Father, I Won’t Do Anything

“Fifty million gold!”

“No, sixty million gold!”

Unlike the hesitant daytime auction, voices calling out large sums rang out from all sides right from the start.

The color gradually drained from Izren’s face. Glancing at his pallid countenance, Hilvenzia lifted her mask with satisfaction.

‘An escort knight whose purpose I can’t discern.’

If she couldn’t separate him from Jaina due to the Tower Lord’s orders… perhaps making him resign on his own was an option.

It was at that moment when a strange smile curved her lips.

“Hilvenzia, I want that one.”

Hilvenzia looked down in surprise at the voice she shouldn’t be hearing.

Jaina was still leaning against Hilvenzia’s shoulder, just as she had intended.

But Jaina, who should have been asleep from the sleeping powder, was blinking her tender eyes.

“Please buy me slaves of this race.”

“…What do you intend to do with them?”

“You know I feel a sense of kinship with them, Hilvenzia.”

At those words, Izren’s shoulders flinched, but Jaina paid it no heed and continued.

“You must have heard that I pleaded with the Tower Lord through Mikael to accept Izren as my escort knight?”

“…”

“If the people here knew my true identity, as a ‘mixed-blood’, I too would likely be up on that stage.”

Hilvenzia pressed her lips tightly shut at Jaina’s words, her expression fading.

‘I only knew this girl was a dragon. What does ‘mixed-blood’ mean?’

He couldn’t discern the meaning. He knew so little about Jaina.

But at this moment, Izren wanted to learn more about Jaina, even if he was just the Tower Lord’s puppet.

The girl before him was going through such efforts to save those demi-human slaves, no more valuable than taxidermy specimens.

“Alright Jaina, I understand your intentions. But there’s no need to worry.”

“Huh?”

“There is a knight of justice here, different from me.”

Following Hilvenzia’s gaze, Jaina looked towards a certain spot.

There sat the ponytailed woman who had competed against Hilvenzia in the bidding earlier.

“How amusing. But this can’t be tolerated any further.”

The woman’s voice, strangely, carried an odd resonance even amidst the clamoring voices.

And it seemed not only Jaina felt it. Everyone’s attention was focused on her.

“To audaciously buy and sell slaves in the Empire where human trafficking is prohibited.”

At the woman’s words, the auction house that had been filled with fervor suddenly fell silent.

“What was that? What did you just say, you wench?”

“If you’re broke, you should be holed up in a corner somewhere, not flapping your mouth around.”

Those who had been enthusiastic about the demi-human auction hurled insults at her for ruining the atmosphere.

Yet the woman didn’t flinch.

She hadn’t frozen from the barrage of rebukes. Truly, their words meant nothing to her.

“I am Elia El Isni Delaide, Captain of the Imperial First Knight Order.”

Elia straightened her shoulders proudly, then drew two swords from behind her back.

“I shall arrest you all on charges of human trafficking.”

Craaash!

The closed doors burst open, and knights poured in, tightly surrounding the exits. The auction participants flailed about in confusion, but there was nowhere to flee.

“As elegant as ever, I must say.”

Amidst the turmoil, Hilvenzia leaned back in her chair, legs casually crossed. She appeared completely unfazed by the chaos.

As a knight approached her with a stern look, she spoke up.

“Arresting me according to imperial law…?”

“Haven’t you heard what I said to Her Highness?”

“What do you…?”

The knight soon retreated in shock.

“La-lady Hilvenzia? My apologies!”

Before long, the auction house had fallen silent, everyone else having been arrested.

As Princess Elia approached Hilvenzia, the latter languidly applauded.

“Impressive as always.”

“Hilvenzia Lotien.”

A slight crease formed on Hilvenzia’s expression.

‘Lotien’ was an honorific attached to esteemed alchemists as a mark of respect, but Princess Elia didn’t use ‘Lotien’ with any reverence. Hilvenzia knew this well.

“When will you live up to the name ‘Lotien’?”

“I was the one who informed you about this illegal human trafficking operation, you know?”

“You’re as cunning as ever.”

Princess Elia frowned as she looked at Jaina beside Hilvenzia.

“To bring a child to a place like this? Though I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised anymore.”

