Princess Luck Has Arrived!

Tatsuya slowly opened his eyes to welcome the morning when he suddenly realized that his entire body was very warm. He felt like he was being swaddled in a very warm blanket. When he tried to move his body, he discovered that he was being restrained by some heavy weights. He tried to move about again and his action was met with a random arm hitting him in the face and resting atop it. The sound of snoring caught his ears and the realization suddenly struck him. “What the hell?!” he shouted out loud at the top of lungs in pure disbelief and annoyance.

His voice woke up the other people in his bed. The dragon princesses casually rose up and stretched their arms. They were all dressed in nightgowns of varying transparencies. Aika blinked her eyes and said with a huge smile, “Good morning, Darling!”

“What are you all doing here?!” shouted Tatsuya hysterically.

“Be quiet, you malapert mooncalf,” snapped Sunaji grumpily. “Must you be so raucous in the morn?”

“We all just wanted to sleep with you,” said Aika. “Think of this as our present to you for being awarded the highest prize in the dragon realm!” She then puckered her lips and leaned in to kiss Tatsuya. Tatsuya quickly grabbed his pillow and sandwiched it in between them.

“Don’t you like our little present, Tatsuya?” asked Arashi with a sly smile. She leaned in and blew on his ear, causing him to yelp as his face turned red.

“It’s not like I wanted to do this,” said Sunaji. “The others conjured up this plan and I just went along with it because….” Her face became bright red as she stopped talking and held her tongue. “W-W-Well, you better be grateful that I joined in!” she concluded adamantly.

“We just wanted to do something for you, My Love,” said Kanjomizu bashfully.

“Thanks for the thought, but no thank you,” said Tatsuya. “This gift is more bothersome if anything.”

“What would you like for a gift then, Tatsu-kun?” asked Shurai.

“What do you mean?” asked Tatsuya with a frown.

“How about a kiss?” suggested the Druk princess. Before Tatsuya could reply, she tore away the pillow in his hands and proceeded to give him a peck on the lips. This act sent the other princesses into a frenzy. Like a mad herd of fangirls, the dragon princesses all fought for Tatsuya’s attention and body. They pulled on his arms, tugged at his legs, reached for his head, treating him like a rag doll than a human being.

“Enough!” shouted Tatsuya furiously. The princesses quickly stopped their madness. “Get out!” he told them. The princesses exchanged sad and worried glances and complied with his order. They got off his bed and walked out the room in single-file.

Suddenly, a rustling sound could be heard from under Tatsuya’s blanket and Mika poked her head out, surprising her brother. “Yeah! Get out!” she repeated after them. “It’s my turn to have Oniichan to myself!”

“Mika?” said Tatsuya with a smile.

“Yes, Oniichan?” answered Mika with a smile of her own.

Tatsuya grabbed his sister by the ponytail and dragged her off his bed and threw her out his room. He quickly shut the door after. Peace and quiet returned to his room and Tatsuya let out a sigh of relief. He then got himself ready for the day.

He came into the living room and saw Shurai eating her bag of snacks while watching a morning anime on TV. She gave the show her full attention and watched it intently while eating her snacks, not missing a single bite. This was the most focused Tatsuya had ever seen the Druk princess. He took a seat next to her and looked at what she was watching. “Oh, isn’t this the new anime that’s really popular right now?” he asked. Shurai answered him with a grunting nod. “Do you like it?” Tatsuya asked her. Once again, Shurai answered with a grunting nod. “I-I-I see,” said Tatsuya, smiling awkwardly.

“Super Ninja Force Sentai Rangers is the best show right now, nin nin,” said Shurai in a serious tone.

“Nin nin?” questioned Tatsuya.

“Nin nin,” said Shurai with a nod. “Five ninjas must team up together on a quest to defeat the evil overlord, Auros,” she told him in between bites. “The evil overlord, Auros, *nom-nom* plans on turning the human race *nom-nom* into his own personal army of brainwashed zombies *nom-nom* so that he can conquer the universe. Right now, the evil overlord, Auros, *nom-nom* is sending one of his minions *nom-nom* to infiltrate the Super Ninja Force Sentai Rangers’ headquarters.”

“Sounds, er, interesting,” said Tatsuya politely.

