Chapter 26
The backyard of Vheena's house was quiet, with the occasional sound of a rooster crowing. Vheena, who had been sound asleep in a chair, woke up after sleeping for a long time.
"Ugh... ahh, yawn... ugh, my body is stiff. I didn’t expect to sleep until noon in the backyard. Now that I'm awake, I'm a bit hungry. I better head to the kitchen to make some lunch."
As Vheena entered the house and was about to go to the kitchen, she heard the front door open. She turned toward the door to see who had come in, but before she could get there, a small dark figure suddenly rushed up and hugged her tightly.
Vheena froze in shock at how fast the figure had moved to embrace her. She nervously looked down to see who it was and realized it was her student, Ruan Xiaoyue, wearing an old black cloak that used to belong to her.
"Master, RuanRuan missed you so much."
"RuanRuan? Oh, welcome back. I didn’t expect you to be gone for so long during your adventure in the Death Forest. Were you okay in there? Did you get hurt?"
"RuanRuan is fine, Master. No issues while exploring the Death Forest, and I was only there briefly because I attended the opening conference for the alternate realm to gain access to it."
'Huh? The opening conference for an alternate realm? I think I’ve heard of that before, but where? Wait, that’s not important right now. Didn’t I send this little girl to explore the Death Forest to gain experience and gather plants and animals? And now she just runs off to some conference instead?'
"RuanRuan, didn’t I ask you to explore the Death Forest to gain experience? Where are the plants and animals I requested?"
"Oh yes, of course, Master. Here, take this ring. I’ve stored many plants inside. As for the animals, they’re outside. Let me show you."
Her student took her hand and led her to the front yard. Stepping outside, Vheena saw a small child she didn’t recognize, standing in her yard with a hood covering their face.
'Who is this child? Why are they in front of my house? Are they lost? Wait, why does their body seem to stiffen when they see me? Don’t tell me they’ve been fooled by my appearance too? Never mind, I’ll ask them later. I should first ask RuanRuan about the animals she brought.'
"Where are the animals you were supposed to bring, RuanRuan?"
"The one standing right in front of us is the animal, Master."
"Animal? …isn’t this a human?"
"No, take a closer look, Master." RuanRuan responded as she removed the hood, revealing the small horns on the girl's head.
"Huh? Horns?"
'A horned girl? And she’s so cute, exactly my type. …No! I must not fall for a loli!'
"Yes, Master, as you can see, I brought back a demon dragon. I brought her for you to keep as a pet. At first, I was confused when you asked me to bring an animal that could be eaten, especially since there are plenty of edible animals in the Death Forest."
"But when I entered the alternate realm and found this demon dragon, and with help from Sister Xue who became my friend, I realized that this was the animal you meant. Since you are an immortal, your perspective is different from that of human cultivators. To you, this demon dragon is just like any other edible animal. That’s the conclusion I came to. So, I brought this dragon demon for you, whether you want to eat her or keep her as a pet. There was also a rare golden-beaked swan I wanted to bring, but unfortunately, it was killed by this demon dragon."
‘Ruan-Chan, you talk way too much. I only caught bits of what you said because I was distracted by this loli—uhuk. Wait, did she say the animal I could eat is this dragon girl? What? Is she suggesting I eat this loli-uhuk, dragon girl? Does she want me to get arrested? No, wait! There’s no police here anyway. Does that mean I can—guhehehe..., no! My mind is wandering. I need to correct RuanRuan’s misunderstanding.’
"RuanRuan, you misundersto—uhum, but as expected from my disciple, you managed to understand my words and complete the task perfectly. Good job."
‘Ruan-Chan, what’s with that face begging for praise? With a face like that, how could I possibly scold you? She might start crying.’
Feeling it was unfair to scold Ruan Xiaoyue after seeing her pleading expression, Vheena decided not to reprimand her. Instead, she patted Ruan Xiaoyue’s head as a gesture of praise.
"Hehehe… t-thank you, Master."
‘What’s with this girl’s goofy face? Where’s that cold expression you had when we first met? Just by patting your head, your expression becomes like this. Never mind, I should ask this loli-uhuk, dragon girl something first.’
"So, …little dragon girl? May I know your name?"
"Honorable Master! Please make me your pet! I, Long Linglu, a pure descendant of the divine dragon race, am willing to do anything for you, Honorable Master! I am even willing to let you ride me. Please, let me be your pet!"
