Lance listened to Mira’s words. He didn’t respond, silently tending to the burn on her wrist.
After finishing with her hand, he finally looked up, meeting Mira’s gaze.
“Can I not make up this excuse?” Lance asked her.
Mira nodded. “Of course you can.” Her eyes stayed fixed on Lance. She had said that earlier just to ease the tension; Lance seemed to feel a bit guilty after realizing he had been injured.
“Of course, the way you feel is the best way.” Although she was a bit curious.
Mira pinched her fingers, suppressing her curiosity.
Lance noticed her subtle movements. He gave a vague hint, dropping just enough information to answer Mira’s unspoken question.
“There are situations I haven’t experienced before.” Lance looked at Mira seriously. “Because I’ve never encountered them, I don’t know what will happen, nor do I have experience dealing with them.”
“Isn’t it an illness?” Mira asked, focusing on the part she cared about the most.
“It shouldn’t be,” Lance answered. After all, other adult dragons had gone through this in the same way.
Mira exhaled. “Then it’s fine.” Although the temperature was strange, if Lance thought it was okay, she would trust his judgment.
“If anything unusual happens, you can call me for help,” Mira said seriously. “Although I can’t help with magic, I can still try to help in other ways.”
Lance watched her. Words he had seen in the data on the Brass Dragon flashed through his mind.
Humans cannot help.
But Lance didn’t tell Mira this; he was afraid of crushing her expectations. Things weren’t as she imagined, and this was something he had to deal with alone.
Mira’s desire to help stemmed from her lack of being needed and affirmed.
Lance straightened his back and leaned in, gently kissing Mira’s forehead.
Mira’s pupils uncontrollably dilated.
Lance froze.
The girl stared at him, momentarily forgetting how to speak. The fragrance wrapped around her, emanating from Lance, filling the air around them.
Lance’s gaze instinctively shifted away. This wasn’t his intention. He had sensed Mira’s need for affirmation, and originally wanted to reach out and gently stroke her hair.
He squinted. The effects of this special time were making him feel uncomfortable.
Mira also panicked. Now, she didn’t need Lance to make up excuses to deceive her. She needed to make up an excuse to deceive Lance. This wasn’t what she had in mind. She didn’t mean it like that.
Mira stood up, unsure whether she should reach out and touch the spot where Lance’s lips had brushed.
Mira had never imagined anything like this.
“I’m going to use the bathroom.” Mira’s heart ached. She didn’t want to use this excuse, but her mouth had moved faster than her brain, and before she realized it, she had already taken several steps away.
Watching Mira leave the world of the Dream Tree, Lance silently withdrew his gaze.
His dragon form kept roaring, wanting to emerge. Lance reached out and pressed his hand against his chest, where his heart scales were burning.
Mira meditated on her mattress.
Apparently, meditating while lying down wasn’t too bad either. Mira closed her eyes, attempting to follow Lance’s instructions to find the sea of energy deep within her heart. However, the tranquil sea didn’t appear. Instead, a kiss was pressed to her forehead, warm and gentle, before it lightly fell and then withdrew.
At first, Mira hadn’t paid much attention to this kiss. What she remembered more was the moment of surprise that followed it.
Meditation, however, had repaired the rest of the process in her mind, making its cause and effect seem unusually full.
Mira opened her eyes again.
She sat up. The soft light from the energy gemstone filled the room enclosed by the curtains. Since Lance was unwell, the afternoon and evening classes had been canceled.
She tried meditating in the room, but her state wasn’t good.
Mira hesitated for a while, then stood up.
She was somewhat bothered by the kiss that had landed on her forehead. Before that kiss, she had defined her relationship with Lance as two magic enthusiasts who happened to meet in the tower.
But now things had become strange. It seemed like something had changed, a change that made Mira feel uneasy and somewhat disturbed.
Clearly, she couldn’t meditate properly or sleep well anymore.
Mira picked up a candlestick. Now that she had a gemstone for lighting, she rarely used the candlestick anymore.
The flame silently appeared at the top of the candlestick, swaying gently with Mira’s movements.
She wandered around the bottom of the tower, eventually deciding to head to the library.
This was her favorite place inside the tower.
Among the countless books, Mira could feel peace. That was exactly what she needed now.
The dim candlelight left two flickering points of light in the lower levels of the tower as Mira’s figure appeared at the entrance of the library.
She wasn’t sure if Lance had been here earlier in the afternoon, but the air carried a faint fragrance, mixed with the scent of leather and paper, filling the entire space.
