Cessilia thought of Ashen’s mother. That woman probably was as headstrong as her grandmother, from her understanding. She had left her clan and gone through many hardships to raise her sons the way she wanted to. In the end, was the sacrifice worth it? ...Perhaps. After all, it was as if she had earned her own freedom. Cessilia understood her grandmother’s words. It would have been foolish to trust a clan who had turned their back on this Kingdom for so many years so easily. They might be useful as spies and assassins, but it would take a long, long while before they proved their loyalty for real.

“Do you think I trust too easily?” Cessilia frowned.

“I think this world needs more women like you and your mother,” chuckled Kareen. “Not every woman can wield a sword, but every woman is a fighter.”

Cessilia smiled.

“I think I heard something similar recently.”

“Because it’s true, and something the women in our family live by. Far too many times, women are underestimated. It is both a strength and a weakness. That goes for Ashen as well, Cessilia. That boy might be right for you, but remember, you’re right for him too.”

Cessilia smiled and nodded. Even without her grandmother saying it, she felt like she had already come a long way since she had landed in the Eastern Kingdom, and learned many things.

They walked a bit longer, lightly chatting about the shops Cessilia was starting to know about. One of Nana’s cousins who recognized her even walked over to offer them some warm tea she was selling, and some dried fruits to snack on, all for free. She was the only one who approached them, but by now, many people were out in the streets, busy trying to get back to a normal life, either by clearing the debris, starting to repair their houses and shops, or, for the luckiest ones, resuming business as usual. The more they walked, the more the two women naturally drifted toward the seashore. They were just a couple of streets away from the docks and, to her surprise, her grandmother didn’t seem bothered at all by the smell of fish.

“Grandmother...”

“Yes?”

“Do you believe that legend? About the pair of Earth and Sea Dragons? About that... mountain and that cave.”

“Why do you ask that?” smiled Kareen, who already knew what Cessilia really wanted to know.

“Cece,” muttered Cessilia. “You know I need to know. How did she come back? It has to do with that legend, right? ...How did Mother know? I thought she simply suggested putting her in the lake of the Imperial Palace as a burial for a dragon, or so I wouldn’t be too sad, but she knew, didn’t she? She knew Cece would be back. Just... how?”

A mysterious smile appeared on Kareen’s lips.

“I’m not sure your mother really knew,” she said. “Perhaps she took a chance.”

She didn’t add anything, but Cessilia was getting restless. She ought to know more. She could tell there were some secrets her family hadn’t disclosed yet, and she had rarely questioned them until now. Until it became about Cece too.

“Grandmother,” she insisted. “...Please. I know Mother and Father both won’t talk about it. This is related to what happened to my mother before I was born, isn’t it? Kassian told me and Darsan. Krai was always by that lake... That place really is special, isn’t it?”

After a while, Kareen sighed.

“...The lake itself isn’t special. It’s what’s hidden beneath it that is.”

“What’s hidden beneath?”

“It’s true,” said Kareen, staring far ahead. “Your mother died, shortly after Kassian was born.”

Cessilia was stunned. She had always had a hunch, but neither her or her brother had ever been able to confirm it. Their parents always firmly ignored that subject... Her mother would put on a sad smile and change the topic, while their father would look deeply hurt and angry. Both their reactions had made it so neither of them dared to ask twice.

“Just... how?”

“She died in the battle opposing one of your uncles, a wretched man who murdered your grandfather. Sadly, your mother gave her own life in that conflict. ...Shortly before, though, she had found out how special that lake truly was.”

“Why the lake...?”

A faint smile appeared on Kareen’s lips.

“The best secrets aren’t uncovered in centuries-old libraries, but in a man’s bed, Cessilia. Your grandfather had told me once that there was a secret buried deep in that lake. Something only the Emperor and their heir ought to know. He had told me, in case something happened to him, and with the intention that Kairen would become the next Emperor. Deep, deep, in the depths of that lake, a legendary creature was hidden.”

