ALL NOVEL Chapter 7: Honest-tea is the Best Policy
It's the next day! Or well, halfway through it anyway. Nothing special, just another ordinary day. You know, aside from the second round of almost getting strangled by my sisters after they came back from Grandma. Actually, this time was even harder to survive since their hugs were that much tighter.
So yeah, just another day in the life.
I woke up, Mama fed me, I almost died, walked it off by reading until lunch, Mama fed me again, and now we're here in the garden. Who's we? Me and Big Sis Silvie. Oh, and Mira of course! Can't forget her, hehe~
After my sisters came back for lunch, I asked Big Sis to help me make some honest-tea. Everyone looked at me funny when I said the name, but she still agreed, so now we're finding the herbs and stuff. I wanted to go explore and find them myself (plus Mira, obviously), but everyone's been extra protective after all that, so now I can't even go outside unless there's another dragon with me.
Right now, Big Sis is trying to remember where she planted everything while I practice my writing under my favorite tree. Mira decided to increase my study time after I kept writing the letters wrong when I was asking Big Sis. Look, it's not my fault I never learned how to write!
Anyways, that's what I've been doing for the last 30 minutes.
"Your Highness, this, this, and this are still wrong. You also misspelled these two words." [Mira]
Gah! Not again!
Mmmm, this sucks! I quit and I'm never coming back!
Eh? Why can't I run? Oh, I appear to have been lifted off the ground.
"Your Highness, this is not a problem you can just run away from. It may be frustrating, but you must take the time to learn how to write properly, especially since you did not know in your previous life." [Mira]
"Hmph." [Lucillia]
"You must have patience, Your Highness. If you do not, then how will you live the rest of your long life? I doubt you want to be known as the bookdragon who doesn't know how to write, do you?" [Mira]
"...No..." [Lucillia]
"Good. As punishment for trying to run, I will have you start over from the beginning." [Mira]
"Ughhhhhhhhhhh." [Lucillia]
"What was that, Your Highness?" [Mira]
"...Nothing..." [Lucillia]
"Good." [Mira]
Hmph.
I'll show you how to write, *grumble grumble*, I'll even do it twice as fast, just you wait!
"Your Highness, the first letter is wrong." [Mira]
...Slow and steady, yup, yup. Slow and steady wins the race.
.....
Haah, I wanna read. Writing's too hard. It's a good thing Big Sis came back a minute ago, otherwise I'd die from boredom. She also brought some plant ladies with her who are holding a bunch of baskets with their vines.
"Alright, that should be everything. Great work, girls. I can take it from here." [Silvania]
The plant ladies bowed and left after dropping off the baskets. Most of them just a bunch of herbs and stuff, both dried and fresh, but one particular basket has some weird looking things in it. Smells kinda funny, too.
"Hehe~, curious, aren't you? Well, as you can see, this one has the main ingredients for your tea: Thief's bane, dried Blood root, powdered Mugger's wort, and a hint of ancient ent sap. These were pretty annoying to find back then, but now I'm just glad have something to use them for. You have no idea how many millennia of harvests we've had to burn or compost." [Silvania]
"...wat dat?" [Lucillia]
That's one basket's mystery solved, but what about the rest of them?
"Oh these? They're here to help get a more...tolerable flavor. Trust me, Lia, you don't want to drink that tea as is." [Silvania]
"...scawwey..." [Lucillia]
There's what? One, two, three...eleven other baskets full of stuff...and that's just for the flavor?! Haha, I'm not sure I wanna do this anymore...
"Don't you worry, Lia, I'll make sure every bad taste goes away! By the time I'm done with it, the only thing you can taste will be my undying love~" [Silvania]
Uh huuuuuh, well that love better taste good or else!
Ah, she already left. It's very interesting to watch her balance all the baskets with her tail. How long is that thing anyway? I wanna measure it now.
Aha! This is my chance to escape from boredom!
"Miwa!" [Lucillia]
"Yes, Your Highness?" [Mira]
"Big Sis...want...watch! Look!" [Lucillia]
I've been preparing just for this moment. Behold! My finest creation yet!
"Very good, Your Highness. You made no mistakes at all. I will give you one final task before we accompany your sister: read this sentence out loud, please." [Mira]
Uh oh...
