If a face like a shar-pei's lit up with a
pure, innocent smile... I might have to answer with a punch, then throw in an electromagnetic blast to make up for the
emotional damage I'd suffered.
Old Man Dragon lay sprawled lazily on the sofa. He turned to look at me, a trace of exhaustion in his eyes.
"You're finally back. This old man can finally breathe easy..."
He even let out a long, theatrical sigh.
Jeez... Irene, what unspeakable things had you done to him? Just look at that completely drained face.
Of course, there was no way those two had that kind of relationship. After all, Irene, that woman... Ahem, the
Insect Queen's target was me. Until she achieved her
goal, she probably wouldn't give up. Besides, she wanted to reproduce for better genes, and Old Man Dragon...
I really couldn't see any good genes there.
"All right, I'm back. But seriously, you guys were something else. I was gone for days, and neither of you came looking for me?"
I took the bouncing Irene by the hand and walked to the sofa. The moment I sat down, I sank deep into its soft cushions and couldn't help letting out a
contented moan.
"I wanted to look for you... but the old man said no."
"Oh? Old Man Dragon?"
"Oh, don't look at me like that. We might not have gone looking for you, but see? You came back safe and sound, didn't
you? I was just worried we'd take different routes and miss each other. Ahem..."
My contemptuous stare finally made Old Man Dragon uncomfortable. He coughed twice and hurried to change
the subject.
"Hey, who's this... graceful, dashing warrior you brought back? Aren't you going to introduce her?"
Jeez... age and cunning really did go hand