“Mm-hmm,” agreed Shurai with her mouth full. Tatsuya quietly watched the show along with her. When it came time for the heroes to do their signature victory pose, Shurai got out of her seat and put down her snack bags on the coffee table. She stood upright and placed her hands on her hips, imitating the show’s heroes. “When evil strikes, we strike back! Justice is on our side! Super Ninja Force Sentai Rangers, ninja forever!” echoed Shurai, imitating their movements flawlessly. She then turned to Tatsuya while still posing and held up a thumbs up.

‘She’s really into it,’ thought Tatsuya to himself with a kind and awkward smile.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Tatsuya got up and went to answer it. He wasn’t sure who it could be at this time. He opened the door. “Yes?” he answered.

“Is this the Owatatsumi residence?” asked the visitor. He was a young child with soft golden brown hair, intense bronze eyes, and a light-bronze skin tone. Dressed in a very luxuriant golden tuxedo, the boy looked like a fancy ring-bearer for the wedding of a very extravagant figure. There was a very intense aura about him that intimidated Tatsuya to some degree. Given how short and young he was, Tatsuya naturally assumed the boy to be an elementary schooler.

“Yes, it is,” confirmed Tatsuya.

“I see,” said the boy with dignity. He then stepped aside, turned sideways, and bowed. “We have arrived, my princess.”

A little girl approached the door and stood before Tatsuya with a very haughty smile on her face. She looked to be around the same age as the boy, although Tatsuya thought that she looked like a middle-schooler at least. She had very beautiful and dignified golden blonde hair styled in large twin-tail bunches held with silver bows. Her eyes were of a very lustrous golden amber color like precious jewels straight from the mine. Her skin had a light gold tint to it as if she just got out of a literal golden shower. Around her neck was a silver-chain necklace with a golden pendant the shape of a doubloon, and dangling from her ears were jeweled earrings. She was dressed in a very elegant golden yellow dress with yellow gloves and sparkly heels. “Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” she laughed haughtily to herself, “I grant you the honor of being graced by my presence, Dragonborn! Princess Tania of the Lindworm tribe has arrived!”

“Sorry, but I’m not interested in buying cookies. You can try the next house over,” said Tatsuya blandly with a disinterested expression. He quickly shut the door and turned to walk back to the living room.

Suddenly, there was a loud CRACK! and Tatsuya quickly found himself on the ground. The boy from before had broken through the front door with a kick and struck Tatsuya in the back; he was now standing on top of the Dragonborn’s back with a very scary look in his eyes. “You dare slam the door in the face of a princess, you lowborn fraudulent arse?” threatened the boy.

“Draupnir, that’s enough,” ordered the princess.

“Yes, your highness!” quickly obeyed Draupnir. He immediately jumped off of Tatsuya and bowed his head before his princess. “Please, forgive me for my impudence,” he said humbly.

“Of course,” said the princess. “I am great and merciful after all. Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

“Eh? Is that you, Taka-chan?” came Shurai’s voice from the hallway. She appeared before them with a very bland expression on her face. “I knew it,” she said, “it is you, Taka-chan.”

“Shacchan!” shouted the princess in cheerful surprise. She ran up to Shurai and gave the Druk princess a big hug.

“You know this little squirt, Shurai?” asked Tatsuya.

“This is my friend, Taka-chan,” said Shurai. “She’s the princess of the Lindworm tribe.”

“Who you calling squirt, you big buffoon?!” shouted the Lindworm princess angrily at Tatsuya. “And who are you to be so friendly with Shacchan, huh?” she added, sticking her tongue out like a little child.

“Taka-chan, my name is Denkoryu Shurai,” Shurai told her friend. “Remember to use your human realm name when you are here.”

“Ah, you’re right,” said the Lindworm princess with a sheepish laugh. She turned to Tatsuya with a haughty smile and said in a very arrogant tone, “Bow before me, peasant, the princess of the Lindworm tribe, Unryu Takara! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

“Nice to meet you,” said Tatsuya with a polite smile; although in his mind, he was truly irritated by the dragon princess’ annoying arrogant attitude.

“Who are you, a server?” asked Takara dismissively.

“Actually—,” said Tatsuya.

“Would you please go fetch the master of the house for me?” asked the Lindworm princess smugly.

“Like I said—,” attempted Tatsuya again.

“Oh? You’re still here? You have an important guest here for your master. Is everyone here in the human realm this useless?” she said condescendingly.