‘What? That speed! It stirred up the wind around us. Wait, what do you mean by asking me to make you my pet? Is this dragon girl sane? And what does she mean by letting me ride her? We’ve just met, and she’s asking me to ride her? Are all dragon species this lustful? Forget her strange behavior, I need to respond and correct her way of speaking.’
"Honorable Master… Long Linglu, is it? You don’t need to call me that. As for becoming my pet, is that really your wish?"
"Of course, that’s my wish, Honorable Master—I mean, mighty mysterious immortal master of unparalleled strength."
‘Wow, what a desperate attempt at flattery. She’s using every impressive title she can think of just to get me to accept her as a pet? Wow. I’m speechless. I can only say WOW.’
Vheena was genuinely impressed by this odd dragon girl who flattered her so desperately just to become her pet.
"Long-Chan—I mean, Linglu, it feels strange hearing you call me that. Just call me Miss Vheena."
"Alright, Miss Vheena! S-so, will you make me your pet? Please, will you?"
‘Why does this dragon girl want so badly to be my pet? Aren’t dragons supposed to be proud creatures? If I accept her, won’t her entire race come after me for turning one of their kin into a pet? I can’t take that risk. I’d better refuse.’
"Uhum, sorry Long-ch-Linglu, but I’m not really looking for a pet right now—"
"Waaah! Please, Master, let me be your pet! I promise I’ll be a good girl if you take care of me! Please! Waaah!"
‘Let go of my leg, oi! This kid has no shame! Don’t cry while hugging my leg!’
"Get off my Master, you demon!"
"Please, Master, let me be your pet!"
‘Haaah… now they’re both fighting. What should I do? Should I accept this dragon girl or not?’
Watching Long Linglu shamelessly clinging to Vheena’s leg while Ruan Xiaoyue tried to pull her off, Vheena stood there silently observing the absurd scene. As she did, someone suddenly approached and spoke to her.
"Master, who are these two?"
"Xianxiu? You’ve been gone for five days. Have you finished your training?" Vheena asked upon seeing that it was her other student, Luo Xianxiu.
"Yes, Master. But who are they?"
"Oh, them—hey, you two, stop fighting! RuanRuan, stop pulling Linglu. Linglu, stop hugging my leg. I’ll accept you as my pet, so let go of my leg."
‘Alright, I give up on this situation. I’ll just accept Linglu as my pet. What’s the worst that could happen? If her race comes to take revenge on me, they’ll probably end up bowing before me once they see me. Maybe?’ Vheena thought as she surrendered to the absurd situation.
"Yeah! I’m now the pet of a powerful being! Hahaha! Once I awaken my full divine dragon lineage, I’ll make every creature in this world bow to me! Hahaha—ow! That hurts!"
"You’re too noisy, demon. Show some respect in front of my Master."
"Why couldn’t you just tell me nicely to be quiet? That punch really hurt!"
"Quiet, or do you want me to make you beg again?"
"Hey! I’m not scared of you. Just wait until my bloodline is fully awakened, I’ll take my revenge on you!"
"Hah? You want more?"
"Ouch! Stop! That hurts! I’m sorry! We’re family, please, stop hitting me! Master, help me! Stop this evil person!"
'Wow, the two of them are really close, seeing two lolis playing around makes my heart feel purified.'
With a peaceful expression while watching the two cute lolis playing, the hidden lolicon spirit in Vheena unknowingly awakened. While enjoying the tranquility, she heard Luo Xianxiu speak to her again.
“Master? W-who are they?”
“Oh right, sorry for forgetting to introduce them to you. The little girl in the black robe is named Ruan Xiaoyue, she is the master's first disciple, or your senior sister. Meanwhile, the little girl with horns is named Long Linglu, as you've heard, she is... the master's pet.”
‘It's quite embarrassing to say that a human-like creature is my pet, especially in front of my own disciple,’ Vheena thought as she continued speaking.
“RuanRuan, stop hitting Linglu, look, your junior sister wants to get to know you.”
“Huh? Junior sister?”
“H-hello, Senior Sister Ruan. My name is Luo Xianxiu, I’m the master’s newly appointed disciple. It's nice to meet you, Senior Sister Ruan.”
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Author's Note:
Since it seems that those who commented are not too troubled by the numerous misunderstandings, the story will remain the same as originally planned.
Thank you for your suggestions.