The Black Dragon Lady Refuses to Be a Mount

Yeah, the two of them were good friends...

PS: For now, I've decided to update three chapters every day at noon. Any bonus chapters might come at 8 PM. I was originally planning to add more updates after next week's reward event ends.

Calamity Descends 018: Let's Take a Nap Together

After all the earlier fooling around, it was already noon. Time for lunch.

Likaro returned to the tree, took food from the horse's packs, then went beneath another shady tree and called Ailolin over.

Food carried in the wilderness had to be convenient and easy to preserve, so it was nowhere near as lavish as the meals they had eaten in the city.

Ailolin did not actually need to eat. She had wiped out an entire table of food at the tavern earlier, and the energy she had stored was enough to last her a long time.

But under Likaro's insistence, she still ate a little.

After lunch, Likaro packed up and prepared to continue their journey. Ailolin advised, "I don't think we need to hurry. Those people aren't going anywhere."

"But I want revenge as soon as possible..."

"I'll help you. The important thing now is that you don't wear yourself out."

Ailolin had been keeping an eye on the dark circles beneath Likaro's eyes. She figured Likaro definitely had not been resting well lately.

"Mm."

Then Ailolin offered her suggestion. "Of course, after lunch comes a nap, just like when you were little."

"..."

Likaro naturally remembered. Back then, she would play with Little Black Dragon in the forest, and after lunch, she loved resting her head on Little Black Dragon's body to sleep.

But that had all been when they were children. Now...

"You can still do it now," Ailolin said, already leaning against the tree.

"Huh?"

"You can still lean against me and sleep."

"..."

Likaro did not even dare think about it. It was far too embarrassing.

And besides, she was bigger than Ailolin. No matter how she looked at it, she should be the one holding Ailolin.

"Come on, come on. Don't be shy."

Ailolin truly had put a lot of thought into this. Even suggesting that she wanted to hold Likaro while they slept had taken all her courage against the intense embarrassment.

But she had to make Likaro remember the past and completely erase the awkward distance between them.

After their earlier playfight in the sea of flowers, Likaro had not changed too obviously, but she had begun speaking more.

Ailolin was determined to make Likaro's personality return to normal.

"This... I can take a nap, but we should sleep separately."

No matter what, Likaro felt embarrassed. They were both girls, but such close physical contact would give her strange thoughts.

"All right, then."

Ailolin seemed to agree.

Just as Likaro was preparing to lie down beneath the shade, Ailolin pulled her into her arms with lightning speed.

"Mmph! Wh-what are you doing...?"

"Taking a nap. What else would I be doing?"

Ailolin held her tightly in her arms and refused to let go no matter how she struggled.

At that moment, Likaro finally understood what all of Ailolin's actions had been for.

But was this really necessary?

Even without turning around to look, Likaro knew Ailolin's face was red too.

After all, she could feel Ailolin's heartbeat.

Was she an idiot? Did she like forcing herself this much? All just to make her return to normal?

Still, Ailolin's actions warmed Likaro's heart. Since Little Black Dragon had gone through so much trouble, she would go along with what Little Black Dragon wanted.

"Then I'm going to sleep."

"Mm, me too."

"..."

Ailolin could hear her own heart pounding, but she had no idea what Likaro was feeling right now...

She discovered that the golden-haired girl had her eyes slightly closed and was breathing evenly, as though she had already fallen asleep.

Wow, she could fall asleep so quickly. That was really impressive.

Ailolin realized that it was probably because Likaro was simply too exhausted.

In fact, Likaro had not slept at all the night before. Being sleepy enough to fall asleep instantly now was perfectly normal.

After confirming that Likaro was asleep, Ailolin wanted to sleep too, only to find that she could not fall asleep at all.

Right now, she was forcing herself through her embarrassment just to hold Likaro in her arms.

No helping it. For her best friend, she would give it everything she had!

As she felt the girl's body heat, Likaro's fragrance drifted into Ailolin's nose as well.

Come to think of it, that really was how it had been. When Ailolin had first become friends with Likaro, she discovered that Likaro naturally carried a very pleasant scent.

For some reason, Ailolin suddenly buried her face in Likaro's golden hair and secretly took a sniff.

Then she quickly realized how inappropriate what she had just done was and hurriedly acted as if nothing had happened.

However, she did not know that her action had stirred up a huge wave in Likaro's heart.

Likaro had developed a habit after growing up: she woke easily while sleeping. She had actually awakened when Ailolin pressed against her hair and smelled it, but she was afraid something awkward might happen, so she continued pretending to sleep.

What exactly had Little Black Dragon's action meant just now...?

Although Ailolin's action had been a little intimate, doing something like that between friends was normal, right?

This was the first time Likaro had ever had a friend do something like this to her. But considering that Little Black Dragon was her best friend, it was probably fine... maybe.

Ailolin's actions looked rather embarrassing, but they truly did help bring them closer together.

In truth, Likaro had never felt any distance from Ailolin in the first place. Eight years apart would not make her distant from Ailolin. The reason she had spoken so little before was not because of Ailolin, but because of her own mood.

Likaro felt warm inside. Little Black Dragon truly was a good friend she could rely on.

