Ch 70: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World

There was a pair of dragon lovers who had created the most precious treasure of their love—a dragon egg, the cutest in the world.

They sought a peaceful place where they could wait for their baby to hatch.

Alia was a rare silver dragon with special abilities, one of which allowed her to travel through time and space for short periods.

In some worlds, there were no dragons or other mystical beings—only humans.

Throughout her long life as a dragon, she had visited many of these worlds and encountered many fascinating humans.

Humans, Alia realized, were entirely different from dragons. In fact, they were the most fragile species she had ever encountered.

They had no sharp teeth, no deadly claws, not even the incredible regenerative abilities of slimes. Yet, somehow, they thrived in countless worlds, and in many, they were the dominant race.

When Alia and Drex had their first dragon egg, Alia thought it might be a good idea to live among humans for a while before their child went off to Dragon Valley for schooling.

They would teach their child about dragonkind, of course, but living among humans would offer a unique perspective on life beyond the dragon world.

And if their child happened to inherit Alia’s abilities, they might one day travel independently, encountering not just humans but all sorts of extraordinary beings. While few species were stronger than dragons, understanding other worlds was, after all, an exciting adventure.

So, they moved to a peaceful and picturesque human village.

Most of the villagers were farmers, though there were some adventurers, miners, and a few mages.

In this village, Alia and Drex met a noble girl named Helena.

Helena was fifteen years old, though she looked no older than eleven or twelve—frail, pale, and pitiful.

It was said she was sick and had come to the countryside to recover.

Alia felt sympathy for the girl, and Helena, in turn, grew quite fond of Alia, often visiting with gifts and servants.

But because of the dragon egg they were protecting, Alia was wary of Helena’s frequent visits and often found excuses to decline her company.

Helena sensed the distance and, with tears in her eyes, apologized to Alia, carefully asking if her visits had been too frequent or bothersome.

Alia, feeling guilty, wondered if perhaps she had been too harsh.

Human emotions were always so delicate, and this girl was sick, after all.

So, Alia softened and reassured Helena, patiently comforting her.

What Alia didn’t realize was that her repeated rejections had already planted seeds of resentment in the young girl’s heart.

Although the dragon couple lived as ordinary villagers, they still carried out their daily lives in secret.

Alia spent her days reading, studying magic, and watching over the egg, while Drex ventured out to collect treasures for their soon-to-be-born child.

They had never mentioned their dragon egg to anyone, but Helena had discovered the secret and was ecstatic.

A dragon egg—it was no wonder that couple was so secretive.

The seemingly fragile girl, who looked as though she might break at any moment, harbored dark and calculating thoughts.

She used every trick she could to lower Alia’s guard, and one day, she smeared her blood on the dragon egg, forming a symbiotic contract with the unhatched dragon.

She was caught in the act, sitting on the ground, covering her face, and sobbing.

Helena claimed that her illness had been foretold to take her life by the age of seventeen. She was just desperate to survive.

That much was true.

What had begun as a grudge-fueled investigation had led Helena to discover an opportunity for survival, and she could simultaneously spite Alia for rejecting her so many times.

Dragons were born powerful, with lifespans far surpassing humans.

By forming the contract, Helena would share the young dragon’s life force and thus extend her own life.

Alia was consumed with regret and self-blame, unable to forgive herself, while Drex was furious, ready to strike Helena down on the spot.

But the contract had already been sealed. Killing Helena would also mean the death of the dragon egg.

Dragons could have many children in their lifetime, but Alia and Drex had pinned their hopes on this one egg.

They didn’t want to give up.

Alia and Drex tried everything they could to break the contract between Helena and the dragon egg, but they were unsuccessful.

The binding power of the contract was absolute, and even the strongest dragons on the continent couldn’t defy it.

As time passed, the dragon hatchling still didn’t break out of its shell, and Helena’s health continued to decline.

Worried that this would affect the dragon hatchling, Drex took the initiative and proposed forming a contract with Helena himself.

A contract with a more powerful dragon could override the symbiotic bond with the unborn dragon.

Helena hesitated but eventually agreed.

Before the new contract was signed, she left the village and returned to the Kinkley estate.

When she came back to the village, Helena spoke of the symbiotic contract, but at the critical moment of forming the bond, she changed her mind and altered the contract with Drex into a subjugation pact instead.

This was not Helena’s plan alone; the Kinkley family had been scheming behind her.

Originally, they wouldn’t have dared to covet the power of a dragon, but Helena had inadvertently formed a contract with the dragon egg, and the dragon couple’s unwillingness to give up the egg became their most glaring weakness.

