Chapter 1053: The Railway He Forgot

An enormous shadow crossed the sky of the Snowy Kingdom, passing over the snow-covered mountains before beginning to lose altitude. The cold wind struck Strax’s black scales, but he barely felt the temperature as he observed the buildings appearing below.

It had been some time since his last visit, and the first thing he noticed was that Mercedes had kept her promise to prepare a proper place for his landings.

A large flat area, covered by a sturdy layer of ice, had been built some distance from the palace. It was spacious enough to accommodate his draconic form without putting the nearby buildings at risk.

Strax let out a small laugh when he recognized the structure.

"So she really built a runway just for me." Strax murmured while folding his wings and beginning to descend.

The idea had come up after a previous visit, when his landing caused a gust of wind strong enough to scatter snow across half the courtyard and frighten some of the servants.

Mercedes had not been particularly pleased on that occasion.

This time, he decided to avoid trouble.

His enormous draconic body began to shrink while he was still in the air. The black scales disappeared, his wings retracted and, a few seconds later, Strax assumed his human form.

He simply let himself fall the final few meters, landing with his knees slightly bent on the frozen surface.

A small layer of snow scattered around his boots.

"There. No buildings destroyed." Strax commented while straightening his posture and looking toward the distant palace.

He had barely finished speaking when he felt a familiar presence approaching at absurd speed.

Strax turned his head.

A small figure was crossing the courtyard toward him, leaving a long trail of gleaming ice over the snow.

It was Vex.

The girl had created a smooth layer beneath her feet and was sliding over it as if she were surfing. With every movement of her hands, new sheets of ice appeared ahead, allowing her to increase her speed even further.

"DADDDDDY!" Vex shouted while opening her arms and practically flying across the frozen surface.

Strax widened his eyes.

"Vex?! Hey, careful with that speed!" Strax warned while opening his arms to receive her.

The girl completely ignored the warning.

A few meters before reaching him, she created a small ice ramp and jumped.

Strax had to take a step back when his daughter threw herself against his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"DADDY! DADDY! DADDY!" Vex repeated while tightening the hug and hiding her face against his shoulder.

Strax started laughing.

"Hey, my little one! I missed you like crazy too!" Strax replied while holding her firmly and lifting her off the ground.

Vex let out a happy laugh.

"You took too long! I thought you weren’t coming anymore!" Vex complained while holding her father’s face between her hands.

Strax smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Sorry, princess. A few things happened in Asgard." Strax explained while stroking his daughter’s hair.

Vex made a small grimace.

"You always say that." Vex replied while puffing out her cheeks.

Strax opened his mouth to defend himself, but ended up giving up.

She was not wrong.

"Yeah, I guess I do." Strax admitted while letting out a small laugh.

That was when he noticed something strange.

He moved Vex slightly away to observe her better.

The girl looked different.

Her hair had grown, her features were a little more defined and her arms and legs seemed considerably longer than during his last visit.

Strax blinked.

Then placed her on the ground.

Vex no longer looked like a ten-year-old little girl.

Her appearance now resembled that of a girl around twelve.

"Wait a second..." Strax murmured while examining his daughter from head to toe.

Vex tilted her head.

"What is it, Daddy?" Vex asked while holding one of his hands.

Strax crouched down to be at her height.

"How did you grow so much in such a short time?" Strax asked while observing his daughter’s face with obvious surprise.

Vex blinked.

Then placed her hands on her waist.

"Because I’m a dragon, duh!" Vex replied while raising her chin proudly.

Strax stared at her.

"Does that explain a lot?" Strax asked while raising an eyebrow.

"Of course it does! I’m not human, Daddy!" Vex declared while shaking her head, as if her father had just asked a very silly question.

Strax remained thoughtful for a few seconds.

Well, it made sense.

Animals usually reached certain stages of development much faster than humans, and dragons possessed completely different physiology. Although they were extremely long-lived creatures, there was no reason to assume every stage of their growth followed a human pace.

Even so, the speed at which Vex was changing was impressive.

"Yeah... I think you’re right." Strax admitted while stroking her head.

Vex smiled with satisfaction.

"See? Mommy said I’m growing really well!" Vex replied while spreading her arms to show off her size.

Strax laughed.

"You really are. Soon I’ll have to look up to talk to you." Strax joked while standing.

Vex started laughing.

"You won’t, Daddy! You’re too tall!" Vex replied while holding his hand again.

Before Strax could continue, a female voice came from behind them.

"This girl is getting bolder and bolder..." Mercedes murmured while calmly walking across the courtyard.

Strax turned his head.

His wife approached with an apparently calm expression, although her eyes were fixed on the enormous trail of ice Vex had created.

Mercedes raised one hand.

A wave of mana traveled across the ground, causing the frozen ramps and sheets to break apart into tiny crystals. Within seconds, the entire improvised trail disappeared, leaving the courtyard surface level again.

