Thinking back, Tiana and her group had landed nearby and hadn’t left yet.
Perhaps they were guarding them while he and Hill harvested the wild dragons.
“Oh, thank you so much! You’ve helped me out quite a bit.”
Tiana leaned her head toward Siloque and whispered, “The thing you gave me was a little dangerous, but it worked wonders. Progress has been incredibly fast—I might even become a mother as early as next month.”
“I just threw a bomb; I didn’t really do much. It’s all the result of your own hard work, Tiana.”
If it weren’t for Tiana’s persistent courtship beforehand, Edriel wouldn’t have opened her heart so quickly.
“Gahahaha! You’re being humble again. I really should give you something in return. Let me think…”
“That really isn’t neces—”
Siloque paused as a thought occurred to him.
“How about this? For the return gift, please don’t interact with any humans besides us for the rest of this year. Especially if you run into someone wearing all purple, run away immediately. If that person can also use lightning magic, you should take Edriel and run even faster without looking back.”
“Eh? Young man, do you want me to favor you? That won’t work. I already have a master and a wife…”
‘You’re overthinking things.’
Siloque simply didn’t want Tiana to run into any believers of the Evil Demon Society.
He deliberately lowered his voice and asked with authority, “Can you do that?”
“Oh… okay. Don’t be so serious. If it’s just about avoiding humans, I’ll promise you that. But that can’t count as a return gift—”
“Your name is Mr. Siloque, right?”
Edriel pulled Tiana back.
“Regardless, you and your sister, Hill, helped us. We are truly grateful. So, if there is ever a time when you and Hill need our help, we will assist you with all our strength. Just once, for anything you ask. This will be our gift of thanks. How does that sound?”
“Hmm… that’s fine.”
Siloque agreed casually.
Gaining a dragon’s promise wasn’t bad.
‘I hope the day I have to play this card never comes.’
“Heave-ho.”
Hill, who had been listening silently, stood up as well.
“Um… before we go, Hill wants to touch Edriel’s horns. Is that okay?”
Edriel smiled and lowered her head.
“Ohh! Compared to the demon big sister’s, these aren’t as hard. The patterns are clearer, and the texture is a bit rougher.”
Once Hill had touched them enough—
“Tiana and I will take our leave now. Take care, you two.”
Edriel stayed close to Tiana, rubbing Tiana’s head.
“Tiana, Ms. Edriel, make sure you get along well!”
Hill smiled and waved vigorously, though the blood on her face made her look a bit scary.
“Thank you both. We’ll be going now.”
Edriel bowed politely and stretched her long neck out, nuzzling both Hill and Siloque.
“No time to lose. Let’s go find a place to build our nest.”
“Gah? Ms. Edriel! Isn’t this a little too fast…?”
“Stop talking.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Hill whispered to Siloque, “Whenever she talks to Edriel, all that boisterous energy of hers just disappears.”
“She’s a bit like our Dad.”
“I hope she doesn’t awaken any weird interests… like candles and whips.”
‘What?’
Just as Siloque was about to ask for clarification—
“Oh, right! I almost forgot.”
Tiana extended her long tail, her tail tip curled around a small object which she handed to Siloque.
It was a slender flute made of bone with only a single blowhole.
Siloque’s face darkened. He remembered what this was—
“This is an extra piece of tailbone I grew earlier. Keep it as a souvenir! If you blow into it, it makes a unique sound. Others won’t understand it, but I can hear it no matter how far away I am. Though it might not work across different layers.”
Tiana laughed heartily.
“Oh… thank you.”
Siloque felt it was a bit creepy to have an item made from someone else’s bone.
Still, since it was a kind gesture, he put it into his Ring Chart.
“Hill wants one too!”
“Sorry about that, little Hill. Next time my tail grows some more, I’ll make one for you.”
Tiana scratched her chin awkwardly with her tail.
Hill looked regretful.
Seeing her like that, Siloque just gave the bone flute to her.
“This is a dragon’s bone…”
Hill stroked it with excitement.
“Thank you, Brother! Hill will treasure it.”
“It doesn’t matter which of us holds it.”
To Siloque, his sister’s smile was the best souvenir.
“Young man, I’ll make another one for you next time.”
“That really isn’t necessary, thank you.”
Siloque quickly declined Tiana’s kindness. He was truly not interested.
The two dragons raised their wings, creating a loud whooshing sound as they took off.
“Until we meet again! Decapitation Sisters!”
“Goodbye.”
After Tiana and Edriel spoke, they flew away.
“What do you mean sisters? I’m a guy. At least call us the Beheading Duo.”
Siloque’s small complaint drifted away in the wind.
Hill jumped up and shouted goodbye.
‘We’ll see each other again soon, Tiana.’
‘I’ll need your help again later.’
‘How should I put it? It seems like dragons are creatures that become very honest and persistent once they’ve confirmed their feelings.’
‘Once they confirm their feelings, they head straight for reproduction.’
‘If only Beiren could be that proactive with me. I wonder when she’ll be ready.’
Siloque fell into a delusion.