“O-O-Of course,” said Tatsuya with a forced smile and a very noticeable throbbing vein near his forehead. ‘This little brat is even more pompous and arrogant than Sunaji,’ he thought annoyedly to himself. He left the room for a bit and came back with something in his arms. With a very evil smile, he presented the “Master of the House” to the princess and said, “Here you are. Here’s the Dragonborn!”

Salazar, Aika’s pet Primordial Salamander, had been resting easy in the corner of the living room when Tatsuya picked him up without a word. Now, the pet found himself face-to-face with an unfamiliar stranger. He tilted his head in confusion and flicked his tongue to lick her face.

Takara let out a disgusted scream and yelled out furiously, “What the hell?!” Salazar’s saliva was dripping down her face like thick snot.

“My princess!” shouted Draupnir. He immediately rushed to his princess’ side and handed her a cloth rag.

Takara quickly wiped her face and furiously screamed, “Is this some kind of sick joke?! Take me to the master of the house right now so I can complain directly to his face!”

“Taka-chan,” said Shurai, tugging on her friend’s arm, “He’s the master of the house.” She pointed at Tatsuya for Takara to see.

“Eh?” uttered Takara confusedly. When the words finally clicked in her mind, she let out an even louder “Eh?!” in pure disbelief. “Y-Y-You’re joking, right? You mean, he’s the Dragonborn?!” exclaimed Takara hysterically, pointing at Tatsuya. Shurai answered with a simple but serious nod. Takara slowly turned her head back towards Tatsuya.

“Welcome to the Owatatsumi-residence, princess,” said Tatsuya with a smile. Despite the façade of a happy and kind smile, Takara could very well sense a very dangerous aura about him filled with irritation, frustration, anger, and vengeance.

“You mean that the guy I saw speaking at the ceremony was this plebeian?!” exclaimed Takara in horror. “I didn’t know that the Dragonborn was so poor!”

“Oi, who you calling poor?” said Tatsuya in a more aggressive tone.

“The way he looks, the way he acts, he just screams uncouth and barbaric! He’s the poster boy for the impoverished!” added Takara in alarm.

“What do you mean I ‘look’ poor?!” screamed Tatsuya in offense.

“Shacchan, has this beast done anything to you? Has he degraded you to the same level of poor and cheap savagery as his looks? Have you been treated right? Tell me that you hadn’t lost your edge as a proper princess and changed to become a cheapskate commoner with a plebeian mind!” cried Takara, taking Shurai’s hands into hers.

“Taka-chan, I’m alright,” reassured Shurai. She then took her hands away from Takara’s and walked over to Tatsuya’s side. “Taka-chan, I want you to meet my fiancé,” she told her friend. She then stepped on her tiptoes and gave Tatsuya a kiss on the cheek.

This act elicited a very sharp cry from Takara. “F-F-Fiancé?!” she screamed.

“Tatsu-kun and I are betrotheds,” said Shurai with a small smile.

“Sh-Shurai!” exclaimed Tatsuya with reddened cheeks.

“After all, we shared a kiss together,” revealed Shurai unashamedly.

“K-K-K-Kiss?!” Takara couldn’t believe it. Has her friend gone mad? After that last reveal, Takara felt her brain imploding inside her head and her mental faculties failing her. The only thing that was on her mind now was how she wanted to bury herself so that she can escape this horrible reality. With a shaky voice, she asked her friend, “D-D-Do you l-l-love him?”

Shurai tilted her head and thought for a moment. And then, without reservation and with the same small smile amidst a purely bland expression, Shurai gave her answer. “I love Tatsu-kun.”

Takara could her heart being pierced by needles. ‘Impossible!’ she cried to herself, ‘Has this plebeian bewitched my friend’s mind?!’ She furiously turned to Tatsuya and demanded, “What did you do to Shacchan? Did you bewitch her with magic? Tell me, you plebeian!”

“No, Taka-chan, it’s not like that,” said Shurai, coming to Tatsuya’s defense. “Tatsu-kun is a kind person. He treats me well and buys me anything I want to eat.”

“Is that how he’s been taking advantage of you?!” exclaimed Takara.

“Actually, I was the one taking advantage of him,” corrected Shurai.

Takara was dumbfounded. The words escaped her and she stood very still with pure disbelief written on her face.

“Darling! Lunch is ready!” called out Aika’s voice from the kitchen.

