Vol. 6 Ch. 50

Xiaoxue had been living among the dwarves for a longer time than Rosvisser, so her home was already equipped with household items sized for a normal human.

Since the dwarven woman had left for a while, Rosvisser decided to stay with Xiaoxue for a few days.

She would take care of her until the woman returned.

After the woman left, Xiaoxue sat alone on the edge of the bed, holding the family photo in her hands.

She stared down at it silently.

Rosvisser watched the quiet girl.

At some point, that expressionless face had started to show traces of loneliness and longing.

The woman had said that Xiaoxue had lost her memories due to war trauma—

She didn’t even remember her own name.

And yet, she still remembered her parents.

That must be incredibly painful for her.

To have no memories of them,

To only know that they were irreplaceable,

To desperately try to recall them—

And yet, no matter how hard she searched,

All she could find was an empty void.

Rosvisser made sure Aju was settled, then walked over to Xiaoxue’s bedside.

She crouched down again,

Keeping her gaze slightly lower than the girl’s,

So that Xiaoxue wouldn’t feel intimidated while talking to her.

“Hello, Xiaoxue. My name is Rosvisser—Rosvisser Melkvey. I come from the Silver Dragon Clan.”

She deliberately left out her title as queen.

That would only create an unnecessary sense of distance between them.

Xiaoxue lifted her gaze to meet Rosvisser’s silver eyes,

Her golden irises lingering on Rosvisser’s face—

As if searching for something.

As if longing for something.

After a long pause, Xiaoxue finally lowered her gaze again and gave a small nod.

She muttered a quiet, “Mm.”

Rosvisser glanced at the photo in Xiaoxue’s hands and softly asked,

“…Do I look like your mother?”

Xiaoxue nodded again.

Rosvisser smiled gently and reached out to rub the girl’s cheek.

“You don’t talk much, do you? You remind me of one of my daughters.”

Though, there was a clear difference.

Noa, when she was younger, had deliberately tried to act like an adult.

Back then, she believed that staying silent meant being mature—and maturity was a mark of adulthood.

But Xiaoxue’s quiet nature seemed to stem from her personality, rather than any deliberate act.

Hearing that Rosvisser had a daughter, Xiaoxue blinked in curiosity.

“…Auntie… are you… married?”

Rosvisser smiled at Xiaoxue’s timid attempt at conversation and nodded.

“Yes, I’ve been married for almost ten years now.”

“Ten years… that… sounds… like a long time…”

“Not really,” Rosvisser chuckled.

“When you’re with someone you love, time flies by quickly.”

“…Auntie… do you… love your husband?”

She was older than Noa and Helena,

Right in the midst of her teenage years, when thoughts about love and relationships began to bloom.

Rosvisser didn’t mind indulging her curiosity about her and Leon’s marriage.

“Of course I love him,” she answered without hesitation.

After all, that mangy mutt of a husband wasn’t here right now—so there was no harm in being a little soft-spoken about it.

Xiaoxue tilted her head.

“Auntie… how many… daughters… do you have?”

Rosvisser lowered her thumb and held up her four other fingers,

Smirking with playful pride.

“Four.”

“…That’s a lot… I wish… I had… an older sister… or a younger sibling…”

Her gaze slowly drifted back to the family photo,

To the three-person portrait.

“…But I don’t… remember anything.”

Rosvisser thought for a moment before gently taking Xiaoxue’s small, icy hands in her own.

She spoke in a warm, reassuring tone.

“Don’t let the past become your chains, Xiaoxue.

“It shouldn’t be something that traps you—but something that gives you the strength to live on.”

Xiaoxue’s golden pupils trembled slightly.

“…Live on…”

“Even though your parents can’t be with you anymore,

“They will always be watching over you from the skies.”

Rosvisser’s voice was soft, almost a whisper.

“So, promise me, Xiaoxue.

Live on.

Don’t let your parents down.”

She wasn’t sure if the dwarves had ever tried comforting Xiaoxue in the past.

But from the way the girl had reacted earlier,

Even if they had,

It likely hadn’t worked.

It was understandable.

She was still too young to fully express her emotions,

And it was unreasonable to expect a war orphan to simply forget her past and move forward.

Even so,

Rosvisser wanted to do whatever she could—

To heal, even just a little,

This poor child who had lost everything.

Xiaoxue stared into Rosvisser’s silver eyes,

Feeling the warmth in her voice,

The kindness in her touch.

This woman—whom she had just met less than an hour ago—

Made her feel something she hadn’t felt in a very, very long time.

It was… different from the dwarves’ kindness.

This warmth…

Felt like a mother’s embrace.

Xiaoxue couldn’t quite describe the feeling.

