That morning…
Xia Mi hopped off a long-distance bus and arrived at the small county town where Uchiha Hikari was temporarily staying.
"Hikari-nee!"
The second she spotted Hikari, Xia Mi waved enthusiastically and bounded over, throwing her arms around her in a quick, affectionate hug. "Long time no see!"
"…Yeah, been a while, Xia Mi," Hikari replied with a smile.
It really had been a while.
Compared to their last meeting half a year ago, Xia Mi hadn't changed much. Same flawless, almost otherworldly beautiful face, though her hair was a touch longer. She wore a white silk T-shirt and denim shorts, showing off her slim waist and legs, looking every bit the vibrant student on a summer vacation. A big backpack was slung over her shoulders, completing the tourist vibe.
Just…
"You took a long-distance bus to get here?" Hikari asked, raising an eyebrow.
"…Yup," Xia Mi said. "I thought about renting a car, but it was kinda pricey, so I just took the bus. There are tons of tourist routes around here, so it's pretty convenient."
"Oh…"
Hikari didn't comment further, but she couldn't help but wonder.
Was this little dragon girl… kinda broke?
In theory, with the kind of power a Dragon King wielded, getting rich in the human world should be a piece of cake. Even if Xia Mi wanted to keep a low profile, scraping together a million or two for pocket money shouldn't be hard. But Xia Mi seemed to be an exception, sticking to human society's rules more strictly than most actual humans.
Guess that's the downside of being too immersed in her role.
If it weren't for Xia Mi getting way too into her act in the original Dragon story, her "strongest second-generation" status would've let her wipe the floor with a thrice-bloodraged Chu Zihang, instead of getting stabbed to death by him.
On the other side…
Xia Mi's gaze shifted to Eri and Esdeath, her pretty eyes glinting with curiosity.
"This must be Eri-san, right? No surprise Hikari-nee picked you as a companion," she said, then glanced at Esdeath. "And this is…?"
"Esdeath, another friend of mine," Hikari explained smoothly.
No need to spin the "King of Ocean and Water" lie in front of Xia Mi.
That kind of story might fool clueless human hybrids, but Xia Mi and the "King of Ocean and Water" were siblings from the same father, probably meeting countless times over millennia. Unless Esdeath actually had the King's authority, that lie would fall apart in seconds, and Hikari's "White King" persona might even come into question.
Not that Hikari was scared of being exposed as a fake.
But acting's more fun when you play the part well.
"…Got it," Xia Mi said, nodding without pressing further.
Next up, they dove into the topic of Constantine.
"I already checked out the White Emperor City area," Xia Mi said. "From what I saw, Norton's 'Bronze City' is hidden in an underwater fissure around there, sunk to the riverbed after an earthquake. Cassell College somehow got wind of this and sent a team to investigate. They've pretty much pinpointed the Bronze City's location and might send people down to salvage it soon…"
Hikari didn't really need Xia Mi to tell her this.
She already knew the deal—Cassell College's operation, dubbed the "Kuimen Plan," was led by Professor Mance, with Ye Sheng, Aki Shutoku, Selma, and others as the field team.
Ye Sheng and Aki would die during this mission, and Constantine's bone bottle would be brought back to the college as their "legacy," later used to trigger the awakening of Old Tang—the other Fire King, Norton.
So…
"So, Hikari-nee, are we gonna steal it from them?" Xia Mi asked cautiously, watching Hikari's expression. "Norton aside, Constantine's one of the more chill Dragon Kings. He could be an ally. If he falls into the Secret Party's hands, getting him back might be a bit of a hassle."
Well… just a bit of a hassle.
If this were the original Xia Mi, without enough prep, she'd probably lay low to avoid exposing herself too early to Cassell or other hybrid factions, steering clear of unnecessary trouble.
But now, with the "esteemed White King" by her side, Xia Mi felt pretty secure. She was confident they could even storm Cassell's HQ and snatch the bone bottle if it came to that.
"Hmm…" Hikari mused.
Truth be told, she was more interested in Norton's blood sample.
