Chapter 73

“Gasp!”

Draco’s eyes snapped open. The familiar pattern of the ceiling came into view.

‘Where is this…’

Looking around, it was a luxurious room, and Draco was lying on a bed.

He clearly remembered leaving the kingdom to find a bride, but somehow he had returned to his own room.

‘What happened…’

Draco slowly tried to recall. At that moment, a girl came to his mind.

A beautiful elf girl.

‘Ariel!’

Draco, who had set out on a journey to find true love, arrived at a lakeside not long after leaving the kingdom.

There, he met Ariel, fell in love at first sight, and proposed to her by giving her a grass ring.

She smiled brightly and nodded. She had accepted Draco’s proposal.

Not only that, but she also agreed to enter the water together.

But Draco was so nervous that his breathing became heavy, and Ariel asked if he was okay, gently touching his forehead.

The soft touch of Ariel’s hand still faintly lingered on his forehead.

Draco, whose legs gave out, plopped down, and when he barely managed to get up, Ariel held his hand.

That was Draco’s limit.

The moment Draco held Ariel’s hand, he lost consciousness and collapsed.

‘……’

Fainting just from holding hands as a grown man, this is embarrassing.

Draco felt his face burning.

‘No… that’s not important right now.’

But he quickly shook his head.

What’s important now is how he returned to the kingdom and Ariel’s whereabouts.

“Is anyone there!”

As Draco shouted, the door creaked open, and a Lizardman walked in.

“Ah, Lizania.”

It was Lizania. Lizania was Draco’s younger sister, not even five years old yet.

“Draco oppa. Choose a ribbon for me. Is this pretty, or is this pretty?”

In Lizania’s webbed hands were a red ribbon and a blue ribbon.

Since Lizardmen have no hair, females often decorate their heads with ribbons like this. To Draco, it didn’t seem particularly meaningful.

“The, the blue ribbon is pretty.”

“Right? I think so too! Tie this for me.”

“Uh, okay.”

Draco tied the blue ribbon on Lizania’s head and asked.

“Lizania, do you know how I returned to the palace?”

“The elves and wolves brought you. They floated you in the air.”

“Floated in the air…? Where is that elf now?”

“She just left the palace.”

“Really?”

Draco got up.

Lizania’s ribbon was somewhat clumsily tied, but it didn’t matter.

Right now, meeting Ariel was urgent.

He wanted to meet Ariel and explain.

That he didn’t faint out of embarrassment. That he was just feeling a bit unwell.

And, he needed to finish what he couldn’t do earlier. Entering the water with her.

‘It’s better this way. It would be better to enter Monarch Lake.’

Monarch Lake.

It was the lake where the king welcomed the queen. In other words, it was the space where the Lizardman king shared love.

Draco was probably conceived there too.

Ariel had accepted Draco’s proposal and would now become the Lizardman queen, so it would be better to enter Monarch Lake.

“……”

Thinking about entering the water with Ariel, Draco’s heart raced again. But he tried to calm himself and moved forward.

“Right, oppa.”

Then Lizania spoke from behind.

“That elf, she went into Monarch Lake with father.”

“?!”

Draco’s steps halted.

“Wha, what did you say…?”

“That elf, she went into Monarch Lake with father. It’s so unfair, they won’t let me go in. I want to swim in Monarch Lake too.”

Lizania pouted. Though, with her lizard face, other races wouldn’t be able to tell.

No, more importantly.

“Mo, Monarch Lake… Ariel and father…? Why…?”

Draco felt like he had been hit on the head with a rock.

As mentioned earlier, entering Monarch Lake meant that.

“No, wait…! Are you sure? Lizania, are you sure?”

Draco grabbed Lizania’s shoulders and shook her. At Draco’s rough behavior, Lizania’s round eyes widened.

“Waaah! Oppa is bullying me!”

Lizania burst into tears.

Normally, Draco would have comforted Lizania. She was still a young sister, after all.

To other races, she might just look like a lizard, but to Draco, she was a cute little sister.

But now was not the time for comfort.

“Lizania! If you’re lying, you’ll get punished! You’ll get hit with a tail! So tell me properly! Did Ariel really go into Monarch Lake with father?!”

“Ugh, ugh, it’s true, they went in. Draco oppa, you’re scary.”

Lizania pushed Draco away and ran out of the room with quick steps.

Draco, overwhelmed, slumped onto the bed.