“...A legendary creature?”

“Yes. A dragon so old, it was more a deity than a creature. No mortal could tame it, and the dragon always hid so deep inside the lake, no one could reach it. With the centuries going by, and the dragon never resurfacing, it had become no more than a legend passed on to the next generation.”

“...But the Sea Dragon was there,” muttered Cessilia. “Wasn’t it? My mother’s birth tribe was the Rain Tribe. They had ties to the Sea Dragon... and that’s how she was saved. The Sea Dragon saved my mom’s life.”

“It did not save her,” said Kareen. “Your mother was indeed dead, and her body was taken to the lake, just like your Cece. She stayed there for an awfully long time. Months, many months. If not for Kassian being just a newborn who needed his dad then, I don’t know how your father would have endured it. He was heartbroken... It’s no wonder neither of them can bear to talk about this, even today. That was the hardest time of their lives.”

“So... Mother came back thanks to the Sea Dragon.”

“Yes. She briefly talked with me about that matter, although it wasn’t clear for her either. She did see that great dragon, that forgotten god from the depths.”

Cessilia wasn’t exactly shocked to hear all this, but it was still heavy on the heart. She knew the incredible love that united her parents. Many times, she had been the prime witness of it. Those gazes, kisses, and gentle gestures exchanged between her parents. Despite having so many children, her parents never forgot to have a tender moment with each other. She almost suspected they stayed apart for days just to be even happier to reunite. Or perhaps, did her mother know they should wait until the next child…?

At times, there was this strange worry in her father’s eyes. If the smallest thing happened to their mother, something as small as a flower’s thorn pricking her finger, he’d get incredibly protective. Even with his children. Cessilia had many memories of her father being her favorite shadow, the strong arms she easily hid in, whenever she felt shy to the world. She knew her father was a strong man, a warrior who had fought every battle... yet she had never imagined his biggest scar was invisible.

“Do you think... the same dragon deity healed my Cece the same way?”

“It’s possible,” smiled Kareen, “if a dragon is still down there. Or perhaps, the centuries-long home of a Dragon God became a sanctuary itself. Who knows? But you know, your mother did say something. She said that water, in the depths of the lake, had a salty taste.”

“Salty?”

Cessilia frowned. How could a lake’s water possibly be salty? Moreover, she knew that lake well. Her siblings, their dragons, and she often played by that lake. They’d even swim and fool around in the shallow bank of it. She had never tasted that water to be anything close to salty...

“Could it be connected to the sea? That would tie it to the legend...”

“Maybe,” smiled her grandmother, “but only your mother could swim deep enough to tell.”

Cessilia was almost hoping she’d get to go home and swim in the depths of that lake now. She had never shown any interest because Tessandra and her younger siblings couldn’t follow her that deep, but perhaps, if she tried to go really, really deep, she’d find that salty water...

“You’re thinking a lot,” chuckled Kareen.

“What about the Earth Dragon?” Cessilia immediately asked. “Krai... I mean, my father’s dragon and their ancestors were all earth dragons, before what happened to Mother with the Sea God. Do we know where the other dragon rested, if it was still alive?”

Kareen smiled enigmatically.

“That legend... Do you remember the last dragons exchange?”

It took a few seconds for Cessilia to remember, with certainty, what those had been.

“‘I shall wait until the time when our children meet again, and our bloods become one, like when we were born. When that time comes, I will know your children made the world safe for them, and my offspring will finally come to the world. I will meet my human again, and give her the rest of my life, so I can join you in this blissful rest they call death. Then, you and I can rest peacefully, as I will have witnessed that our children will live on, safe and together.’”

“Exactly,” nodded Kareen.

“It doesn’t explain how that lake came to have salty water,” muttered Cessilia, “nor how it was capable of healing Cece, after it... resurrected my mother. Even if Cece had just a breath of life left in her, all of the Sea Dragon’s life should have been passed on to Mother. So how did that lake...?”