Drex was bound by the subjugation contract with the Kinkley family, yet the symbiotic contract with the dragon egg remained unbroken.

Everything spiraled toward the worst possible outcome.

The black dragon, Drex, was forced to fight in battles, driven by the human Kinkley family.

The Kinkley family spread rumors that the black dragon was infatuated with humans and willingly subjected itself to their control, concealing the dirty truth behind it all.

Alia, meanwhile, traveled across various worlds, searching for a way to save both Drex and their hatchling.

In parallel worlds, she saw their little dragon—a cute, pampered black dragon.

But she also saw the tragic fate that awaited their family.

In every world, no matter how the details changed, the outcome remained the same.

Drex would have his power drained by Helena, eventually weakening and dying.

Alia would find a way to break the symbiotic contract through her travels, but she would exhaust her own strength in the process, becoming trapped in the Kinkley estate and dying a slow death.

And their beloved child would grow up to become the prophesied Ender of Worlds, a black dragon who would wreak havoc upon the land.

The hatchling, raised in isolation in the wilderness, would meet Helena again before it even reached a century of life, and they would form a contract once more.

This was the one outcome Alia could never accept.

Yet in every world, the story unfolded the same way. After each journey, Alia would lock herself in a room and weep, her hatred for fate growing stronger.

At this point, a silver-haired, red-eyed youth approached her with a proposition: if she helped him hide a certain object, he would assist her in changing the fate of her hatchling.

By this time, Alia had reached a dead end. Without much hesitation, she agreed.

Dragons were the most powerful creatures on the continent, blessed by strong fortune, whether good or ill. Changing a dragon’s fate, however, was no easy feat.

The youth laid out a long timeline for them, marking a specific point as the moment when the hatchling’s destiny would change. He promised that the dragon’s fate would indeed be altered.

To achieve this, the youth even delayed the hatchling’s hatching.

Not long after, Drex died.

Helena absorbed the dragon’s power, gaining a near-immortal body, and she imprisoned Drex’s soul in a bone bracelet, continuing to wield his power.

In the decades that followed, several young noble girls appeared in the Kinkley family’s lineage, each dying before reaching adulthood. In truth, these were false identities created for Helena, who assumed a new identity with each one.

Eventually, Helena resumed her original name and reintroduced herself to society as Helena, the eldest daughter of the Kinkley family.

A few years later, Alia found a way to break the symbiotic contract.

She freed the dragon hatchling, who was still in its egg form, but this consumed the last of her strength. Alia, weakened, fell into a semi-conscious state, trapped within the Kinkley estate, and soon died.

Even after her death, her body was exploited.

The new emperor of the empire—the eldest prince whom Drex had once saved on the battlefield—was obsessed with absolute power and immortality. He sought to make a pact with a demon.

After Alia’s death, only the young man and a dragon egg remained.

Let’s call this young man Nameless A for now.

The most crucial part of changing fate is to avoid being detected by fate itself.

So, he discarded the unlucky dragon egg in the wilderness, leaving it to fend for itself.

Maybe, just maybe, he held a tiny, infinitesimal grudge.

Afterward, all that was left was to wait—for fate to arrive.

The demon prepared to harvest the dragon’s soul, but for Nameless A, deciding whether or not to intervene should have been simple.

But after a moment’s hesitation, he moved faster than the demon and took Alia’s soul.

The demon, unable to claim the promised sacrifice, withdrew the agreed price, though the king’s ambitions remained unchecked.

The king, Bais, then turned his sights on his most loyal servant: the high priest, Carlos.

Bais believed that to create the elixir of immortality, only Carlos’ eyes were sacrificed.

In truth, Carlos sold his entire soul to Nameless A in exchange for half an elixir of immortality.

Nameless A took over Carlos’ body and, in the temple, discovered two little fairies.

The fairies were quite silly and gluttonous, though they did help pass the time.

For a while, Nameless A would regularly weigh the little fairies, always feeling they weren’t round enough, not cute enough.

If the twins weighed too little or their tummies weren’t round enough, Nameless A would go out in search of new flower honey, certain that they had to be plump and round to be adorable.

Merulu and Puxiu thought Nameless A was quite thoughtful, as every so often, he would bring them a fresh flavor of honey. They never grew tired of it.

The wait for fate was long, but eventually, the day it would arrive drew near.

In a remote northern border town, a small, inconspicuous shop quietly opened its doors.

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