Camille (4)

I had decided to go back, but there was still something I needed to do first.

Derek’s house, where I had stayed for six months and grown fond of.

At the very least, I should say goodbye to them before leaving, shouldn’t I?

“Thanks for everything, Derek. This nuisance is leaving now.”

“You’re finally leaving.”

“Thank you too, wife. I had a good time thanks to you.”

“You’ll come again later, won’t you?”

“If I get the chance.”

When I said I was leaving, all the children burst into tears.

Stella, the youngest daughter, was particularly distraught.

“No..!! Helix-nim, why are you leaving!!”

“Stella, you shouldn’t throw a tantrum like that.”

“No, no! Don’t go! Don’t gooo..!!”

Stella was screaming and throwing a tantrum, lying on the floor.

Seeing the child like that, a smile unconsciously appeared on my face.

“Stella.”

“Hmph… who is it?”

“What, we’ve lived together for six months and you don’t recognize me? That’s disappointing.”

Stella blinked a couple of times, as if she didn’t understand.

“It’s me, Helix.”

“Helix-nim? Helix-nim is a Dragon, though?”

“So, I have horns on my head, don’t I?”

Stella’s mouth hung open in surprise.

“Are you really Helix-nim?”

“Yeah, this is the first time you’ve seen me in this form, right?”

“Helix-nim is transforming?”

“Yeah, want me to show you?”

Woowoong!!

I briefly returned to my Dragon form.

“Wow..”

Stella, unable to hide her astonishment, stood with her mouth agape.

I activated Polymorph once more and returned to my original form.

“Right?”

“Yeah! Yeah!”

Stella nodded her head vigorously.

“Stella, I think I need to go back to where I originally live now.”

“Why? Can’t you stay here?”

“Because there are people waiting for me there too. I actually ran away from home.”

“R-ran away…?”

“Yeah, six months is quite a long time, isn’t it?”

I gave an awkward laugh.

What am I even saying in front of a child?

“I came to say goodbye to Stella before I leave.”

“Hmph…”

“If you ever miss me, come visit anytime. Bring the other kids too.”

“Can I really?”

“Of course.”

I stroked Stella’s head.

“Listen to your mom well.”

“And be kind to your dad, he works hard every day.”

“But I’m always kind.”

“Derek always complains that you’re only harsh with him.”

“Pfft, that’s because Dad always sticks to me without even properly shaving his beard.”

Derek, you should probably refrain from rubbing your cheek against the kid.

“Helix-nim.”

“Hm?”

“Helix-nim is really pretty. Much more handsome than the kids in our neighborhood.”

“Really…? Thanks, kid.”

Stella, blushing and fidgeting.

Oh, by the way, this pattern. It feels like I’ve seen it many times before?

“H-Helix-nim..!”

“Hm?”

“Let’s get married later, Helix-nim!”

At that moment, a heavy silence fell over the house.

Stella, Stella. What on earth are you saying?

“Later, Stella will support Helix-nim! I’ll make sure you live without lifting a finger!”

“…”

“I’ll even make sure Helix-nim gets to eat his favorite meat every day!”

The air somehow grew chilling.

A sense of foreboding crept up my spine, and I creakily turned my head.

“H-huh.”

Behind me, Derek was staring intently at me with an expressionless face.

Cold sweat dripped down me.

“No, it’s just something an innocent child said.”

“Did I say anything?”

“Look at your eyes, you look like you’d stab me if you had a knife?”

“Me? Oh, no way.”

But why are you overreacting like that?

A doting father is truly terrifying.

“Helix-nim. I’ll make you happy…”

“Sorry, Stella.”

To Stella, I blurted out a shocking truth.

“I’m already married.”

“Eh…?”

After that, no more conversation was needed.

However, I later heard that…

Stella cried her eyes out that day until she was exhausted and fell asleep.

*****

Led by Camille’s hand, I returned once more.

At my sudden return, the quiet temple became as boisterous as a marketplace.

The Dragon’s Priestesses welcomed me like a prodigal son.

“Helix-nim, welcome back.”

“We’re so happy you’ve returned!”

“Sorry for making you all worry.”

I wonder if the Dragon’s Priestesses truly knew?

Why I had suddenly chosen to run away.

“Alright, everyone, pay attention.”

Camille clapped her hands, drawing everyone’s attention and changing the atmosphere.

“It took a long time, but Helix has returned to us.”

“…”

“I understand your joy and excitement. But we must not forget our duty. The Dragon’s Priestesses exist to serve the Dragon.”

The Dragon’s Priestesses listened silently to Camille’s words.

In their eyes,

there was no sign of rebellion or doubt regarding Camille’s words.

“For now, get some good rest. You still don’t seem fully prepared.”

Her words were true.

I had merely been led back by Camille’s hand, almost without realizing it.

I hadn’t made any resolve yet.

The conviction I had held as a Dragon, and the determination to live for Camille.

I needed time to sort through all of it.

“Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, I haven’t had dinner yet.”

“Good. You’ve probably been eating poorly, so let’s all put in some effort today.”

With a chorus of “Yes-,” the Dragon’s Priestesses dispersed.

They moved busily, each fulfilling their assigned roles.

This place is still the same.

“While dinner is being prepared, how about a bath?”

I turned my head at the voice from behind me.

“Long time no see, Sera.”

“Yes, Helix-nim, I’m happy to see you again.”

She wasn’t visible a moment ago; perhaps she had been doing something else.

Sera, whom I saw again after six months, looked even more radiant than before.

She exuded an aura closer to that of a young noble Lady than a cleric.

“Shall I wash you?”

“Give me a break. That was when I was a hatchling. I’m embarrassed now.”