‘Beiren wearing black lace lingerie, having a deep and meaningful exchange with her… and then the next morning, she helps me with breakfast while wearing only my shirt—the legendary boyfriend shirt. Though I haven’t bought a shirt yet, so at most she’d be wearing my T-shirt. That sounds pretty good too…’
“…Brother, you’re thinking about something lewd, aren’t you?”
‘Uh, has my sister actually evolved to the point where she can read my thoughts from my expression?’
Siloque subconsciously touched his face.
There wasn’t much of a change, though it did feel a little hot.
He pulled a Quick-Dry Towel from his Ring Chart and spoke as if nothing were wrong.
“…………No, I’m not. Here, Hill, let me help you wipe the blood off your body.”
Hill stared at Siloque with a calm, clear gaze.
Eventually, she sighed and gave a light smile.
“Then I’ll leave it to you, Brother. I’ll help wipe you clean in a bit too.”
“Sure.”
Siloque helped his sister wipe away the remaining stains and pulled out a comb to tidy her hair.
“By the way, it’s a shame we didn’t get to see Edriel’s humanization.”
True, Edriel could also humanize.
However, Siloque was more curious about how two female dragons were supposed to have children together.
Even with magic to assist, it probably couldn’t be done just by “grinding tofu,” right?
Later, he and Hill found a lakeshore and fought some three-eyed, antlered fish monsters called Fenru Monsters.
They stayed there grinding until 4:00 PM before finally leaving.
[Level Up!]
They both went up a level, though it felt less efficient than hunting wild dragons.
Finally, there was one more thing.
Siloque and Hill found a hidden spot.
He used Alchemy to create a square underground space out of the surrounding materials and then placed the Transmission Gate he had bought from Asmodi inside.
He did the same on the first floor and the second floor.
With these Transmission Gates, they could travel directly from the first floor to the third floor, saving them from having to fight the Boss every time they wanted to go to the next layer.
Although the teleportation function was unlocked on Siloque’s Ring Chart, it could only transport the user.
Since Hill didn’t have a Ring Chart, Siloque had to set up these gates specifically for her.
***
At 7:32 PM.
Cass and his companions finished their grinding for the day.
They had bought movie tickets and were currently sitting at a table in the lobby waiting.
Today was the final showing of Yes! PreCure Elulu GoGo! Adventure in the Kingdom of Sweets.
Cass had a specific watching habit: the first time was for enjoyment, the second was to analyze the storyline, and then he would post a review on social media.
Once the BD was released, he would buy it to watch on the big screen at home with snacks and drinks.
After finishing this showing, he planned to buy the limited edition collaboration chocolate merchandise available only at the theater.
Getting that unique packaging would complete his collection.
Before coming to the cinema, Cass had also stopped by the café where Kersey worked.
It felt a bit strange to go alone to a classmate’s workplace.
He felt embarrassed just thinking about the scene.
He didn’t usually have such a habit, and going there felt like it would only distract Kersey from her work.
In reality, every time Cass found the time to go, Kersey would at most give him a greeting before getting busy again.
The time they spent chatting was less than when they were exploring the Dungeon together.
If it hadn’t been for Siloque telling him to check on her when he had time, Cass wouldn’t have wanted to put Kersey in such an awkward position…
He felt like there was really no point in going.
He decided not to bother her anymore unless it was necessary.
‘Whatever, stop thinking about it.’
‘Today, I’ll cherish the memories of watching this with Siloque and enjoy the final showing.’
‘Hertanid, do you want to watch it together? I’ll buy a movie ticket for you. This movie even moved Siloque to tears!’
‘What does it matter to me if that boy thinks it’s good?’
Hertanid had uncharacteristically woken up early.
Recently, Cass had figured out that unless something special was happening, Hertanid usually slept until 7:00 or 8:00 PM.
‘Besides, when you watch it, I can perceive information through your eyes. I’ve already seen it.’
‘Really! Let me tell you, when Ailulu was jumping between the buildings to fight the enemies…’
‘Oh, great. I’ve talked too much.’
Listening to Cassia excitedly starting to brag in his head without stopping, Hertanid regretted opening his mouth.
‘I should have just stayed asleep.’
Hertanid didn’t interrupt Cassia.
He simply listened intently, chiming in occasionally.
‘When Al was seriously injured and slammed into the ground, it really made me…’
“Oh, it really is Cass.”
Hearing the voice, Cass stopped his mental conversation with Hertanid and looked up.
A girl with ethereal vibes and long silver hair tied into three-strand braids sat down directly across from him.
She was wearing casual clothes and sat with a proper posture, naturally resting her hands on her lap.
Her purple eyes were fixed on him, a bright smile gracing her face.
Next to her sat another purple-haired girl in casual clothes.
Even while sitting, she was a head taller than Cass, and her expression was icy.
He remembered her… Lorin.
And this one is…
As if reading the confusion in Cass’s eyes, the girl with the face as exquisite as a doll parted her pink lips.
“Hello. I am Parenoa Kolo from B Class. You’ve probably met my friend Lorin. You can just call me Parenoa.”
Parenoa shook the two movie tickets in her hand; she looked very excited.
“We came to see a movie today, too.”
It was an R-rated movie titled Human Skin Hotel.