"..." [Lucillia]
"Your Highness?" [Mira]
"...d-dah...queeek...brawwwn...f-fawwwkesss..." [Lucillia]
"Keep going, Your Highness. You are doing a wonderful job." [Mira]
"...j-j-jump...o-ovahhh...d-dah...l-layyy...zeee...d-dawwgg..." [Lucillia]
"Well done, Your Highness. You have improved greatly since we began." [Mira]
"Mmm! Big Sis, now!" [Lucillia]
"Yes, yes, we shall go to her now. Make sure you pack up first, Your Highness. It is important to always clean up after yourself." [Mira]
"Mmm!" [Lucillia]
Mira
I must admit that seeing Her Highness' sunny disposition still surprises me at times, especially after seeing her memories. I could not even begin to imagine how a child who has gone through so much could be so...lively.
Even now, she is watching her sister working with great interest...or rather, she is watching her sister's tail work with great interest. Regardless, Her Highness is somehow able to continue acting as a regular child would despite her past.
I too was abandoned by my family, but I had already come of age when that happened, and I even left of my own volition. And yet...I could do nothing more than float around the seas like a sea jelly. I...I was lifeless for a time. During that time, I did not wish for death, but what I did certainly could not be considered as living.
It was not until I met Her Majesty and the others that I finally felt alive again. But even then, it took well over a decade before I was able to open up slightly.
Perhaps that is why Her Majesty assigned me to Her Highness? Certainly, I have found my days to be far more exciting and enjoyable as of late. I even teased Her Highness a bit earlier with her writing, something I have never done since back then.
Well, whatever Her Majesty plans for me and my service, it is clearly working. Far be it from me to dare question her motives. I shall simply continue my service to Her Highness.
I suppose it does help that Her Highness greatly resembles some of the little guppies1So, according to Google-sensei, the proper name for a baby fish is 'fry.' But honestly, I like the sound of guppies more, so I will use that instead even though it is actually a species of fish. Don't ask me how I settled on that, it just randomly popped in my head at some point and I refuse to let it go. that I used to take care of. They were quite energetic and adorable, both qualities that Her Highness is not lacking by any means.
At the very least, I can safely say that I have been looking forward to spending my days with her. That is something that has not happened in a long time.
Lucillia
Fumu. I've been watching this whole time...waiting for the right moment...and that moment is...NOW!
"NYAA!!" [Lucillia]
"Ah! Lia, you should be more careful, you know. Something could fall and hit you." [Silvania]
"Hehehe~" [Lucillia]
"Alright, fine. I guess it's time for a break anyways. But no biting, okay!" [Silvania]
"*Chomp!*" [Lucillia]
"..." [Silvania]
".....*Om nom nom*" [Lucillia]
What? I've been wanting to chew something for a while and this tail just looked really chewable, so I chewed. It's really addicting by the way.
"*Om nom nom*" [Lucillia]
"Hey! I said no biting!" [Silvania]
"What's going on here? Oh, never mind." [Caelenia]
"Haah, would you mind giving me a hand?" [Silvania]
"Why don't you do it yourself? It's your tail on the line." [Caelenia]
"I can't. She's too cute." [Silvania]
"Then leave her be. It's not like she can hurt you." [Caelenia]
"But-" [Silvania]
"Also, I will remind you that you did the exact same thing to me whenever you broke your speartuna. Oh, there's your solution." [Caelenia]
"You mean, give her my old chew toy? I'm sure it would work just fine, but..." [Silvania]
"But what?" [Caelenia]
"If I do that, then Lia will stop chewing my tail and pay less attention to me..." [Silvania]
"*Nom nom nom*" [Lucillia]
"...Why are you so complicated? I swear I raised you better than this." [Caelenia]
"Hey!" [Silvania]
"Kidding, I'm kidding...mostly. Anyways, I was supposed be here to check on your progress if you would kindly update me." [Caelenia]
"Well, aside from our little distraction here, things have been going well. Most of the ingredients have been processed, so now it's mainly just a matter of coming up with the proper blend. You know, adjusting ratios and such." [Silvania]
"Hmm, I see. I'll take care of our little gremlin then. Carry on with your work." [Caelenia]
*Om nom-* Hey! I'm chompin' here! Put me down right this instance or else!
"Raah! *Chomp!*" [Lucillia]
"Hey, play nice." [Caelenia]
Grr, how dare you dodge my chomps! Come back here!
*Chomp chomp chomp!* , *Dodge dodge dodge*
"Come on Lia. You better catch me while you still can. I am going easy on you, you know~" [Caelenia]
Gah! Don't move faster, that's illegal!
