I Became The Tyrant Of A Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 653

Bringer Grand Duchess’s Palace.

The girl lying on the bed was still breathing shallowly, even after receiving treatment, and had not regained consciousness.

“…….”

Day-Bringer, sitting at the girl’s bedside, examined her condition with a dark expression.

At that moment, her aide, Layton, entered the room and reported to Day-Bringer.

“Upon investigation, there is no record of her in the family registry, nor any registered personal information… She appears to be a street urchin from the slums.”

“…Why is she so injured?”

“It is common for street urchins to get hurt and die, Your Majesty.”

“Common?”

Day-Bringer turned around, her voice rising with heat, and Layton replied coldly, his expression unchanged.

“Your Majesty, a nation without poverty and crime cannot exist. You know this well, do you not?”

“…….”

“No matter how much benevolence you bestow, someone will starve in the shadows, and someone will be stabbed. You are a great person, Your Majesty, but you are not a god. These things happen.”

“…I know, Sir Layton. I am a flawed ruler, and this country is not perfect. But, even so.”

Day-Bringer quietly looked at the face of the unconscious girl.

“While a festival is taking place in the sun of my country, children like this are dying in the shadows.”

“…….”

Layton glanced at the girl on the bed and let out a soft sigh.

“It’s already too late for that child. She was too weak and injured too severely. She probably won’t make it through the night.”

“…….”

“Leave it to me, Your Majesty. I will bury her in a good place…”

“No.”

Day-Bringer refused outright and slowly rose to her feet.

“It is my responsibility… and the responsibility of this nation, that this child is dying, starved and injured like this.”

Day-Bringer’s calloused hand moved towards her mouth. The sharp teeth unique to a Dragon Blood Inheritor were revealed.

“Since I have mismanaged the country, I must take responsibility.”

“Your Majesty, surely not…”

“I will save her.”

Layton, flustered, opened his mouth. Day-Bringer declared with a serious face.

“I will make this child my subordinate… my Dragon Knight, Sir Layton.”

Day-Bringer bit her own little finger, drawing blood, and brought the droplet of blood to the girl’s lips.

“I will not accept any objections.”

“Your Majesty! That won’t do…”

Before Layton could stop her,

The Dragon Lady’s dragon blood dripped into the girl’s lips.

***

When she opened her eyes, the girl thought she had died and gone to heaven.

Morning sunlight poured in through the gaps in the curtains. The feather pillow was soft, and the blanket was warm. Her body, freshly washed, smelled of good soap.

The girl finally believed she was dead.

Could she now live in a world without pain or hunger?

*Grumble*-

“…?”

But it wasn’t so.

This was reality, and although her body was clean, her stomach was still empty. The girl groaned and raised her upper body.

‘I’m hungry…’

Clutching her aching, empty stomach, she lifted her head and noticed it.

“… !”

On the bedside table next to the bed, there was a small plate with bread and fruit.

She swallowed unconsciously, and then a voice came from the other side of the bed.

“It’s okay. It’s yours, eat it.”

The startled girl looked in that direction and saw a woman in uniform, wearing glasses, handling paperwork.

The woman, Day-Bringer, who met the girl’s eyes, smiled kindly.

“Are you very hungry? Eat comfortably.”

“…….”

The girl hesitated, then reached out a trembling hand and picked up the bread. She took a hasty bite.

The aroma of grain, which she hadn’t tasted in so long, filled her mouth.

Tears streamed down the girl’s face without her realizing it.

Unable to swallow the bread she had bitten into, the girl just kept crying.

“So, I really am dead…?”

The girl asked in a mumbling voice.

“If this isn’t the afterlife, there’s no way someone would treat me so kindly…”

“This is definitely reality. And.”

Day-Bringer chuckled.

“From now on, there will be many people who will treat you kindly, child.”

The queen’s hand gently stroked the girl’s head. And then, finally, the girl was able to swallow the bread in her mouth.

The tear-soaked bread was sweet.

It couldn’t have been sweeter.

***

The girl’s name was Soot. It meant ‘smudge’.

“Whether it’s a name or not, that’s what I’ve been called since some time…”

Found in a coal mining village as a baby, the girl had lived her life in the back alleys, surrounded by soot, ash, filth, and garbage.

So, wearing such clean clothes and being adorned like this was a first for her. The ribbon around her neck was uncomfortable, and the girl kept fidgeting.

“Soot, Soot… It’s a good name.”

Day-Bringer, who had personally adjusted the girl’s clothes, smiled with her plump lips.

“Let me tell you first, Soot. You will have to live with me from now on.”

It was a very joyful and surprising thing to hear, but Soot couldn’t understand.

It was late to realize, but the other person was definitely the Dragon Lady. The queen of this country.

Why would she want to live with someone as insignificant as herself?

“I fed you my blood… dragon blood, and also transfused it. Now, the blood of a dragon flows in your body.”

Day-Bringer scratched the back of her head as if making an excuse in front of the startled Soot.

“You were surprised, weren’t you? But your energy was so depleted that I had no choice to save you. And even then, you were unconscious for several more days. I’m so glad you woke up like this.”

What surprised Soot was that she couldn’t understand why Day-Bringer would do such a thing for someone like her.

She didn’t dare ask any more questions.

