black sheep's wool that Taeo had sent her piled on top of her blanket, Aran was shivering.

"When will this fire resistance of mine ever fully mature?"

In her previous life, Aran had reached a point where she barely felt heat or cold—and for a while, she'd thought it was just because she'd endured so much hardship that her tolerance had increased.

What a ridiculous thought.

Later, she learned that Aran possessed fire resistance superior to anyone else's.

That was why she could withstand not only heat but also cold.

But not yet.

"Oh, it's cold…"

Shivering, she burrowed under the blankets and decided to practice her ability.

It had been over a year since she recovered her ability, and she'd been training day and night ever since.

As a result, Aran could now fill about one wall's worth of space with whatever scene she wished.

She'd only shown it to the birds that occasionally visited, so she wasn't sure how perfect it looked to human eyes.

With the Divine Beast Festival only a few months away, Aran had no choice but to train frantically.

Just because she was cold, she found herself recalling the Vermilion Bird Palace for the first time in a while.

The red tiles gleaming in the sunlight, the pillars adorned with gold reliefs, the pomegranate flowers filling the garden, the hot springs that bubbled even in winter…

No matter how despicable the people of the Vermilion Bird Palace were, she missed the warm heat of the southern lands.

In her illusion, she felt as if her freezing fingertips were slowly thawing.

She was so focused that she didn't hear the door open.

Creak—the door slid open, and Yeon entered the room.

"Huh?"

Yeon stared at the wall where the window should have been, her jaw dropping.

Because there stood a golden pillar beneath a red-tiled roof she'd never seen before.

"Arani, what's this? Where is this?"

"Ah…!"

Only then did Aran realize Yeon had entered the room, and she hastily erased the illusion.

The Vermilion Bird Palace vanished as if it had been a dream.

But the problem remained.

Her eye color must have changed, and markings must have appeared around her eyes.

Aran, who had only been peeking out from under the blanket, pulled the black sheep's wool over her head and flopped down as if collapsing.

"Zzz… zzz…"

As Aran suddenly pretended to sleep, Yeon tilted her head.

"Huh? Is Arani sleeping?"

"Mmm… Arani is sleeping…"

Aran did her utmost to fake sleep, but her body trembled with anxiety.

She couldn't let her identity as a Vermilion Bird be discovered yet…!

Could this kind of acting fool Yeon? Yeon wasn't a complete baby anymore…!

While she nervously kept up the pretense, Yeon spoke in a resigned tone.

"Huh? If Arani's sleeping, okay. I'll come back later."

Then she glanced back at where the red roof had been and tilted her head once more.

"That's strange? I could've sworn there was a golden pillar over there. Did I see wrong…?"

While Aran fretted beneath the black sheep's wool, Yeon sighed and murmured.

"Well, there's no red roof in the Blue Dragon Palace anyway. I must be seeing things."

Aran patted her chest in relief.

Thank goodness dragons had poor eyesight.

---

A few days later, the twins were summoned by the master.

It was because they'd gotten into a fierce scuffle in the corridor and broken a wall.

Cheongun looked at Min as a matter of course and asked.

"Why did you do it this time?"

Min lifted his head, as if wronged.

"It's not Min's fault! Daddy always hates Min…!"

It was obvious to anyone that Cheong Min was currently the Blue Dragon Palace's representative troublemaker.

Still, Min might make shameless excuses, but he wasn't one to deny his actions.

At that, Cheongun's gaze turned to Yeon.

At once, her normally gentle lips scrunched up, and she looked like she was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Min declared triumphantly.

"Min just wanted to go play with Arani, but Yeon suddenly showed up and kicked him!"

Yeon shot back without backing down.

"M-Min tried to open someone else's door without permission! How rude!"

As the twins grew more excited, their pronunciation tangled, and Min huffed.

"It's not even your room! What business is it of yours!"

"I—I…! I…!"

"Are you Arani's property like Hyeon Taeo?!"

"No, but…!"

Just as the twins were about to start fighting again in front of the master, they were punished with double the lessons for the next day.

After the twins left the room, Cheongun asked Huirim, who for some reason was smiling.

"Do you know what that was about?"

"From what I've heard, my lord."

Huirim smiled and answered.

"These days, the young master has been trying to guard Lady Aran's room like some kind of bodyguard. The Training Master has seen it several times."

"Haha…"

"The Training Master is apparently at a loss for what to do."

Cheongun laughed in exasperation.

It seemed the Blue Dragon family could be divided into a few categories.

First, those who didn't know Aran's secret.

Second, those who knew Aran's secret but pretended not to.

Third, those who tried to protect Aran's secret.

"Will it really be alright to bring Aran to the Divine Beast Festival?"

At Cheongun's question, Huirim carefully answered.

"Personally, I'd recommend not bringing her, but the young miss wants it so badly. Besides, the Great Lord of the North specifically requested it."

Cheongun slowly nodded.

Aran, who never asked for anything, had recently shown great interest in the Divine Beast Festival and expressed her desire to go several times.

If he left her behind, she might easily misunderstand that it was because she wasn't of Blue Dragon blood.

Would it be better to openly acknowledge that she was a Vermilion Bird and protect her more actively?

But Aran's eagerness to go to the imperial capital might be because she wanted to keep an eye on the Vermilion Bird people from close by…

And if by some chance Aran chose the Vermilion Bird Palace… what then? Would he have to let her go, reluctantly?

Just as Cheongun was feeling gloomy at even a brief hypothetical—

Suddenly, the light at the window flickered wildly, and his vision abruptly darkened.

Where Huirim had been sitting, he now saw Aran, in bird form, perched on the windowsill.

The flower-shaped markings around her eyes—which he'd never actually seen before—were beautifully visible.

Entranced by those markings, Cheongun barely came to his senses and tried to gauge where Aran was.

As he looked further, yellow tiles came into view.

The technique of gilding tiles with gold powder to make them shine could only be used in one place on this continent.

"…The imperial palace."

The moment he murmured to himself, the vision vanished.

Huirim tilted his head as if he'd heard something strange.

"Pardon?"

"No, I mean…"

Cheongun shook his head lightly.

"I was just thinking that visiting the imperial palace might be helpful for Aran as well."

Huirim, knowing nothing, nodded.

"I agree, my lord."

---

The following spring.

At the entrance to the imperial palace, before Hwangnyongmun Gate, the road was packed with carriages, horses, and carts.

Aran, riding in the carriage with Cheongun and the twins, peeked her head out the window and asked.

"Why have we stopped?"

Cheongun, without his ceremonial crown, listened to the surrounding noise and chuckled.

"It seems our daughter's friend has caused some trouble and blocked the road."

In order for direct-line members of the divine beast families to pass through Hwangnyongmun Gate, they had to disarm and wear a restraint that suppressed the use of abilities.

That fact would have been made clear before their departure—yet Taeo was throwing a tantrum, refusing to wear it.

"Eh?"

Aran stuck her head further out the window and looked ahead.

Indeed, just before Hwangnyongmun Gate, she spotted a small honor guard in dark blue robes and a slightly unusual black-blue carriage.

What trouble was that kid causing now?

"Can I go talk to Taeo? If he's throwing a tantrum and not listening, I'll scold him."

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