A Little Dragon and Her New House Guest

For now, Lion sat comfortably on Saya’s lap, and Saya herself was nestled on Suzhen’s lap as they rode along the path on horseback. The elder had lent the horse to Suzhen after both Saya and Lion refused to ride the giant toad, with Lion’s orange fur flaring up in alarm like a puffed-up mothball at the sight of the creature.

After I send Saya home, I could ride this horse to Issania. The elder likely wouldn’t mind—after all, she had asked for a horse as part of her reward.

But that thought also meant one thing: she would have to say goodbye to Saya.

It’s for the best. It’s not my responsibility to take care of her.

The sooner they parted, the easier it would be. No lingering attachments. No drawn-out goodbyes.

The quicker the parting, the lesser the pain.

"Ms. Serpent, what’s Issania like?" Saya asked, her voice curious.

"Mhm… I have no idea. I’ve never been there."

"I read in books that it’s a big city. It has a million people living there," Saya said, her eyes wide with wonder.

"A million people is nothing," Suzhen replied. "Changjing, the capital of the Eastern Empire, has three million." She remembered her first visit to the city vividly—the sheer scale of it had taken her breath away. She’d never seen so many people in one place, or a palace so vast it took three days to walk across.

That was a long time ago, though. Now, nothing surprised her anymore.

"Three million! Woah!" Saya’s eyes sparkled, her imagination running wild. "But Mommy told me there’s nothing for me in the East. She said if I ever go anywhere, I should always head west."

"She told you that, huh?" Suzhen murmured.

"Yeah, but she always says that staying in the house is best. So that’s why I’ll stay and be a good girl."

Suzhen paused for a moment, then asked, "What do you want to do when you get home?"

"I’m going to start planting food! I watched Ivory water the plants, so I know how to do it. Once I grow enough, I can sell the food at the village and buy some butter candies for a snack!" Saya grinned proudly, clearly pleased with her plan.

So, the little girl has it all figured out.

"You know," Suzhen began, "now that the barrier is gone, you could probably go down to the village and play with him. What’s his name again? Telorine. He seems like a nice kid."

"I don’t want a boyfriend right now. I’m too busy!"

"W-What? Where did that come from?" Suzhen stammered, unable to suppress a giggle. From a five-year-old?

"That’s what boys want, right?" Saya continued, her voice innocent yet confident. "In Ivory’s bedtime stories, it’s always a boy chasing after a girl, and then they kiss and become boyfriend and girlfriend!"

Oh dear. My dear serpent cousin, what kind of bedtime stories are you feeding this little girl?

"You like Ivory, don’t you?"

"Ivory’s the best!" Saya beamed, her voice full of enthusiasm. "She always says it’s a serpent’s instinct to hurt others, but Ivory would never hurt me!"

Suzhen felt a sudden tug at her heart. A distant memory surfaced—one that she hadn’t thought of in a long time.

"Master, why did you accept me as your disciple?" she had asked once. "Any sane swordsman would have hunted me down. It’s a serpent’s instinct to hurt others... so why did you choose me?"

Her master had simply smiled, replying calmly, "If I didn’t choose you, who will choose me?"

"Oh, we’re here!" Saya’s voice brought Suzhen back to the present.

They had reached the top of the hill, standing in front of the mansion. Carefully, Suzhen lifted Saya down from the horse, and as soon as her feet hit the ground, she darted toward the mansion with Lion cradled in her arms. "Maybe Mommy and Ivory are back! Let me go check!"

Saya pushed open the door, her excitement palpable. But inside, only silence greeted her. The air held the same scent as when she had left. There was no sign of anyone entering or leaving.

Still, Saya ventured deeper into the house, hoping that perhaps, somewhere, she would find a trace of something different—some indication of her mother or Ivory’s return. But the mansion remained eerily quiet.

Suddenly, she remembered her visitor. Feeling it was rude to leave Suzhen outside, Saya ran back toward the entrance.

"I’m sorry, Ms. Serpent! Please come in and—"

But when she stepped outside, Suzhen was nowhere to be seen.

**

The sun finally kissed the horizon, painting the sky a deep crimson red. Inside the quiet mansion, Saya sat, reflecting on her day. Her plan to catch a bird using the worms she’d dug up that morning had failed, but the day hadn’t been wasted. She’d spent half of it down in the village—a place she had never ventured before.

She met new friends, tasted exotic food, and discovered that the elves weren’t as mischievous as the stories had made her believe. They were kind to her. Maybe Aria isn’t the trickster goddess the books say she is.

And all of it happened because of Ms. Suzhen. Though their time together had been brief, Saya couldn’t help but like her from the moment she saw her.

But Suzhen wasn’t from the village, and it seemed she was in a hurry to go somewhere important, so she couldn’t stay long.

If only I had asked her to bring something to Mother, Saya thought with regret. Suzhen had left so quickly, that there hadn’t even been time to say goodbye. Saya had thought about walking down the hill to see if she was still there, but by the time she’d made up her mind, her tummy had started rumbling. The boar soup she’d had earlier was already long gone, and now, once again, she had to think about food.

Maybe I can cook this boar jerky that the blonde elf woman gave me.

But... was it okay to eat just like this? Saya couldn’t remember. Ivory always told her to cook her food, and Saya wasn’t sure if jerky counted as cooked or not. But it wasn’t hard to be safe—she could cook it to be sure.

Saya gathered some wood from the pile and fetched a bucket of water, preparing to heat it up. But then she paused, staring at the cold fire pit. I don’t know how to light a fire...

