n

n

n

nEditor: SimoB

nIt was only natural that the golden dragon would have such thoughts. After all, he had been a pariah even back when he was just an egg.

nHe’s never even seen a small shrimp growing up. Everything he knew about the various deep-sea species came from his inherited memories, which also showed how different his personality was from other dragons.

nBefore his ancestors all died off, leaving only a single egg behind more than 100,000 years ago, they found thrill in roaming the depths of the ocean.

nOn the other hand, the golden dragon liked to be a shut-in and sleep all day.

nWhile his ancestors were willing to travel to distant oceans for their favourite prey, fighting the fat birds in the skies just for a bite of the giant ice crabs that lived in icebergs, he ate whatever he could find when he was hungry.

nThe reason the golden dragon was so different was probably because his only companion growing up was his pearl.

nA pearl that couldn’t speak or move at that. All it did was glow.

nAfter tens of thousands of years of solitude, the fact that no living creature dared to approach him was engraved deep in the golden dragon’s sense of self.

nAnd now his pearl had vanished.

nThe huge pearl that was supposed to be securely in his mouth was gone.

nPlus, there was a little mermaid sleeping soundly where it used to be, who didn’t seem the least bit afraid of him.

nThis must be his pearl.

nBecause only his pearl wasn’t afraid of him.

nHe didn’t let the fact that the pearl wasn’t alive affect his line of reasoning.

nAs the golden dragon pondered this, his long long long long body confidently curled around the little mermaid in the center some more.

nThis had to be his pearl.

nEcstatic, he started searching through his memories about creatures with a similar appearance to the little mermaid. After identifying him as a siren, he combed through his inherited memories for how to raise sirens.

nHe was too excited about finally meeting another lifeform to wonder about why the spirit form of his pearl would be a little siren.

nThis was the first time a living creature had dared to approach him since he was an egg.

nIf he couldn’t swim as fast as he could to swallow the sea creatures that desperately avoided him, the golden dragon would’ve quickly starved to death.

nBut the golden dragon was too busy eating during his binges to notice what exactly he ate.

nHe would clear out all life in an area for a century or two anyways.

nTherefore, according to his recollections, this was the golden dragon’s first time meeting a siren.

nFortunately, his almighty inherited memories prevailed once again.

nThe golden dragon carefully shielded his little pearl with his body while checking his inherited memories.

nSirens did exist 100,000 years ago.

nBut the conditions of the time were very different from now. Dragons were still the masters of the seas then, and they roamed underwater in groups, searching for entertainment.

nNamely, eating other creatures, ripping apart other creatures, and toying with other creatures.

nIf said creatures existed now, they would be called prehistoric behemoths. But they were nothing more than the dragons’ playthings in the deep sea of long ago.

nSirens at the time were more like the food of the food of the food…of the dragons’ playthings.

nThey were at the very bottom of the food chain.

nThe ancient sirens were too busy with survival to even think about playing with humans. Besides, humans didn’t even exist back then.

nAncient sirens were notoriously ugly, with big flabby tails and gray dull scales. Their claws couldn’t be retracted yet and their fangs grew right out of their mouths.

n

n

nEven the golden dragon, who had never directly seen a living creature, shook his head in disgust at the sight of the sirens from his inherited memories.

nThen his large head turned back to the little mermaid his body was wrapped around.

nThe little mermaid shifted comfortably at that moment and turned over. In the dark sea, his beautiful silver fishtail that seemed to glow from within appeared especially slender. His flawless skin was milky and bore no resemblance to the blue and scale-covered skin from the dragon’s inherited memories. The mermaid seemed to be having a good dream, since the pastel pink lips on that tender little face curled up slightly.

nThe disgust in the golden dragon’s heart cleared in a flash.

nHis whiskers trembled with joy as he purposely forgot about how ugly the sirens in his inherited memories were. He continued to watch the little one.

nInherited memories were passed down from one generation of dragons to the next.

nEven though the golden dragon was the last of his race, he could still learn the various skills of a dragon thanks to his inherited memories.

nOf course, the other dragons would’ve never guessed that the last surviving dragon would be a shut in.

nOther than breaking out of the egg shell using his own power, the golden dragon took a very passive approach to life.

nThe changes that the world had undergone in the past 100,000 years were very beneficial to him. All the golden dragon had to do was eat and sleep since no creatures would dare come close.