It was similar to what she once felt with her mother,

And yet, it was not quite the same.

If Xiaoxue had more life experience, she might have understood—

The reason she felt so at ease around Rosvisser was because Rosvisser was, at her core, a truly exceptional mother.

She radiated the purest warmth of maternal care.

That made it easy for Xiaoxue to lower her guard around her.

“…Okay, I understand now, Auntie Rosvisser.”

Rosvisser smiled in satisfaction.

But there was something she had noticed earlier.

Xiaoxue’s speech pattern was slightly unusual.

For example, when she said, “Auntie Rosvisser”,

There was a very distinct pause between “Rosvisser” and “Auntie”.

Even during their previous conversations, Xiaoxue had spoken in a similar manner.

Rosvisser considered asking about it but decided to hold back her curiosity.

It could be a natural speech quirk,

Or it could be a result of war trauma affecting her neurological functions.

Either way, it wasn’t something Xiaoxue seemed comfortable talking about.

So Rosvisser wouldn’t pry.

It wasn’t hindering their conversation, after all.

“Auntie.”

“Hmm?”

“How… did you meet Uncle?”

“We met… hmm, let me think—”

Rosvisser paused to gather her thoughts before answering,

“We met at a victory banquet.”

“…Banquet? Celebrating… what?”

Rosvisser’s inner thoughts:

Celebrating the fact that I captured your uncle and threw him into a dungeon, haha!

She cleared her throat.

“Just a regular victory banquet.”

“Your uncle stood out a lot that day.”

“Ohhh~~ really?”

“Mmmhmm, that’s how it was.”

Far away, deep in the snow-capped mountains—

Leon, who was both repairing his sword and suffering in the freezing cold, suddenly sneezed.

“Huh? Who’s talking behind my back?”

“Prince, maybe it’s just the cold.”

Leon rubbed his nose.

“…Yeah, maybe.”

With that, they continued working on Thundercloud Blade.

As the evening approached, Rosvisser was preparing to leave with Aju.

But just before she stepped outside, she noticed Xiaoxue hesitating.

After a brief moment of thought, Rosvisser leaned toward Aju’s ear and whispered,

“…How about we stay here tonight?”

Aju let out a snort and flicked its tail.

—That meant yes.

Rosvisser chuckled, patting Aju’s head before turning to Xiaoxue.

“Xiaoxue, do you have any extra blankets?”

“…I do.”

Xiaoxue’s eyes lit up, her voice betraying a hint of excitement.

“Auntie… you’re staying here?”

“What, you don’t want me to stay?” Rosvisser teased, tilting her head with a smile.

“Of course, I do!”

“I’ll go get you a blanket right now!”

With that, Xiaoxue ran off and eagerly fetched a spare quilt.

After neatly laying out Rosvisser’s bedding, she turned her attention to Aju.

“…Aju… also needs one.”

Rosvisser watched as Xiaoxue rummaged through her storage chest, pulling out a plain, darker-colored blanket.

She then tiptoed up to Aju, placing the quilt over its back—

With Rosvisser’s help.

Aju let out two deep snorts, wiggling its ears in contentment.

Xiaoxue clapped her hands happily.

“Aju… likes it.”

Rosvisser ruffled her hair.

“He does. Aju likes your blanket.”

Xiaoxue beamed.

“Auntie… let’s… go to sleep.”

“Alright.”

After settling Aju in, Rosvisser took Xiaoxue to the bedroom.

The bed was large enough for the two of them.

Once they got under the covers, Rosvisser turned off the bedside lamp.

Outside, the snow reflected the moonlight, casting a faint glow through the window.

Silver and gold eyes stared at the ceiling, neither one falling asleep.

After a long silence, Xiaoxue suddenly whispered,

“…Auntie. I feel… cold.”

Rosvisser smiled knowingly.

She lifted one side of her blanket and offered,

“…Do you want to sleep with Auntie?”

“Yes!”

Without hesitation, Xiaoxue rolled over and burrowed herself into Rosvisser’s blanket.

Nestled against Auntie Rosvisser, she felt warmth, softness, and a gentle scent.

Her thoughts wandered for a moment.

That uncle from the banquet sure is lucky…

“I really like this feeling…” Xiaoxue murmured sleepily.

“Auntie Rosvisser… is so warm.”

“That’s probably because your mother used to hold you like this when you were little.”

“…Really?”

“Mmm.”

“…But I… don’t remember.”

“You will,” Rosvisser reassured her.

“One day, those memories will come back.

“But until then… like I told you before—

You have to keep living.”

A quiet pause.

Then, in the darkness,

A firm voice answered,

“…Okay. I understand, Auntie Rosvisser.”