She tried to recall how Ivory had done it. There had been some equipment, but Saya wasn’t sure which one it was.

What can I do? she thought, feeling a little lost.

As Saya sat pondering what to do, her tummy rumbled again. This time, the sound was followed by a soft meow from Lion.

"Lion, are you hungry too?" she asked, apologetically. "I’m sorry. Here, have some jerky."

Tearing off a piece, Saya placed it beside Lion. But the cat merely sniffed it and continued to look at her with curious eyes, clearly unimpressed.

"Do you not like it?" Saya muttered, staring at the jerky in her hand. Her stomach growled louder, and she thought for a moment. Maybe... if I don’t think of this as food, but as a sweet instead, I won’t need to cook it. After all, Ivory had never told her to cook her butter candies.

With that bit of childlike logic settled, Saya happily grabbed a plate and set a piece of jerky on it. She sat at the table with a fork and knife, ready to enjoy her dinner.

"This isn’t too bad at all!" she said aloud, pleased with her decision. "I’ll have dinner, then a nice hot bath, and then go to bed. And tomorrow... tomorrow..." Her voice trailed off as she paused, the thought unfinished.

What would she do tomorrow?

"Mmhmm..." Saya murmured softly, her mood shifting. Ever since Ivory and her mother had left, she’d tried to stay hopeful. She had felt determined, waking up early every morning to work in the garden, believing that tomorrow might bring something better.

But now, for some reason, that hope felt distant, fragile.

Tomorrow won’t be like today anymore, will it? The thought sank in slowly, bringing with it a heavy sadness she hadn’t fully realized before. Her chest tightened as she gazed down at her plate, and without warning, tears were welling up in her eyes.

Eeek!

Saya’s heart raced as she heard the creak of a door opening. Did I forget to close the door when I came inside?

She hurried to the entrance. The door was indeed ajar, but standing there was a tall figure. It was already dark outside, but the clear sky allowed the moon to shine brightly, casting a long shadow on the floor.

The silhouette was unmistakable—the long hair, the slender form. It was the serpent spirit.

"Oii, where’s the kitchen? I better hang this somewhere," the figure said, carrying something large over her back.

"Ms. Suzhen?" Saya called out.

"Mhm? Yes. It’s me," Suzhen replied as she stepped fully into the house, her face now illuminated by the soft light. "Went out hunting. Caught a Giant Peacobeak. Ever tried it? Tastes like chicken."

"You went out hunting? But I thought you were leaving..." Saya’s voice wavered, filled with confusion.

"I was," Suzhen admitted, looking down at the small girl, "but maybe I’ll stay for a little longer... if there’s an empty room "

"I’m sure you can take one of the rooms. We have a lot of empty rooms..." Saya’s words trailed off as she suddenly grabbed onto Suzhen’s thighs, her little hands clutching tightly.

"Eh? What’s up with you?" Suzhen asked, surprised by the gesture.

"Nothing... just let me hold you for a little longer," Saya murmured, burying her face into Suzhen’s legs.

Suzhen gently patted Saya’s head.

That evening, they shared the leftover jerky for dinner. Preparing the Peacobeak would have taken too long—plucking feathers, draining blood, and slow-cooking it—so Suzhen decided they’d save it for lunch the next day. Despite the simple meal, Saya thought it was the best dinner she’d had in a long time.

"Ms. Suzhen, let me show you your room!" Saya chirped, leading Suzhen upstairs. "Maybe you can have Mother’s room!"

Suzhen raised an eyebrow, hesitating. "Mhm... maybe not. I’ll take one of the guest rooms or an empty room," she replied. Suzhen couldn’t shake the thought of what might happen if Saya’s mother did return, only to find someone in her bed.

"Oh, in that case, you can take Ivory’s room! I’m sure she won’t mind. Oh! And if you’re curious about what my mother looks like, here’s a painting of her and me when I was a baby!"

Saya pointed to a large painting hanging on the wall at the top of the stairway. Suzhen glanced up.

The painting was enormous, at least twice her height. At first, Suzhen could only see the lower half, where baby Saya was being cradled in a pair of large hands.

"Hmm, that painter had an interesting perspective on proportions..." Suzhen muttered.

But as she raised her gaze higher, her breath caught in her throat. Her eyes widened in shock, and for a long moment, she stood frozen, staring at the painting.

"Ms. Suzhen?" Saya called, turning back to her.

"Saya..." Suzhen’s voice was barely above a whisper. "Is that... your mother?"

"Yes! That’s Mother! And I love her! I hope she comes back soon." Saya smiled, her voice full of innocent hope, before running further down the hallway. "Hurry up, Ms. Suzhen! The room is just over here!"

But Suzhen remained rooted in place, her eyes locked on the woman in the painting—the woman who seemed to be staring back at her. Finally, after a deep breath, she quietly tore her gaze away and followed Saya down the corridor.

That night, little Saya slept peacefully with Lion curled up beside her. Twice, she had tossed the blanket off, and by the second time, Suzhen gave up on putting it back on. It wasn’t too cold anyway, she thought, quietly retreating from the room.

Suzhen walked slowly along the corridor, a single candle in hand, its soft light flickering as she headed back to her room. As she passed the stairway, her eyes drifted once more to the large painting hanging on the wall. She paused, staring at it.

No one should see this, Suzhen thought. She didn’t know if anyone would visit the mansion, but just in case...

Without a sound, Suzhen carefully unhooked the painting from its place on the wall and carried it downstairs. She made her way to the basement. Once inside, she found a thick blanket and wrapped it tightly around the painting, concealing it completely.