Lily, I love you!

Karina was not heartless. Seeing her daughter troubled, she felt a bit guilty.

So, Karina took out some delicious snacks from the dimensional storage. Letia’s bitter orange juice was replaced with sweet, tasty strawberry juice.

Lili and Letia sat side by side at the stone table. Shoulder to shoulder, both felt awkward. Karina thought the two were shy, and she smiled understandingly.

“You two remind me so much of how Mirei and I felt back in the day.”

Needless to say, Mirei was Karina’s little wife. Karina had shared her romantic history with Mirei more than once. Lili felt a bit envious of such mutual affection.

“You met at first sight, and now you’re embarrassed?”

“Met?” Letia looked confusedly at Karina.

“Yes, just now Lili told me… What, have you forgotten something so important?”

“Huh? Ah! How could I forget meeting her?”

Letia smiled broadly, but her eyes were evasive, clearly suspicious.

Karina was Letia’s mother; Letia’s little thoughts were no secret to her.

“Alright, then I’ll test you. How did you meet?”

“Uh, well…” Letia looked nervously at Lili.

“Mother,” Lili hurriedly took over, “actually, back then…”

“Don’t speak,” Karina commanded firmly. “Don’t give her any hints. I want to know if Letia truly has you in her heart.”

Karina had never shown authority to Lili before. Lili always thought Karina was a kind mother, but now she realized Karina was still the ruling empress of the dragons.

If her authority was offended, Karina might disregard any past considerations.

So, Lili stayed silent, obediently playing with her clothes.

But that was fine!

Lili’s fabricated story was simple and generic. Even if someone didn’t know, they could guess the beginning: “a clear, sunny morning” and the key event: “getting lost.”

She didn’t reveal any other details, so she could invent freely.

If you didn’t know, you could say “sunny day” or “morning,” and she could fill in the rest.

“Then it was a stormy night…”

Ahhhhh!

Letia, you big goof! Why start off wrong?

Thanks to her mistake, Karina stared at Letia incredulously. Even if there were discrepancies, Karina might not mind too much—after all, who could remember old events perfectly?

But the time and weather didn’t match, and it seemed suspicious.

Lili had no choice but to stomp lightly on Letia.

For a human, it might hurt, but Letia was a dragon and didn’t mind being stepped on. She quickly realized the story was off and corrected herself.

“Sorry, Mother, what I just said was a few days ago.”

“What?”

“The event was so vivid that I confused it with our meeting.”

“Fine, I’ll accept that excuse. So what really happened when you met?”

“Well… it was a clear, sunny morning?…”

Letia glanced at Lili. Lili breathed a sigh of relief.

Now Letia had a plan and began to improvise.

“At that time, foolish adventurers wanted to slay a dragon to prove their greatness. As a dragon, I naturally had to show them my strength!”

“Huh?” Lili stared in disbelief.

Karina also looked surprised but remained calm.

“Go on…” Karina ordered coldly.

“The battle took place on this mountain. The twelve adventurers knocked on the cave door, ready for battle. I revealed my true form, and their leader was defeated quickly. The rest fled.”

Really? Our meeting was that dramatic?

Even if the true story was emotional, Lili had already crafted a romantic tale. Karina would surely enjoy a story like that.

A few casual words could cheer her up, right?

Why make it so violent? And it seems I didn’t even appear. Am I supposed to be the adventurer leader? Are you implying we bonded through fighting?

Impossible. Didn’t you see how fragile I look?

Lili gave up thinking. She smiled faintly and poked the pound cake with her fork in mild annoyance. Amy listened intently, sitting on Karina’s lap, holding her little face as she watched Letia.

“Letia,” Karina asked coldly, “are you sure this is true?”

“Absolutely, I remember clearly.”

Letia confidently looked at Lili. Seeing Lili’s exasperated expression, she realized she was in trouble.

“Letia, I thought you’d treat Lili well, but you even…”

“Mother, I haven’t finished!—”

“Hmm? Fine, show me your excuse.”

“Well, this event was just a catalyst,”

Letia flusteredly added. She didn’t know Lili’s story and had to observe her expression, extending the romantic tale.

“The adventurers were stronger than expected. I wasn’t entirely unharmed; I got minor scratches. So I took human form and went into the forest to gather herbs.”

Lili paused, pleasantly surprised.

Noticing Lili’s reaction, Letia gained confidence.

“Then I met Lili, gathering herbs?…”

Please, can you not add so much suspicious detail?

Which eye of yours saw me skilled in herbs?

If Karina asks about herbs, won’t I be caught immediately?

“Actually, I was just gathering wild plants…” Lili quietly added.

“I see, I thought you were gathering herbs,” Letia went along, “You were near the herbs, I couldn’t find the herbs, but I found you.”

Letia looked at Lili with deep fondness. Lili shivered but still kept an admiring expression, meeting Letia’s gaze.

“At that time, I was lost. Luckily, I met Letia.”

“The moment I saw you, I knew you were the one for me.”

“Letia, you’re so kind!”

“Lili, I… I… I care for you!—”

Letia said her affectionate words through gritted teeth, then gave a symbolic hug. Lili curled in Letia’s arms, hiding her instinctive reluctance, and playfully acted coy.