Chapter 183: Cleenah’s Plan 2

The Primordial Dragon had never expected Cleenah to think of something like that.

Even after listening to the entire plan, she still found it hard to give a fitting response. For a while, all she could do was look at the little girl standing before her.

But thinking it over again, perhaps it wasn’t really that surprising.

After all, Cleenah was still very young.

Although she had been the Clan Leader of the Qiezhuran for years, by the measure of a Dragon’s lifespan, the girl hadn’t truly reached adulthood.

She still had much to learn, about life and about how to face problems that couldn’t always be solved in simple ways.

Unfortunately, Cleenah hadn’t had enough chances to learn all that.

Ever since Clyne’s death, she’d had to bear the responsibility of being Clan Leader. Even when most of the other Dragons were far older and stronger than she was, Cleenah still had to stand before them as the one who made decisions.

And now, after years of facing that situation, she had prepared a plan that even made the Primordial Dragon struggle to accept it.

’...This child.’

The green-haired woman lowered her head slightly.

How much had Cleenah been through to be able to think of something like that?

How often had she had to face problems alone, until she finally considered that dangerous plan an acceptable choice?

The Primordial Dragon didn’t know the answer.

But there was one thing that made her feel very uncomfortable.

Cleenah seemed to have prepared that plan long ago, without telling anyone.

Not even Garph.

"..."

The Primordial Dragon let out a small sigh.

She had thought before that Cleenah only needed a little encouragement to have hope again. After all, the girl still had Garph and the Dragons loyal to her.

But after listening to the entire plan, the Primordial Dragon began to understand that Cleenah’s circumstances might be far worse than she had imagined.

The girl wasn’t without hope.

She had simply grown used to thinking of bad options, and then choosing whichever one she felt could still be done.

And the saddest part was that Cleenah didn’t even seem to think her plan was anything remarkable.

As if it were simply what she ought to do.

’...Clyne.’

The Primordial Dragon recalled the girl she had once raised.

She knew that Clyne had loved Cleenah dearly. Even before dying, Clyne had still been thinking of the girl’s future and had entrusted the leadership of the Qiezhuran to her.

But had Clyne ever imagined that Cleenah would face a situation like this?

The Primordial Dragon didn’t know.

What was certain was that if Clyne were still alive, she would surely not be happy to hear that plan.

At least, that was what the Primordial Dragon believed.

"...Haa."

The green-haired woman sighed again.

Then she lifted her head.

Her conversation with Cleenah was over.

And now, the little girl had frozen along with time once more.

Her body didn’t move at all, while both hands still held the cane supporting her.

The Primordial Dragon looked at Cleenah for a few moments.

The girl’s face still looked calm. The white bandage covered both her eyes, while her dark green hair fell softly around her shoulders.

Her appearance was no different from an ordinary little girl.

But the responsibility she was bearing was not small at all.

"...You foolish child."

The Primordial Dragon murmured those words in a low voice.

She wasn’t truly angry at Cleenah.

On the contrary, she felt so sad that she didn’t know what else to say.

And after listening to the entire explanation, the Primordial Dragon had already made up her mind.

She couldn’t let everything go on as it was.

The problem was that her own condition wasn’t much better.

The energy she had left was very little. Even keeping time stopped like this was something she couldn’t do for very long.

If she had power like in the past, the Primordial Dragon probably wouldn’t have needed to think so complicatedly about all this.

Unfortunately, reality didn’t always match her wishes.

"Ugh... This is so annoying."

She grumbled a little, then turned her head away.

Not far from where Cleenah stood, Julian was still frozen.

His face remained calm as usual, while both arms still held a little girl who seemed to be sleeping.

Seeing that girl, the Primordial Dragon fell silent for a moment.

Then she began to walk closer.

Her steps sounded light along the floor of the vast hall. But no one reacted to her presence.

Julian was still frozen, and so was everything around them.

Just as before, that girl wasn’t actually bound by the stopped time.

Even so, she still had her eyes closed as though sleeping soundly.

The Primordial Dragon stopped right in front of her.

