When the Doctor emerged from the cafeteria with Jeanne and Fafnir, she walked along the familiar landship looking entirely dispirited. The mere thought of the twenty-thousand-word self-reflection report Kal'tsit demanded of her gave her a massive headache.
She figured that even if she worked herself to death, she wouldn't be able to finish writing it anyway. She might as well quietly and inconspicuously drop the matter entirely; after all, Kal'tsit didn't have the best memory, so she would probably forget all about it before long.
But was it merely the Doctor's imagination? She consistently felt that Kal'tsit wasn't in a very good mood today. Especially when she herself mentioned the word "cat," that strange sensation made it seem as though that woman harbored a latent desire to slice her to pieces.
"Come to think of it, what do you two plan on doing next?" Having been honored with a twenty-thousand-word self-reflection report, the Doctor turned her head to look at Jeanne, who was currently coaxing the child with immense earnestness, and inquired.
She felt that Jeanne was looking more and more like a mother. These days, her eyes were entirely filled with this little guy, to the point of completely disregarding anything else...
Though, it was also possible that there simply wasn't anything here requiring her to worry about anymore.
Only at this moment did the Doctor recall that the other party had originally come here only to meet her, a fellow human. Reasonably speaking, it wouldn't be surprising if she intended to depart in the next moment, because for Jeanne, there truly wasn't much of a reason to remain here.
"What else can we do? First, teach this child how to live in this world, and also find a way to resolve this voracious appetite! Since there's nothing else to do, I'll teach the child first."
Jeanne looked at Fafnir beside her, who was still holding a piece of Ursus black bread and masticating it with her set of iron-hard teeth, and spoke with a touch of helplessness. Even she felt a bit anxious just looking at that chunk of weaponry.
Yes, what Fafnir was currently eating was an exceptionally hard piece of black bread obtained from who-knows-where. Judging by the dents imprinted on its surface, the people here likely used it as a hammer.
When the others originally witnessed Fafnir putting that thing into her mouth, they had been thoroughly startled. Furthermore, as Fafnir chewed away, their horrified gazes transformed into shock and reverence, as if they were beholding a hero.
"True, this child indeed needs to be properly instructed. Otherwise, if she lives across this vast land in this manner, it truly will be quite easy for some chaotic incidents to arise."
The Doctor looked at this expressionless little guy and spoke slowly. She didn't voice any words regarding Fafnir encountering danger or the like, because that was a scenario that was fundamentally impossible to manifest.
By now, Fafnir had completely crushed that black bread and consumed it entirely into her stomach. Beholding Fafnir in this state, Jeanne instantly felt a sensation as though she were mistreating this little guy, so she hastily retrieved some water to let her drink.
In all honesty, Jeanne was well aware that Fafnir wasn't weak to such an extent, but her appearance of being around five or six years old was simply far too deceptive. Jeanne also subconsciously assumed that this child required care.
Otherwise, given Fafnir's biological condition as a Great Dragon, even if Jeanne threw her out right now to let her become a mercenary on her own to earn money for her to spend, there wouldn't be any problem at all; she might even become some sort of King of Mercenaries.
Despite harboring such thoughts, Jeanne also knew that it was highly unlikely for her to let this small child step onto a battlefield to engage in combat or anything of the sort. Moreover, things hadn't escalated to a point where she required this little guy to aid her.
"But do you need any help? As someone who has raised a child, I might be able to provide you with a considerable amount of assistance, you know!"
The Doctor suddenly leaned closer and spoke to Jeanne with a grin. She still possessed immense confidence in her own ability to instruct children; just look at how wonderfully she had raised Amiya and another unruly cat to their current sizes!
However, what followed next was a heartbreaking scene. The exact instant the proposal to instruct Fafnir left her mouth, Jeanne scooped Fafnir up and moved far away from her, as if deeply terrified that she would corrupt the child.
Beholding Jeanne being so vigilant toward this weak creature before them, Fafnir also flashed a relatively fierce expression at the Doctor, looking as though the woman had already done something terrible to her.
Fortunately, under Jeanne's guidance, Fafnir didn't unleash any terrifying aura. This little guy remembered exceptionally clearly that Jeanne had told her not to frighten these people when staying around them, because they were thoroughly fragile!
"Are you serious? You're going to lose me as a friend this way!"
