Chapter 100

As my consciousness began to return, it felt like I had awakened from the deepest, most blissful sleep I had ever experienced.

Lying on the bed I was on, it was extremely soft and fluffy, like I was on a cloud. I didn’t want to wake up because it was so comfy, and the fact that it hurts if I move even a little.

If I moved even a little? My eyes shot open, and I saw an unfamiliar bed canopy. Slowly, I turned my head around to see the bed I was in and what I was wearing.

I was in a massive bed, surrounded by an absurd number of colorful pillows. Then, glancing down at myself, I saw I was wearing a frilly, almost embarrassingly girlish blue nightgown, with bandages wrapped around my left arm, the elbow on my right, and both shins up to my ankles.

On top of everything, the second most peculiar thing—the first being the nightgown I was wearing—was my hair. It was supposed to be dyed black, but it had instead returned to its original silvery-white color.

What happened to my hair? What’s with this outrageous dress?

Confused about what was going on, carefully, I got up with much effort and pain, and I quickly checked on the condition of my left arm because I had completely lost any sensation and ability to move it after the fight with the pillbug.

I found that I could move my biceps and shoulders, though only barely. By barely, I mean I could hardly move my left arm at all.

I guessed it was a small improvement, since I thought I’d completely lost use of it. However, I need someone else to confirm it because I couldn’t tell if it was the case or just wishful thinking.

I’m honestly starting to regret letting myself completely loose that time. It was fun, but my body, being that of a child, really can’t handle it.

With even more effort, I moved my body to get out of bed, every single movement slow and steady, to see where I was because I guess I must have been unconscious for who knows how many days.

Honestly, why did I do that? Remembering that guy who gave me goosebumps for the very first time, I felt like I wanted to fight him. Thinking much more clearly now, maybe I was still battle-lusted at the time, but something about him made me want to fight him, like I instinctively felt a familiarity with him as though we were alike in some way.

Using the walls to help me stand, each step felt like hell, though, seeing some windows close by, I had to look out of them to see where I was. However, as I took another step, a sudden wave of exhaustion hit me, like most of my strength had already been spent before I knew it, and I collapsed onto the carpeted floor.

I let out a small groan of pain, feeling the impact of hitting the floor. And right at that moment, I don’t know if it was a coincidence or not, but the door flew open with someone running inside.

“Rita, are you alright?”

In an extremely concerned voice, which I recognized, I saw her gasp in horror as she saw me lying on the floor after I had fallen.

Using all of my strength, which was hardly any, basically scraping the very bottom of the barrel, I tried my best to get up and respond.

“Yes, your majesty. It’s an unexpected surprise, but it is a pleasure to see you. Excuse me for the unsightly sight. I will get up immediately, Queen Amalee. There’s no need to worry; I am fine.”

Seeing her, I guessed that, in all likelihood, I was in the royal palace and she must have taken me back after I fell unconscious.

I tried to get up to try and bow to her, since she was the queen, and it would be improper to do otherwise. Queen Amalee, instead, knelt beside me and placed her hands on my shoulder, stopping me from getting up.

“Come now, Rita. The state you're in right now, I would say no. You’ll hurt yourself if you continue.”

Then, turning to the door, she raised her voice and called for someone, with much urgency, “Helana, come quickly!”

Seeing a maid rush in, Helana, Queen Amalee’s personal head maid, whom I am acquainted with and is very loyal to Queen Amalee, rivaling or even surpassing Clare’s, helped me up and walked me to a chair by a nearby table. And after seating me, she then asked Queen Amalee.

“Shall I fetch a wheelchair, my queen?”

“Yes, please do.”

Seated and watching Helana respectfully bow and leave the room, I turn to Queen Amalee and ask.

“Queen Amalee, might I ask—”

Before I could finish speaking, Queen Amalee wrapped her arms around me and hugged me all of a sudden, taking me by complete surprise. Feeling her pressing her chest on my face, I felt a kind of warmth to it as she continued to gently hug me in a warm embrace, which I was not too used to.

After what seemed like half a minute, she finally let go and looked me in the eyes. “It has been a while; I’m glad you’re fine, Rita. I didn’t think you would have made it.”

Sensing and seeing her genuine concern for me, I averted my eyes because I was unsure of how to respond to that much genuine care for me, as if she were actually my mother, or at least what I thought a mother should be.

“I’m… sorry. I have someone who is really worried about me right now that I need to get to, your majesty.”

“Oh, is it Clare? No worries, she is fine; Helana will send someone to get her.”

Internally relieved to hear that, though not showing it on my default expressionless face, she, for some reason, guessed what I was thinking, and it caused her to smile a bit.