“W-W-Who’s that?!” yelped Takara in surprise.

“Hey, Taka-chan, lunch is ready,” said Shurai, “Let’s go eat together. We’ll talk more then.” She then casually walked off to the kitchen. Takara shot Tatsuya a fearful glance before quickly following her friend to the kitchen. Now, Tatsuya was alone in the hallway with the princess’ butler.

Draupnir shot Tatsuya a dirty look with menacing eyes and said threateningly, “I’ll make you pay for hurting the princess. If you try to brainwash, influence, abuse, or threaten Princess Takara as you did her friend, I will strike you down right now. You have been warned.”

“S-S-Sure,” stuttered Tatsuya with a forced smile. He didn’t know why, but he felt absolutely terrified and intimidated by the butler, despite his appearance as a little kid. And he could also sense the intent behind each and every word the butler spoke. The butler is indeed a man (kid?) to be feared.

Takara was beyond perplexed and dumbfounded with this situation she found herself in. She met everyone in the household and was welcomed warmly by them and joined them for lunch. But now, she remains frozen with an incomprehensible expression on her face. She couldn’t enjoy her lunch in the slightest and her eyes were forced to focus on Tatsuya being smothered and mobbed by the princesses and his sister. The way they fought over who gets to feed him and such made the Lindworm princess question the reality of her situation.

‘What is going on?’ she asked herself. ‘Why are they going crazy over the plebeian? Is this Dragonborn really so great for them to act this way towards him? Or could it be…?’ Suddenly, a scary thought entered her mind and her entire body shuddered in fear: ‘Did he use some kind of magic to control and enslave them?!’ That thought drove a very hard stake through her sanity. ‘Is he going to do this to me too?! Is he going to enslave me just like them?! Will I be forced to serve this plebeian with my body?!’

“My princess!” shouted Draupnir worriedly. He rushed over to his princess’ side and brought out a towel to wipe the torrents of sweat rushing down her face. “Get a hold of yourself!” he begged her.

“Eh? Are you alright?” Tatsuya asked the Lindworm princess.

His voice made Takara yelp and flinch in her seat. “O-O-O-Of course!” she told him with a forced smile. She gulped and then proceeded to say, “Why wouldn’t I be? I am the mighty and great princess of the Lindworm tribe! Nothing can faze me! I do not need your concern at all, you plebeian!”

‘Do I really look that poor to you?’ thought Tatsuya with a twitching vein on the right side of his forehead.

Takara then continued to eat her lunch with a smug and arrogant expression on her face. She couldn’t let him catch her in such a vulnerable state. She must do whatever she can to put up a fight against his bewitching magic. ‘I’m so sorry, Shacchan! If only I came here sooner, I could’ve protected you!’ she bemoaned.

“Here, Darling, say ‘Ahh’!” said Aika, pushing a spoonful of curry rice to Tatsuya’s lips.

“Listen, I can eat by myself,” said Tatsuya.

“Oh, come one, just once,” said Aika with a pout.

“I…hmph, alright,” surrendered Tatsuya. He opened his mouth and allowed Aika to feed him.

Meanwhile, Takara couldn’t help but peek up from her own food to watch the scene. The other princesses quickly followed suit and tried to feed the Dragonborn too. It was like watching lions fighting over the same piece of meat, or a table of gamblers battling it out to win the jackpot! She could see that each of the princesses had their own way and style of approaching this situation.

“M-My Love, would you like to taste mine too?” asked Kanjomizu meekly.

“Of course,” answered Tatsuya with reddened cheeks.

‘So the Naga princess is the sensitive one,’ observed Takara.

“Partake in mine too,” said Sunaji with averted eyes. “I-I-It’s not anything special. I just thought that you could at least aide me in completing my dish. T-There’s just too much aliments, that’s all. T-T-There’s really no other reason!”

“Um, er, sure,” answered Tatsuya with a perplexed expression.

‘The Python princess is the spicy type,’ noted Takara.

“Say, Tatsuya, would you rather let me feed it to you normally or with my mouth?” asked Arashi naughtily, licking her lips suggestively at him.

“A-A-Acchan!” exclaimed Tatsuya shamefully.

“Just kidding,” said Arashi with a wink. She then proceeded to feed him normally. Once she took the spoon out, she planted him a small peck on the lips.

