Chapter 55 Chapter 48: Probe
After calculating the energy of the magic potion and the speed at which Ig absorbed it, the young girl sat down on the large stone again. She propped her delicate face with her little hands, vigorously shaking her slender legs wrapped in fine silk beneath her exquisite dress.
Under the guise of a child amusing herself, Verafia’s beautiful pupils, flowing with golden flames, were lost in deep thought.
She had actually planned to refine this magic potion for Ig on the day she learned of the Dragon Crystal Flame Burst King Tree.
Although Ig’s Dou Qi talent was extremely poor, in her opinion, it was not irrecoverable. Therefore, Verafia’s plan’s primary objective was to increase his physical strength.
And as far as she remembered, the simplest and most effective method was the magic potion recipe she obtained from an Elven priest after slaying a dragon back then:
“Fafnir’s Blood,” a magic potion refined with dragon blood and the life force of the Elven Sacred Tree as its main ingredients. While it could fully utilize the dragon blood to strengthen the body, it was also very effective in preventing the erosion and damage caused by dragon blood to the human body.
Back then, Lothel had personally refined and consumed it, and the final result was even better than bathing directly in dragon blood.
However, due to a lack of materials, although the Dragon Crystal Flame Burst Tree was indeed related to the aura of dragons, it was ultimately too thin. Even if she condensed it to the extreme, it would still be less than a drop from a newly born dragon cub… Fortunately, her own blood could be used as a substitute.
Verafia turned her gaze to the少年, who seemed to be in agony. She re-estimated the intensity of the magic power and finally nodded her little head with satisfaction.
“En, a successful experiment! Although it’s far from the effect of dragon blood, it can still strengthen that guy’s body a bit. If I can catch that dragon on the way…”
The girl’s self-talk suddenly stopped. She felt the approaching aura again, which had taken a big detour, and her faint smile grew even more delighted.
“Glad I followed. This young lady was worried you wouldn’t come…”
—
Ig had completely forgotten how he had survived the oceanic inferno. He only heard a young girl’s voice, which seemed filled with confusion, and then a slender little hand lifted him and threw him onto the ground.
Ig remained in a daze for a while before he felt another wave of searing pain added to the burning sensation on his body. He couldn’t help but grit his teeth and gasp.
“Hey… It looks like it really hurts, Ig. Are you okay?”
A certain young girl blinked her big eyes and leaned her little face closer, asking cautiously.
Ig rolled his eyes, lacking even the strength to retort. After a long time, he managed to prop himself up.
“Young Lady, what do you think?”
“This, how would this young lady know you’re so weak!”
Ig’s words made the girl’s little face flush. Suddenly, the young girl raised her delicate face, glaring back at him fiercely, and irrationally said.
“Hmph, with your will, you can’t even withstand a weakened version of Fafnir’s Blood. You’re far from Lothel! I really regret passing on his legacy to you…”
Hearing the girl’s complaint with a pout, Ig lowered his eyes. His heart felt as if it had been pricked, and the pain on his face seemed to disappear entirely, leaving only despair.
He whispered.
“Young Lady, you are not wrong. Whether it’s talent or willpower, I am far from catching up to Lord Lothel. I’ve disappointed you, haven’t I? For a noble Miss Phoenix like you, choosing an ordinary person like me is not a very good decision.”
Ig’s sudden words made Verafia vigilant. She looked at the boy’s expression, wondering if her words had truly discouraged him… or if he had already guessed her intentions?
No… I haven’t revealed any clues yet. And even if he guessed, wouldn’t it be better to pretend not to know?
Otherwise, if he spoke out directly like this, wouldn’t he be afraid that she would just burn him to death?
“What do you mean by that? Ig, tell me, why did this young lady make you my attendant?”
Verafia put on an act of being misunderstood for her good intentions, her porcelain-white, delicate, and soft little face showing a hint of wronged anger.
Questioned by the young girl, Ig hesitated for a moment before raising his azure eyes to look at the girl and speak what had been on his mind recently.
“Young Lady, is it because I am Lord Lothel’s successor that you allow me to be by your side? I suspect that you may still have enemies in this world… Perhaps it is this person who forced you to choose to be reborn from the ashes again, but I cannot help you in any way.”
Although Ig indeed doubted whether this little phoenix’s paper-like pure mind would ever think of such a thing, at the beginning, it couldn’t be because she simply found him pleasing to the eye and took him along, right?
“Ah, what you just said… En, let me consider it.”
To Ig’s surprise, Verafia actually propped her chin with her slender hand, appearing deep in thought.
However, the young girl quickly raised her eyes, and as if remembering something, glared at him angrily.
“No, why would this young lady need you? By the time you reach my current level, who knows how many years it will take. If I really have enemies, can’t I deal with them myself?”
“Then what do you mean…”
“Hmph, didn’t I already say it? This young lady just wants to play in your human world. Having a human like you, Randishrofen, as an attendant is just right, isn’t it? Really, I don’t understand why you humans think so much about everything and still suspect this young lady. Wuu…”
The young girl bit her lip, her light and pleasant, delicate and soft tone sounding quite wronged.
Ig felt a pang of guilt. He lowered his head, thinking that didn’t the young lady just react instinctively without much thought when she said that? According to her personality, it should indeed be like this, yet he reacted like this.
Ig knew very well that his earlier words were a form of self-deprecation, a form of escape, precisely because he heard the girl mention Lord Lothel again.
Ig couldn’t help but regret speaking without thinking when he heard the girl’s words. Not only did he make this little phoenix feel wronged, but if she truly held a grudge, his subsequent days would be the least of his worries.
However, the broad-minded Young Lady Verafia clearly had no intention of dwelling on the matter. She turned to the boy and pondered for a moment before reluctantly nodding her little head.
“Although it’s detestable that you, this guy, suspect this young lady for no reason, considering that you are also thinking of me, En… I will reluctantly forgive you one more time.”
—
Verafia, pure as white paper (×)
Ig, pure as white paper (√)
PS:
Speaking of which, the male protagonist and the little phoenix aren’t very familiar yet. I need to let her be more tsundere for a while longer (actually just afraid of dying).