She was afraid that if she asked for no reason, Day-Bringer, who couldn’t find a reason, would chase her away… she was afraid.

“Th-then, am I, going to become a dragon now?”

So she changed the subject. Day-Bringer kindly explained.

“You have acquired a part of the ‘qualification’, but no. To become a dragon, you need a dragon heart, dragon blood, and… one more crucial thing.”

One crucial thing?

Soot tilted her head, not even guessing what it could be. Day-Bringer stroked Soot’s head as if she were cute, then took Soot inside the palace.

The audience chamber.

Day-Bringer entered this place, where a simple throne, large but without any jewels, was located. She sat on the throne, and Soot hesitated and stood next to her.

And a beat later, she could realize it.

“… !”

In front of the throne, two people were kneeling, bound.

A young woman with tattoos all over her body, and an old, retired soldier with a prosthetic leg.

“By the order of the great Dragon Lady, we have identified and captured the criminals.”

Day-Bringer’s loyal aide, Layton, reported. He had searched the city like a rat for the past few days to find the criminals who had brought Soot to the brink of death.

“Please give your orders for their punishment.”

“Hmm.”

Day-Bringer’s eyes flashed with a cold light.

“They dared to harm a child who has become my subordinate and a Dragon Knight, so they must receive a fitting punishment.”

The woman and the retired soldier trembled like aspen leaves.

In the slums, it was a common occurrence for a poor kid to be beaten until they were near death, happening every day, countless times.

But they had the misfortune of catching the king’s eye.

If they hadn’t been seen, it would have been fine, but once they were seen, they had to be dealt with. That was the king’s job, and the two criminals knew that fact well.

“Now, Soot.”

Day-Bringer turned to Soot and asked.

“These are the ones who did this to you.”

“…….”

“I have already received all the investigation results. They exploited you and beat you until you were near death. What punishment do you want them to receive? I will punish them as you wish.”

Day-Bringer was expecting to hear a very harsh answer from Soot.

Dragon blood changes those who receive it into a more aggressive state. This is why Dragon Knights are also called berserkers. No matter what their previous personality was, those who received dragon blood came to enjoy fighting and became rougher.

Soot had also been given dragon blood, and since she had received dragon blood, she was destined to become a Dragon Knight that Day-Bringer would raise herself. She would have to wield a sword and cut down enemies herself someday.

Day-Bringer was trying to observe how Soot would take revenge on them. Depending on that aspect, she could guess what kind of Dragon Knight this girl would become in the future.

“…….”

And, after hesitating for a long time, Soot opened her mouth.

“…You can punish them as I wish, Your Majesty?”

“Yes. What do you wish?”

“Then, could you… could you release them?”

Day-Bringer blinked in surprise at the unexpected answer.

“That woman has been exploiting you for the past several years, and she beat you terribly on the day you were almost killed.”

“…….”

“And that man hit you until you were on the verge of death. If that man had hit you a few more times, you would have died on the spot.”

“…….”

“And yet, you’re saying you want to let them go?”

Soot opened her mouth, her voice trembling.

“But… the older sister provided me with a place to stay until I grew up. And, and I stole the wallet first from that soldier uncle.”

“…….”

“If you are going to punish these two, please punish me too for being a pickpocket…”

Soot, who had spoken in a trembling voice but clearly, closed her eyes tightly.

Silence fell in the audience chamber.

After a while, Day-Bringer let out a long sigh.

“…It seems like I’m the one who should be punished.”

Day-Bringer scanned the people gathered in the audience chamber with a deep gaze.

“I have neglected to prevent a child like you from having no choice but to pickpocket to survive, and I have allowed such children to gather in the slums and exploit each other… and I have also condoned a retired soldier who was loyal to the country to live in hardship. I, the king, am the biggest sinner.”

Following that, Day-Bringer gestured.

“Release them.”

“Yes.”

The soldiers untied the ropes that bound the woman and the retired soldier. The two of them got up from their seats, bewildered.

“From now on, the security officers and my knights will be watching, so be careful not to let me see your faces again because of such things… there will be no second chance.”

The two who had been captured walked out the way they had come.

The two bowed repeatedly to the queen and to Soot. Soot couldn’t bring herself to meet their eyes and lowered her head.

Day-Bringer turned her head to Layton.

“Sir Layton.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Tour the slums with the knights, security officers, and the finance officer to identify the current issues and organize short-term and long-term welfare for the poor. Also, review the welfare for retired soldiers. Not only pensions but also from various aspects.”

“I obey your command.”

“Also, strengthen the reporting system to reduce the blind spots of the law. Make sure that no child starves or is beaten to death in my city. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

After finishing several other instructions to Layton.

Day-Bringer turned to Soot.

“…It seems like you won’t be a good Dragon Knight after all.”

At Day-Bringer’s words, Soot’s shoulders trembled. But soon, she took a deep breath and lowered her head.

“I’m sorry for disappointing you… Are you going to chase me away now?”

“What? Hahahaha, what are you talking about?”

Day-Bringer, who laughed heartily, rose from the throne.

“The essence of a person cannot be hidden, even if it is covered in soot.”

And she bent down in front of Soot, making eye contact with the girl.

“You are a good child, Soot. And I have been waiting for someone good like you all along.”

Day-Bringer smiled warmly at Soot, who was blinking her big eyes, not understanding.