Lance took a moment to process her words, following Mira's concerned gaze downward, to his legs, which were charred black and stiff, still giving off the scent of burning.

The blue dragon remained silent. If a human had suffered such injuries, even after the magic of Rebirth, they wouldn’t be able to speak as easily as he could now.

His body was immobile, stiff and numb, and although his consciousness had returned, it didn’t feel good.

Pain was the most prominent sensation he was experiencing. Compared to the pain, everything else felt insignificant.

He slightly furrowed his brows, thinking about how to respond to Mira’s question.

“I’m fine,” Lance wanted to say. For a dragon, although the injury looked severe, it wasn’t fatal.

What bothered him now were the persistent waves of pain and the loss of magical power due to his humanoid form.

Injuries affected the body’s state, and not just for humans—dragons were no different.

Lance was feeling quite frustrated.

Seeing that he hadn’t spoken for a while, Mira thought his energy had been exhausted.

After Rebirth magic is cast, there’s typically a significant period of energy depletion.

When she was an apprentice, Mira had recorded data on the effectiveness of Rebirth magic at the Magic Energy Hub.

His performance mirrored the data's conclusions: first, a burst of excitement, followed by gradual stabilization as magical energy was absorbed.

His injuries were severe.

A large area of burns across his chest, waist, abdomen, and legs, all blackened.

That Lance could even breathe was a miracle.

“If you’re too tired to speak, you can rest,” Mira said to him. “Rebirth magic can't fully replace a doctor, so it’s normal to feel fatigued. But don’t worry, since you’re a mage, you should know that as long as Rebirth magic can wake you up, your life is no longer in danger.”

Lance stared at her.

"And you?" he asked.

"Me?" Mira looked around. "I’m preparing to set things up here. This will be my home from now on."

"This is the magic dragon's home," Lance corrected.

"It’s not here right now," Mira said. "Everyone in the kingdom knows that after the princess comes of age, she will be sacrificed to the magic dragon. If he comes back and doesn’t find me, it will cause a disaster."

"So you’re the princess?" The blue dragon sized her up. "I didn’t know princesses could use magic."

"That’s not the point," Mira said.

The blue dragon stared at her. "Hiding things, very suspicious."

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"You too," Mira retorted. "You know the magic dragon’s not here, you’re lying in his home, and you’re badly injured. You’re suspicious too."

The blue dragon fell silent.

This was his home. He had simply fallen from the top of the tower.

Mira felt a sense of triumph but quickly silenced herself.

The blue-haired man in front of her was an injured patient.

"It looks like we both have our reasons," Mira lowered her voice. "Why don’t we cooperate? Keep each other's secrets."

The blue dragon looked at her, his eyes filled with doubt.

"I don’t know your secret."

"I don’t know yours either," Mira said. "Isn’t that better? The magic dragon’s not home, and yet I have no choice but to stay here."

Lance thought about it. It was true. Before his black dragon cousin came back to seek revenge, Lance needed to recover to his peak.

He had already experienced the despair of lying in the base of the tower with no one to help him. This girl, who claimed to be the "magic dragon's bride," had saved him. That much was true.

She didn’t seem to pose much of a threat.

"I’ll take that as an agreement," Mira said, standing up. "I’m glad to have you. Lance? That’s your name, right?"

"Yes," the blue dragon replied, reluctantly.

He couldn’t deny that this girl, who had intruded into his home, had somewhat taken control of the situation.

"For now, let’s leave it at that," Mira smiled. "Living together happily."

She had initially thought that replacing the princess as a sacrifice to the magic dragon would be a dangerous move. But now it seemed to be going well—fate had favored her. The magic dragon wasn’t home, and she had found temporary shelter.

The dowry prepared for the princess was enough for her to live comfortably here for a long time, and on her first day in the tower, she had found a new friend at the tower’s base.

She was easily satisfied.

Mira surveyed her surroundings. The bottom floor of the tower was pitch dark.

The little spell she cast illuminated a small area, but the rest remained shrouded in darkness.

The tower had a unique magical property that made its internal space much larger than it appeared from the outside. This was a difficult spatial magic only high tower mages could cast.

Now wasn’t the time to think about that. Mira lightly tapped her cheek with the back of her hand. She needed to make a place to sleep before it got dark.

The young mage turned to look at the blue-haired man lying on the floor.

She couldn’t leave her new friend lying on the ground.

Although he was a bit single-minded, he was still a patient.

Mira tugged at her wedding gown and exhaled deeply.

She left the tower, crossing the open area piled with animal bones, and found her old trunk among the mountainous piles of dowry.

Mira hid in a secluded spot to change back into her clothes. She put away the exquisite wedding gown.

The dress in the trunk shimmered in the light. Mira reached out to touch the expensive fabric. She liked this beautiful dress, but it wasn’t hers—it belonged to the princess, the magic dragon’s bride.

She closed the trunk and looked up at the towering pile of dowry.

"Time to get to work."

Mira moved quickly. She had always been a diligent and capable magic apprentice.

Before the sun set, she had already set up a temporary living space at the tower’s base.

Mira found four thick mattresses from the dowry pile and stacked them two by two, making a comfortable bed.

Since only three medium crystals were left, she didn’t dare use magic and had to run back and forth to carry things.

For the heavy items she couldn’t move, she shifted them little by little. After all, this was the magic dragon’s tower. Apart from Lance, no one else would come here, and no one would see her in such a messy state.

After setting up the bed and a temporary table, Mira lay down on the mattress, breathing heavily.

Mages weren’t physically strong—that wasn’t just a stereotype. Her body sank into the soft mattress, exhausted to the point where she didn’t want to move.

The young girl turned her head and quietly looked at the mysterious man on the floor.

He was asleep. The Rebirth magic had given him only limited energy.

The man on the ground lay sprawled out, his gruesome injuries hard to look at.

Mira sighed, propped herself up, and took another crystal from the pocket of her gray robe.

She stroked the smooth surface of the crystal. Lance was not like the movable objects.

He was a patient.

"You got lucky," Mira muttered quietly. "I’m almost out of medium crystals."

Levitation magic gently lifted Lance’s body, placing him on the bed Mira had made for herself.