At first, Mira had been able to detect these unusual smells, but as she gradually became accustomed to them, the scent quickly etched itself into her memory, becoming as ordinary as everything around her.
Today, the origami spirit arrived a bit late. Perhaps it had been busy turning the pasture for the cattle and sheep upstairs.
“Mira.” The origami spirit seemed a bit surprised. “Why are you here?” Normally, this was Mira’s rest time, and she should have been asleep by now.
“I’m a bit sleepless,” Mira answered. “I couldn’t think of any other interesting places, so I came here again.”
The origami spirit lowered its voice, its gaze shifting away from a certain corner.
“Would you like me to take you somewhere else? There are many interesting worlds inside the tower.” The origami spirit thought about what might appeal to a girl Mira’s age. “We can go to the Fairy Snack Street on the 64th floor or the Princess Dressing Room on the 92nd floor.”
“Are those strange places?” Mira was surprised that such places existed inside the tower.
“They were brought by the tower’s previous master,” the origami spirit said, its tone tinged with regret. Before they were replaced with the Fairy Snack Street and the Princess Dressing Room, there had been the World of the Yang Forest and the Snow Plains.
“The lover, you mean?”
“The Black Dragon,” the origami spirit replied.
Mira tilted her head slightly, her gaze moving across the bookshelf. She remembered the origami spirit mentioning that its master was the tower’s owner. The magic dragon had been the previous master, and the current master of the tower needed no further mention.
“Ah, I see,” Mira said, showing a clear expression.
Her gaze circled the shelves, then returned to the origami spirit in front of her.
“I’ll look for some books to read,” Mira said. “When I get tired, I’ll go back to sleep. As for the Fairy Snack Street and the Dressing Room, I’ll pass. I prefer it here.” The library gave off a reassuring aura. She needed peace right now.
The origami spirit looked at the back of the bookshelf. Judging by Mira’s tone, it seemed she wasn’t planning to leave anytime soon.
“Do you want magic books?” the spirit asked. “Spells of the Seventh Ring?”
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“I don’t want to look at spell books,” Mira answered frankly, moving closer to the origami spirit and whispering a few words to it.
“Do you have them?” she asked.
The origami spirit pondered for a moment. “The female attendants who once lived in the tower also liked these kinds of books. We should have some.” However, since the library’s guardian spirit wasn’t him, the origami spirit wasn’t sure. Such books were typically placed on the shelves for display. Its master wasn’t interested in them.
“I’ll go find them,” the origami spirit floated toward a particular section.
Mira waited in place, her head lowered. Every time she was alone, the image of Lance kissing her forehead would appear in her mind.
It was as if he had been enchanted by something. Mira reached up and gently pressed her hand against her forehead.
Anyway, it wasn’t from genuine feelings; it must have been something strange that enchanted him.
Mira didn’t know if this sudden thought in her mind could help her find the answer to why he was enchanted. If not, it would be better to figure out why she cared so much about that light, fleeting touch on her forehead.
Mira walked around, her gaze moving across the books. The books placed on the outer edges, the ones Lance liked to read, were about nature.
She casually picked up one, its title being A Brief Analysis of the Impact of Ocean Currents on Oceanic Magic. It was a complicated topic regarding magical changes. Mira put it back, and the other books were similar—about forests, deserts, and the effects of natural minerals on magical structures. Lance seemed to be interested in magic that originated from nature.
Soon, the origami spirit found the book Mira wanted.
The spirit used magic to lift the books and placed them in front of Mira.
“Here,” the spirit said. “These are the ones.”
Mira picked one up, glanced at it, and then set it back down.
“Is this all?” she asked, pointing to the title on the cover, feeling a bit awkward. Compared to Lance’s books, these were quite strange.
A strange thought briefly appeared in Mira’s mind, but it was quickly suppressed by other reasons.
Reading had its own hierarchy. The most important thing was to persist in reading. She was currently reading fantasy books, but later she could read magical research, delve into profound history, and explore various reference books.
In short, she couldn’t place herself at a low level first.
The origami spirit floated over, reading aloud the title on the cover with a serious tone.
“Succubus and Dragons,” it nodded. “Yes, this is from a succubus lady.”
Mira pointed to another one. “Elves and Dragons—it wouldn’t be something left by elves, right? And Dwarves and Dragons—did dwarves leave this one?”