The Doctor spoke to the vigilant Jeanne. Judging by her tone, because she was treated in such a manner by her friend, her heart was indeed exceptionally wounded at this moment; she looked at Jeanne as if she were about to burst into tears.
"No, I merely feel that based on your repository of knowledge, you aren't suited to instruct a child of this age. Furthermore, I worry that if I leave Fafnir in your hands, by the time I return, I'll only be arriving to attend a funeral feast."
Jeanne responded with perfectly sound logic. Given this Doctor's daily habit of courting death, coupled with how Fafnir currently couldn't understand any practical jokes, Jeanne truly was worried that she would get pulverized by a dragon.
Hearing Jeanne phrase it this way, the Doctor—who was just about to continue speaking—instantly froze with her arm stiffly suspended in the air. It seemed she had recalled something, after which the gaze she directed toward Jeanne became significantly gentler.
"Jeanne ah, what you said indeed carries weight! But since that's the case, I feel that when you instruct this child in her academic courses, you ought to also let her learn how to control her strength."
The Doctor was genuinely worried that Fafnir might use too much force with her hands during some random interactions, resulting in herself meeting everyone the following day in the form of a coffin; that would truly be an immense injustice.
"I know that!" Jeanne's expression was perfectly natural. Her education of Fafnir had undergone highly rigorous contemplation; even the benchmark for her academic courses was to make this child a master class mathematician!
When that time arrived, even if Talulah intended to persecute her, she would possess this excellent helper to resolve all problems for her! At that point, even Talulah wouldn't be able to stop her!
Jeanne's mood was currently exceptionally inflated, even though she had completely forgotten how she—a person whose own cultural level wasn't particularly high to begin with—was supposed to go about instructing a child to proficiently write out advanced mathematics.
The Doctor also thought of this point, but she didn't pour cold water on Jeanne because of it. She merely looked at this daydreaming fellow for a long time without speaking.
"I can teach that! I am a Doctor, after all; instructing a child is an effortless matter!" The Doctor immediately recommended herself, a multi-disciplinary Doctor, to serve as the enlightenment tutor for a five-year-old young dragon.
Fafnir, currently curled up in Jeanne's embrace, looked at this person coldly. In all honesty, she didn't comprehend why this woman was being so passionate toward her. Could it be that she desired her blood?
Fafnir knew that her blood could grant humans immense power, just like Siegfried, who had bathed in her blood and attained an invulnerable body. Was this human the exact same?
Thinking up to this point, Fafnir shrank a bit deeper into Jeanne's embrace. Although she remained entirely silent, Jeanne seemed to sense that Fafnir already wished to depart, and she prepared to take Fafnir and leave first.
"If it is a matter of instructing her to utilize her strength, I happen to have a suggestion. You can take her to fly a bit further away, conducting the instruction in a sufficiently vast and empty area."
Just as Jeanne was planning to leave, a voice suddenly drifted out from behind the Doctor. Kal'tsit had manifested there silently and soundlessly, just like a phantom.
Hearing Kal'tsit's voice also gave the Doctor quite a fright. She hadn't detected a single shred of Kal'tsit's appearance behind her beforehand; fortunately, she hadn't spoken any ill words about her.
"What's wrong? Is there something you need us to cooperate with?" The exact instant Jeanne heard Kal'tsit voice her desire for them to temporarily leave this place, she naturally guessed that the other party required her assistance with something.
The current expressionless Kal'tsit also nodded her head, after which she unhurriedly narrated her thoughts in that tranquil tone:
"It isn't anything severe, it is merely that the individuals currently monitoring us in this vicinity are even more numerous than before! Clearly, they do not believe that we have zero connection to this incident."
Even though they did indeed possess a connection to this incident, given the current circumstances, they absolutely could not admit to it! Because it was simply far too troublesome!
"In other words, you wish for us to make Fafnir manifest herself once in a location far away from the camp, drawing those fellows' attention away... right? If that's the case, we agree. I happened to be planning to leave for a few days anyway."
After pondering for a brief moment, Jeanne nodded and accepted Kal'tsit's proposal. After all, she did indeed have some matters that required her to leave for a bit.
To go and find food for this little guy! In another few days, the livestock raised by the herders in this vicinity would be completely eaten clean by her! When that time came, she might truly have to resort to eating trees and soil!
The young girl Jeanne, a mere nineteen years of age, felt for the very first time the sheer difficulty of raising such a child...