Chapter 327: Is this really too much?
Lillian was at a complete loss for words.
What could she even say here?
Would he like it?
Lillian seriously did not know the answer to that.
"...Irene. Do you not think a ring is a bit too much...?"
"Huh...? Really?"
Her face immediately dulled with sadness.
Lillian saw it and quickly waved her hands.
"No, no, I mean. Look! A ring is usually something you would give when you have already spent quite a long time with your partner. Otherwise, they might think you are rushing things a little too fast."
Irene quietly closed the lid of the box.
"...Is that so?"
Her face looked visibly disappointed now.
’Oh no. Did I mess this up?’ Irene thought to herself.
She had been so sure that Leon would like it, because at the shop, she had seen plenty of girls buying rings for their partners, and they had all seemed so delighted about it. She had even done a lot of research herself just to find the right one for him.
"What do I do now? I have nothing else to give him... oh no..."
She muttered under her breath, and Lillian heard it.
Lillian now felt genuinely bad about it.
Well, there was not much she could do. Giving a ring really would be too much at this stage. She also knew that Leon himself probably would not even mind it. But still, he could not exactly wear a ring and roam around the whole banquet either.
’What was Irene even thinking...’
She pinched the bridge of her nose, thinking hard about what to do now.
Well, she can’t blame her for it. Living in Evana, Irene had no experience in romance.
Soon enough, a brilliant idea for a gift struck her.
"Oh. I know exactly what you should do."
"Really? Tell me."
Lillian gestured for her to bring her face closer, and then she whispered something quietly into Irene’s ear.
After hearing it, Irene turned bright red all the way down to her neck.
Lillian was pretty sure she even saw a little steam rising off Irene’s forehead.
"Wh—wh—wha—what do you mean by that, Lillian?! A-and... that was so foul! Wh-where did you even learn all of that stuff?!"
Lillian grinned proudly.
"Hehe. I am an adult, after all."
She said it with immense pride.
"Even so, I cannot... I could not possibly do something like that!"
"Oh, please. It is common between couples. Just go and get him, alright! That way, he would be completely startled, and he would end up thinking about you the whole time. He would seriously have a hard time keeping your face from appearing in his mind!"
"Uhhh..."
Irene held her own face and closed her eyes.
What Lillian said was indeed very bold. But... that would actually force him to keep thinking about her.
"So? Will you do it or not?"
She asked, glancing at Irene’s face.
Irene peeked out from between her fingers and slowly nodded.
"Wonderful. That is my Irene."
Lillian said, patting her head gently.
Knock! Knock!
A knock on the door echoed, followed by Vivy’s voice.
"Princess Lillian, are you finished?"
"Oh? Vivy, please come in." Lillian said, turning her face away from Irene’s till blushing face.
Vivy opened the door and walked inside first.
And right behind her, a tiny girl who looked around the age of eleven followed along, holding tightly onto Vivy’s hand.
Unlike earlier, Vivy no longer had her demon horns showing above her head, and her tail was hidden away, too.
She looked just like a normal human right now. But in actuality, she was a half-demon, half-dragon.
The tiny girl tugged at Vivy’s hand, making her pause mid-step.
Lillian’s heart felt blissful, seeing the two of them being this close.
"Eri dear, you look so cute today," Lillian said to the little girl.
Eri hid half of herself behind Vivy and spoke up.
"Why are there so many humans?! Humans are so scary! They made a whole hole through my house, and one of them even tried to kill me! Why did you all bring me here?!"
This little girl’s name was Eri, a name that had been given to her by Queen Anise herself.
She was, in reality, a dragon hatchling, belonging to a dragon tribe called Haldorado, one that had already gone extinct.
After Leon and Irene had found her inside a cave and bullied her, Anise took her in and handed her over to Vivy.
And because Vivy was half a dragon herself, she took care of Eri’s needs exceptionally well.
At first, Eri had been wary of Vivy, too. But now, look at her, holding onto Vivy’s hand as if she were her own elder sister.
In fact, Eri did not go anywhere at all now without staying right by Vivy’s side, and that was exactly the reason why they had to bring her here along with them.
She was completely safe, though, because as a dragon, she could not be harmed all that easily.
"Eeey? Are you still scared of humans?" Vivy asked her gently.
"Of course I would be! That girl, named Irene beside you was with that young boy too, the one who tried to kill me! And, and that boy has a sister who is even more demonic than him!"
Lillian glanced at Irene, who was avoiding looking at her face.
"Exactly what did he do to the poor kid?"
"What? He did nothing, though... He just knocked some manners into her."
That was true.
All he did was let the little dragon get scammed by a fake letter he forged, making it look like it was from the dragon’s own mother, and then used one of his most deadly techniques to scare her half to death, just so that she would not dare act cocky toward him ever again.
"....."
Watching it all unfold, Lillian softly smiled to herself.
Vivy... and Irene, both of them had been smiling a lot more ever since Evana was finally set free.
Earlier, back at the Adler’s Detective Agency, the two of them were often so serious, always taking on case after case, and barely ever getting any time to have this much fun.
But now, both of them had a reason to be happy about.
Irene now had Leon, and Vivy now had Eri.
The two of them had lived their lives all alone ever since they were kids. And now, they finally had what looked like a family of their own.
There was nothing more that Lillian could ever wish for.
She only wished for both of them to stay this happy for the rest of their lives.