It’s Not Night - Chapter 129

[ Lady Anat? ]

With no word from Andra, the dragon fluttered its ears and wandered around her. Then Dustin said coldly, pushing the dragon’s head to the side.

“Get out of the way, don’t disturb me.”

Dustin didn’t like it very much that it was being frantic next to Andra from earlier.

[ Kyaak! The human man again! Scram! You traitor! ]

“That must be the guy named Dean. Why would you call me a traitor?”

Dustin remained calm even when the dragon was thundering violently. There was no need to be afraid of the dragon who would be acting like a gentle sheep in front of Andra. Even if the dragon would attack him, he had no intention of getting willingly killed, and Andra would not have sat still.

[ Hng! Did you think I would be fooled by your act? You smell horribly and terribly burnt! You smell burnt! ]

“What are you even talking about?”

[ You’re stupid, so there’s no way you would understand. I’m not sure what you’re up to, human man, but you’d better get away from Lady Anat. ]

“And why should I do that?”

The dragon glared at Dustin with flashing yellow eyes as Dustin looked like he was only listening in one ear and letting it out in the other.

[ Otherwise, I’ll bite your neck and rip you apart myself. ]

The blatant murderous energy from the dragon sent goosebumps running down Dustin’s body instantly.

Even if the dragon is smaller in size now, it was still a legendary dragon. More than that, what did Dean in the myth do to Anat that the dragon became so sensitive towards her? Dustin felt sorry for being treated as a traitor all of sudden when he didn’t know a thing.

Still, he couldn’t get rid of the discomfort seeing the yellow pupils glaring at him. Dustin tried his best to pretend nothing happened. Even if the dragon would really try to kill him, he would never get away from Andra’s side.

“What a brutal threat. Try it if you can.”

[ You human who does not even know grace… ]

“Stop! Stop it, both of you.”

At that moment, Andra stopped thinking and intervened on the two belatedly.

She thought she felt some murderous energy somewhere, and they were talking like this. How could she even think like this?

However, the two beings didn’t seem to back down in the slightest despite Andra’s reproach. Their ongoing battle of nerves made Andra bewildered.

“Did you not hear me? I told both of you to stop.”

[ But Lady Anat! If you allow me now, I will chew that human man’s head off! ]

“I did nothing. It’s the lizard who started it.”

[ Lizard? This foolish and vulgar thing! ]

The battle of nerves came to an end after a while because Andra couldn’t bear to see it anymore and stood in between the two’s way. Andra glanced at Dustin, then looked at the fuming dragon.

“Dustin is right. He’s not a traitor, he’s my partner. He is different from the human man you know.”

[ Lady Anat! That’s not true! He’s obviously that human man…! ]

“I told you to stop, didn’t I? That’s not important right now. The egg is the problem. Why are you looking for the egg? What is that egg?”

Thinking that it would be a long story, Andra stopped the dragon’s words. She was also curious about what kind of egg the dragon was looking for so much. Fortunately, the dragon dutifully answered Andra’s questions.

[ It’s precious. It was the egg that was by my side when the world got dark and I woke up again! ]

“…You don’t know what the egg is?”

[ Do I need to know? Just having it makes me feel better. It’s just very precious to me. So let’s go inside to find the egg! Lady Anat! ]

Maybe it was difficult to understand because it’s a dragon? Andra thought the more she listened to the dragon, the more she knew and not.

Anyway, a precious egg. Then they had to go inside the anthill. It’s precious, so they can’t lose it again. However, Dustin, who was listening to this, had a different position.

“You want us to go into the anthill with the new queen ant for just an egg?”

[ What do you mean just an egg! The egg is more precious than your life! ]

“You’re talking big when you don’t even know what that egg is.”

[ Lady Anat! I am definitely going to kill this human man this time! ]

The moment the dragon tried to grow its body its massive size again. Andra freaked out and hugged the dragon’s neck. Calm down, dragon! Can you be generous and let him live? The dragon had raised itself halfway up, so Andra’s feet were dangling in the air. Because of that, the dragon had no choice but to become small again.

[ Oh, Lady Anat! Why do you keep protecting that human man! ]

Perhaps the dragon liked how Andra had hugged it, the dragon nuzzled its head with a smile. Lady Anat, your embrace! I love it!