‘Ah, it can’t be…? Father wouldn’t do that. Ariel is my bride. Besides, the age difference between Ariel and father…’

True love transcends race and age.

That was Draco’s firm belief.

That’s why Draco could confidently propose to Ariel.

Because age doesn’t matter in love.

But thinking about Ariel and father entering Monarch Lake… that didn’t seem right.

Moreover, it should be him, not father, entering Monarch Lake with Ariel.

Because Ariel was his bride.

“Pfft.”

Draco burst into laughter.

No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t make sense.

Father couldn’t forget mother. Even though it had been a long time since mother passed away, father still missed her.

The fact that father usually didn’t even glance at Monarch Lake was because he still loved mother.

He probably would for the rest of his life.

Seeing father like that, Draco learned about true love and wanted to love only one woman for his entire life, just like father.

Creak.

The door opened again, and someone entered.

A majestic Lizardman wearing a crown.

Draco’s father, Rugerico.

“Ah, father.”

Draco got up again.

Rugerico had his usual dignified face.

But his forehead was slightly damp. There was also a strange smile on his lips. It was similar to usual, but somehow different.

A sense of foreboding spread through Draco’s heart.

“You’re awake.”

“Yes, father.”

“I heard roughly what happened. You suddenly lost consciousness by the lakeside?”

“That’s right. I… wasn’t feeling well… I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay. It happens. Some elf brought you back.”

“You must mean Ariel.”

Draco replied with a cold voice without realizing it. The foreboding in his heart was slowly turning into anger. Anger towards his father.

‘No… it’s not confirmed yet. Calm down.’

It was just the words of Lizania, who wasn’t even five yet.

Lizania might have been mistaken, or maybe she lied. So he needed to hear it directly.

“Father, by any chance.”

Draco’s eyes flashed as he looked at Rugerico.

“…Did you enter Monarch Lake with the elf who brought me back?”

Rugerico looked straight at Draco. His dignified face twitched slightly, then turned into a bright smile.

“Yes, I did. She’s a very cute and lovely girl. Haha!”

“……!”

Draco felt dizzy.

“Ah, father!”

“Haha, I never thought I’d have such an experience at this age. It feels like I’ve returned to my youth. So refreshing and relieving!”

Something in Draco’s heart crumbled.

Is this really reality? Is it not a dream?

It’s horrifying and miserable. Despair spreads from the bottom of his heart.

Draco couldn’t believe it. He didn’t want to believe it.

But this was clearly reality.

Father had admitted it. He had taken the woman his son loved most.

And he laughed so boldly.

As if it was nothing. As if he did nothing wrong.

In fact, that was natural. Father, Rugerico, was the king of this kingdom. The king could do anything.

‘This is the power of authority…’

A sense of powerlessness weighed on his chest.

Draco staggered out of the room.

“Where are you going? Draco.”

Father asked from behind, but Draco couldn’t bring himself to turn around. If he turned around now, he felt like he would cry and confront his father.

Why did you take my woman, Ariel is mine, he would whine and throw a tantrum.

If Draco had thought a little more rationally, he would have realized that he hadn’t told anyone about his proposal to Ariel yet.

But now, Draco couldn’t think rationally at all.

Draco kept walking and left the palace.

His mind was a mess. He didn’t want to sort it out.

The scene of father and Ariel entering Monarch Lake kept swirling in his head.

– A very cute and lovely girl. Haha!

Father’s bright voice wouldn’t leave his ears.

Not only that, but father’s bright smile and the dampness on his forehead, all of it burned Draco’s heart black like a flame.

Draco, walking in a daze, soon arrived at a lakeside.

A lake near the palace used by the citizens.

There, Lizardmen were gathered, chatting and playing happily.

“Wow, do it for me too. Throw me into the lake! Kyah!”

“Me too, me too! Throw me further this time! Kyah!”

Draco chuckled.

While he was being crushed so miserably, they were having such a fun time.

“Sigh.”

A soft sigh escaped Draco’s lips. He felt lost about how to live from now on.

‘I should give up on finding a bride, I don’t want to love anymore…’

Draco tried to turn away. In his current state, he didn’t even want to go near the lake.

He couldn’t handle their happy energy.

“?!”

But just as he was about to turn away, a girl caught Draco’s gaze.

Shining silver hair, pointed ears. A beautiful face.

“Ah.”

It was none other than Ariel.