Chapter 1: Angelina and the Dagger of Mercy
SPRING mist shrouded the sky over the Purple Forbidden Palace, and a golden line sparkled in the haze. All the while, the still immature song of a bush warbler filled the air.
“Seems the Golden Dragon is making another appearance today,” the brown-haired knight said.
“It’s Her Highness’s birthday, after all,” the gray-haired knight answered with a bemused smile.
The brown-haired knight laughed. “The Golden Dragon certainly is overprotective of Princess Angelina,” he said, disregarding his own overprotectiveness.
“He is, indeed. Still, I never expected to see the legendary guardian deity of the imperial family with my own eyes.”
The two knights looked up at the misty sky together while sharing a laugh.
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🐅 🐅 🐅
“LINA, LINA!” Ryuho called. “Hurry up!”
A red-haired boy pulled the pink-haired girl’s hand. As Angelina’s buoyant hair swayed in the wind, her smile lit up her azure eyes, the depths of which shone with a rainbow luster. The mere sight of her dyed the entire world in spring colors.
The girl’s full name was Angelina Xin Lei. Only those in line for imperial succession could introduce themselves with that last name. The golden Inverted Scale sparkling behind her ear further proved that she belonged to the imperial family. Normally, the emperor’s children underwent the Naming Trial at the age of five. Only those who passed were recognized as members of the imperial family. However, Angelina had passed the Naming Trial at the age of three and received the Inverted Scale. Thus, she was the true Imperial Princess of the Jinlongian Empire.
That said, Angelina had a secret. For some reason, she’d experienced multiple time loops. After overcoming three untimely deaths, she was now living her fourth life.
A small, gold dragon had wrapped itself around Angelina’s arm. The creature was the guardian deity of the Jinlongian royal family. Among the members of the royal family, the Golden Dragon loved Angelina in particular.
“Your ears are popping out, Ryuho,” Angelina noted.
Round tiger ears had sprouted from Ryuho’s red hair. Immediately, he tried to press them down.
Ryuho Ruo was a prince of Nanran–a southern vassal nation of Jinlong. His red hair bounced about freely like burning flames. Likewise, his eyes were a rare combination of crimson and gold. His tanned skin gave off an air of wildness, and he was three years older than Angelina.
Flame Tigers were the holy beasts of Ryuho’s homeland. Since Ryuho had inherited strong Flame Tiger blood, he spent a great deal of time in feline form. Lately, he’d grown accustomed to controlling his transformations. As a result, he could now maintain a human form for long periods. Even so, his orange tiger ears would pop out whenever he felt happy, as had just occurred.
“Guh!” Ryuho strained, trying to force down his ears. Unfortunately, they refused to budge. “Think you can get rid of us that easily?!” they seemed to jeer. “Grr!” Ryuho growled, prickling with irritation. “Dang it! Why won’t they go back down?!”
Today was Angelina’s birthday. Her small celebration would only include close friends and family. As the host, Emperor Feilong had ordered Ryuho to participate as a human. Feilong had a nasty habit of harassing Ryuho due to his close friendship with Angelina. Nevertheless, they couldn’t defy the emperor.
“What should I do…?” Ryuho asked, pressing down on his ears with all his might. The more he panicked, the more powerfully his ears rebounded. “Feilong is going to make fun of me again! Liiina…”
Angelina’s heart skipped a beat as tears filled Ryuho’s eyes. Meanwhile, the Golden Dragon chuckled from his coil around her arm.
“Can you lower your head a bit, Ryuho?” Angelina asked.
When Ryuho did, Angelina placed her small hands on his tiger ears, rubbing them gently. Ryuho narrowed his eyes blissfully, a deep purr rumbling in the back of his throat.
“Do you mind hiding yourselves a bit, tiger ears?” Angelina asked. “I don’t want Fodder being nasty to Ryuho.” With that, Ryuho’s ears shrank down without a sound. Angelina ruffled his red hair to confirm their disappearance. “Yep, they’re gone!” she cheered.
“You’re right!” Ryuho exclaimed. “They disappeared! You’re amazing, Lina!” Positively beaming, he hugged Angelina and pressed his cheek against hers. “Thank you!”
Overcome with happiness, Angelina let out an embarrassed giggle. “You’re oh so very welcome!”
The two children left their room while holding hands, heading towards the dining room. Today was Angelina’s fifth birthday. Though Feilong had wanted to throw a lavish party, Angelina had refused. She wanted to spend her birthday with the people she was truly close to–those with whom she could be vulnerable. In her past lives, Angelina had never spent her birthdays surrounded by family. The company of loved ones was a greater blessing than any party, no matter how magnificent.