The origami spirit fell silent for a moment, hesitated, and nodded. Actually, it wasn’t entirely sure. These books had belonged to the ladies who had once lived in the tower. When they left, they didn’t take them, so they had been left behind here.
Mira chose one that didn’t seem too suggestive from the title.
She flipped through the pages for a short while before closing it again.
“Are you staying here?” she asked, looking at the origami spirit, her fingers rubbing the pages.
Mira felt a bit odd. Even though she had found sufficient reasons for herself, she still felt strange in front of the small origami spirit.
Especially with the content of this book—it was clearly not suitable for the origami spirit, but it perfectly catered to her curiosity.
She didn’t want to put it down. She asked the origami spirit, “Can I take it with me?”
The origami spirit nodded. “Of course. Strictly speaking, these books don’t belong to the tower’s master, so if Mira wants them, I can ask the master and give them to you.”
Mira nodded. “Then I’ll take it with me.”
After bidding farewell to the origami spirit, Mira took her candlestick and the book, returning to her room with her newly acquired find.
A shadow emerged from behind the bookshelf.
The origami spirit hurriedly flew toward it. “Master, Mira has left.”
“I know.” Lance looked at him. His gaze passed over the origami spirit and landed on the books Mira had left behind on the desk, books related to dragons.
He paused for a moment before asking the origami spirit, “Didn’t we say we hid all the dragon-related books in the tower?”
The origami spirit felt a bit embarrassed. He hadn’t expected there would be so many fantasy books with dragons as the protagonists.
Strictly speaking, these books didn’t belong to the tower, but had simply been temporarily stored here. The previous library guardian had handled them, not him.
But Lance didn’t seem to be upset. The Blue Dragon wasn’t a tribe that liked to punish others. They were more curious.
Lance stepped forward. He had come here hoping to find some records about dealing with the special period. The only book related to dragon reproduction had been impulsively burned by him. The remaining books in the library didn’t have any content that could directly answer his questions. He had to settle for books on magical potionology and had selected a few recipes for fever-reducing potions.
He wasn’t sure if they would work.
The Blue Dragon lowered his gaze, his eyes on the books on the desk, which came from the Black Dragon Nathaniel’s concubines.
Lance knew those ladies well. The Black Dragon liked fiery, seductive beauties, and his chosen partners were often hybrid creatures from the other side of the Demon’s Scar.
Succubi, Shadow Demons, Fallen Elves.
And the books left behind by them were mostly adult-themed literature.
As though to confirm his suspicion, Lance opened the top book. He lowered his eyes and quickly skimmed the text on one page. However, contrary to his expectations of explicit content, the writing was very atmospheric, and even though he only glanced at one page, he couldn’t help but admire the creator’s ability to craft such an immersive atmosphere.
Lance paused. He suddenly saw a familiar description.
In a fantasy book featuring dragons and succubi, there was a passage that seemed highly professional in its portrayal of special periods. It reminded him of a similar description he had read in a professional book on Brass Dragons.
Some of the content describing the dragons' special periods aligned with the changes that were occurring in his own body. He was emitting strange scents, his body temperature would suddenly rise to unbearable levels, and his heartbeat beneath his heart scales had remained unnaturally fast.
Before the Black Market began, he had to control his current state, or else he might unknowingly burn those around him.
The origami spirit might get ignited by the high temperature, and Mira could get burned.
Just like that morning.
With this in mind, Lance took the "Dragons and Succubi"book that had been on top of the pile.
Mira had long forgotten about the burn.
But a sudden thought struck her, and she unexpectedly noticed something she had never paid attention to before.
It was already very late. Mira wasn’t sure whether Lance had fallen asleep, but she dared not make a sound or light the candlestick in her room.
Under Lance’s magic, the energy gemstone would be extinguished at certain times.
Mira’s room was pitch dark, but this didn’t affect her.
She covered her head with the blanket.
“Shh.” The greatest advantage of a low-level spell was its simple casting method and minimal energy consumption. Mira could cast hundreds of light spells in a row.
However, she had to control the brightness of the light source. It had to be enough to illuminate the words on the book without being too obvious.
Without a light source, the bottom floor of the tower was completely dark. Even with the blanket covering her, some light would spill out with her movements.
Mira had to be very careful.
She didn’t know why she had become so sneaky, but her intuition told her to be cautious.
The light from under the blanket went out, and Mira skillfully cast another spell, continuing to flip to the next page.
She had already forgotten why she was reading this book. In any case, the ladies who had once lived in this tower had left Mira with some interesting things.
