Chapter 678: Fafna and Heleqin's Child

When Aiwass's eyes caught sight of Cardinal Valrhona, he instantly fell silent and did not respond to Siegfried.

Siegfried also realized something and cut the subject short.

At the same time, Fafnir's low, slightly hoarse voice rang out: "There's no need to say this behind my back... I'm not shy about this."

As she spoke, she glanced at Siegfried.

Cardinal Valrhona's long black hair covered one eye, making the scarlet in the other eye appear even more striking.

"Because there is no shame in Hlechin's death. I am proud of him."

As she spoke, she looked at Aiwass with a complicated expression: "You should... know this, Aiwass."

"Ah...of course."

Aiwass nodded slightly.

He was indeed very impressed with Helechin.

At this moment, Aiwas suddenly noticed that there was another child behind Fafna.

He looked to be only about eleven or twelve years old, even much younger than David... and Heleqin died at least four hundred years ago.

But Aiwass could recognize it at a glance - this was Heleqin's child.

Because the child had the same gorgeous short golden hair as Heleqin, and one of his eyes also had the signature blue-green turquoise luster. His hair was very soft and smooth, and his features, inherited from Heleqin and Fafner, were unusually delicate. Of all the people Aiwas knew, his appearance was almost the best.

If he hadn't been wearing a men's priest's uniform instead of a nun's outfit, Aiwass would probably have mistaken him for a cute little girl.

There are also obvious traces of dragon on his body - his other eye is a dark golden dragon pupil; and from the neck to behind the ears, there are fine and smooth black scales.

The child seemed reluctant to show these things to others, so he wrapped them all up in a white scarf as soft as a cloud - but Aiwass had good eyesight and could still see them while sitting in the chair.

...But the child was, after all, the offspring of an elf and a dragon. Though immature and young, he wasn't short. Standing there, he looked almost as tall as Aiwass, who sat in the chair, and his body was sturdy, not skinny. If he were to wear armor, he'd instantly become a fine warrior.

But the amazing thing was that even though the child was a half-elf, his ears didn't shrink at all. His ears were still the longest Iwas had ever seen, about the same size as the White Saint and Heleqin.

He was hiding behind his mother, looking at Aiwass cautiously.

When he saw Aiwass and Lily, two rare humans, his eyes immediately widened.

His eyes revealed a very clear and strong sense of intimacy, but on the other hand he hid behind Cardinal Valrhona and said nothing.

Aiwass smiled gently at the child, and his voice became gentle.

"That was indeed a remarkable man...your father, he was a hero."

"hero……"

The child finally spoke, mumbling softly.

It was a clear and childish voice, still untouched, and indistinguishable as to whether it was male or female. The voice alone sounded very shy, even with a slight tremor.

His parents were clearly among the strongest in the world, and his immortal bloodline of elves and dragons meant time was on his side. Yet, the child still looked timid and hesitant.

"Rhine."

Fafner's voice was hoarse and cold.

She patted the little boy’s head gently, causing him to stumble and almost fall to the ground: “Greetings to Cardinal Aiwass.

"It was he who retrieved the warrior's heritage for your father—so that you would have the opportunity to become a warrior in the future."

"...Cardinal Aiwass, may the candle protect you..."

The voice of the little boy called Rhine sounded even more trembling.

Isabel on the side frowned slightly.

She always felt something was wrong - why was this child so timid?

She gave Aiwass a look, and Aiwass understood what Isabel meant.

"Come on, Rhine."

Aiwass smiled, clapped his hands at the little boy and motioned him to come over.

He just noticed that Rhine had been staring at him curiously.

Rhine subconsciously glanced back at Cardinal Fafner. Seeing Cardinal Fafner nod slightly, Rhine then approached cautiously and slowly. His pace was as if Aiwass would jump and bite at any moment.

Aiwass touched his head, then casually asked Cardinal Valrhona, "Cardinal Valrhona, shouldn't you be on the left?"

Cardinal Farna's contract partner is Candlemaker, who should be the third statue from the left.

"We dragons are all sons of Scale Feather," Fafna said in a calm whisper. "For something as important as this, I must bring Rhine to greet the Lord of Scale Feather."