“I… I see. Then where am I, Your Majesty? How long was I asleep, and what happened while I was unconscious?”

Hearing my question, Queen Amalee sat in the chair across the table before answering.

“You’re currently in the royal palace, and it’s been roughly a day since I found you in the dungeon, so nothing really of note has happened.”

“Huh? A day?”

She nodded in confirmation, and internally, I was shocked that just an entire day had passed.

“Yes, it has been a day. I’m also deeply surprised that you managed to regain consciousness, Rita.”

Looking at myself after she said that, with all the bandages and this over-the-top frilly dress, I thought I had been out for longer, a couple of days longer, given the state of my body, so maybe it wasn’t as bad as I thought.

“Overall, your main concern is to rest and recover because your left arm has sustained a massive Aether scar.”

“Aether scar?” Hearing the unfamiliar term, I repeated the word she said out loud, questioningly.

Nodding, her face darkening, she proceeded to explain what it is.

“It’s what happens to mages who overuse their mana nature, far surpassing the limits their bodies can handle, in which it causes mana channels in them to burst out from inside their body.”

Hearing Queen Amalee’s explanation, I realized I had never heard of such a condition before, which made me assume it must be an incredibly rare thing to have.

“Really, is it a rare condition, Queen Amalee? What are its effects?”

Seeing her make a slight grimace at my question, which I was really concerned about, she said.

“Very few people can even reach a state like that to begin with, and fewer still survive it. In most cases, the body is already so overburdened with mana that healing simply doesn’t work and would kill them. Rita… you’re unbelievably lucky it didn’t spread to the rest of your body.”

Listening to all that, taking it all in, which didn’t take too long since I’m used to, let's just say, cheating death, I then asked, “Will I be able to use my arm normally again?” because it was the more important question for me.

Unfortunately, she shook her head and said, “It’s difficult to say. Some who have that condition do, and some do not.”

I didn’t respond, and a pause settled over our conversation. The revelation that my left arm might become completely unusable hit me harder than I expected.

“Rita, are you okay?”

Taking a moment to respond, I said, “Yes, I’m fine. I apologize, your majesty.”

Having a wry smile, hearing me say that, she said, “It’s fine,” as I turned toward the next question on my mind.

“Queen Amalee, does this mean I’d fail whatever test Athrun put me through?”

I asked, probing for more information about the organization that Athrun and, surprisingly, Queen Amalee were in.

“Athrun?” sounding like she didn’t know who he was, but then remembering his actual name, she said, “Oh, Athrun. I’m afraid I can’t say, as I haven’t been informed about it by him. However, you can try calling him, but I doubt he can answer because he is in a dungeon right about now.”

“Dungeon? What for, Queen Amalee?”

“I’m afraid I can’t say because you still need to reach the end of this test to know.”

Looking apologetic that she couldn’t say anymore, she then changed back to the topic we had been discussing before.

“So, Rita. I am curious; looking at the scars on your back, it doesn’t seem like the one on your arm was the first time you've had them. And strangely enough, the one on your left side on your back is connected to the one on your left arm. Tell me, how did you get them?”

Showing even more concern over me, I was confused by what she meant because if what she was implying, the scar on my back, which I couldn’t seem to get rid of, wasn’t what Queen Amalee called Aether scars, right?

“What do you mean, Queen Amalee?”

Looking at me, also a bit confused, “The ones on your back, they're also Aether scars. How exactly did you receive them?”

I tilted my head slightly, even more confused than I was before.

“I don’t believe they are Aether scars, Queen Amalee; they are just burns from when I fought a drake in the Dradevow dungeon. During that fight, it had pinned me down, and some of its glowing blue, corrosive blood dripped on my back.”

When I answered, Queen Amalee took a second to think about what I said, then said. “I see. Athrun informed me about it, but tell me, were you able to use your magical powers after?”

“After you, your majesty. No wait…” Remembering more about my fight with that drake, one thing popped into my mind, where briefly the engraved knife I was holding had black electricity sparking around it, which I had chalked up to it malfunctioning.

Telling her that, I saw Queen Amalee make a slight grimace as she looked at me closely, which made me concerned.

I asked her what was wrong, and a couple of seconds later, she responded by asking.

“Tell me, Rita, are there any abnormalities when you use your magical powers?”

I hesitated upon hearing her question, debating how to answer. Being able to use only magic infused with my mana nature was definitely abnormal, but I should respond to her with something else to see where that leads, since it’s an odd question to ask.

“Yes, well… my eyes always turn blue whenever I am using my magic.”

As she heard my answer, Queen Amalee’s eyes shot right open, which caught me off guard.

“Queen Amalee, what's wrong?”

