Chapter 23 : The Dragon Who Awoke from Sleep (5)

Alright, now that the stone bathtub is more or less complete, it’s time to fill it with water.

A rather loud sound of water could be heard nearby.

It didn’t seem like a gentle stream.

There must be a small valley or something.

But the problem was how to carry the water with this massive body.

I couldn’t exactly scoop it with my wings.

Well, something will work out.

If worst comes to worst, I’ll just have to carry a mouthful at a time and spit it out — primitive, but effective.

Not that I’m thrilled about it.

[Let’s go get some water.]

I urged the kids.

Sori, excited for some reason, quickly took the lead, and Lisette followed with a slightly excited expression, probably at the thought of bathing after several days.

On the other hand, Mir still followed from behind, dragging her feet with that same “I’m above this childish nonsense” look on her face.

As we walked a little deeper into the forest, the faint sound of water gradually grew clearer and louder.

It definitely wasn’t a trickling stream.

It was the sound of water on a much larger scale.

A pretty big lake, it seemed.

Through the trees, glimpses of cool, clear water began to appear.

The space that unfolded was much wider than I expected.

Looking closely, it was quite a beautiful lake.

Who would have thought such a magnificent lake would be hidden in the middle of the forest?

The emerald-colored water was so clear it reflected like a mirror, showing even the pebbles on the bottom.

Tall trees surrounded it like a folding screen, creating a mystical atmosphere.

It looked much cleaner and more beautiful than most lakes I visited during my human days.

Hard to believe a place like this is just left untouched.

“Wow…! Water!”

Sori was the first to shout in excitement and ran toward the lake.

She was clearly overjoyed at the sight of clean, plentiful water after so many days.

Well, they haven’t had a proper wash in a while.

Lisette also followed cautiously, letting out a small gasp of admiration at the clear, transparent water.

“This looks… maintained or something.”

Even Mir, seemingly surprised by the unexpected sight, squinted and scanned the surroundings.

This woman’s a thousand years old and has never seen a place like this?

“Are we really bathing in this water? Wow, that’s amazing!”

Sori turned around and shouted cheerfully.

Then she looked around, picked up a large fallen leaf nearby, and kneeled by the lake as if trying to scoop some water.

“Wait, Sori!”

It was the moment Mir noticed something and called out to her.

That very moment.

SWOOOOSH—!

The calm surface of the lake suddenly began to churn violently and rise.

As if something massive was awakening from the depths.

A water column shot up high into the sky and soon began to take the vague shape of a person.

Its transparent body, made of water, shimmered with a rainbow hue under the sunlight, and it wore a crown-like object made of aquatic plants and shells.

It held something like a trident, made of swirling water.

It was only slightly bigger than an average adult male, but the pressure emanating from it was immense.

Its first impression was, well, like some elemental monster from a game.

“RAAAH! You lowly mortal! How dare you try to defile my sacred spring!”

The water-being bellowed in a booming voice.

The sound echoed deep and loud, like it was coming from inside a cave.

It glared only at the small girl lying by the lake — Sori.

Those watery eyes were filled with rage and contempt toward the insignificant creature that had trespassed into its domain.

“Eek!”

Sori screamed in terror and fell backward.

Lisette, pale with fear, quickly rushed to Sori’s side to help her up.

At least she’s got her priorities straight.

Even Mir looked slightly startled by the sudden appearance, but quickly scoffed and slipped behind me.

Always quick to hide behind the big guy.

The ground trembled slightly under my heavy footsteps.

Thud, thud.

The water spirit, still in a threatening posture, slowly turned its head.

And the moment its eyes met mine — and Mir’s.

It froze.

Literally, it stopped moving.

The vicious rage and menace it had just moments ago toward Sori vanished without a trace.

Its watery face now showed confusion and… something else.

A look of intense fear, hard to put into words.

Its transparent body even seemed to tremble slightly.

Its eyes looked like they were about to pop out.

“…Wh… wha…?”

The water spirit stammered like a broken machine.

He slowly lowered the trident he had raised and wriggled his water-formed feet as if trying to back away.

In the eyes that glanced back and forth between me and Mir, there was both confusion—‘What did I just see?’—and despair—‘Ah, I messed with the wrong ones.’

That facial expression change was dramatic.

[Are you the master of this lake?]

I asked again, full of determination.

This time, with a bit more force.

I tried to add some intimidation to my voice.

“Ah… ah… y-yes, yes! That is correct…! O, o mighty and great… dragon! And… the, the mysterious being of legend…!

This ignorant little spirit failed to recognize such noble beings… I have committed a grave discourtesy!”

