Vol 10. Chapter 1: Inheritance

*Those Who Share Joy*

After the battle with the Magic Eye, Noa became famous across every grade in Saint Heath Academy. From teachers and staff down to hatchlings only a few years old, everyone became a devoted fan of the eldest princess.

At first, as a teenage girl, Noa quite enjoyed being asked for autographs and photos wherever she went. But gradually she discovered the excessive attention was starting to affect her school life.

Whether training or daily activities, she was always surrounded by people, everything happening under countless watching eyes. It made her uncomfortable.

In the end, unable to bear everyone’s enthusiasm, Noa slipped away unnoticed and quietly came to the vice principal’s office.

“What? You want leave?”

Claudia spoke while processing documents without lifting her head.

“If I remember correctly, from the hatchling division until now — over more than a decade — you’ve never taken a single day off.”

Noa placed her hands behind her back and stood upright in a formal report posture.

“Vice Principal, I want to return after the attention dies down. Otherwise you’ve seen it too — recently not only am I affected, some younger students even skip class to watch me in the adult dragon division…”

Claudia’s pen paused slightly, then she chuckled.

“Charlotte often told me your father went through the same thing back then. Didn’t you always want to surpass him? This is a good opportunity.”

“…I’m not the same as my dad, Aunt Claudia.”

Her form of address quietly shifted from Vice Principal to Aunt. Noa had learned how to act familiar when asking for favors.

Claudia raised an eyebrow, set down her pen, rested her chin on one hand, and looked at Noa with a smiling gaze.

“How are you different?”

“My dad’s thick-skinned. I’m thin-skinned. I can’t handle this level of idol chasing.”

Seeing Noa seriously explain the difference between herself and her father, Claudia burst out laughing. Because she completely agreed — how could a thin-skinned person constantly visit other people’s homes borrowing strange magical gadgets?

She decided to remember this line and have the adult division instructor tell Leon at the next parent meeting.

“Your daughter says you’re thick-skinned.”

Already she was looking forward to his expression.

Claudia cleared her throat and returned to business.

“Alright, I’ll give you leave. Is twenty days enough?”

Noa froze. “T-twenty days…? I was only planning to ask for seven…”

“Seven days won’t calm your classmates’ enthusiasm,” Claudia said. “Twenty days. And use the time to recover properly.”

She wrote the leave slip, signed it, and pushed it over.

“You can go home this afternoon. I’ll arrange transport.”

Noa received it with both hands.

“Thank you Aunt— ah, I mean, thank you Vice Principal!”

The workaholic was rarely this happy. She hurried toward the door, and while passing the sleeping Um, she picked the little creature up and rubbed against it.

“I’m going home to hide from the spotlight, Um. See you in twenty days!”

Um, forcibly awakened: @A@

What is wrong with this dragon!

Noa left energetically. Um climbed back into its nest, intending to resume its nap.

Then a pair of elegant high heels stopped beside the nest.

Um looked up. Claudia stood with arms folded, looking down at it.

They stared at each other for a moment before Claudia spoke softly.

“You aren’t actually a slime — or rather, not a normal slime.”

Um: OMO

“The night the Magic Eye caused chaos, you saved me. You also saved Noa. Am I right?”

Um: OMO

I don’t understand what you’re saying~

“Stop pretending. I know you understand me.”

Um blinked, crawled out of its nest, and wriggled toward the slime toy stick, rubbing against it and squeaking, asking Claudia to play.

“Quite the acting skills.”

Claudia crouched down, her long blue hair falling.

She leaned very close, pressure immediately filling the air. The little creature swallowed and trembled in the corner.

“But even if you don’t admit it, I still must...”

She slowly extended her hand.

Um panicked and shrank even tighter.

Yes, slimes are naturally cowardly creatures.

Yet nothing happened. Opening its eyes, Um saw Claudia gently patting its tiny head.

“I still need to thank you, Um.”

She stood up.

“Of course, I will also find out exactly what you are.”

Um: Ababa ababa~

That afternoon, Noa returned to the Silver Dragon Sanctuary. A teacher escorted her — after all, they couldn’t dispatch the school carriage just for one student.

Leon and Rosvisser greeted the teacher and gave gifts in thanks before the family walked toward the sanctuary.

“Senior Claudia sure is generous. Twenty days all at once,” Leon sighed.

Noa nodded.

“Maybe Aunt noticed everyone’s enthusiasm lately.”

Rosvisser smiled and stroked Noa’s ponytail.

“Before you told us you were coming back through the recording stone, your dad started sneezing and said he had a feeling he’d see his daughter soon. Turns out he was right.”

“Uh…”

Noa scratched her forehead awkwardly. It probably wasn’t intuition… it was because Aunt Claudia and I joked about him being thick-skinned…

They entered the house. Leon said mysteriously:

“Go change clothes. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

Noa’s eyes lit up.

“A surprise? What surprise?”

Leon pinched her cheek. “You’ll see soon. Go on.”

“Okay!”

She changed out of her uniform into casual shorts and a top, then ran downstairs.

“Let’s go, Dad.”

“Follow me.”

They headed to the rear courtyard training field. In the distance, a six-winged draconic eagle rested there.

Seeing the familiar companion, Noa hurried over and stroked its feathers. The eagle lowered its wings affectionately.

“Dad, the surprise isn’t that it’s moving in with us, right?”

Leon shook his head.

“Of course not. Much bigger than that.”

He glanced at the eagle and slightly raised his chin.

The eagle understood and let out a sharp cry.

Noa watched the sky in confusion.

Seconds later, a shadow descended and landed precisely behind her.

She turned — another six-winged draconic eagle.

Judging by size and feather color, it had only recently reached adulthood.

After landing, it cautiously approached Noa, then glanced past her toward the older eagle. Their eyes met briefly, and it lowered itself, brushing its wing gently against Noa’s arm.

Noa looked at Leon in surprise and delight.

“Dad, where did this one come from?”

“Do you remember many years ago when we gave the jade dew fruit to the eagle and its mate...”

Noa suddenly understood.

“Oh — it’s their child!”

Leon smiled and nodded.

“That’s right.”

He crouched beside her, resting one hand on her shoulder and gently stroking the young eagle’s feathers with the other.

“This is my surprise for you, Noa. From now on, it will help you just as the elder eagle has always helped me.”