When she came out of the study at Frost Mark Manor, it was already getting dark.
Xuanxi was carrying the stack of notes that belonged to Valeris’s mother, and Hildegrifa stood beside her.
Shuanghen Furen stood at the study door, her deep blue eyes especially gentle in the twilight. She glanced at the sky outside the window, then at the notes in Xuanxi’s arms.
“It’s already dark,” Shuanghen Furen said, her voice as soft as snow falling on cotton. “It takes almost an hour to get to the teleportation array from here. That’s too much trouble. If you don’t mind, please stay here tonight.”
Xuanxi wanted to refuse, but the words died in her throat.
Because Shuanghen Furen was right: it really was dark, it really would take a long time to get to the teleportation array, and she was holding a stack of notes. She definitely wouldn’t be able to sleep without reading them all tonight.
“Then we’ll impose on you, madam,” Hildegrifa answered for her.
Shuanghen Furen smiled slightly and turned to Valeris, who was standing nearby. “Take them to the guest rooms.”
Valeris nodded.
“Follow me.”
The wall sconces in the corridor were already lit, casting halos of warm yellow light on the walls. Valeris walked in front, her light gold fishtail braid swaying with each step.
“The guest rooms are in the east,” she said.
The three of them walked through the corridor, passing door after door.
Xuanxi counted at least four doors, each with a different decoration: some had dried flowers, some had small wooden plaques, some had a little wind chime.
Valeris stopped at the innermost door. She pushed it open and stepped aside to reveal a small but clean guest room. A large bed sat in the center, the white sheets gleaming faintly silver in the moonlight.
On the nightstand was a small lamp. The curtains were half-open, and through the window one could see the flower fields outside.
Valeris stood at the door, her ice-blue eyes fixed on Xuanxi and Hildegrifa.
“This is the only guest room left in our house,” she said. “You’ll have to make do with sharing.”
Her tone was as calm as usual, but she stressed the word “only” a bit more than normal. Her gaze moved from Xuanxi’s face to Hildegrifa’s, then back, a hint of mischief in her ice-blue eyes.
Xuanxi questioned, “Didn’t we pass several others just now—”
“Those are all under renovation, and some guest rooms are being remodeled.” Valeris’s answer came quickly, as if she had prepared it long ago. Her expression didn’t change, but her eyebrows twitched slightly, as if she had gotten away with her scheme.
Hildegrifa stood next to Xuanxi, her silver-white hair gleaming in the lamplight. Her expression was exactly the same as always: cold, calm, unreadable, but Xuanxi noticed her cheeks beginning to redden.
“Then we’ll take this room.” Hildegrifa’s voice was as flat as usual, without a ripple. But when she said it, her gaze didn’t look at Valeris or at Xuanxi—instead, she stared at some point above the door frame, as if studying a wood grain there.
“Toiletries are in the bathroom.” Valeris straightened up from the door frame, turned around, and walked away.
After two steps, she stopped without turning her head and tossed out a line: “Call me if you need anything. My room is at the other end of the corridor.” Her tone was as light as if she were humming a tune.
Xuanxi stood there, holding the stack of notes, her face beginning to burn, from the base of her neck all the way to her earlobes. She didn’t dare look at Hildegrifa. She stared at a small chip of paint on the door frame for several seconds, her mind a jumbled mess.
‘I could sleep on the sofa,’ she thought, but she glanced around the room and found there wasn’t one.
‘I could go squeeze in with Valeris,’ she thought, but Valeris had already left, and she had a feeling that if she made that suggestion, Hilde would show her why the flowers were so red.
“Go on in,” Hildegrifa’s voice came from behind her.
Xuanxi took a deep breath and walked into the room with her notes.
The room was quiet for a moment. Xuanxi stood by the bed, holding the notes, not sure where to look. Hildegrifa stood beside her.
“You go wash up first,” Hildegrifa said.
“Okay.”
Water sounded from the bathroom. Hildegrifa stood by the window, looking out at the flower fields. The moonlight cast her shadow on the floor, long and pale. She didn’t know what she was thinking—perhaps nothing at all. She just stood there, listening to the sound of water.
When Xuanxi came out of the bathroom, she was wearing a light blue nightgown—prepared by Valeris, with a small ice lotus embroidered on the collar. Her ink-green hair hung loose over her shoulders.
“Your turn,” Xuanxi said.
Hildegrifa nodded and went into the bathroom.
Xuanxi sat on the edge of the bed, opened the stack of notes. The pages were yellowed, the edges worn, some handwriting blurred.
She flipped to the page about “Heavenly Fate Mark” and, with the help of the lamp, read word by word. The handwriting on the page was a bit messy, as if the writer was in a hurry.
The water in the bathroom stopped, and Hildegrifa came out wearing the same light blue nightgown as Xuanxi, her silver-white hair loose over her shoulders. She sat down next to Xuanxi, and the mattress dipped slightly.
“Find anything?” she asked.
Xuanxi moved the notes toward her. “This says something about the system of the Eastern Dragon Domain.”