Her surprise quickly gave way to a serious expression as she asked, “Rita, if it’s at all possible, could I see how your eyes change color? But you don’t have to if you think it would be too much of a burden for you.”

Listening to her request, I debated a bit whether to or not since Queen Amalee is acting very weird, but I didn’t see any reason not to, since it might give me some insight into why my magical powers don’t work like normal people’s.

So, letting out a small exhale, I closed my eyes and controlled my mana, letting my hair glow black. When I opened them again, my eyes had turned blue.

Queen Amalee then stares at my eyes for a good long while, examining me closely, in which I sense a lot of things are passing through her mind. Doesn’t she already know about this from Athrun telling her? Judging from her thoughts, this was news to her, and I was already guessing what she was going to say next.

“Rita, do excuse me, but… are you sure your father is your father, or your mother is actually your mother?”

That question again—she was the second person who actually asked that, and coming from her, I am genuinely having thoughts about whether either of my parents is actually my biological parent because Queen Amalee was asking it this time.

“For the most part, Queen Amalee, but now, since you are asking, your majesty, I am not sure. Athrun also asked that question when he saw my blue eyes as well, twice now.”

“I’m afraid I cannot say, but… what I can say is that things have changed.”

“Hm? How so, your majesty?"

“Rita, please, show me your left arm immediately.”

Not really understanding what was going on in this really confusing conversation, I held my left arm with my right hand and showed it to her on the table as Queen Amalee asked, and she immediately began delicately removing the bandages from my left arm.

I wondered what she was doing until I saw something that left me completely speechless. I don’t know what is happening, but part of my left arm was wrapped in black scales from my shoulder to the back of my hand, spreading from and on the Aether burns along my arm.

What?!! I shouted that out in my mind, to which Queen Amalee answered, seeming to notice that under my expressionless face, I was not saying a single word.

“Your arm has been dignified. Parts of your body, specifically parts with Aether scars, have to turn into a dragon, specifically whenever you use your magic.”

“Huh?”

Did I hear that right? Dragnify? Am I going to turn into a dragon if I continue to use my magic or something like that?

Continuing to sense exactly what I was thinking, Queen Amalee tried to calm me down and said.

“Please don’t worry too much, Rita; it only shows up whenever you use your magical powers, and it won’t really progress unless you continue to put yourself into situations where you have to overburden your body with your magic for this to happen.”

Listening to what she said, I immediately stopped using my mana, causing the scales around my left arm to go back to normal, back to normal human skin. And seeing that, I couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

“Queen Amalee,” turning to face her, away from my left arm that I stared at for a good while, I asked, “How do you know so much about this?”

“It’s from the records of the past, which only the royal family has access to. Those with a condition similar to yours tend to have an extremely direct bloodline, traceable back to the 7 true dragons.”

Dragons? What? Even more surprising, more than a second ago, when I was told I was dragonifying or something, but the fact is, with what Queen Amalee is implying, the reason people can use magic is due to them having the blood of dragons in them.

So, does that mean the royal families of the other six kingdoms in the Nav Alliance, a coalition of seven kingdoms that our kingdom is part of, where each kingdom’s royal family claims that they were descended from one of the seven dragons, might actually be true?

Continuing on with her explanation, “Normally, for that very reason, members of the royal family have this condition, mostly in times of war.”

So no wonder Athrun keeps asking me if either of my parents was actually my parent. I don’t really know how to feel about that since I have a deep hatred for my father after all that has happened, and as for my mother… ehh… It’s more of a negative light because she hasn’t done anything, from what I am aware of, that would make me hate her, other than thinking she is an awful person.

“I assume it was for that reason you’ve survived Aether scarring for the second time.”

“Surviving? Second time?”

Remembering the scars on my back, which I was still confused about, the part about the Aether scars on my back, I waited for Queen Amalee to answer.

“Being a direct descendant of the seven true dragons, it is hypothesized that your body begins to dragonify to repair the damage to your mana channels, which is why you recovered so quickly. I also suspect that the Drake’s blood, a form of highly concentrated mana as evidenced by its glowing blood, made contact with you, likely unlocking your exceptionally latent magical power while placing extreme strain on your mana channels, causing the Aether scars on your back.”

Looking back at my left arm with a bit of hope, wondering what it means after the initial surprise was set aside, I asked.

But looking apologetic when I asked, she then said, “Unfortunately, I don’t know…”

Hearing that, it was all a lot to take in, even more than the ones before.

Another pause in our conversation formed, the longest yet, until Queen Amalee changed the topic of our conversation entirely to something much lighter by suddenly asking.

“So, Rita, how is the dress you are wearing? It does suit you very much.”

“Very much? I would guess so, but I personally find it a bit much.”

