On the streets of the Court of Fontaine, Neuvillette fell silent.
To be honest, if he had been the man he was five hundred years ago, he might well have attacked the Heavenly Principles at first sight.
But now...
As mentioned before, over hundreds of years spent among humans, their humanity had rubbed off on him.
He might occasionally speak of judging the gods and the Heavenly Principles, but he understood better than anyone what that meant.
To fight the gods and the Heavenly Principles meant putting Fontaine in danger as well.
At least here and now, if he fought the Heavenly Principles in the Court of Fontaine, there was no question that all of Fontaine would be razed to the ground before the prophecy even came to pass, leaving countless Fontainians dead or injured.
He was not so oblivious to the bigger picture. Yet their respective identities as the Hydro Dragon King and the Heavenly Principles left him conflicted once he met the girl.
Put plainly, Even if I don't want to fight, I'm still the Dragon King. If I lose my nerve in front of the Heavenly Principles, wouldn't I disgrace the Ancient Dragons and lose face?
But even so, he could hardly actually start a fight!
And so, faced with the girl's teasing, Neuvillette found himself at a loss, standing there awkwardly.
Fortunately, the girl before him was considerate enough to smooth things over at once.
"Come on, stop looking as though you're facing a mortal enemy."
The girl smiled. "You're not the Hydro Dragon of old, and I'm not the 'Heavenly Principles' of old either, am I?"
"We might even become friends!"
"You've probably heard about me, but let me introduce myself. My name is Ellin. You can just call me by my name."
"..."
"Then