It is precisely because the dragons inherited the bloodline of the Lord of Scales and Feathers, the "God of Scale and Feather Stealing", that they can change into any race at will.

"Rhine, you should pray too."

Fafna said so.

After that, she walked up to the Lord of Scales and Feathers, closed her eyes slightly and prayed softly.

"Yes, mother..."

Rhine, who was squinting his eyes and was touched on the head by Aiwass, was startled, then immediately stood up and said.

Aiwass clearly felt the little boy under his hand tremble subconsciously. He raised an eyebrow and asked Cardinal Fafner, "This child looks... a little afraid of you."

"Not enough courage."

After Fafnir finished praying, she nodded, turned around, and said sternly, "You still need training."

"...Can I ask?"

Siegfried on the side couldn't help but ask: "How do you usually train little Rhine?"

"Naturally, he was trained according to warrior standards. Swordsmanship, horsemanship, combat, spells, divine arts, alchemy, rituals, curses, including how to breathe, fly, and fight after transforming into a dragon—all were taught by me personally. Every weekend, I would take him to explore the ruins.

"The path to power has collapsed, and the legacy of the dragon rider has been lost. So he must at least learn how to fight as a dragon. There will always be those shortsighted 'dragon slayers' who seek overnight fame. Even if they have done nothing wrong, they must always be prepared to be murdered."

Cardinal Fafnir spoke in a more gentle tone, "However, fortunately, the 'warrior' path has returned... so we can slow down our training in spells and alchemy. After all, as a warrior, mana is too precious and limited. It doesn't support complex spellcasting."

“…That sounds tiring.”

Isabel whispered.

She could relate to this somewhat - when she was being trained as a "jack of all trades", this was often her life every day.

But Aiwass noticed something: "Cardinal Fafner, do you usually only teach him how to fight?"

"Of course not."

Fafna shook her head slightly. "The Immortals' path of advancement is always very slow, unlike the Short-lived species whose emotions are intense and simple. Extraordinary power cannot be acquired in a hurry... so I can only lay the foundation for him first.

"Besides knowledge of supernatural powers, we also need to learn nearly three thousand years of history and writing. We also need to learn winemaking, chess, and various smelting techniques, all of which are part of the dragon's heritage. And that doesn't even include the hidden knowledge.

“There’s so much to learn—and so little time.”

"...When did you start teaching him?"

Aiwass asked.

"Three hundred years ago, of course."

Fafner glanced at Rhine, who trembled again under Aiwas's hand, and replied, "I still followed the elves' rules and let him spend his childhood for a hundred years.

"It's just... maybe because he's mixed with dragon blood, his mentality is too young. At his age, he's considered an adult for an elf. He's not much younger than Gray, but look at him like this—I think it's always inappropriate.

"When I was four hundred years old, Heleqin and I had already fought against the great phantom demon in the deep sea. At that time, I was only at the fourth energy level, and he was just a rookie at the third energy level.

"And Rhine can't even stand the pain—how can he be a warrior?"

"I can……"

Rhine said hurriedly and panicked: "No, I, I won't feel any pain anymore..."

"...That's my feeling," Siegfried stroked his chin, "Aren't you too harsh on him? I never hit my children."

"We dragons are different from you elves."

Fafna shook her head slightly with a cold expression, and her face, with one eye covered, looked cold and gloomy.

But she didn't seem to be in a bad mood...it was just that she was born with such a scary and smelly face.

She explained calmly, "Dragons are children of adaptation. We are born with the power of adaptation flowing through our bodies. It is precisely because of this that we can transform into various forms. Rhine's transformation has a flaw, and that is because his power of adaptation is not enough."

While they were chatting, Aiwass reached out and pulled Rhine back, who was a little scared and moving away from him.

He felt only a moment of resistance—Rhine's strength seemed so strong that Aiwass hadn't managed to grab him at first. But once Rhine realized Aiwass was grabbing him, he seemed worried about hurting Aiwass, so he immediately relaxed and was easily dragged back by Aiwass.

This child...has a very gentle personality.

So Aiwass casually asked, "How can we improve our adaptability?"

"Being beaten."

Fafna said seriously.

"Huh?"

Isabel was stunned for a moment.

(End of this chapter)