When her feet landed on the ground, Andra barely managed to take a breath before turning her head slightly to see Dustin glaring at the dragon.

‘Why do you keep irritating the dragon? Stop it already. While I’m still patient.’

Of course, Dustin looked like he had a lot to say, but closed his mouth upon Andra’s fierce gaze. However, his glare at the dragon remained. Not wanting the dragon to see those eyes, Andra hurriedly hid Dustin with her body and spoke in a gentler tone to the dragon.

“Alright, let’s go inside and find the egg.”

“Andr…”

“Dustin agrees too. So let’s not fight, go inside and get the egg, and if possible, let’s get rid of the new queen ant. Understand?”

[ Wow! Great! So great! Egg! Egg! I’m going to find the egg! ]

The dragon wagged its tail in a good mood hearing that they were going to find the egg. As Andra released her arms, the dragon began to walk through the gap into the anthill. Meanwhile, Dustin came next to Andra.

Dustin took Andra’s arm and turned her towards him, looking at her with a serious look. It didn’t make sense for him that they were going back to the anthill that they had barely escaped from.

“You want to go back there?”

“The dragon egg is in there. And we have to kill the new queen ant…”

“Andra, that’s not what I’m asking.”

Andra went silent for a moment. She was also well aware of it. Going back into the anthill is almost suicidal. Dean might be waiting for them. But it wasn’t in vain at all. If the three of them worked together, even if Dean might be difficult for them, they would be able to defeat the new queen ant.

She couldn’t explain why she felt this way, but she thought she should see Dean again. There was something she wanted to ask him. How could he have anticipated all of this? What he really wanted was to bring the end to this world and to resurrect Anat. There were many things that didn’t make sense to Andra, so if she had the chance to ask him, she wanted to.

“…Don’t you have to stop Dean?”

“Yes, but that place must have been that bastard’s lair? You said he made us meet on purpose. It’s obvious. Damn, what he wants us to do is go back into the anthill.”

“So what should we do? Do you think we have a lot of options right now? I know. I know that it might be a trap too but… I think we should go in.”

“Are you listening to yourself right now? You’re still going inside even though you know it’s a trap?”

Dustin replied in a suppressed voice. Andra stared blankly at Dustin. The hand that was holding her arm was less stronger.

“Yes, I’m going in. I think Dean is also a clue. So there’s something I want to check when I see him. Besides, even if it’s a trap, I think there’s a chance for us to win.”

Dustin’s face began to darken as he heard Andra’s determined voice. Anxiety was growing more and more evident in him.

“What if Dean is actually after you? He already took you once. He might be after you again this time.”

“Then there’s why I have to check on him more. We can’t just keep pulling back like this. According to you, the two Counts have already started their fight, and Their Highnesses are caught up in it. We came all the way here after we fell into the dungeon under an unknown magic. Besides, now that Dean has appeared, we can no longer ignore him, stop here, or turn back.”

It’s already too much for them to just go about their business and live. From the moment Dean appeared, Andra knew the only way she had to go was to move forward. This complex situation will not end unless it is resolved.

Andra had to figure out why Nera gave her this power and make her come all the way to Morgennis. The ‘end of the world’ where Anat was said to be sleeping.

“There must be another way. Anything would be better than letting yourself be caught in a trap like this.”

“No, I can’t go back now. Dustin, aren’t you… Aren’t you curious why these things are happening to us? My head hurts just thinking about what’s happening to me right now. To be honest, I don’t quite understand what’s going on either. But what’s important is that if we resolve this one well, we can move on. Clearly, this is happening to us for a reason. Dean is the key to it.”

“I am not curious. What matters to me is you and your safety. Please, Andra. Listen to me.”

Suddenly Dustin shook Andra hard as if trying to bring her to her senses. Andra couldn’t stop her brow from narrowing.

“Why… Why are you so anxious? If you think it’s really dangerous, you can run away on your own. Unlike before, the dragon is also on our side.”

“Not because of that.”

“Then? I definitely promised, I will move with you, and I will do it with you. This is what you wanted from me first.”

She had promised him again when they met in the anthill, and when the dragon and the queen ant fought. That she was not going to leave him and she will keep moving with him. Strangely enough it didn’t seem to dispel Dustin’s anxiety.

As if he was thinking that she would always, always, turn her back on him.