"Do… as in…" The usually sharp-tongued Nono stumbled for once. Her cheeks flushed bright red as the scene in the bathtub that night—during the mana replenishment—flooded back into her mind.
The word "do" held a multitude of layered meanings. Simply rearranging a few words could produce wildly different—and sometimes wildly inappropriate—implications. For instance, "to do someone in" versus "to do something with someone."
Seeing that Nono was on the verge of mentally crashing, Shirou quickly picked up the conversation to avoid a disaster. After all, there were still three people in this car, and with Nono at the wheel, the last thing they needed was a collision. Even if the three of them could probably survive such an accident, the other drivers on the road were innocent.
"Melusine, well, the meaning of 'do' depends on the context. If you pair it directly with a name, it can mean to kill that person. But if it's just 'do something with someone,' it's usually just referring to doing something together…"
Melusine raised her hand. "Can it mean doing anything?"
"Yes, 'do' is just a verb for performing any action or work. When Nono and I were talking about 'doing it,' we were referring to mana replenishment. Grammatically, we just omitted the object of the sentence…"
For the first time, Shirou felt like he was truly gifted at spouting nonsense—so convincing even he couldn't find a flaw in it.
Melusine nodded, accepting the explanation. Then she eagerly added, "Got it! Then next time, let me 'do it' with Shirou!"
Pfft—
Hearing that bombshell from Melusine, Shirou could only cry inwardly, I did my best. I swear that wasn't intentional.
"What are you even—!"
Nono nearly lost her grip on the steering wheel. Her heart skipped a beat from the shock.
Good grief, she thought, what kind of nonsense is he teaching her? Melusine was such a proper girl—now she's dropping wild innuendos like it's nothing. Is this what it's come to?
"Hm? What's wrong, Master?" Melusine asked innocently.
"Nothing! Just don't say stuff like that next time," Nono replied, lips pressed into a tight line as she forced her expression blank. Dear god, she thought, talking to this little dragon girl is pure mental torture.
But even after Nono's warning, Melusine didn't understand what was wrong. To her, mana replenishment was an essential task—like making sure supplies were packed before going into battle.
Sure, Nono could provide most of her mana via the Master-Servant contract, but human mana regeneration was limited. For prolonged or high-intensity combat, it made logical sense to let Shirou assist with backup replenishment.
She had already confirmed through today's battle that Shirou's mana recovery was practically tied to his breathing rhythm. With both Nono and Shirou supplying her, she might even be able to briefly transform into her full dragon form.
Inspired by that idea, Melusine clapped her hands and decided to offer an even clearer suggestion:
"Then Master, if we need to in the future, let's have all three of us 'do it' together!"
Nono: "???"
——
Basement Level 2 of Huan Ya Group, inside Chu Tianjiao's private quarters.
"I see. So you all went into Nibelungen alone, not only completed the dragon-slaying mission, but managed to make it out alive before the whole thing collapsed. If it weren't a sensitive time, I'd probably report to the board and recommend commendations for your team…"
Principal Angers' voice came from Chu Tianjiao's communicator. "Oh, please consider that the ramblings of a centenarian. The Board of Directors isn't exactly trustworthy anymore…"
Chu Tianjiao could hear the weariness and resignation in Angers' voice.
The Secret Party was struggling. Not only was it losing influence due to expanding hybrid factions in both Europe and China, but its internal politics had become a mess.
Following negotiations with the Chinese houses, Angers had launched an "internal audit," citing the Odin incident this year and the Greenland Sea incident two years prior. But that move only triggered long-simmering conflicts within the Secret Party.
The board had since split into two warring factions—Angers' and Gattuso's—engaged in endless power struggles. Even Angers himself could no longer afford to worry about dragon-slaying missions in this coastal city. He had to focus on retaining every ounce of influence he still had.
One of his few remaining sources of power was the support of certain board members, including the Laurents, the Gottingens… and one anonymous backer who contributed money but never attended meetings or voiced opinions.
No one else on the board knew who this secret supporter was. They just saw a lunatic with too much cash, willing to fund everything but surrendering all associated power. But Angers knew from the start—it was Su Enxi.
That revealed the long-standing cooperation between Lu Mingze's trio and Angers. The Huan Ya Group, founded by Su Enxi in this seaside city, served as a base of operations for their collaboration. Chu Tianjiao represented Angers' side and operated under the guise of a long-term covert assignment.