“Nonsense, you look beautiful in it. You’ve never been the one who dresses too extravagantly. It truly highlights your cuteness even beyond my own expectations. My, when you were unconscious, you looked like a sleeping fairy. I can’t believe Edwen would not fall for someone other than you.”

“Oh, really?”

We continued talking, this time much more cheerfully, and for the first time, I realized I was genuinely enjoying our conversation, since I didn’t have to put on any pretenses, even with her being the queen and all.

Eventually, when Helana, Queen Amalee’s head maid, returned with a wheelchair for me, she unfortunately had to say that she had to go, given her responsibilities.

But before she left, she told me she would visit again once Clare arrived. In the meantime, she suggested that I could have one of her maids wheel me through this secluded section of the royal castle to see the garden, which had begun to turn vibrant shades of red and gold with the arrival of autumn.

Deciding to do just that after Queen Amalee had left, Helana said she would tell one of the maids to take me to the garden right away.

So, waiting a bit, a maid came to my room to get me; however, for a slight moment, she seemed to be completely infatuated with me, but being one of Queen Amalee’s maids, she quickly recovered and introduced herself, her name being Anna, and said that she would be taking me to the garden and would be attending me for the day.

But before we went out, she had me put on a thick, fluffy, snow-white coat that paired really well with my very light blue nightgown, worried I might catch a cold. Once that was done, she pushed my wheelchair through the palace to the garden, through the palace that seemed really empty and quiet, peaceful, you can say.

Reaching the scenic garden, I pointed and told Anna to wheel me toward a circular pavilion nestled within the curve of the crescent-shaped pond, which showed a perfect view of the pond and the garden.

There, I watched the view, admiring the autumn-colored leaves contrasting with the remaining green leaves of summer, fall flowers blooming to replace the summer blossoms, and rainbow-colored fish swimming in the pond.

Anna suggested preparing some tea and snacks as I admired the view, and I happily accepted because I felt my stomach was starved for some food after being asleep for a whole day.

So, for the next hour or so, I sipped on some ginger tea to warm myself up as the gentle autumn breeze passed through the quiet garden, with a few pastries to go along with it. During that time, I’d thought a lot of things, like how the royal family was descended from Bahamut, one of the seven true dragons, and the same goes for the other 6 kingdoms in the alliance for each of the dragons. It was more of a shock than finding out that one of my parents wasn’t actually my parent.

By the end of it, I was thinking of ways to figure out what I was going to do next, since my left arm would be completely unusable for the foreseeable future. I wondered if I could use technology from my world to fix it, like some sort of reconstruction surgery or cybernetic augmentations to make my left arm work again.

Thinking that, I heard some footsteps coming toward the quiet garden. I turned to look, expecting to see Clare, but… she wasn’t the only person I saw.

Other than Clare, who looked like she was about to sprint toward me when our eyes locked but stopped herself since we’re in the royal palace, I saw Queen Amalee, Alice, and… Edwen?

Why the heck is he here right now?

We looked at each other after I saw Clare, both of us equally surprised to see one another.

He’d stopped walking, completely breathless as he stared at me in a trance, which made his face completely open for me to read.

Yeah… umm… why is he thinking I’m a goddess or something when he first lays eyes on me? I was his fiance and all, and the fact that he thought I was a goddess for a good second or two, not recognizing me, I don't know how to feel about it.

Once he finally realized that it was me, as Rita.

“Rita?”

Hearing my name spoken aloud, I quickly turned to Queen Amalee, Clare, and Alice, getting a weird feeling that they all knew something I didn’t.

Smirking towards Eric, Queen Amalee said. “Hmph hmph hmph, my my, he does look pretty, doesn’t he? I must ask you not to stare at him for too long; it is quite rude, you know, and don’t you already have a relationship with that Aria girl? You don’t want me telling her, do you?”

Turning a bit pale at that threat, at the mention of Aria, he quickly responded, "Of—of course, I would never.”

Saying that, it took him a bit to realize that she was calling me "he," causing his slightly pale face to turn to one of complete confusion.

“Heh? Umm… Mother, did I hear you right? Are you calling Rita a guy?”

“Ah, that, I haven't told you yet, but I have a slight solution to one of your friends' problems, which is why I brought Lady Alice and Ms. Clare over there. In addition to that person over there, I believe you already know each other; his name is Blake.”

Upon hearing the name of my alias that he knows, he slowly and mechanically turned to me, then to Queen Amalee, back to me, and back to Queen Amalee a couple of times, and finally let out a big “Huh!!!???”

Seemingly amused by that reaction, Queen Amalee further explains, “I found him unconscious and heavily injured, so I took him in, but I couldn’t help but dress him up because he looked so much like Rita, you see.”