THE shadowed outline of a figure stood on a terrace in the section of the imperial palace reserved for the imperial family’s private residences.
It was the only one of the current emperor’s siblings who was still unmarried and living in the imperial palace: Louivence Taux Linus.
“There’s a sight you don’t see every day.”
He leaned against the railing that encircled the terrace, burning the sight he’d surely never see again in this lifetime into his memory.
The blue pegasi and earth tiger bonded with his parents and older brother, the great fire dragon of the north who was said to be the king of the primordial dragons, and the sky tiger bonded with his nephew, the crown prince of the allied country, all together in one place…
And it wasn’t just the astounding array of holy beasts gathered around the young girl either; the small army of monsters she’d named were all there, too.
Nefertima didn’t seem to have noticed, but the lindblooms had also formed a protective ring around her and her companions’ makeshift campsite.
“What exactly is she?”
Louivence was starting to get an inkling about something.
Nefertima was different from all of the other beloved children throughout history.
It was true that holy beasts and elemental spirits protected all of the beloved children. But there was no other instance in recorded history of so many holy beasts being bonded with humans when a beloved child existed.
Louivence wasn’t the only one watching Nefertima.
In a guest room reserved for visiting state guests, Wilhelt was discussing his upcoming plans with Dan and Seerio when Lars suddenly announced that Nefertima was calling him and disappeared.
Wilhelt asked the elemental spirits to find out what Nefertima was up to and was surprised by their response that she was sleeping outdoors, so he stepped out onto the terrace to see for himself.
“What is she doing this time…?”
Hadn’t he just finished reprimanding her during dinner for not taking her position as a duke’s daughter seriously enough?
The way all of her thoughts and emotions showed on her face would make Nefertima an easy target for scheming aristocrats.
Every time it had come up, he’d made a point of reminding her that because of her high status, she needed to be careful with her words and actions to protect herself.
And yet, this very same duke’s daughter was currently sleeping in a courtyard surrounded by holy beasts, monsters, and winged dragons.
“Dan, Seerio, come see this.”
However, Wilhelt was not beyond being able to find amusement in such a rare sight, either.
The two men obediently stepped out onto the terrace and looked in the direction Wilhelt had indicated before being struck speechless with shock.
The first to regain the power of speech was Serafi, the elemental spirit bonded with Seerio.
“That’s not fair! I want to sleep with the beloved child, too!”
That’s right—it wasn’t just the holy beasts who’d gathered around her.
Individually, holy beasts tended to attract elemental spirits, and there were usually a few hovering around Nefertima at all times as well. But with all of the holy beasts and the beloved child gathered together, the place where Nefertima was sleeping was swarming with elemental spirits. It was only visible to those who could actually see them, of course, but the sheer number crawling all over the pig pile of sleeping bodies like a seething mass of insects didn’t inspire reverent awe; it inspired nauseated repulsion.
“Seerio, I’m going to join them!”
With this, Serafi abandoned Seerio in favor of charging head-first into the swarm of elemental spirits below.
“I get it, I really do, but I still can’t help but feel a little jealous. I wish I could get that close to the fire dragon…”
Wilhelt and Seerio wryly smiled at the words their infamously dragon-loving companion muttered under his breath. Dan wouldn’t be Dan if, even in a time and place like this, he couldn’t help but think of dragons.
“But it bears consideration that it’s also possible to be favored a bit too much.”
Given how much they loved Nefertima, the elemental spirits might not be able to help themselves and unthinkingly misuse their powers based on the slightest change in her mood.
Was she sufficiently aware of the huge power and responsibility on her shoulders?
“She’s already learned for herself how terrifying power can be. It’s just ‘how to control it’ that she hasn’t yet mastered.”
“That’s the worst possible combination, don’t you think?”
“The elemental kings should be able to do something about the elemental spirits. When it comes to holy beasts, the other humans bonded with holy beasts can teach her, but we can’t help her when it comes to dealing with the elemental spirits. The extent of a beloved child’s power is too different.”
The men knew very well that there was a difference between what elementalists and what those bonded with a holy beast could use elemental spirits to accomplish.
But it was likely that a beloved child was different from both of those.
How would this incredible being known as a “beloved child” affect this world?
Seerio was of two minds on the topic: on the one hand, it filled him with unease, and yet, on the other, he was looking forward to seeing what would happen.
“I’m going to have to give her another lecture tomorrow,” Wilhelt said, almost sounding like he was looking forward to it.
And Dan, who was still gazing longingly at the fire dragon, came to a decision. “First, I’ll work hard to earn Ghizel’s approval! If I can do that, I can join him the next time he pays his respects to the fire dragon!”
The other two were thinking the same thing: if all Dan wanted was to speak to the fire dragon, it would be easy enough to ask Nefertima for an introduction. But the two men wisely kept their mouths shut.
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