Chapter Ten: I Will Become the Dragon’s Daughter

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“A clever move,” City Lord Agor said slowly. “They have set us a difficult problem.”

“We cannot accept the Daughter of the Dragon being publicly tried in the square.” The lizardfolk nobles present voiced their objections one after another, shouting with agitation. “The right of judgment lies with the Shaman Council. They have countless ways to make the people doubt the Daughter of the Dragon’s identity!”

“Lord Faher, what do you think?” Agor asked. “Should we refuse to cooperate with the Shaman Council?”

“That would be difficult.” Rain spoke calmly. “They have publicly announced that the trial will take place at noon tomorrow. If we have the Daughter of the Dragon refuse to appear in court, what will the people think?”

Naturally, they would assume that the Daughter of the Dragon was afraid to face the Shaman Council’s judgment and must be a false impostor…

The nobles exchanged glances, rendered speechless.

“She must attend the trial,” Agor concluded. “But the standards by which the Daughter of the Dragon is judged cannot be determined solely by the Shaman Council.”

“Exactly! Well said!” The nobles echoed their agreement. “We must have a voice in the judgment as well!”

“Hasatch, Tigri, Roy.” City Lord Agor called out three names in succession. “The three of you are the most familiar with scripture. You will be responsible for reviewing the Sacred Dragon Scriptures and finding passages that can prove the Daughter of the Dragon’s identity!”

“Yes.” The three lizardfolk nobles accepted in unison.

The noble council came to an end. With a cold smile, City Lord Agor returned to his study and hurriedly wrote a letter by hand. After sealing it with wax, he summoned his steward and ordered him to deliver it to Tarasha, the centurion responsible for the city’s defenses.

That night, inside the Horn Temple, the lizardfolk noble Roy lay prostrate on the ground and reported every detail of the earlier noble council to the High Priest and the Grand Cleric.

“You have done well, Roy.” The High Priest extended a hand and gently stroked his head. “First, carry out Agor’s instructions as planned. When he calls upon you to speak during tomorrow’s public trial, say this…”

Roy listened blankly to the High Priest’s instructions, his slit pupils trembling more violently by the moment.

If I do that, I will openly sever ties with the nobles of Dragon Valley City and become the declared enemy of every family!

“You need not worry.” The High Priest pressed a finger against the back of his neck. “The Dragon God has other arrangements for traitors who blaspheme the sacred bloodline. You should be grateful that, at the critical moment of your life, faith guided you away from the wrong path. Otherwise, your fate would be to have your corpse dried in the mountain wind.”

Lizardfolk sentenced to death by the Shaman Council would be hanged, then suspended by ropes from a wooden frame on the lowest level of the Scale Temple. Their souls would remain bound within their corpses, forced to endure the horror of their bodies growing moldy and rotting, along with the pain of being devoured by crows and maggots…

At the thought, Roy could not help shuddering.

He prostrated himself once more and devoutly prayed to the Dragon God in repentance, begging that he would not be implicated by those blasphemous criminals.

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On the eve of the trial, Dragon Valley City was far noisier than usual at that hour. Whether in taverns blazing with lamplight or on streets bathed in moonlight, nearly every lizardfolk was discussing the Daughter of the Dragon.

After all, entertainment in this world was pitifully scarce. Aside from drinking, visiting prostitutes, and discussing rumors, there was little else interesting to do.

At Agor’s residence, Ailina had yet to return. Rain and Daya were temporarily staying in guest rooms within the city lord’s manor.

The night breeze was cool and refreshing. Rain opened the window and scattered some insect-repelling poison around the room. He was just about to get into bed when he saw a figure sneaking into his room.

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It was Daya.

“Rain,” she said pitifully. “The trial is tomorrow, and I’m having a little trouble sleeping tonight.”

“Would you like me to knock you unconscious?” Rain began cracking his knuckles.

“No, no, that won’t be necessary!” Daya hurriedly shook her head in fright.

She fell silent for a moment, then gave a bitter smile.

“Rain, why do I have to pretend to be the Daughter of the Dragon?”

“Weren’t you going to save Dragon Valley City?” Rain asked, baffled.

“What does pretending to be the Daughter of the Dragon have to do with saving Dragon Valley City?” Daya asked cautiously.

“That question will cost you another six months as my maid,” Rain replied.

Daya let out a long sigh and gritted her teeth.

“Deal!”

Their lives were already at stake. She could not afford to keep hesitating!

“The answer is simple.” Since Daya had chosen to extend the term of her service, Rain stopped teasing her and explained. “I told you before that the Other army would reach Dragon Valley City sooner or later, and that fleeing was the only way to survive.”

“In other words, you must convince more lizardfolk commoners that the Others will eventually destroy Dragon Valley City.”

“On that matter, neither the shamans nor the nobles can be trusted as allies. But what if we looked at it from another angle? Once they begin fighting among themselves, the situation will no longer be entirely under their control. Then we can find an opportunity to accomplish our own objective.”

“But…” Daya asked, only half-understanding. “Wouldn’t organizing the evacuation of more commoners require order and administration? If the shamans and nobles start fighting each other, it will only create greater chaos within the city.”

“You silly girl.” Rain smiled. “Chaos is not necessarily a bad thing.”

“Chaos is the ladder to advancement.”

Even after Daya returned to her own bedroom, she could not forget those words.

Nor could she forget the gentle smile on his face.

At the same time, in the dense forest downstream from the Saint’s River, Ailina fought her way out of a swarm of sea cockroaches, spear in hand. Without the slightest hesitation, she leaped into the cold waters of the Saint’s River.

She swam swiftly beneath the surface, shot across to the trees on the opposite bank, and hauled herself over the side of a moored boat. With a casual motion, she drove her spear into the bow, pinning a still-struggling sea cockroach to it.

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Ailina tore loose the anchor rope, seized the oars, and began rowing upstream toward Dragon Valley City.

The rustling on the opposite bank gradually receded. Judging by the direction of the sound, it was heading north.

Its destination was Dragon Valley City as well.

The tide of death was silently drawing near, while Dragon Valley City beneath the night sky remained utterly unaware.

The following morning, the trial was about to begin.

Although it was not yet noon, many commoners had risen early and gathered around the town square, hoping to secure a good place from which to watch the spectacle.

The Shaman Council had anticipated this. Red-robed acolytes had already been dispatched to seal off every entrance to the square, permitting the commoners to watch only from the perimeter.

Surrounded and escorted by the lizardfolk nobles, Daya followed Rain, who was leading the way ahead of her. They passed through a sea of citizens, doing her best to make her expression appear calm.

“Fraud! Liar! Go to hell!” lizardfolk shouted from all around them. “Hang her! Let the crows and maggots devour her wickedness!”

Daya’s face turned somewhat pale.

“The true Daughter of the Dragon! The true Daughter of the Dragon!” other lizardfolk cried nearby. “We will defend your glory forever, until we are reduced to bones!”

Daya’s face grew even paler.

“Stay calm.” Rain did not turn his head. “Show them the bearing befitting the Daughter of the Dragon.”

But I’m not the Daughter of the Dragon! Where am I supposed to get that kind of bearing?

Daya raged inwardly.

“You are the one who must save them.” Rain frowned and spoke coldly. “Whether they end up adoring you or despising you, you must walk the path you have chosen.”

Daya’s spirits immediately lifted.

That’s right. This is the path I chose.

Even if it means disguising myself as the Daughter of the Dragon and deceiving these innocent people, I must save the people of Dragon Valley City!

At that thought, determination and defiance swiftly appeared in her eyes. Her steps became steady and composed.

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