The Fire King twins were a lot like Xia Mi and Fenrir—an older sibling with some brains dragging around a weaker, childlike younger one. Constantine, fresh from his cocoon, was even less sharp than Fenrir, to the point where he got headshot by Angers and Lu Mingfei in the original story, dying in an even less dignified way than Xia Mi.
Sure, Xia Mi was called the "strongest second-generation," but if you ranked all the first-generation dragons, Constantine might just be the weakest…
Still…
Norton wasn't waking up anytime soon, and Hikari didn't even know where he was. She'd probably have to ask Lu Mingfei or Angers for clues.
So, Constantine would do as a backup plan for now.
"Alright, let's go with your idea," Hikari said, rolling her shoulders. "One question: can you open the Bronze City's gate?"
The Bronze City, supposedly crafted by Norton, the eldest of the four great monarchs' eight twins, was a marvel of alchemy. Even an S-rank hybrid couldn't get in without a key—namely, the blood of Chen Motong's brother, which Cassell used to open the gate.
As for Xia Mi…
"I haven't tried, but I think I can," she said, sounding a little unsure.
"…Give it a shot," Hikari said with a shrug.
Worst case, if it didn't work, she could wait for Cassell to drag Constantine out and then swipe him from them. While she was at it, she could save Ye Sheng and Aki Shutoku, the doomed lovebirds, as a fair trade. Two human lives for one Dragon King—Cassell wouldn't complain.
That night…
Hikari got her hands on a black sedan and drove Xia Mi and the others toward the Kuimen Pass, where the Bronze City was located.
"By the way… Hikari-nee, do you have a Chinese driver's license?" Xia Mi asked out of the blue from the passenger seat.
"Huh? Driver's license? Nope," Hikari said casually.
"?!" Xia Mi froze. "What if we get pulled over? This area's got a lot of accidents, so the cops are always checking cars at intersections."
"…You're a Dragon King, and you're worried about that?"
Hikari shot Xia Mi a weird look, then smirked at her speechless expression. "Relax, just sit tight. I'll handle everything. Even if we get stopped, we'll breeze right through."
Worst case, she'd just toss a Tsukuyomi at them, and problem solved.
"…Alright," Xia Mi said, falling silent. She sat quietly in the passenger seat, occasionally glancing at Esdeath in the rearview mirror.
Esdeath was looking back at her.
—Xia Mi was trying to figure out Esdeath's deal. As a Dragon King, she could sense Esdeath's aura was no joke, though she wasn't sure just how strong she was.
Esdeath, meanwhile, was curious about something else.
[IceQueen]: This Xia Mi woman—is she really your sister? You don't look much alike, but you seem pretty close.
[NoName]: Eh, you can think of her as a sworn sister, like a family-by-choice thing.
[IceQueen]: …So, can I spar with her?
[NoName]: You mean a friendly match? Hold off for now. Let's see what's up at Kuimen Pass first.
[ … ]
Amid the chatter, Hikari sped the black sedan along the provincial road, racing toward Kuimen Pass. Sure enough, they hit a police checkpoint, but with one glance from Hikari, the officer completely ignored the obviously underage, unlicensed driver and waved them through.
"That's the spot," Xia Mi said.
They stopped on a high riverbank. Hikari pushed open the car door and hopped out.
Xia Mi and the others followed. She stood on her tiptoes, shading her eyes to peer into the distance, then pointed in a direction and turned to Hikari.
It was nighttime, and they were too far to see the river clearly.
But the sound of crashing waves carried for miles, and every now and then, moonlight glinted off the water, revealing shimmering reflections.
"…That's Kuimen, also called Qutang Pass," Xia Mi explained. "Back in ancient times, it was a key strategic point for armies. Now, with the reservoir, most of the ruins are underwater, nowhere near as grand as it used to be. A few days ago, when I went diving to scout, I spotted a pureblood dragon—probably the Bronze City's guardian."
"Samson, right?" Hikari said knowingly.
That one was the Fire King's dragon servant, a high-pedigree third-generation dragon, and the one who killed Ye Sheng and Aki Shutoku in the original story.
Also…
"Cassell's ship, the Moniah, is around here too, isn't it?"
Maybe they could sneak over for a quick look?
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