Two Hours Later
After their lovely little play session, Lia promptly fell asleep when she got too tired. Unfortunately for her babysitters, she still subconsciously attempted to gnaw on things, so they took extra care to not let anything enter her mouth.
In the end, Caelenia gave up and finally let her sister chomp on her tail. Now they are relaxing on a bench with plenty of headpats and hair strokes as Mira attends to their needs at their side and Sylvania runs around her botanical workshop.
As of now, Sylvania has processed all her ingredients. most of which again are for the sake of decent flavor, and she has sampled many different blends to no avail. She is still hard at work, though, putting all her appendages to full power! That includes two legs, two arms, a lengthy tail, a claw or two, and the occasional horn.
The afternoon carried on in peace. That is, until it was broken by some new arrivals.
"Oh, so this is where you girls were. How's Lia doing?" [Solestia]
"Zzz...*Nom nom*" [Lucillia]
"See for yourself." [Caelenia]
"Ahh. Her chewing phase has begun then?" [Solestia]
"Mhm." [Caelenia]
"I see. Well, lucky for you, we came prepared. Luna?" [Solestia]
"This came earlier than usual, but I finished ahead of time just in case. Give this to Lia when she wakes up." [Lunestia]
"Another fish? Really? I mean, it may be a shellfish this time, but still." [Caelenia]
"I chose whatever came to mind first. I also took the liberty of reinforcing the yarn after witnessing Silvie's carnage back then." [Lunestia]
Silvania, by the way, is so engrossed in her work that she still hasn't noticed the arrival of her other sisters. As for Lia's chew toy present, it is modeled after a certain many-legged bottom feeder roughly the size of an adult's forearm: a mega shrimp.
Much larger and sturdier than its smaller cousins, the mega shrimp is a fearsome predator that outmatches many other shellfish species. But more importantly: they are much more delicious than other shellfish, not that that influenced Lunestia's choice...probably.
"Now that the package has been received, we shall take our leave." [Lunestia]
"Hmm? You're not staying longer?" [Caelenia]
"Need I remind you that our sister is approaching her first month of life, and with it, her unhinged appetite? I must ensure that we do not run out of food for her when the time comes. This is only the beginning after all." [Lunestia]
"Right. Remember to be sustainable and all that. I won't forgive you if you aren't. What about you, Elder Sister Solis? Shouldn't you be preparing for your trip?" [Caelenia]
"I finished that a while ago. Now I'm just helping out Luna and seeing how much stuff I'll need to bring back." [Solestia]
"I see." [Calenia]
"If that is all, then we shall be on our way. Give our regards to Lia when she wakes up." [Lunestia]
"Zzzzz-Hweh?" [Lucillia]
Right as she said that, the little one woke up.
"Heh, perfect timing, Lia. We were just about to leave." [Solestia]
"*Yawwwn*...Big...Sis?" [Lucillia]
"Hehe~ That's me alright~" [Solestia]
The big dragon walked over and picked up her little sister for some hugs. In return, said sister gave her-
"*Chomp!* *Nom nom nom*" [Lucillia]
"That's weird, I could've sworn she'd go for the tail instead of my arm." [Solestia]
"Shouldn't we give her the thing now?" [Caelenia]
"Not yet. I need to relish in this moment a little longer." [Solestia]
To illustrate her point, the big dragon had her tail out the whole time, but now the little one is dangling from her arm like laundry. The biting is so fierce that the clamping force from the little one's mouth is keeping her from falling. Meanwhile, the other big dragon is giving headpats to the little one.
And for the record, the little one was born with a full set of pointy teeth. Any regular person would have been completely devoured by now.
While the sisters continued their (mostly) comedic act, Silvania finished up the tea blend at last and prepared a few samples for Lucillia to have later. At this point, she finally realized what was going on next to her.
"Oh, when did you arrive, Elder Sisters? " [Silvania]
"Hey Silvie, finally noticed us? We got here just a few moments ago. I take it her tea is ready?" [Solestia]
"The blend is, but we still need to sample it to fine-tune some things." [Silvania]
"I see. Well, why don't we all head back, then? Might as well watch the magic happen together." [Solestia]
"You all can go ahead, I still need to clean up." [Silvania]
"Don't forget to take a bath while your at it, you smell like herbal medicine right now." [Caelenia]
"I shall prepare a bath at once, Your Highness." [Mira]
"Good, let's get going then." [Solestia]
"...Still relishing, or do you just like carrying her like that?" [Caelenia]
"One or the other, maybe both. She's really cute, you know." [Solestia]
"Haah, that made no sense and you know it." [Lunestia]
And with that, the girls made their way back to the house, Lucillia chomping in Solestia's arm all the way.