Vex watched her mother work.

"But I didn’t hit anything, Mommy!" Vex argued while squeezing Strax’s hand.

"Not today, darling." Mercedes replied while finishing off the last ramp.

Then she raised her eyes.

And found Strax.

He immediately smiled.

"Hi, darling~" Strax greeted while raising his free hand and watching his wife approach.

Mercedes stopped in front of him.

For a few seconds, she only stared at him.

Then she let out a long sigh.

"Strax." Mercedes called while crossing her arms.

His smile shrank slightly.

"Mercedes." Strax replied while maintaining a friendly expression.

She tilted her head slightly.

"Where is the railway?" Mercedes asked while observing her husband with a worryingly calm expression.

Strax blinked.

"The... railway?" Strax repeated while feeling a rather inconvenient memory return to his mind.

Mercedes smiled.

A beautiful smile.

Delicate.

And absolutely terrifying.

"Yes, my love. The railway you said you would build to connect the Snowy Kingdom to Asgard." Mercedes explained while taking a small step toward him.

Strax swallowed hard.

Ah.

That railway.

He had promised to provide a permanent connection between the two kingdoms to make travel and trade easier and, most importantly, allow Vex to visit him more often.

The problem was that several other responsibilities had appeared after that conversation.

And he had ended up leaving the matter in the hands of the administration.

"W-well... you’ll have to talk to Monica about that..." Strax replied while offering a slightly nervous smile.

Mercedes froze.

Vex looked at her mother.

Then at her father.

Mercedes’s left eyelid twitched.

"Ah, Monica..." Mercedes repeated while her smile slowly widened.

Strax felt a shiver.

"I see." Mercedes continued while nodding in an excessively understanding manner.

She brought one hand to her chest.

"How wonderful that our dear king leaves everything for Monica to solve, isn’t it? I can only imagine how rested that poor woman must be, with absolutely no responsibilities piling up." Mercedes commented while every word seemed loaded with sarcasm.

Strax remained still.

So did Vex.

Mercedes kept smiling.

"After all, administering Asgard, managing resources, supervising construction, organizing trade and solving the problems of half the continent must be very simple. I’m sure she’s thrilled to receive an entire railway to build on top of everything else." Mercedes added while tilting her head.

Strax swallowed again.

Vex did too.

The silence that followed was quite uncomfortable.

"Darling, I can explain..." Strax began while raising one hand.

"Can you?" Mercedes asked while her smile disappeared for an instant.

Strax slowly lowered his hand.

"I can try." Strax corrected while letting out a nervous laugh.

Mercedes closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Vex took advantage of that moment to discreetly move closer to her father.

"Daddy..." Vex murmured while tugging on the hem of his clothes.

Strax lowered his head.

"What is it, princess?" Strax asked quietly while keeping his eyes on Mercedes.

"You made Mommy angry." Vex whispered while discreetly pointing toward her mother’s expression.

Strax exhaled through his nose.

"I noticed." Strax replied in the same tone.

He observed Mercedes for a few more seconds.

Then leaned a little closer toward his daughter.

"Has she been like this for a few days?" Strax asked discreetly while trying to understand whether he had arrived at a particularly bad time.

Vex nodded with an extremely serious expression.

"I think she’s on her period." Vex replied while keeping her voice low.

Strax slowly turned his head.

"What?" Strax asked while blinking.

Vex tilted her head.

"Her period." Vex repeated while seeming surprised that he had not understood.

Strax stared at his daughter.

"You know what a period is?" Strax asked while raising an eyebrow.

Vex immediately nodded.

"I do! Mommy explained it." Vex replied while seeming proud of her knowledge.

Strax waited.

"It’s when blood comes out of the pussy." Vex explained with the greatest naturalness in the world.

Strax froze.

Completely froze.

Vex continued, not noticing her father’s expression.

"But Mommy said my body is different because I’m a dragon. I don’t have that thing called a uterus, so it doesn’t happen to me." Vex added while shrugging.

Strax opened his mouth.

Then closed it.

He did not know exactly which part of that explanation he should comment on first.

"Ah..." Strax murmured while slowly looking toward Mercedes.

His wife was staring directly at the two of them.

And she had heard absolutely everything.

Strax sensed the danger before she even started walking.

"Mercedes, love, listen..." Strax tried to say while raising one hand.

Mercedes approached with calm steps.

Then extended her arm.

And grabbed his ear.

"Ow! Hey! Mercedes!" Strax complained while being forced to tilt his head to follow the movement.

"I. Am. Not. Menstruating." Mercedes declared while pulling her husband’s ear and beginning to drag him toward the palace.

Strax tried to follow her steps without stumbling.

"All right! All right! I understand!" Strax replied while gently holding his wife’s wrist, careful not to hurt her.