That "long-term mission"? Watching—or rather, monitoring—Lu Mingfei.
"Well then, Principal, I'll proceed with the next update. Today, the surveillance target had a brief argument and scuffle with classmates outside Shilan Middle School. It was stopped quickly, and the target was invited into an esports club, eventually accepting their contract…"
After reporting on the Nibelungen operation, Chu Tianjiao resumed his usual monitoring report.
Honestly, he didn't understand why this middle schooler was so important. Sure, Lu Mingfei's parents—Lu Lincheng and Giovanni—were both S-rank Secret Party members, so their kid probably had freakishly pure blood. But to date, Lu Mingfei hadn't shown any signs of awakening. Chu Tianjiao had been watching him for years, and nothing.
Angers once explained, "You don't get it. Mingfei is our secret weapon for slaying dragons. He just hasn't been drawn yet, but one day, that blade will leave its sheath and soak in dragon blood…"
"I understand. You no longer need updates on him."
Angers' unexpected reply took Chu Tianjiao by surprise.
"That esports club was funded by the Huan Ya Group. Since our partner arranged it, Mingfei should be safe and stable there."
"Huh? But Principal, didn't you say—"
"You're going to say we should tightly control our dragon-slaying weapon, right?"
Angers chuckled. "Tianjiao, times have changed. We can't operate under the old mindset that 'dragon slaying is the Secret Party's top priority.'"
"Think about it—how many recent dragon-level events were resolved smoothly without our help? If anything, we've only gotten in the way."
Chu Tianjiao nodded silently. Shirou's value was only rising. The man had slain two Dragon Kings single-handedly. Compared to him, the Secret Party was just clinging to the glory of long-dead heroes to stay relevant.
The truth was, by any modern metric of dragon-slaying ability, the Secret Party wasn't even on Shirou's level.
"Which is why I say, times have changed," Angers repeated. "The conflict between humans and dragons is now entangled with a deeper one—ambitious hybrids who've chosen to side with the dragons."
"Which means our enemies aren't just those obvious dragons we can see. We also need to root out our own kind—those who've chosen to become dragons themselves. These hidden threats are even more dangerous."
Angers still remembered the horrifying losses from the Greenland incident. "To purify the organization, I have to cut out its tumors—even if that means striking within the Secret Party itself."
The current crisis was of his own making, and it was his responsibility to resolve it. That required Su Enxi's continued support.
So he didn't question what would become of the "Black King's flesh" or how Lu Mingfei—his secret weapon—would be used.
Because if the Secret Party was already under enemy control, then any weapon could be turned against them.
On the flip side, Angers couldn't afford to lose Su Enxi's support. Even if it meant compromises.
"But Principal, the Nibelungen report mentioned a possible ancient dragon woman now traveling with Shirou…" Chu Tianjiao murmured. Was that also part of the compromise?
Angers didn't flinch. "Tianjiao, how strong is she?"
Chu thought of Melusine's battle and gasped. "She might… actually be a first-generation dragon?"
"Exactly. She follows Shirou, doesn't threaten humans, and helps in combat. Does she act maliciously? Has she shown genuine kindness or naivety toward humans?"
Chu Tianjiao had no response—those facts were all in the report.
"And how is she any different from Mingfei?" Angers continued.
"...!" Chu hadn't expected such a broad definition of "dragon-slaying weapon." As far as Angers was concerned, it didn't matter if someone was a demon or monster—if they could slay dragons, they were allies.
"As I've said, I'm the moderate faction in the Secret Party," Angers added. People often misunderstood him as a fanatical dragon-slayer willing to purge anything dangerous. But if that were true, he'd never have partnered with Lu Mingze.
"Well then, no need to rush. Let time reveal the truth. As for that Nibelungen report—consider it never submitted. If the hardliners take over, they'd destroy her without a second thought."
Chu Tianjiao paled. "Hardliners? You mean…"
"There's pressure from Gattuso's side. To counter it, I'll be reintroducing new power… It's time to invite the Four Great Houses of the Elder Council back."
Chu Tianjiao was shaken. The legendary dragon-slaying families—Sigurd, Cadmus, Saint George, Beowulf—were returning to the stage?
Their return, in this time of upheaval, would surely ignite a new, bloodier conflict…
(End of Chapter)
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