Chapter 489: A Very Suspicious Uncle

"Hmmm..."

"Hmmmmm..."

Standing in front of one of the estate’s large windows, Orien Vathros had his brows furrowed so deeply that anyone unfamiliar with the little dragonling might’ve thought he was contemplating a matter of great importance.

Well, technically, he was.

At least, in his own opinion.

With his little chest puffed out and his stance so domineering that he practically resembled an elderly safety inspector examining a particularly suspicious construction site, the golden dragonling continued staring outside with an expression of utmost seriousness.

"Is it still not today?"

He sounded thoroughly disbelieving.

"...?"

Not far away, the rest of the family could only look at him with varying degrees of confusion, particularly Riley, who had been watching the child with considerable interest.

"How can it still not be today? Haaaay..."

Orien let out such a deep sigh that his tiny shoulders visibly slumped.

Then, as though the situation simply couldn’t be tolerated any longer, he crossed his arms over his chest and began pacing in front of the open window.

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

Honestly, judging by the sheer desperation with which this tiny but supposedly majestic golden dragon kept staring outside, one might’ve assumed that something truly terrible had happened.

And yet, for all intents and purposes, there had probably never been a time when their entire family had been more complete than it was now.

His newly reunited immediate family was here, along with his extended family, his one and only partner-in-crime, and said partner’s family.

Even Thyrran, who might as well have become their de facto family pet at this point, was present.

And, well, his uncle. Even he was here!

Considering that, one could argue that they had more than everyone gathered here!

As for their future, that was hardly something they needed to worry about either.

After all, for great beings who’d recently discovered their connections to the renowned Temple, inheriting not only considerable draconic riches but also what could practically be called a shopping empire certainly made the prospect of growing up a little less concerning.

Not that Orien had ever been particularly worried about money to begin with. After all, with the amount of belt-tightening they’d had to endure, surely they’d managed to save up more than enough by now, right?

"..."

Moreover, with relative peace gradually returning to Eryndra, there was even less reason for anyone to be this distressed.

News of the Dragon Lord’s return and the rumored incarnation of the Primordial Dragon had already spread throughout the continent, and whatever dissenting forces remained were finding themselves in no position to cause much trouble.

After all, most of them were still too occupied dealing with their own personal brand of torment to even consider objecting, much less defending themselves against the consequences of their previous actions.

So really, one had to wonder why the likes of Orien Vathros seemed so exceedingly concerned on such a fine day.

But anyone questioning his current predicament clearly didn’t understand the gravity of the situation! It was only because they remained completely in the dark that they couldn’t see just how serious things really were!

Because if they knew just how terribly late one very important stork was, then surely they’d be pacing right alongside him!

At least, that was what Orien thought.

Unfortunately, apart from one little sprite who seemed just as bothered by the delay, everyone else was behaving far too calmly!

How could they?!

So finally, as though he could no longer bear another moment of waiting and uncertainty, one particular youngling decided it was time to take matters into his own hands.

"Uncle!"

"...?"

Surprisingly, said uncle had even managed to muster enough effort to look remotely quizzical. But as though the child weren’t already standing on the very precipice of danger, Orien went ahead and asked:

"Did you deliberately mislead the stork?!"

"Pfft!"

Riley nearly spat out the juice he’d been drinking.

Mislead the stork?!

Oh, gods.

It had only been a few days!

And yet, this little guy was already standing by the window, apparently waiting for the arrival of one poor creature that had absolutely nothing to do with any of this.

What exactly was he hoping to accomplish?

Catch the stork in the act?!

Riley hurriedly swallowed his juice, though the corners of his lips were already twitching uncontrollably.

Beside the indignant dragonling, Liam was doing his best to offer some reassurance.

"Orien, I don’t think the Dragon Lord would do something like that," the little boy said with absolute sincerity.

Riley almost nodded in agreement.

At least someone was being reasonable.

Unfortunately, Liam wasn’t finished.

"If anything, I think he’d have gone there and fetched the stork himself!"

"..."

"..."

Riley pressed his lips together.

He really shouldn’t laugh.

Especially not when the expression on his husband’s face was becoming so dark that Riley half expected a cluster of storm clouds to gather directly above his head.

Because apparently, these two had once again managed to come up with the most outrageous explanation imaginable.

The Dragon Lord slowly narrowed his golden eyes at the children.

Liam, perhaps sensing the impending danger, immediately reached out to keep Orien from launching himself toward the golden dragon seated beside one suspiciously composed black dragon.

"And why would I do that?" Kael asked.

Orien looked absolutely scandalized.

"What do you mean, why, Uncle?! Isn’t it so you can monopolize Auntie all to yourself?!"

"..."

"How many days did it take for us to see even his shadow?!" the dragonling demanded, his little face growing increasingly indignant. "If it were up to you, we’d already be mature dragons before anyone else could see Auntie!"

And really, Orien had every reason to be suspicious!

He’d been perfectly occupied during the first few days, especially after finally reuniting with his parents.

Naturally, there had been quite a bit of crying involved.

Not that he intended to admit that to anyone!

His eyes had become so swollen that he’d practically looked like a goldfish instead of the majestic golden dragon he was supposed to be.

So of course he’d been perfectly happy to hide away for a while until he looked presentable again.

But then another day passed.

And another.

And still, there wasn’t even a shadow of his beloved Auntie!

It was simply outrageous!

Funny enough, Orien seemed to have conveniently forgotten about the plates of food that had been appearing and disappearing outside his uncle’s private quarters throughout those days.

Then again, even if someone reminded him, he probably would’ve dismissed it immediately.

Because wasn’t it obvious that his uncle was the one collecting the food?!

As far as Orien was concerned, that only proved his point!

"Pffft! Hahahaha!"

Unfortunately, Riley finally lost the battle against his own laughter.

Because how could he not?!

Somehow, this little guy had managed to hit the nail right on the head!

The worst part was that Riley couldn’t even defend his husband without lying.

Kael, meanwhile, glanced at his laughing mate before returning his attention to the thoroughly offended dragonling.

"Do you want to see him in your next life instead?"

"?!"

Orien gasped.

The sheer horror on his face was almost comical.

His next life?!

And judging by the way his uncle was looking at him, the golden dragonling had absolutely no doubt that Kael Dravaryn was capable of making that happen!

"A-Auntie! You heard that, right?!"

Orien immediately clung to Liam for dear life, looking as though he’d just suffered a devastating blow to his very existence.

Meanwhile, the little sprite could only hurriedly wrap his arms around the golden dragon, trying his best to comfort the apparently critically wounded dragonling.

"Orien..."

"H-He’s threatening me!"

"..."

Riley laughed even harder.

These two!

One was threatening to keep him hidden until his nephew’s next life, while the other was acting as though he’d already been sentenced to eternal separation.

And to think they’d only just managed to survive a catastrophe that had nearly brought Eryndra to its knees!

Was this really what they were arguing about now?!

Orien, however, didn’t find the situation funny in the slightest.

He was just about to launch into another passionate protest when something unexpected made him stop.

"...?"

Because his Auntie was looking at him.

And not with the same amusement he’d been showing just moments ago.

Instead, Riley’s expression had softened into a particularly tender smile, the kind that reached all the way to his emerald eyes until they curved into gentle crescents.

For some reason, that look made Orien feel strangely uneasy.

"...!"

The golden dragonling instinctively tightened his hold on Liam.

"Wh-what?" he asked, suddenly alarmed. "What is it?"

Why was Auntie looking at him like that?!