The eyes of the five clerks all gathered in one place.
“That story is going around the royal palace like that? Good. I was wondering about how I could explain it.”
“Wh-who are you?”
It was a woman who leaned against the window and listened to their conversation with interest. A young woman with her short brown hair tied in pigtails on both sides. Her eyes, a slightly deeper shade of brown than her hair, were blinking excitedly.
“Oh, I am the one who came to get a new ID card,” said the woman, grinning.
There was no way for the male clerks to fall for any tricks because this outstanding woman smiled so beautifully. A couple of their faces even blushed. One of them, who couldn’t look away, smiled devilishly as he stood up.
“So, you’re here for an ID card. I guess you’ve lost yours. Have you reported it?”
“No. This is my first time being issued one. Because I am an immigrant. I submitted my photo and documents to the Administration Bureau two days ago, and I was told that I can pick up my new card today.”
“I see. Can you wait just a minute? I’ll give it to you after checking your information. Your name please.”
“Noah Park. Oh, and I think it will be good to check his, too.”
The woman who identified herself as Noah Park bent down below the window. Then she let out a grunt and came back up. In her arms now was a little kid about five years old. The clerks all thought the same thing the moment they saw the smiling child: That child… I think I’ve seen him many times somewhere…
He was a lovely kid with black curly hair, big dark red eyes, and chubby cheeks that anyone wanted to pinch, but he chilled their spines. Someone whispered to a co-worker, “Hey, doesn’t he look… like him? Uh, Baroness Asil’s dragon…”
The witch and her pet had suddenly appeared in the capital a month ago. The child looked just like the humanized dragon notorious for stopping by the Imperial Castle and tearing up the Ministry of Magic every week on Tuesday and Thursday.
The female secretary, who inquired about Noah’s name and found the issued ID card, asked in a trembling voice, “Uh… by chance is that kid’s name…”
“It’s Mu!”
The one who quickly answered her question was not Noah but Muell himself. He smiled like he was a master, and every one of the clerks stood frozen. Noah was the only calm one.
“Muell, no. You have to say your full name. That way she can look you up.”
“Oh, it’s Muell!”
The secretary looked up his name with quick fingers on the keyboard. His ID card had also already been issued. She looked down at the two cards.
They were not like normal ones. The cards decorated with gold and small diamonds on the edges of black leather were platinum-class ID cards issued only to high-ranking aristocrats.
But upon closer look, she knew that no matter how much royalty they had in Laurent, they should not… no, they could have such a card. Because nowhere on them did it indicate their nationality of Laurent.
“Hey, look at these! They came out pretty.”
Upon receiving their cards, Noah admired the design, checking the fronts and backs, before sticking them in her pocket.
“Thank you for providing us with a good excuse.”
“Thanks!”
The two politely bid farewell and leisurely left the Administration Bureau. A desolate silence fell inside the office. Someone murmured in a soft voice,
“That… that was the dragon master.”
The fact that the master of Muell, who hatched for the first time in 500 years that day, had changed from Eleonora Asil to another person, a woman named Noah, spread throughout the entire office.
***
The rumor went round and round, all the way to Tezeba headquarters of the Investigation and Security Bureau, where the rumor had first begun circulating.
“General Leonard, I think it has spread everywhere,” Paul said, glancing at Kyle with his arms around the mountain of papers on his desk.
“The story about her. Miss Noah, sir.”
“The story of Noah is going around?”
His supervisor, who was busy reviewing the backlog of the case, responded for the first time.
“Noah has been at the Rendia Annex. Did she get moved?”
He didn’t stop at asking back persistently. It was at an incredible reaction speed that he was immersed in the atmosphere of not being able to let go even if Paul had interfered for six hours already. Paul made a hasty excuse.
“It’s not that. I think she went to the Administration Bureau this morning with Muell to get ID cards.”
“Oh, ID cards.”
Kyle’s eyes loosened up a little. It was a convincing reason.
She had signed up for ID cards as soon as she returned to the capital a week ago with Muell, and it seemed like today she received them. Noah had told him how excited and confident she was about her clean record; that she could finally receive a real ID card. Kyle recalled her smiling all day yesterday as if she was in a good mood while pretending it was nothing special.
Paul studied the General’s calmed composure as he carefully asked,
“Uh, General. Is it okay if I ask one more thing, sir?”
Kyle had softened up while thinking about Noah, so he decided to accept this one question.
“Go ahead. What is it?”
“She, uh… Is that the person you mentioned that time when you left Noviscoasha for Edman? With whom you had a special relationship…?”
“Yep.”
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