Izren, who had seen Hilvenzia put Jaina to sleep before the demi-human slaves were brought out, looked at Hilvenzia, but she only maintained her languid smile.

Jaina slowly blinked her large eyes that kept trying to close.

The reason she could stay awake despite inhaling the sleeping powder was that her senses had been on high alert due to the strange atmosphere.

However, it was Hilvenzia’s sleeping powder. No matter how much of a dragon Jaina was, she couldn’t resist it for long.

‘I want to clear up this misunderstanding…’

Jaina fought to stay conscious as she slowly continued speaking.

“Hilvenzia put me to sleep. I just woke up early.”

“You are…”

“My name is Jaina.”

“So you’re ‘that’ child.”

Princess Elia gazed intently at Jaina, then opened her mouth as if to say something.

“Ahem, Your Highness.”

But then, a knight rushed over and whispered something into Princess Elia’s ear. Elia soon nodded, then addressed Jaina.

“It would be good if we could meet separately at the palace soon. I’ll send you an invitation within the near future.”

Without waiting for Jaina’s response, Princess Elia turned away.

As a royal, and the famous heroine who had saved the world, Princess Elia’s words carried the weight of an imperial decree.

“What an honor. For Princess Elia to invite someone must be an extremely rare occurrence.”

“Why didn’t you offer any excuse?”

Jaina looked up at Hilvenzia with an unwavering gaze as she spoke.

“There was no need.”

“Even though the Princess misunderstands you?”

“How did you know that?”

“I saw it in a book at the Magic Tower library. It said you created a healing potion during the era when the Demon King was rampant.”

“To think you actually read and remembered such a trivial thing.”

Princess Elia didn’t hold Hilvenzia in high regard.

It was because, when the Demon King’s curse had spread across the continent, Hilvenzia had cowered in fear without doing anything, according to the records. In truth, it was because Hilvenzia’s expertise in poisons and curses had no effect against the demons.

Instead, Hilvenzia had dedicated herself to researching a ‘healing potion’, ultimately becoming the first to successfully create it.

‘The healing potion.’

Capable of healing almost any non-fatal injury, this potion that only Hilvenzia could produce was an extremely valuable item that sold for exorbitant prices.

The reason Hilvenzia learned about the demi-human slave trade happening at the auction house was because she had put up the healing potion as an auction item.

Jaina, who knew this fact from the original work, felt pity about it.

Gazing at her with a melancholic look as if she knew everything, Hilvenzia was reminded of her childhood memories by Jaina’s eyes.

‘Success.’

That was the only thing she had relentlessly pursued in her past days without rest.

But no one wished to acknowledge her efforts. They only pointed fingers, calling her a coward.

That was why Hilvenzia didn’t wish to show the results she had painstakingly created to others.

It was the same even at the Magic Tower, where poisons and curses were highly valued.

‘But…’

If she had widely distributed that potion, would this child not have suffered injury or risked her life?

As Hilvenzia lowered her eyes, shadows fell beneath her long lashes.

Her slender pale fingers tapped the chair slowly, pausing at some point.

‘Even though I already knew the answer.’

Hilvenzia smiled and stroked Jaina’s head.

Finally realizing that the child she had initially found merely interesting had managed to move her heart.

* * *

That day, Hilvenzia wasn’t the only one who changed.

After returning from the auction house, the quietly following Izren spoke softly to Jaina in front of her room.

“I will learn the imperial language. Because of you.”

“Huh?”

Jaina wore a puzzled expression, unable to understand his meaning. But Izren closed his mouth, seemingly unwilling to explain in detail.

Until now, Izren had deliberately avoided deeply learning the imperial language.

Even if he was born in the Empire and spoke the same language, to them, he would forever be a foreigner.

He didn’t wish to hear their dismissive and insulting words.

But at this moment, Izren regretted his past disdain for the imperial language.

Why had she risked her life to save people? Why had she pushed aside those priceless jewels to save the Neandras?

He had so many questions for the girl before him, yet he couldn’t ask.

“I am Izren. Izren Danarod of the Neandra beastman race.”

As Izren awkwardly introduced himself in the imperial language, Jaina, who had been staring up at him with clear eyes, slowly opened her mouth.

“The dragons call me Ashrid, but please just call me Jaina. That’s the name my mother gave me.”