nGetting back to the topic at hand, the golden dragon went through his inherited memories a second time and carefully took notes.

nSirens were fragile. They could die from a slight touch.

nThe golden dragon looked at the little mermaid he was coiled around and carefully brought him closer so that no stray sea creatures could ram into him.

nEven if this area seemed to be completely devoid of life, you could never be too careful.

nThe golden dragon continued to review.

nSirens liked to sing, but the creatures around them didn’t like to listen. They would gang up on the sirens and beat them for disturbing the peace, causing many sirens to die from anger.

nIf they could anger themselves to death, sirens must be very mentally fragile.

nAlso, sirens were the weakest creatures in the sea. Anyone could bully them, so sirens were often very timid. Due to this, some dragons used to keep sirens as pets.

nUnfortunately, sirens were just too fragile. A casual tail sweep was lethal to them, and their meat wasn’t even tasty.

nSo dragons from back then used to keep sirens as pets…

nThe golden dragon flicked his long tail thoughtfully.

nSo my pearl became a little siren because of what happened 100,000 years ago?

nThe golden dragon diligently reviewed the information about sirens again. He paid particular attention to how sirens were fragile and delicate creatures that liked shiny things.

nHis inherited memories said that sirens were on the lowest rung of the food chain, but the golden dragon was confident in his ability to protect him. After all, whether it was 100,000 years ago or now, dragons were still the rulers of the sea.

nHe didn’t even consider that things might be different now, that the pitiful little sirens might’ve overturned their fate and became the new rulers of the sea.

nThe golden dragon looked at the still sleeping siren with pity. He felt very protective towards this weak yet lovable creature.

nPoor little thing. If a little guy like him hadn’t been sleeping soundly in my mouth, he might’ve been bullied by the other sea creatures.

nSince he had kept the pearl with him for tens of thousands of years, one could argue that he hatched the little mermaid.

nHe tried his best to widen his eyes and closely examine the little mermaid that was even tinier than his claws.

nThe golden dragon’s gaze took in his little face, his little arms, and his little tail.

nLook at how lustrous and round the scales on his tail are. They’re just like the ones on my tail.

nAfter forcibly creating a resemblance between himself and the little mermaid, the golden dragon was even more convinced of his theory.

nThat would make me this little mermaid’s dad then.

nAfter coming to that conclusion, the golden dragon tried to recall how dragons raised their young.

nOh wait. They didn’t.

nDragons threw their eggs away without a care in the world. The little hatchlings would find their own way back to the tribe with their inherited memories.

n

n

nThe golden dragon looked at the tender little mermaid and felt like he couldn’t bear to do such a thing.

nHe was so small.

nAnd he was once the golden dragon’s pearl.

n…But why hasn’t his little pearl woken up yet?

nThe golden dragon carefully retracted a claw as much as possible, but he was still hesitant to directly touch the ‘weak’ mermaid. Instead, he slowly touched the strands of Shi Qing’s hair.

nThe soft hair fluttered between the dragon’s claws, and the golden dragon’s heart became overwhelmed with tender and warm emotions.

nThe orphaned dragon vigorously swished its tail. A thought came to mind.

nSo this is what it feels like to be a dad…

nThe golden dragon’s tail continued to move as he reveled in the joy of fatherhood, just like it once did when he was playing happily as a child. But then, there were no other creatures to see it.

nHis tail flicked again and again in delight.

nAfter taking a break, it swished some more.

nHundred of meters below, in the trench, countless deep sea creatures were swept away by a sudden vortex of water.

nAfter managing to endure the initial assault, they were caught up in a second wave.

nIf they could speak, they would definitely curse and condemn that vicious dragon who could create whirlpools just by flicking its tail.

nOh, you think you’re so impressive just because you’re big?!

nJust because your tail is longer than this trench?!!

nJust because you can cause whirlpools just by moving?!!!

nAhhhhh!!!

n—-

nIn the tranquil sea above, Shi Qing yawned, rolled around comfortably, hugged his tail, and slowly opened his eyes.

nHis vision was immediately filled with the gigantic head of the dragon.

nAnd the dragon’s two eyes which resembled twin suns.

nHis whiskers fluttered in delight as he affectionately rubbed the little mermaid in front of him with them.

nHello little one, I’m your daddy.

n

n