For all this time, Likaro had never truly slept in peace. She had spent her days desperately fleeing assassins and wanted notices. She longed for someone she could rely on, someone she could confide her feelings in.

In that case, she would allow herself to be a little selfish...

She suddenly turned over, wrapped her arms around Ailolin's waist, and buried her face against Ailolin's chest.

"Huh! You're awake?" Ailolin was startled.

"Let me hold you for a while. Don't leave me, at least not right now..."

"Mmm..."

Ailolin let Likaro hold her. If this could comfort her friend, then she did not even need to feel embarrassed.

The reason she felt shy was because Ailolin still retained the influence of her male way of thinking from her previous life. It had gradually faded over the years, but it had not completely disappeared.

If someone asked Ailolin about her sexual orientation, her answer would be that she had none, because she had no intention of falling in love.

She had the body of a girl, but if she were expected to marry a man... they might as well kill her.

She could accept being with a woman, but Ailolin did not think she would ever meet someone she liked.

Mainly because she simply could not bring herself to care about it.

What was so good about dating? Just thinking about it felt exhausting.

Now that her best friend Likaro needed help, Ailolin had even less reason to think about finding a partner. Though she had gone into heat twice before, that was a physical issue rather than a mental one.

However, Ailolin noticed that when she was with Likaro, she had several times let her thoughts drift beyond friendship.

She was certain that her feelings for Likaro were truly just friendship, without the slightest hint of romantic affection.

Likaro surely thought the same way.

The reason her thoughts had gone astray was probably still the lingering influence of her former male mindset. Ailolin decided she had to properly deal with that problem in the future.

Her friendship with Likaro was precious. She absolutely could not let it change because of her own wild thoughts...

Otherwise, if she lost this friend, Ailolin would be devastated.

PS: If Little Black Dragon lost one friend, then she would gain...

Calamity Descends 019: A Couple's Room

Likaro held Ailolin tightly, her heart completely relaxed.

When she was little, she had always thought Ailolin was male and had even called her little brother. Thinking back on it now was truly embarrassing.

If Xiya had not told her the truth after Little Black Dragon left, she probably would not have believed that the girl before her was Little Black Dragon.

Little Black Dragon's body was soft, and pressing against it felt very comfortable.

But Likaro knew she could not continue like this forever. Occasional intimate gestures were fine, but if they lasted too long, she feared the strange feelings in her heart would grow stronger.

Why did her heart beat so fast whenever she pressed against Little Black Dragon's body...?

After noon, they could finally continue traveling. Compared to before, Likaro had clearly changed.

She spoke more, and sometimes she even took the initiative to speak with Ailolin.

Ailolin was very happy. She felt that much of the awkward distance between herself and Likaro had disappeared.

She hoped that after Likaro completed her revenge, she could slowly return to her former lively personality.

Their destination was another city in the Lumbart Kingdom, not far from where they had set out. Even though their nap had delayed them for a while, they could still arrive before evening.

When they entered the city, Likaro successfully got in using the Mage Association emblem, while Ailolin used her old method—climbing over the wall.

Afterward, Likaro left the horses at a stable in the city and prepared to find somewhere to spend the night with Ailolin.

Most of her enemies were in this city, and they did not know she had come for them. She was in the shadows while her enemies stood in the light, giving her a great advantage.

As she walked through the city streets with Likaro, Ailolin noticed that the city was extremely bustling. Even in the evening, there were no fewer people on the streets than during the day.

Likaro explained that this city was the trade hub of the region. Most merchant caravans had to pass through here, and the large number of outsiders had increased the city's prosperity while attracting more residents to settle down as well.

It was not fully dark yet, but Ailolin and Likaro searched every inn in the city and received the same answer—there were no vacant rooms.

Likaro found this somewhat unusual. Only after asking a passerby did she learn that the city was going to hold a Tournament.

Hearing this, Likaro truly wanted to laugh. Those people were greedy for wealth, craved power, and would stop at nothing to achieve their goals, yet they were holding a Tournament that symbolized knightly honor.

The Tournament had two arenas. One was for noble knights, while the other was for commoners.

For ordinary people, winning a good placement in the Tournament was an excellent path to advancement.

And for the audience, the Tournament was certainly worth watching as well.

That was why so many people had come to this city, filling the inns before night had even fallen.

"How about we keep looking? Maybe we just haven't found an available room yet?"

Ailolin thought it would be better to try their luck a little longer. With so many travelers in the city, perhaps someone might check out?

In the end, they really did find an empty room, but... there was only one.

The room had originally been reserved by a couple, but apparently they had gotten into an argument and checked out.

Since it was a room specifically meant for couples, it had a large double bed and plenty of space inside, making it much nicer than an ordinary guest room.

Other than this room, they could not find any more vacancies. There would be even less chance of one after dark, so Ailolin and Likaro hesitated.

The innkeeper was a woman in her forties. She could see what the two girls were hesitating over. "Are you two young ladies friends? Don't be embarrassed. It's perfectly normal for friends to share a bed, and no one will misunderstand."

In fact, when the inn did not have enough empty rooms, the owner would indeed rent out certain special rooms as ordinary rooms.