The water spirit suddenly shifted into an extremely polite demeanor.

His voice trembled weakly, the previous sense of authority completely gone, and he bowed nearly 90 degrees.

Perhaps because his body was made of water, his upper body wobbled and nearly touched the ground when he bent over.

He was completely different from the one who had just growled at Sori.

Is that “mysterious being” referring to Mir? A legendary figure, despite being just an imugi.

“You were all high and mighty earlier—now look at you.”

Mir muttered with folded arms, mocking him.

At those words, the water spirit bowed even lower, now almost lying flat on the surface of the lake.

“I-I’m terribly sorry! I dared to behave disrespectfully! Please, forgive me!”

What even is this ridiculous situation?

I was dumbfounded.

He nearly attacked a powerless child just for fetching water, and now he’s suddenly doing a 180 the moment he sees me and Mir?

The logic of power in this world seems far simpler and more blatant than I expected.

Absolute submission to the strong, and mercilessness to the weak.

It was both bitter and slightly amusing.

I couldn’t help but think human society wasn’t all that different.

[Fine. We don’t intend to cause trouble. Since the children will be bathing here, we need to use this water.]

I spoke as matter-of-factly as possible.

“Y-yes! Of course! Use as much as you like! All the water in this spring—no, everything of this humble spirit—belongs to the great dragon!”

The water spirit shouted desperately, nearly on the verge of tears.

Then, suddenly gesturing, a portion of the lake water wriggled upward like a living transparent snake.

Oh, so he has powers like that too.

“I—I will do it myself! This lowly spirit will personally fetch the water! Where should I deliver it?”

[Over there.]

Worried he might offend me in any way, he nervously followed Sori’s guidance and used some unknown power or magic to start moving the water diligently.

He was so desperate that the image of him threatening us with a trident moments ago completely faded from memory.

Sori and Lisette stared in disbelief, alternating their gaze between me and the groveling water spirit.

The terrifying creature who had threatened them just a moment ago was now pathetically groveling at the appearance of me and Mir.

Even to the kids, it must’ve been shocking—and honestly, kind of funny.

Lisette even covered her mouth, trying to suppress her laughter.

Well, at least the water-fetching issue is solved.

That’s convenient.

I’d been wondering how we’d carry it over, but now he’s doing it for us.

Perfect.

Now the only thing left was to heat the water.

Looking at the spirit trembling and frantically hauling water by the lakeside, I figured it wouldn’t be right to ask him to heat it too.

Besides, he didn’t seem like he could handle fire.

I guess I’ll have to carefully use my breath.

Ugh, I’ll have to control it again—how annoying.

“Is… is this enough?”

[Keep going.]

I gave the groveling water spirit a short command and returned to the clearing with the children, where we had set up the bath.

I watched as the stone tub was being filled with water by the spirit, who had now basically become my subordinate.

Soon, it would be the children’s first real bath.

[You may leave now.]

“Th-thank you! O great being!”

Seeing that the water had been filled enough, I gave him a sign, and the spirit vanished in an instant.

In the clearing, a decent-looking bathtub had formed, and it was now full of clear water diligently carried by the water spirit.

Sunlight sparkled on the rippling surface.

But for now, it was just cold—like a feast you can’t eat.

If the kids went in as-is, they might catch a cold.

And this world has no hospitals.

Time to heat it up.

The problem, of course, was the method.

Aside from my breath, I had no options.

No tools to start a fire either.

But if I failed to control it like when I messed up cooking, or when my magic accidentally ran wild in the cave, the stone tub might melt—or worse, I might set the whole clearing on fire.

I knew my breath was no joke.

I had to stay sharp.

Like adjusting a gas stove to the lowest flame in my human days.

I carefully took position a bit away from the stone tub.

The kids watched silently, curious about what I was about to do.

Especially Lisette, whose eyes sparkled as if I was casting a spell.

Mir, too, folded her arms and looked on with interest, as if saying, “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

I took a deep breath.

I felt a familiar heat rise from deep within my lungs.

Normally, I would just blast it out, but this time was different.

I had to release it with utmost focus—thin, gentle, and steady heat.

Like the weakest flame on a gas stove.

‘I can do this, I can do this… focus, focus…’

I repeated silently and cautiously opened my mouth.

Very different from grilling meat.

I suppressed the burning sensation in my throat, focusing my will to finely control the strength of the flame.

Fwooooooo…

A thin, orange flame trickled from my mouth.

Thankfully, it wasn’t a threatening fire pillar like usual, but a long, narrow torch-like flame with fairly stable shape.

I adjusted my head so the flame’s tip barely skimmed the water’s surface.