“Come on! How much longer are you gonna sleep? You’re so stupid, Blade! Get up!”
It was a typical morning, albeit slightly noisier than usual. Blade, awakened by Earnest’s voice, pulled his sheets closer to him, looking annoyed.
“Mmmph, five more minutes.”
“No!”
The request was denied. Earnest was always grumpy like that.
“Dude… You’re so loud…”
Blade pulled his sheets even closer, retracting into them like a turtle into its shell. Sleeping through the morning—or to be exact, just five more minutes—was a luxury he was never allowed during his Hero days.
“What’re you talking about? You should be honored to have Earnest, your cool, ravishing friend, who you’ve known since kindergarten, come here to wake you up every day! Start whining, and I’ll have the whole school beat you up!”
Is it really okay for a girl to call herself “ravishing” like that? Also, since when has she been my friend since kindergarten? What is she talking about?
“So hurry up and get downstairs! Cú’s already up!”
Come to think of it, Cú was missing. Usually, she was still sleeping when he got up. She was already awake?
“Move it! Your mom and dad are waiting at the table!”
Earnest’s voice faded and he heard her pattering down the stairs. Wait. Were the stairs always that close by? And…“mom and dad”?
Blade’s eyes shot open. He got up, looked around, and quickly grew bewildered.
…Where am I?
The ceiling looked just as unfamiliar as the rest of the room. And…actually, Earnest was wearing a different outfit from usual. Instead of her classic academy dress, Empress version, she was wearing some other uniform he didn’t recognize.
…What’s going on?
As Blade headed down the nearby staircase, he noticed the building felt strangely cramped.
“Morning, Blade,” said the king. He was wearing a bathrobe and reading a newspaper.
“Morning, sleepyhead. Bread or rice?”
This question was posed…by Sirene. She was standing in a small kitchen wearing an apron, exuding a maternal aura.
“Um…what?” Blade asked, confused.
“What is it, Blade? Aren’t you going to say good morning back to your beloved father?”
“What? No, um…”
Blade blinked helplessly. “Beloved” or not…since when was the king his father?
“Mornin’, bro!”
“Y-yeah, uh… Morning.”
Cú’s pigtails swung as she greeted him. Something was odd about her as well. She was wearing a school uniform. Dragons like her didn’t wear clothes. What looked like clothes was actually just their body markings or changes in the texture of their skin.
✦ ✦ ✦
“You better get ready, honey,” said Sirene. “You have an important meeting today.”
“Yes, yes, I know,” replied the king.
“Ha-ha-ha! Mommy’s bossing Daddy around again!” said Cú.
“Oh, no, we always get along, don’t we, dear?”
“Heh! We get along even better when you kids aren’t looking.”
King Dad used his hand to stroke Mommy Sirene’s butt. She slapped it away.
“You’re free to come by whenever you want, Earnest,” Mommy Sirene said with a gentle smile. “Have a meal with us sometime.”
“No way! Ugh! I don’t have any interest in Blade! He’s such an idiot!”
Blade had about a dozen question marks above his head, but for now, he needed to recharge. So he stuffed himself with bread, scrambled eggs, and bacon. It was vital to eat when you had the opportunity. You never knew if it would be your last meal for the next few weeks or even longer. That much was common sense in the Hero business.