Mercedes kept walking.

"And for your information, dear husband, I’m irritated because you promised our daughter a railway and simply forgot to arrange it!" Mercedes explained while tightening her grip on his ear a little more.

"Ow, ow! I didn’t forget! I was just busy!" Strax argued while bending slightly to reduce the pressure.

Mercedes turned her face.

"Then you’re going to be less busy starting today." Mercedes replied while giving him a smile that allowed no argument.

Strax sighed.

"Yes, darling." Strax replied while giving up on resisting.

Behind them, Vex watched the scene with wide eyes.

Mercedes stopped for a moment.

"You too, young lady! Come along before I have to drag you by the ear as well!" Mercedes ordered while pointing toward her daughter with her free hand.

Vex immediately straightened her posture.

"I didn’t say anything, Mom!" Vex replied while beginning to follow the two.

Mercedes raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, no?" Mercedes asked while continuing to pull Strax along.

Vex quickly shook her head.

"No! I was just explaining something to Daddy!" Vex replied while quickening her steps to keep up with them.

Strax discreetly looked at his daughter.

Vex looked back.

The two exchanged a conspiratorial expression.

Mercedes noticed.

"I can see both of you." Mercedes warned while continuing to walk.

Strax immediately looked ahead.

Vex did the same.

For a few seconds, no one said absolutely anything.

Then the girl moved closer to her father again.

"Daddy..." Vex called quietly while walking beside him.

Strax tilted his head slightly, despite his ear still being held between Mercedes’s fingers.

"Yes, princess?" Strax replied while trying to smile.

Vex looked at her mother.

Then at him.

"Are you going to be grounded?" Vex asked with genuine curiosity.

Strax closed his eyes.

Mercedes let out a small laugh.

"If he keeps making excuses, he will." Mercedes replied before her husband could say anything.

Vex widened her eyes.

"But he’s the king!" Vex argued while seeming to find the possibility very strange.

Mercedes smiled.

"And I’m his wife." Mercedes replied while continuing to walk.

Vex thought for a few seconds.

Then nodded.

"Ah, then you can." Vex concluded while seeming to finally understand.

Strax looked toward the sky.

"Wonderful. Even my daughter is against me." Strax murmured while letting out a resigned sigh.

Vex started laughing.

"I’m not against you, Daddy!" Vex replied while holding his free hand.

Strax looked at the girl.

"No?" Strax asked while raising an eyebrow.

Vex shook her head.

"No! I love you!" Vex declared while smiling.

Strax ended up smiling too.

"I love you too, my little one." Strax replied while affectionately squeezing her hand.

Mercedes observed the two from the corner of her eye.

Her smile softened slightly.

She was happy to see Strax beside their daughter again. Vex had spent days waiting for that moment, and the joy written across the girl’s face made Mercedes’s irritation diminish considerably.

But not enough to let him go.

"When we get there, you’re going to explain exactly what happened with that railway." Mercedes warned while returning to her authoritative tone.

Strax let out a sigh.

"Yes, darling." Strax replied while continuing to be dragged along.

Vex walked happily beside them, holding her father’s hand.

After a few steps, she looked toward Mercedes.

"Mommy, can you let go of his ear? I want to show him my new magic!" Vex asked while pointing toward the training courtyard.

Mercedes looked at her daughter.

Then at Strax.

Finally, she released her husband’s ear.

"All right. But he’s not escaping our conversation." Mercedes replied while crossing her arms.

Strax discreetly rubbed his ear.

"I would never try to escape a conversation with my adorable wife." Strax declared while offering her his most charming smile.

Mercedes narrowed her eyes.

"Are you trying to flatter me?" Mercedes asked while tilting her head.

Strax kept smiling.

"Is it working?" Strax asked while approaching and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

Mercedes tried to maintain her serious expression.

She did not entirely succeed.

"Idiot." Mercedes murmured while turning her face away to hide a small smile.

Vex started laughing.

"Now Mommy is happy!" Vex celebrated while hugging both of their waists.

Mercedes stroked her daughter’s hair.

Strax wrapped both of them in his arms.

For a few moments, the three remained embraced in the middle of the snow-covered courtyard.

Then Vex raised her head.

"Daddy! Now come see! I can make three ice stars at the same time!" Vex announced while grabbing his hand and beginning to pull him toward the training area.

Strax immediately smiled.

"Three stars? Then I need to see that!" Strax replied while letting his daughter lead him.

Mercedes followed the two with an affectionate smile.

But before following them, she cast one last look at her husband.

"And afterward, the railway." Mercedes reminded him while crossing her arms.

Strax raised his free hand without turning around.

"Yes, darling!" Strax replied while Vex pulled him faster and faster.

Mercedes let out a small sigh.

At least he had finally shown up.

Now she only needed to make sure he did not leave again before fulfilling his promise.