‘W-W-W-What did I just watch?!’ screamed Takara. ‘The Quetzalcoatl princess is a demon! An ogre! What kind of weird play is this?!’

“Hmph, no fair, Ara-nee!” complained Mika with a pout. She grabbed a spoonful of food and forced it into Tatsuya’s mouth. She then jumped onto him and said, “Oniichan! You can have me next!”

“Mika!” yelled Tatsuya furiously, pushing her off of him.

‘The sister is a huge bro-con,’ groaned Takara disgustedly to herself.

“Tatsu-kun,” said Shurai, tugging on Tatsuya’s arm. She held up her spoon filled with soup and said, “It’s my turn to feed you. Eat!” Tatsuya simply smiled and obeyed her orders. Shurai smiled at his acceptance of her offering.

‘Shacchan is…SMILING?!’ Suddenly, Takara felt her mind explode and her heart stopping. This was like going to the mall to buy a very special designer dress only to find four other people fighting over it too and then one of them won it and bought it and you only learned a few minutes later that it was the last one ever produced and the line will be discontinued after this. She lay slack in her seat and Draupnir quickly came to her aid with another towel in his hands.

“Princess, get a hold of yourself!” shouted Draupnir worriedly.

Takara regained her senses and popped back up in her seat. She cleared her throat and continued to eat her lunch. All the while, she listened to the princesses gush over the Dragonborn as if he was the greatest thing since treasure. Their words were starting to get on her nerve and when she glanced up at them, she saw the huge smiles they wore on their faces as if they were enjoying every moment of this. But what irked her the most was how their attention were focused solely on the Dragonborn. ‘Just what is so great about him anyway?’ she thought to herself spitefully. ‘Besides, he’s just controlling them with strange magic, right? They can’t possibly be like this in reality.’ She was about to eat a spoonful of soup when the next words forced her to spit it all out.

“Say, Darling, what do you think about getting married this summer?” said Aika, innocently brushing her body up against him like a puppy.

“What are you talking about?” said Tatsuya with a frown.

“Yeah, Ai-nee! Oniichan is going to marry me first!” declared Mika proudly.

“Hold it right there!” shouted Takara, leaning in from her seat with eyes widened in disbelief and fury. “This has gone far enough, you plebeian!” she told Tatsuya. “Release these princesses from your spell! I will never agree to this unfair manipulation of their hearts by the likes of you!”

“What are you going on about?” asked Arashi with a raised eyebrow.

“And what spell are you referring to?” wondered Aika, bringing her finger to her chin.

“He has corrupted each and every one of your hearts!” declared Takara. “I don’t need to be a Bakunawa to see through this thinly veiled magical abuse by this commoner!”

“Tatsu-kun doesn’t know any magic,” pointed out Shurai.

“And if he did, I highly doubt that he could cast such an extravagant one as that,” agreed Sunaji.

“My Love doesn’t need to cast any spell to win my heart,” added Kanjomizu.

“Are you being serious?!” shouted Takara in disbelief. “He has to be brainwashing you all in some way!” she accused.

“Even if he did, I wouldn’t mind it,” admitted Aika. “As long as I’m with Darling, I’m alright!”

“This can’t be true,” muttered Takara in fear. She pointed a finger at Tatsuya and said, “You plebeian, you will now release them all from this spell! If you will not, I will do it myself! Don’t think that you can escape the great and powerful princess of the Lindworm tribe!”

Ingrid took this moment to intervene and explained it very easily for Takara to understand. She spoke to the princess very closely to her ear and revealed the truth. Takara couldn’t believe the words she was hearing. Once the maid was done, she gave the princess some time to process all of this new information.

Now that Takara knew the truth, there was only one question she had. ‘How is this plebeian so popular with them?’ she thought perplexedly to herself. She gazed up at them and saw how happy and content the princesses were around him. Seeing him acting so high and mighty and satisfied with himself to be surrounded by so many beautiful and powerful women irked her. All of the attention he was getting from them…and here she was being ignored. It seemed that the only thing the girls cared about was the Dragonborn and nothing else. Why was this plebeian receiving all of this attention that he clearly doesn’t deserve? She was very puzzled by this very issue. And it deeply irritated her to no end. She needed to put this plebeian in his place. ‘Don’t think that you’re hot stuff just because of all this attention you’re getting,’ she thought maliciously to herself.

