They looked completely ready to go into battlefield and Joa and the others hurriedly tried to stop them.

"That child is in danger, so how can we just sit at home and wait! Of course we’re coming!"

It was a very manly declaration.

"I may have retired, but I can still fight. I won’t be a burden, so let me come along."

Her smile looked suspicious in its determination.

As Qiong Xing’s mate, Elias could not help but feel once again how loved Qiong Xing was by everyone.

At this point, there was no way they could refuse. And when he looked down, he saw Lian clinging to Katarina’s leg, watching them carefully, as if she had already known this would happen from the beginning.

"You... really are just like your Mama."

Even while trembling slightly in fear of being scolded, once she decided something, she would not back down.

It was not necessarily a good thing to be so quick witted, but if it was because she loved Mama, then it was hard to get angry.

"I’ll save Mama, okay"

"We’re going to save Mama"

They were no longer babies who needed everything decided for them.

They understood things now.

Only now did Elias truly realize how much they were growing day by day.

"Understood. But you guys absolutely do not leave these two’s side, got it? If you get hurt, Mama will cry."

"Okay!"

Although they had never actually seen it themselves, from what Albe and Qiong Xing had said, they knew Katarina and the others were quite skilled, so they asked the two to protect the children.

"Now that that’s decided, let’s move. Albe, you’re in charge of guiding us."

"Got it."

Knowing Qiong Xing, he was surely waiting for them.

It had been unexpected that the children would come along, but their desire to save Qiong Xing was no different from that of the l adults.

"...Was it really okay to leave Lingxiao behind?"

Lingxiao who had been making noise together with Lian at first was now quietly fast asleep in Iseul’s arms.

When someone suggested they might have been fine leaving him behind—

"Dragons are tough. He can’t fly properly yet, but he’s already useful enough to be thrown as an attack."

"...I see."

Dragon child-rearing seemed to be quite harsh compared to beastmen.

Throwing one’s own child at an enemy was unthinkable for Joa, but with those sturdy scales, it might actually be possible.

Since Ron did not seem concerned at all, it did not seem like a lie.

"Qiong Xing isn’t here so we can’t understand him, but I’m sure he’ll come with us, right?"

He had never expected a legendary Fenrisulfr to become Qiong Xing’s contracted beast, but now that he thought about it, there was no more reliable ally.

Since it had followed them this far, they believed it would help, and when they checked just in case, it nodded as if it were obvious, giving them confidence.

"Looks like we’re ready."

Albe would not like this, but Joa had no intention of letting the man live.

The crime of taking Qiong Xing away was too great.

"I’ll make him regret ever laying hands on Qiong Xing... to the point of death."

Now, let’s go retrieve their beloved partner.

...

Would there be any human who would not run when told not to?

Would there be any human who, knowing something was dangerous, would not try to escape?

Qiong Xing believed that if there was even the slightest chance, people would choose to run.

"I told you, did I not? I am not a particularly patient man."

"Tch."

Things had been going well at first.

The man had clearly expected Qiong Xing to try escaping again, but he must have assumed that it would take him much longer before he could manage it.

However, once Qiong Xing had succeeded once, repeating the process did not take nearly as much time.

He had intended to sneak out of the room again like before, but knowing he would probably just get lost once more, he decided to escape through the window instead.

"It’s fine. I’ve done this once before, so I can do it."

As he stepping onto the balcony, he climbed onto the railing.

No matter how many times he experienced it, he never got used to losing the ground beneath his feet.

But this was hardly the time to complain about being scared.

This time, the nausea made him uncertain whether he could pull it off successfully, but as long as he stayed alive, he could heal himself with magic.

As he encouraging himself, he prepared to take a step forward.

The moment he did so, "Do you really think a mere human would survive falling from there?"

"...You won’t know unless I try, will you?" Qiong Xing said as he turned around and look at the man in front of him.

Just as expected, the man was standing there, looking even more irritated than before.

He was probably furious that Qiong Xing had attempted to escape again so soon.

But that was none of Qiong Xing’s concern.

"If the alternative is staying here and letting you do whatever you want, then I’ll choose the option that has even the slightest chance, no matter how reckless it is."

When he effectively told the man that even death would be preferable to remaining with him, the man’s eyes sharpened.

The man did not understand just how much magic Qiong Xing could use.

Though he acknowledged Qiong Xing possessed considerable mana, he probably looked down on him as nothing more than a human and assumed he would never attempt something so reckless.

But Qiong Xing had things he refused to compromise on.

For their sake, even his life was not too precious to risk.

"...A mere human."

"Ugh!"

He had been about to step forward and end it all, but the instant the man muttered those words, Qiong Xing was slammed violently into the floor.