Renji: “In any case, from now on, Nana is one of us.”
Following the prepared script, Renji introduced the dragon girl to everyone inside the wooden shed, presenting her as a gladiator slave. Instantly, curious gazes concentrated on “Nana (Nova)”
Among them, the fox-girl Nozomi was the first to accept it, or rather, she silently breathed a sigh of relief. The appearance of “Nana,” regardless of the authenticity of her background, was proof that Renji had interacted with demi-human in the past. This provided a reasonable explanation for why Renji was helping and supporting them now. So, the fox-girl felt somewhat reassured.
However, Nozomi discreetly examined the features of “Nana” For some reason, she felt a faint sense of familiarity but couldn’t pinpoint where it came from.
On the other hand, Jiu was more direct. She casually ran over to the dragon girl, her eyes filled with excitement and curiosity, focusing on the two slightly protruding horns on Nana’s head.
“Wow! Are these dragon horns? Are you a Dragonkin?”
“Jiu!” Nozomi frowned.
“Wow! This is so cool! Are you from the Dragonkin tribe?”
“Jiu!” Nozomi repeated, her tone more stern.
The term “Dragonkin” was a taboo among the demi-humans. All dragonkin were supposed to be categorized as part of the “Lizard Tribe” according to an unspoken rule in the Dragon Nation.
But Jiu seemed defiant.
“Why, Sister Nozomi, why not calling her Dragonkin when she is a Dragonkin. Just because that empress is a Dragonkin, does that mean we can’t have other Dragonkin? If we’re going to rebel and overthrow the Dragon Nation, let’s start by changing how we address things!”
“Nana, don’t worry. If anyone dares to call you Lizard Tribe, I, Jiu, will be the first to stand up for you!”
The tiger-girl stood protectively in front of the dragon girl. Seeing this, Nozomi sighed as neither Renji nor Nana said anything. She followed them with a resigned expression.
Shan remained relatively silent throughout, not uttering a word. However, there was a hint of fighting spirit in his eyes. After all, she was a dragonkin, and Shan could sense that she was a warrior like himself. ‘If we could spar, it would be fun.’
The most significant reaction in the room, however, came from…
“Hey, hey, hey, Ashe, aren’t you going to show some reaction?” Eileen subtly nudged the cat-girl beside her, whispering in her ear. 𝘪𝘦.𝘤𝑜
“What do you mean, Miss Eileen?” Ashe looked confused.
“Oh my! Are you a fool? Now, all of a sudden, an unfamiliar demi-human appears next to the old timer. Don’t you even feel a hint of crisis? This is obviously an attempt to compete with you for your position!”
Ashe: “Crisis? Compete for a position? Ashe doesn’t quite understand.”
With a shake of her head in response to Eileen’s incredulous look, Ashe decided to approach the dragon girl. The reason was simple: ever since Nana entered the room, her attention had been on Ashe, more precisely, on the pot of porridge Ashe brought for everyone.
“Miss Nana, haven’t you had breakfast yet? You’ve been staring at me; are you hungry?”
“Hungry” The dragon girl nodded. .𝘤𝘰
“Then come over quickly. If you don’t mind, taste the porridge I made. Don’t worry; it’s not too greasy, very nourishing for the body!”
While speaking gently, Ashe took the initiative to hold Nana’s hand, guiding her to sit down. She then started serving porridge to the dragon girl.
Seeing this, Eileen, who had been trying to manipulate the situation, expressed a look of disappointment. It seemed that instead of forming an alliance against the “newcomer,” Ashe had directly joined forces with Nana.
As Eileen turned to find solidarity with 86, she was once again met with a shocking betrayal.
“86! Where did this cluster of needles and thread come from? And what are you doing now?”
[Miss Nana is still barefoot, and her clothes are ragged, so as Master’s maid, I naturally have to prepare new clothes for the new member. This way, I can clearly show Master my superiority] Number 86 said confidently.
“You… you all… Hmph!”