“Say, everyone,” said Takara loudly for everyone to hear, “this is my first day in the human realm and I was wondering if you don’t mind indulging me a bit today. Could you all possibly show me around? Since I will be here more often, I thought that it would be nice to know the city. It’s not fitting for a mighty and great princess such as myself to be ignorant of her surroundings.”

“Sure thing,” said Tatsuya with a smile.

‘Yes! You took the bait, you plebeian! I’ll take this opportunity to find your weaknesses and expose them for the princesses to see! And when I do, they’ll leave you for sure! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!’ she thought arrogantly to herself with a smug smile. She then laughed out loud for everyone to hear, unbeknownst to herself.

“R-Right,” commented Tatsuya slowly to himself with an awkward smile.

Once lunch was done, Tatsuya, Mika, and the princesses all left for the city to show Takara around. The servants stayed behind to tend to the house. Although Draupnir wanted to remain by his princess’ side, he was held back by Rocco and Vajra.

The first thing they all did was visit the park. Takara wasn’t the least bit interested. “Oh? Is this our first stop?” she asked them disappointedly.

“It’s a very popular place for kids,” Tatsuya told her. “I’m sure you’ll enjoy it too.”

His words struck a nerve in her and Takara quickly exploded in front of him. “Who are you calling a kid you giant plebeian?!” she yelled.

“This brings back memories, doesn’t it, Oniichan? Ara-nee?” reminisced Mika.

“It sure does,” agreed Tatsuya with a longing smile.

“My, Tatsuya, remember the time you played on the swings and got scared when a spider landed on your face and you jumped off the swings only to land on your face?” remembered Arashi.

“And don’t forget the time he played hide-and-seek with us and he hid behind a bush for an entire day. We left for home when Daddy came to pick us up and we forgot all about him. It wasn’t until the next day that Oniichan came back home and waited for Mommy to open the front door to let him in!” said Mika. Both girls laughed at their memories fondly.

“Mika! Acchan!” exclaimed Tatsuya in embarrassment.

“Ah! Just thinking about those age-old memories really makes it all the more startling to see how much Tatsuya has grown into a fine man,” said Arashi, turning to give him a wink.

Tatsuya cleared his throat and said, “Those memories are important to me too.” He then smiled longingly and said, “Like the time Mika dragged mom and dad to bring her here right after she recovered from a cold. She always loved to play on the swings and would often force me to push her. And the time when Acchan chased after me with a giant rhinoceros beetle in her hand. I’ve never ran so hard in my life!” He laughed to himself upon remembering that moment and was subsequently joined by Mika and Arashi.

This wasn’t at all what Takara was hoping for. It seemed that this place only made the Quetzalcoatl princess all the more attached to him. “Hmph, I had enough of this place,” she told them with a bored expression. “Where are we going to next? It better be a more interesting place befitting an elite like me,” she told Tatsuya in a condescending tone.

The group’s next stop was a hamburger shop, as per Shurai’s suggestion. She had on a very happy smile and said, “Remember this place, Tatsu-kun? It was the very first place we met.”

“Of course!” said Tatsuya. “To be honest, I was surprised to meet a girl with a very bottomless appetite. You ate through those thirty or so burgers like they were bite-sized cookies!” Shurai’s stomach suddenly grumbled at the mention of food. Tatsuya let out a small chuckle and said, “Say, how about a few burgers for old time sake?”

“Alright, Tatsu-kun,” accepted Shurai quickly with a nod of her head.

‘This is bad!’ thought Takara anxiously. She needed to do something to stop this happy atmosphere between them. “Ah, I’m bored!” she shamelessly said out loud. “Let’s go somewhere else already. Do you really expect an elite person such as I to partake in such a drab and plebeian place?”

“We’ll go in a bit,” said Tatsuya.

“Argh!” whined Takara like a spoiled child. “Let’s go somewhere else already!” she ordered.

The group moved on in accordance to the Lindworm princess’s request. They came upon a bridge and walked over it. Kanjomizu stopped in the middle and looked out at the stream running under it. She basked in the summer air cooled by the waters below and smiled contentedly to herself. “My Love, do you remember this place?” she asked Tatsuya.

“This was the bridge where we first met, isn’t it?” answered Tatsuya.