.....
As promised, Mira went to draw a bath where Silvania cleansed herself soon after while the others met in the dining hall with their mother.
"Solis? You do realize your sister is biting you, right?" [Corinna]
"Been biting her, actually, for nearly the last thirty minutes or so." [Lunestia]
"And you haven't stopped her? What happened to that chew toy you were working on?" [Corinna]
"Right here, Mother. Elder Sister refuses to give it to her, though." [Caelenia]
"Just a little longer, Caela. I need to relish a bit more." [Solestia]
"...Mother? A little help, please?" [Caelenia]
"Alright then." [Corinna]
Corinna pointed her finger at the shrimp plushie and shot a hint of magic at it. The next moment, it came to life and walked over to where the chompy duo were seated.
"!!!...Tashty!" [Lucillia]
In an instant, Lucillia leapt at the shrimp and all but inhaled it completely, leaving a slobbery plushie and somewhat dejected sister. She got to enjoy her new present for a few minutes until Silvania, fresh out of the bath, came in along with Mira.
The two went into the kitchen to prepare the tea. Moments later, they were back out with a steamy pot and a cup.
At last, Silvania got her chance to voice a question that's haunted her mind for a while.
"Uhm, Mother? I've been meaning to ask, will Lia be okay drinking tea this early? She has another two weeks before she can eat food, right?" [Silvania]
"From what I can see, she should be fine. The only reason we keep newborns on that kind of diet is for their mana to stay pure and stabilize. But, it looks like Lia's mana is a bit more stable than normal, most likely due to her past experience, so simple drinks should be fine as long as nothing solid makes it in." [Corinna]
"I shall endeavor to pick out everything from her tea then, Your Majesty." [Mira]
"Sure, do as you wish." [Corinna]
Oddly enough, the piping hot pot of tea got more of Lucillia's attention than even her new toy. With the shrimp still in her mouth, she moved over to the pot and placed her hand on it.
"Hm? Lia? You should be careful with that, it's very-" [Silvania]
"Fwaa~...warm~" [Lucillia]
"-hot..." [Silvania]
It seems her cold-bloodedness won out against her chewing instincts. She even put her toy down to snuggle up against the source of warmth.
"Well, I think she's also ready for proper baths now." [Corinna]
"We can give her a bath later, but shouldn't we serve the tea before it gets cold?" [Lunestia]
"Of course, Your Highness." [Mira]
At Lunestia's signal, the fishy maid gently prodded her charge away from the pot and poured a nice cup of tea.
Lucillia
Welp. Here it is, the solution to my life's problems: some good ol' honest-tea.
Nothing more to it, so here we go!
*Gulp gulp gulp*
Mmmm! So nice, so clean, so refreshing~, so WARM!!
"Das a nishe tee!" [Lucillia]
"..." [Everyone else]
"Hweh? Why you wook wike dat?" [Lucillia]
"..." [Everyone else]
"?" [Lucillia]
"Well, seems like its working. Quite well, actually. How are you feeling, sweetie?" [Corinna]
"Awive?" [Lucillia]
"Alive is good, but I was referring to your body. Any feel weird or off?" [Corinna]
"Waaaah~ Evewyting spinnnning..." [Lucillia]
"Lia?" [Solestia]
"Woaaahhh~" [Lucillia]
"Uhh, Silvie, is she supposed to be like that?" [Solestia]
"Miwwwaaaa~" [Lucillia]
"Yes, Your Highness?" [Mira]
"Obviously not, though I don't know what's causing it. I made sure all the ingredients were done properly." [Silvania]
"Hmm, it may be due to her body experiencing some impurities, in other words something other than mana or divinity for the first time. Perhaps because her body isn't able to process everything quickly yet, it's reaction is, well, what you see here." [Corinna]
"Hehehehehe~ Miwaaaa, I wuuuvv youuuu~...blehh." [Lucillia]
"...is she supposed to do that, Silvie?" [Solestia]
"...definitely not." [Silvania]