“Fufu, alright.”

After quickly finishing my bath, dishes of food were already being brought out one by one.

They’ve really prepared a lavish meal, saying I’ve returned home after a long time.

With a grateful heart, I tasted each of the prepared dishes.

“Helix-nim, your taste has changed since before, hasn’t it?”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“You’re eating much more plainly than before. You used to not eat at all unless it was beef…”

My eating habits must have changed a bit while I was freeloading at Derek’s house.

Of course, Derek tried his best to provide me with meat.

However, it was also true that feeding a whole family plus a Dragon on a Holy Knight’s salary was tough.

So, I probably ended up mixing in some greens out of consideration, and that’s why.

“You must have had a hard time outside.”

“No, it was fun. I got to play with the kids and everything.”

“The kids?”

“Yeah, I looked after the kids while I was staying there.”

“Oh my, weren’t you tired? When you’re looking after children, even ten bodies aren’t enough.”

That’s right. If I hadn’t been a Dragon, I might have collapsed from exhaustion.

“I also wonder if I caused a lot of trouble for people when I was a hatchling.”

“Ahahaha…”

“Honestly, if I weren’t a Dragon, you would’ve wanted to punch me, wouldn’t you?”

“You’re being mischievous. That’s impossible.”

Sera only offered an awkward smile.

Because she had also suffered a bit due to my mischievousness.

Especially biting her hand, that was the peak of my mischief.

“I’m sorry about that time.”

“It’s alright, you didn’t really bite hard.”

A brief silence fell.

Sera, who had subtly approached at some point, carefully hugged me from behind.

My body stiffened like ice in my embarrassment.

“It’s truly amazing. That tiny baby Dragon-nim from back then has now become such a dignified man.”

“Sera.”

“Just a little, please let me stay like this a little longer.”

Sera’s warmth was no different from Camille’s; it was warm.

But what I felt from that warmth was not peace.

It was guilt. And a sense of sin.

My heart pounded, as if I were somehow betraying Camille.

“Helix-nim.”

“Hm.”

“Your return here… can I take it to mean that you’ve made up your mind?”

“No, not right now.”

Sera took a step back with a look of realization.

“I see, I was too hasty.”

“It’s alright. It seems like it’s only a matter of time anyway.”

“…”

“I haven’t completely finished talking with Camille. So, just wait a little longer.”

Even I, who was usually oblivious, could understand now.

The reason Camille had sent Sera to me again.

‘Is she telling me to start with Sera…?’

I let out a hollow laugh, dumbfounded.

A wife personally choosing her husband’s bed partners.

Wasn’t this something that would only happen in a harem of some empire in the subcontinent?

It was something the Holy Dominion, which prioritized reverence for God above all else, would vehemently oppose.

“I want to see Camille. Will you guide me?”

“Yes…”

What’s done is done anyway.

I needed to have a decisive talk.

*****

I went to the couple’s bedroom for the first time in a while, but Camille wasn’t there.

Where on earth had she gone?

I was dying of anxiety, but she was just wandering around freely.

“Where’s Camille?”

“She went to the study a while ago.”

I asked the Dragon’s Priestesses and searched for her whereabouts.

“Helix?”

Camille was in a small study located in the attic.

Though small in size, it was a place where the Holy Dominion’s precious ancient texts were gathered.

Camille often conducted Divine Magic research here.

“Camille. Let’s talk.”

“You have a lot to say, judging by your expression.”

Camille, who had been reading scriptures by the moonlight, with only a single candle lit.

She quietly closed the book and slowly approached me.

“You told me to rest well, didn’t you? So why are you rushing things?”

“I wasn’t rushing things. My only command was for them to serve you during your meal.”

Camille gave a wry smile and leaned against the wall.

“You’re saying you didn’t order it…?”

“Well, it’s true I put the idea in their heads. Otherwise, our children wouldn’t have become so proactive.”

“Then you did order it, didn’t you?”

“Hmm, it’s a little different. There’s a subtle distinction, you see?”

Camille seductively licked her lips.

She began to persuade me in a gentle voice, as if coaxing a child.

“Helix, I wish you’d acknowledge it a little now.”

“Acknowledge what?”

“Those children don’t just want to embrace you out of a sense of duty or doctrinal reasons.”

“…”

“They purely adore you as a man. They see you as a man, before they see you as a divine incarnation.”

Yes, I had vaguely felt it.

But would unconditionally granting their wishes truly be for their own good?

I didn’t think so.

“I can’t do something irresponsible. In the end, the child’s mother will bear the consequences.”

“Anyway, those children don’t have any thoughts of becoming your official wife. They’re content with just a moment of your gaze, and my touch.”

“…”

“Even if a baby is born, the Holy Dominion will raise them all. Without discrimination, with God’s love.”

I wanted to refute her.

But she silenced me with logic more eloquent and refined than my own.

“You, as a Dragon, desire perfect, unblemished love. But humans are not like that. Even if it’s not perfect, they desire to quench their thirst with even a single drop of dew clinging to the tip of a fruit.”

“…”

“You are the one who will quench our children’s thirst.”

Camille caressed my cheek.

I still didn’t understand what she meant by “thirst.”

“I don’t know… everyone’s strange. You, Sera, and the other Dragon’s Priestesses too…”

“Yes. Humans are inherently strange, Helix.”

Camille leaned in and whispered to me.

“You’re the one who fell in love with those strange humans.”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

My head was spinning, and it was hard to face Camille.

“The day after tomorrow.”

“What?”

“Let’s start with Sera. She must be impatient by now.”

“…”

I had no right to refuse.

After all, it was I who chose to return to this temple.