Kanjomizu turned to him and nodded. “I’ve never had anyone said those words to me before,” she told him with a small smile. “I mean, being a princess and all, I’ve always had people tell me the same things, but they’ve never felt genuine. When you came to my rescue and told me all those things, I could tell that you were being genuine. I fell for you then and there.”

“Of course, I meant each and every word. And they are still true right now,” Tatsuya told her kindly. Kanjomizu blushed and smiled, eliciting a very sharp sigh from Tatsuya. ‘She’s so cute like that,’ he thought to himself with blushing cheeks.

Takara couldn’t believe how quickly this romantic atmosphere came to be. She immediately squeezed herself in between Tatsuya and Kanjomizu and said, “What’s so great about this bridge? Was it built by an acclaimed architect? Did it used to be owned by a king? Is it some significant monument that played a part in a historic battle? If not, then it is not befitting an elite like me! Let’s move on! My time is precious and I can’t be wasting it on insignificant pieces of wood! You hear me, you plebeian?!”

The group left the bridge and made their way to the beach. Since it was summer time, there were a lot of people and families present. Tatsuya spotted an unoccupied spot near the sea and led the group there. “Well, this is the beach. Is this to your liking?” he asked Takara.

“Hmph, I suppose,” said Takara with a flip of her twin-tail.

Sunaji looked out at the ocean with intense eyes when something bumped into her feet. She glanced down to see what it was and immediately let out a squeal and jumped back unknowingly into Tatsuya’s arms.

“Are you okay?” Tatsuya asked her. He looked down and said reassuringly, “It’s just a crab.”

“U-Um, r-right,” said Sunaji. She then realized the position she was in and her entire face became red. She pushed herself away and said, “I-I-I-I apologize for my blunder.”

“You know, this kind of reminds me of the beach trip we had together with the entire club,” said Tatsuya. “To be honest, I wasn’t really into it, but it was pretty fun to hang out with everyone.” Sunaji simply responded with a silent nod of her head. “But man, fighting that golem was the worst,” recalled Tatsuya. “If it wasn’t for the transformation, I really think I could’ve died!” he concluded with a laugh.

The memory of that day replayed in Sunaji’s mind and her face became a very dark crimson upon recalling the events that led to Tatsuya’s transformation. Tatsuya noticed Sunaji’s face and wondered why it was so red. He went over the words he said and that’s when it struck him. Now, his face had also become a very dark crimson color. They both had their eyes averted from each other in embarrassment, like two elementary schoolers learning what love is for the first time. “S-Sorry to bring that up,” apologized Tatsuya.

“I-I-It’s fine,” replied Sunaji.

“I’ve never got the chance to say thank you for helping me with that,” Tatsuya told her.

“T-T-That’s not necessary!” yelped Sunaji.

Takara couldn’t help but gag at how dreadfully romantic this was turning. What’s more, the nice-guy act that Tatsuya wore all this time reached a very new high. She couldn’t handle any more of this fake act she was witnessing and the obviously forced romanticism between the princesses and the Dragonborn. “This is disgusting!” she yelled at the top of her lungs. “This place, this scene, this act, it’s all disgusting!”

Sunaji also had enough of the Lindworm princess’ constant nagging and arrogant attitude. “Enow of your foolishness, you malapert quean!” Sunaji told Takara. (“Enow” = “enough”). “Fie I say to you!”

“Oh, have you finally learned how to be a proper lady, Python princess?” said Takara insultingly with a smug smile. “Who knew that a bunch of hicks could learn some very elite words? I praise you for breaking the stereotype.” She applauded mockingly along with her statement.

“Don’t you dare speak of manners and elegance, you arrogant twit!” spat back Sunaji. “You’re nothing but a spoiled brat who bellyaches over every little thing!”

“At least we have things to bellyache about,” replied Takara smugly. “Everyone knows that the Python tribe are a bunch of tryhards who pass themselves off as refined and elite individuals despite the fact that they're the least sophisticated of us all! We’re flattered that the Python tribe think that they could emulate us Lindworms by acting refined, but please, you’re just embarrassing yourselves. Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

“Who says that we are emulating you?” argued Sunaji aggressively.