Eileen was exasperated. Her attempt to deceive Ashe and the maid had backfired, and now she found herself in the last position.
Ashe took the food, 86 claimed the clothing, leaving Eileen with only one option – to act against their shelter.
‘Tonight…Hehehe~’
Eileen’s thoughts began to drift.
After the little episode with Nana, it wasn’t surprising to Renji that the dragon girl quickly integrated into the group. Despite the intimidating title of “Empress” that Nana held among them, the actual dragon girl was the most approachable one, at least as long as you didn’t touch her scales.
Nana had only a few sensitive spots, and touching them was quite difficult.
As Renji contemplated this, he took a sip of the breakfast porridge that Ashe had brought for the high-ranking members of the meeting.
‘Hmm…’
‘It is excellent!’
Renji praised Ashe for the familiar taste and texture, realizing that the cat-girl had a talent for cooking. The flavor was reminiscent of the recuperative porridge he used to make for Ashe back in the Sealed City. It was impressive how Ashe could recreate it just by tasting it.
‘Wait a minute!’
Renji suddenly realized the gravity of the situation.
Unfortunately, it was a bit too late.
When he smelled the aroma of the porridge, Nana already had a strong sense of familiarity. After Ashe brought her over and she took a sip, Nana’s body trembled slightly, and her eyes even flashed purple. After all, this taste was unforgettable—it was the best and most memorable porridge she had ever had, the one Ashen made for her.
But…
“Did you make this porridge?” Nana lifted her head and earnestly asked the cat-girl beside her.
“Yeah, what’s… what’s wrong?”
“Where did you learn to make this porridge?”
“Well, I didn’t really learn; it’s just that Master Renji made it for me every day, so after drinking it so many times, I wondered if I could make it too!”
Ashe scratched her head apologetically. As she reminisced about the joyful time when Renji bought her in the Sealed City, a happiness she couldn’t hide appeared on her face.
Nana: “…”
As Nana immediately cast her gaze toward a certain young man at the front, Renji quickly coughed, abandoning the porridge and swiftly changing the topic.
“Um, well! Let’s make good use of our time. While we eat, we can continue the meeting. As I mentioned earlier, I want to redistribute your responsibilities. First, Nozomi, from now on, you’ll be in charge of raising the revolutionary spirit within our army. It’s very simple and easy to understand; just focus on four words: ‘Free meals, free accommodation!’ Whether it’s for internal members or new allies or future revolutionary army members, instill the firm belief that joining us guarantees free meals and accommodation! In addition…”
Waving to 86, Renji signaled the maid to hand over some prepared architectural drawings to Nozomi, who still seemed a bit puzzled. These were buildings carefully selected by Renji, utilizing 86’s comprehensive database to identify efficient and high-quality structures from five hundred years ago, back when he optimized for both material conservation and functionality. With these blueprints, Nozomi could construct houses that accommodated dozens of people with just a fraction of the resources previously needed for a small shack. This would not only enhance efficiency but also improve the overall living standards of the revolutionary army.
As for the remaining concern of food, Renji assigned Jiu, who was familiar with forest environments, as the leader of the hunting and gathering team. He provided her with a detailed list of useful food ingredients based on his in-game memories, asking her to bring back as many similar items as possible for further evaluation.
Lastly, Shan was assigned the responsibility of training.
“Master Renji, Nana also wants to contribute to the revolution and help with training everyone,” unexpectedly, the dragon girl raised her hand as if waiting for the right moment to speak.
“Huh?!Miss Nana as an instructor?” Ashe sitting nearby expressed surprise.
Nana: “Yes.”
After nodding to Ashe, Nana turned to the petite cat-girl beside her. With a serious expression, she said, “I think you’re well-suited for sword training.”
“Uh!? Me…?” Ashe wore a confused yet pleasantly surprised expression.
“Yes, I believe you have extraordinary talent and exceptional bone structure. You’re definitely a promising candidate for sword training. So…”
“Come on, let me try practicing swordsmanship with you.”
Follow current novels on 𝘳𝑎.𝗇t