----------------------------------------
Lance didn’t need a light source.
The Dragon’s Eyes ensured that he could see clearly in the dark. Long ago, dragons’ dual eyes possessed this ability to help them capture prey even in the night.
Later, with the advent of shapeshifting magic, dragons could transform into human or other high-level beings. While this ability didn’t degrade, it was no longer used for hunting.
Lance opened the book.
His purpose was clear: he was looking for descriptions related to his current condition, and soon, he found the relevant text.
He continued reading, hoping to find a solution to his current problem. In fact, the process went smoothly, and Lance quickly found the passage he was looking for.
Soak in a cold bath, exercise to expend energy, relieve stress, or enjoy a delicious succubus.
Lance closed the book expressionlessly. Although the content had been inspired by professional material, it had clearly undergone significant artistic embellishment. However, the first two methods should still be usable.
He now needed to deal with this special phase. He wasn’t sure how long it would last, but it was best to resolve it before the next monthly gathering.
There was a level in the tower leading to the snow mountains. He could try there.
Lance decided to leave immediately. It was Mira’s rest time, and if he missed this window, she would definitely discover he had left the tower.
He had already revealed too many signs.
Lance sighed. Why was he hiding his identity as a Blue Dragon? He might as well confess to Mira.
But this thought lasted only a moment. Mira was a good child, but he couldn’t fully trust humans. The matter of the Blue Dragon Queen still troubled him to this day.
He had once sought revenge, but his enemy had died of old age.
He had wanted to retrieve his mother’s heart-scale, but if he took the scale, the boundary between the natural world and the Demon’s Scar would be broken.
Lance was a Blue Dragon, and Blue Dragons didn’t like intense conflict. Sometimes he wanted to act like the Black Dragons, solving everything he disliked with force. But if he did that, he might lose his mother’s will.
Protecting nature and magic was the Blue Dragon’s mission, the will he inherited from his mother.
Lance left the room and walked toward the passage leading to the snow mountains.
A flash of light flickered briefly, as though someone had momentarily shifted their gaze. Lance looked in the direction of the light source. It was pitch black, and there was nothing there.
He furrowed his brows.
Before she knew it, it was already dawn.
Mira yawned and crawled out of her blanket. She took a deep breath of the cold air. Although she had gotten out of bed several times during the night to get some fresh air, it still felt too stuffy.
It felt so good to breathe freely.
Mira placed the book she had finished reading to the side, shook her head, and felt that her condition was still fairly good.
But that was for now. In a little while, she’d probably start feeling sleepy again.
Mira sighed. She had told herself a few times that she would read one more page before going to sleep, but after a few pages, she had ended up finishing the whole book.
And then, the sun had risen.
Mira got up, changed her clothes, and grabbed the book to return it.
She lifted the curtain and stepped outside, only to see Lance tending to the fire at the stove.
"Good morning, Lance," Mira said in surprise, noticing that he was awake so early.
Lance, who had soaked in glacial meltwater the entire night, looked up. His body was still trembling involuntarily, but when he saw Mira, he managed to force a smile.
"Good morning, Mira," Lance replied.
Mira yawned and naturally struck up a conversation with Lance.
"Do you feel a bit better?"
In fact, not really. Lance felt the coldness seeping into every inch of his body, but the burning heat beneath his heart-scale hadn’t subsided. His body alternated between hot and cold, and despite the robust physique of a dragon, this fluctuating temperature was still uncomfortable for him.
"It’s okay," he gritted his teeth and answered, though the speed at which he added wood to the fire quickened.
Mira, still groggy, didn’t notice his discomfort and yawned again.
That’s when Lance noticed.
The dark circles under her eyes were pretty heavy.
Lance squinted slightly, trying to assess where the dark circles came from.
Last night was supposed to be a time for rest, but Mira had appeared in the library, taken a fantasy book with dragons and princesses as the protagonists from his origami spirit, and returned it early in the morning.
Lance flicked his tail, which had been hidden in the shadows.
The fleeting light last night wasn’t a hallucination. Mira had definitely been secretly doing something she didn’t want him to find out about behind the curtain.
"I’ll make breakfast today," Lance said to Mira. "You don’t look like you’ve rested well, Mira."
Mira’s guilty conscience was immediately triggered, and she became defensive.
"Re-really? I slept pretty well last night," she said, her gaze shifting uneasily.
That was way too obvious, Mira. Lance thought to himself as he clenched his fist inwardly.
"I’m going to the library!" she suddenly declared.