“Oh please, we all know that the Python tribe is doing everything they can to improve their image,” said Takara dismissively, “They’re nothing but a bunch of country bumpkins! They’re the least powerful and sustainable of the 13 Tribes and their economy is at the very bottom! I mean, come on, they’re all a tribe of miners, farmers, and manufacturers! Just how poor and sad is your kingdom? It’s so sad that it’s laughable! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

Sunaji couldn’t handle it anymore and unconsciously switched over to her real-self. “Wha yer lil miss prissy! Ahma give ya some sense in a bit so ber ready fer a good ol’ whoopin’!” she announced furiously.

“Well, it seems that the real you has appeared,” said Takara. “I guess country bumkins will always be country bumkins no matter how sophisticated they try to make themselves up to be. Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

Sunaji touched her wrist and brought out her Dragon Regalia. Takara took notice of this and quickly did the same. The Lindworm princess’ Dragon Regalia was a pair of 12-inch golden revolver pistols with the image of dragons etched all around it and sterling silver triggers and glossy wooden grips like fine oak.

Tatsuya quickly stepped in between them and said, “Whoa, hold it! Let’s stop this right now!”

“Get out of the way, plebeian! My business is not with you!” declared Takara.

“Taka-chan,” said Shurai, stepping in front of her friend with her arms outstretched.

“Shacchan,” said Takara in a quiet voice. With her friend standing adamantly in front of her, Takara relented and put her Dragon Regalia away. She then turned around with her arms crossed over her chest, “Ah, this is boring! I don’t care for the beach or any of the places we’ve been to! Isn’t there anyplace worthy of an elite like me?!”

“Why don’t we go see a movie together?” suggested Aika. “We don’t have movie theaters back in the dragon realm, so this can be a great experience for you.”

The group left the beach and came to a movie theater in the city. "What even is this place?" asked Takara disinterestedly.

"It's a place for watching movies," Tatsuya told her.

"Ah, really. I guess I'm a little intrigued," said the Lindworm princess with a shrug of her shoulders.

Aika let out a very romantic sigh and said, “Darling, remember our first date? We came to this same theater.”

“Ah, I remember,” said Tatsuya with a nod. “I’ll be honest with you. At first, I thought you were a big nuisance and I just wanted to live a very normal life. But after all our time together, you became someone I can’t live without. And, Aika, I truly did enjoy our first date together.”

Aika couldn’t believe what she was hearing and happiness overwhelmed her. “Darling!” she exclaimed, jumping onto him and hugging him very intensely.

“Aika!…Too…tight…,” he gasped. Aika didn’t seem to be listening to him at all. Tatsuya was about ready to break out himself but, upon seeing how happy she was, he relented and allowed himself to be smothered by her. “Say, why don’t we go in and catch a movie together?” suggested Tatsuya. The other girls quickly and happily agreed.

‘H-H-How is this possible?!’ wondered Takara perplexedly. She couldn’t believe just how strong the princess’ affections for Tatsuya were. Although she now knew that they weren’t bewitched by any magic, she refuses to accept that he hadn’t charmed them in some way or another to make them this putty in his hands. But what irked her even more, the thing that pricked each and every nerve in her body, was this nice guy act that he flawlessly wore without exhaustion. The way he focused on each of the princesses and gave them his entire attention, the genuine care he clearly showed each of them, the way he was acting kindly to them…it really made her skin crawl! She didn’t know why, but it ate her up inside.

Like a bomb on the verge of exploding, Takara’s body trembled violently. “That’s enough,” she said in a dangerously quiet voice.

“What was that?” asked Tatsuya.

“Enough, you plebeian!” she exploded. “You have embarrassed me enough!” She quickly grabbed Tatsuya’s arm and ran off with him. “You do not deserve the princesses’ attention, nor should they make do with yours! You’re nothing but a plebeian and I’ll prove it!” she declared as she led him away.

“Taka-chan!” shouted Shurai. The other princesses and Mika quickly followed after them.

Takara glanced back and scowled. ‘Sorry, Shacchan, but this is for the best,’ thought Takara. She snapped her fingers and the other dragon princesses and Mika suddenly dropped to the ground like rag dolls.

“What did you do?!” shouted Tatsuya in horror.

“Shut it, you plebeian!” shouted Takara. ‘Looks like it’s my job to put you in your place. Dragonborn or not, I cannot allow a plebeian such as yourself have the attention of the princesses, nor shall they receive yours. Yes, your attention is worthless and it’s up to me to show you that. This nice guy has gone far enough! Be ready to learn the true worth of your plebeian self!'