"...Hey."

There was no answer.

The green-haired woman lowered her head slightly, looking at Felicya, who was still in Julian’s arms.

"Felicya."

"..."

"You heard that conversation just now, didn’t you?"

This time, her voice sounded lower than usual.

She didn’t immediately shout or disturb the girl’s sleep like she had done before.

For a while, there was no response.

Felicya kept her eyes closed, her small body looking so comfortable in Julian’s arms.

The Primordial Dragon began to wonder whether the girl was truly asleep.

But just as she was about to call out once more, Felicya’s eyes slowly opened.

"..."

Felicya looked at her lazily.

Then, after a few moments, she nodded weakly.

"...Yeah."

Hearing that answer, the Primordial Dragon was briefly at a loss.

She had actually expected that Felicya might have heard the conversation. But now that she had confirmation, she felt a little confused about what to say.

After all, Felicya’s own condition still hadn’t recovered.

The girl’s memories hadn’t fully returned, and the power she once held couldn’t be used as it had been before.

Asking her for help might sound rather outrageous.

Especially after the Primordial Dragon had kept pressing her to recover her identity soon.

"..."

The green-haired woman scratched her cheek.

But that confusion didn’t last long.

She quickly put on a small smile again, then bent down a little to be closer to Felicya.

"Hey, Felicya! How about you help me with something?"

"..."

Felicya only looked at her.

There was no significant change in the girl’s expression.

Seeing that, the Primordial Dragon continued right away.

"I know you probably don’t want to do anything right now. Honestly, I didn’t want to bother you either, you know! But this time, things are a bit different."

"..."

"Besides, you also heard what Cleenah said, didn’t you? That child really worries me!"

The Primordial Dragon let out a small sigh.

She glanced at Cleenah, who was still frozen in the distance, then looked back at Felicya.

"And I don’t have enough time to help her myself. It’s so annoying! If I could last a little longer, I wouldn’t have to trouble you like this."

Felicya still said nothing.

But this time, her eyes stayed open.

At the very least, she didn’t go right back to sleep.

The Primordial Dragon considered that a fairly good development.

"So, how about it? You’ll help me, right?"

"..."

"There’s no need to make that face! I haven’t even said what you have to do!"

Felicya let out a quiet sigh.

"...Noisy."

"Eh!?"

The Primordial Dragon flinched slightly.

"You! I’m speaking seriously here, you know! Could you at least show a little interest!?"

Felicya turned her face away.

"..."

"Ugh! You lazy goat!"

The Primordial Dragon almost launched into another long scolding.

But she quickly held herself back.

After all, this wasn’t the time to quarrel with Felicya.

What’s more, she truly needed the girl’s help.

The Primordial Dragon took another small breath, then lowered her voice.

"...Felicya."

This time, there was no shouting or complaining.

"I truly want to help that child."

Felicya slowly looked at her again.

The Primordial Dragon continued more calmly.

"I don’t know whether everything will go well. But at the very least, I don’t want Cleenah to have to face this situation alone."

"..."

"So, can you help me?"

Felicya studied the woman’s face for a while.

Honestly, she felt rather bothered.

She didn’t like being disturbed while resting, let alone by someone who always talked so much every time they met.

But that didn’t mean Felicya didn’t understand what was happening.

She had heard the earlier conversation.

And there were a few things in Cleenah’s account that made her uncomfortable.

Especially the part about betrayal.

"..."

Felicya lowered her head slightly.

Something faint surfaced in her mind again.

A memory she couldn’t yet fully grasp, but one that was enough to make her feel a strong dislike toward that one thing.

Traitors.

She truly hated them.

After staying silent for a few moments, Felicya finally lifted her head again.

Then she nodded weakly.

"...Fine."

The Primordial Dragon widened her eyes.

"Eh? Really!?"

Felicya nodded once more.

But before the Primordial Dragon could say anything else, the girl had already opened her mouth.

"...Just this once."

"...?"

Felicya closed her eyes again, then added in a very quiet voice.

"Because I hate traitors."