102. “Could It Be I’m Overthinking?”
“Sob, sob, sob…”
Seeing Reina fall silent, White Scale clung to Reina’s leg, refusing to let go. She cried so hard that Reina gave up on trying to move away.
“Sister Azure Scale, don’t let the Dragon King be alone, sob, sob, sob…”
“Is there really no other way?”
“Sister Azure Scale… are you hesitating?”
“The Dragon King is my and my sister’s hope, and Lady Reina is also our hope. I don’t want anything to happen to you, sob, sob…”
Reina opened her mouth, but didn’t say anything. She trembled, a thousand words on the tip of her tongue, but she found herself unable to express them, as if something was stuck in her throat. She was being asked to stay away from Calysia, yet also to comfort her.
It really was…
She waited for White Scale to finish crying, then patted her head and said with a smile:
“You’re both too naive.”
“Huh?”
“I won’t let anything happen to Calysia. Since I’ve decided to help her, I’ll see it through to the end.”
Saying that, White Scale released Reina’s leg. Reina turned and left, leaving behind a confident figure.
For a moment, White Scale understood why her sister trusted Reina so much.
She remembered what her sister Liya had said to her:
“In the future, she will definitely be the greatest person in the dragon race.”
To confirm something, Reina resolutely entered the [Place of Prayer].
Opening her eyes, Reina found herself in a pedestrian street inside a commercial building. The pedestrian street was empty, lined with various shops and stalls. The lights on both sides were dazzling, and the loudspeakers overhead were constantly broadcasting incomprehensible words, repeating endlessly in the empty space, creating a strange echo.
What made Reina particularly uncomfortable was that there wasn’t a single person here. Countless clocks hung on the walls of the surrounding shops.
They would sometimes spin rapidly, emitting an annoying “clicking” sound, and sometimes stop completely, frozen in time. Reina tried to shift her perspective, but there would always be a spinning clock in her field of vision.
Reina’s dragon eyes flickered slightly, and she subconsciously gritted her teeth, like a predator preparing to hunt. She arched her back but retreated towards a corner… all of this was subconscious behavior.
If it weren’t for a warm hand shaking her shoulder, Reina would have quickly been lost in this chaotic scene.
“Reina, Reina?”
“Gasp, Little Cal, why are you only here now?”
Reina turned around, a hint of complaint in her voice. Seeing the face identical to Calysia’s, her anxiety instantly dissipated.
Little Cal was currently wearing a bright red dress, a stark contrast to the surroundings of the commercial street, like a vengeful ghost wandering through the deserted streets, but because of her beauty, she didn’t appear frightening.
She smiled:
“I’ve always been here, always by your side, no matter when.”
Reina sighed, brought her legs together, and sat down on the floor.
“Little Cal, what is forbidden magic?”
“Magic that uses blood, life, or souls as a price, wielding power that violates common sense, ethics, morality, and the fundamental value of life. It’s the most evil, most reprehensible bomb in this world. This world absolutely cannot allow such things to exist.”
“Is that so…”
Reina felt that Little Cal’s words carried a hint of personal resentment, but since she was willing to provide information, Reina didn’t think much of it and continued to ask:
“Then why did Calysia use this kind of magic?”
“…”
The moment she asked this question, Little Cal’s eyes widened in surprise. After a few seconds of thought, she answered:
“That must be the reason why she abolished forbidden magic.”
Reina nodded. Little Cal was right. Little Cal couldn’t possibly understand this kind of thing, so there was no point in pressing further.
“Then where can I find the truth about the forbidden magic from decades ago?”
“The Church of Light,” Little Cal replied. “After the Dragon King abolished forbidden magic, only humans continued to use it. They have a library and historical records documenting all forbidden magic. You should be able to find the answers you seek there.”
“Very well.” For some reason, Reina felt a surge of excitement.
This was Little Cal’s most useful day. However, she had already deduced these things herself. Little Cal, as her consciousness, was just clearing the fog ahead for her. She hoped Little Cal could be even more useful.
“One more question, Little Cal… do you know if Calysia’s soul can be restored?”
Hearing this, Little Cal hesitated. Her eyes drifted to the floor, and at this moment, she didn’t seem like the system disguised as Calysia, but a shy and hesitant young girl, uncertain and uneasy about her own decision.
This was the first time Reina had sensed her emotions, which was a bit strange.
A moment later, Little Cal said:
“Why… why don’t you ask Calysia yourself? She definitely knows.”
“Asking her that would definitely hurt her feelings.”
Reina said with a wry smile:
“Actually, I understand, but I still want to find the answer myself.”
Little Cal’s expression became slightly anxious: “Is there something wrong with that?”
“There’s nothing wrong with it,” Reina brought her knees together, hugged her legs, and buried her face in them.
“Hey, Little Cal… you definitely know whether or not I’m pregnant, right?”
“But I don’t want to ask, and I won’t ask.”
“There are some things where the ending is already determined, but you just don’t want to know the truth.”
“These two things are the same.”
Little Cal nodded. She originally wanted to explain something, but chose to remain silent.
Reina looked deeply at Little Cal, then left the [Place of Prayer].
Rather than avoiding it, Reina wanted to see it through to the end. She had decided to absorb the soul fragment.
Unfortunately, she still didn’t know how to absorb it. Directly swallowing it probably wasn’t appropriate.
Placing it on the Dragon Mark didn’t elicit any reaction either. At a loss, Reina recalled the gem that emerged from the Dragon Mark after activating [Vassal Instinct]. That gem, like a black hole, craved something that was missing. It was that gem that gave Reina the feeling that she could “absorb souls.”
But she had to choose an auspicious time and place, surrounded by the Goddess’s Treasures, to ensure that the absorbed magic power would be purified by the treasures—as of now, besides the [Judgment Blade], the Soul Chalice, Divine Sea Pearl, Dagger of Judgment, and the golden bracelet were all stored in Reina’s private treasury. There were seven or eight more Goddess’s Treasures sent from the human world, but compared to the [Judgment Blade], they were all insignificant.
Actually, most of the Goddess’s Treasures were just small accessories that increased luck. And the [Judgment Blade], a [Divine Artifact of Light], was the highest quality weapon in the game, incredibly rare. More importantly, players couldn’t use this type of weapon.
Therefore, Reina realized that she should focus on Light Divine Artifacts like the [Judgment Blade].
But then again, if she didn’t have treasures of this level, a single use of [Vassal Instinct] could instantly turn Reina into a submissive little vassal.
But if she couldn’t find any other Light Divine Artifacts, Reina could only make do with ordinary Goddess’s Treasures, hoping nothing unexpected would happen.
Calysia had actually sacrificed a part of her soul for some mysterious forbidden magic. If she wanted to absorb this soul fragment, she might have to uncover the truth behind that forbidden magic.
Reina originally wanted to consult the materials in the Dragon King’s Palace library, but she suddenly remembered something: books related to forbidden dark magic had been completely destroyed a few years after the Dragon King took office. Finding them in the Dragon Realm was a fool’s errand.
“Dummy~!”
As she muttered to herself, Reina recalled Little Cal’s conflicted expression. As the system, she shouldn’t have emotions.
“…”
Could it be that I’m overthinking?