Hildegrifa tilted her head to look with her.
“The Eastern Dragon Domain currently honors the Canglong as its supreme.” Xuanxi’s finger moved across the page.
“The Canglong Clan is the highest ruler. The purest-blooded Canglong is called the ‘Dragon Emperor.’ Below the Dragon Emperor are the Four Direction Dragon Kings, each guarding one direction, in charge of the four major territories: East, West, South, and North.”
“It’s different from the Western Dragon Domain,” Hildegrifa said.
“Completely different.” Xuanxi turned to the next page.
“The Western Dragon Domain has dozens of families each holding their own territory, constantly fighting among themselves. But the Eastern Dragon Domain is a unified dynasty, with the Canglong as supreme and the Four Direction Dragon Kings as assistants, a layered feudal system, very orderly.”
On the page was a rough map. In the center was the royal city of the Canglong, with a large city in each of the four cardinal directions, labeled as the territories of the Four Direction Dragon Kings. Each city had dense annotations in ancient Eastern script, names that Xuanxi couldn’t fully read.
“The Four Direction Dragon Kings form the Council of Elders,” Xuanxi continued reading. “The Council of Elders is responsible for assisting the Dragon Emperor in handling government affairs.”
“Sounds complicated,” Hildegrifa said.
“Yeah, a very complicated system,” Xuanxi nodded. “But it’s very stable.”
She turned to the next page, and a hand-drawn palace diagram appeared. The palace was built against a mountain, layer upon layer, extending from the foot all the way to the peak.
At the highest point was a massive hall, labeled with the words “Sky Vault Palace.” In front of the hall stood four dragon pillars, corresponding to the Four Direction Dragon Kings.
“Sky Vault Palace…” Xuanxi murmured the words. “This must be the Dragon Emperor’s bedchamber.”
Hildegrifa’s gaze fell on the diagram, her amethyst eyes reflecting the lamplight. “You’re definitely going there.”
Xuanxi looked up. “What?”
“You’ll go,” Hildegrifa said, her tone calm, as if stating a certainty. “Go there, find your people, find your mother, find the truth behind your coming to the West.”
Xuanxi looked at her, at those amethyst eyes. The moonlight outside the window and the lamplight intertwined, casting a soft glow on her face.
“Will you come with me?” Xuanxi asked.
Hildegrifa didn’t answer. She reached out and brushed the strands of hair falling across Xuanxi’s cheek behind her ear. Her fingertips slid across Xuanxi’s skin, cool and ticklish.
“I will,” she said. “Let’s sleep first. We still have to travel tomorrow.”
Xuanxi’s lips curved into a smile. She closed the notes, placed them on the nightstand, turned off the lamp, and the room went dark, leaving only the moonlight outside the window. The two lay down, one bed, two pillows, one blanket.
Lying in bed, through the blanket and nightgowns, Xuanxi could still feel Hildegrifa’s body heat. Warm and steady, just like her.
“Xige.”
“Mm.”
“Is your bed more comfortable than this one?”
“Is it bigger?”
“Big.”
“Bigger than this one?”
“…Big.”
Xuanxi’s lips curved. She rolled over to face Hildegrifa. The moonlight fell on Hildegrifa’s face, her silver-white hair spread on the pillow, her amethyst eyes staring at the ceiling.
“Xige.”
“Mm.”
“Thank you for coming with me.”
Hildegrifa turned her head, her amethyst eyes meeting amber-gold eyes. The moonlight flowed between them like an invisible river.
“You’re welcome,” she said.
Xuanxi looked into her eyes for a few seconds, then closed her own.
“Good night.”
“…Good night.”
The room fell silent. The moonlight outside the window slowly shifted, moving from the floor to the wall, from the wall to the ceiling. Xuanxi’s breathing became steady and long, like a calm lake. She fell asleep.
Hildegrifa turned her head to look at her.
The moonlight cast soft shadows on her face. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, her body relaxed, in a posture that only appears when one is with someone they trust completely.
She propped herself up on her arm and slowly leaned in. Her amethyst eyes shone like two stars in the moonlight, studying Xuanxi’s closed eyes, her straight nose, her slightly pursed lips.
Closer. The distance between them was now close enough to feel the warmth of each other’s breath.
She stopped, pondering a question: If she kissed her, would Xuanxi wake up? If she did wake up and saw her this close, what would she think? Would she feel violated? Would they stop being good friends starting tomorrow?
She pulled back, only a little, but she still felt unsatisfied.
Then she turned her head and lightly pressed her lips to Xuanxi’s cheek. So light, lighter than a falling blossom landing on water.
Xuanxi didn’t wake. Her breathing remained steady and long. She noticed nothing.
Hildegrifa lay back down, staring at the ceiling. Her silver-white hair spread on the pillow, mingling with Xuanxi’s ink-green strands.
She closed her eyes and only then realized her heart was beating very fast.
‘It’s because I’m too tired today. Definitely too tired.’
We love our autism tsundere dragon