There’s No Way I Can Raise a Dragon Daughter

Hello.

I’m Sasha, an employee at Ryuba’s tavern.

Lately, I feel like my sister is acting strangely.

“Hey, I think you’ve been applying cream more thinly lately.”

“Yeah, I guess the smell of the powder has been too strong. I’m trying to reduce it a bit.”

“Uh, I see.”

It’s really odd.

If she liked the smell, there shouldn’t be any guests who dislike it, so why is she acting like this?

It’s not just this that seems strange.

“Sister. Have you had anything good happen lately?”

“Uh? No? Why all of a sudden?”

“Because you were smiling…”

“Me? I wasn’t smiling!”

She was definitely smiling.

Staring blankly into the air with a grin.

However, as soon as someone spoke to her, she returned to her usual impassive expression.

Even a fool could tell who caused this change.

After all, she makes it clear every day.

“Julia. It’s time for you to go out.”

“Ugh! I thought I could rest a bit longer!”

“Um, can I play with Tia a bit?”

“Do as you wish.”

I saw it.

After Julia left the waiting room, my sister smiled softly and quietly muttered “Yay.”

It’s true that Tia is cute, but was she that happy to take care of her?

It feels strange to think of the once-scowling sister whenever Julia came into view.

Something must have happened between Julia and my sister.

I have no idea what that is yet…

But at least, some trust has developed between them to the point that my sister would allow Julia to take care of Tia.

What kind of relationship do they have?

I can’t make assumptions with so little evidence.

So, I set out to gather more proof.

“Wow. It’s totally shabby.”

I found where Julia lives.

They say it used to be a storage place, and it really looked like a abandoned house.

Master sometimes confuses me with his unexpected kindness and his cruelty.

If he was going to let someone have a house, he should have given them something decent, not a place like that.

“Here she comes.”

As the door creaked open, I quickly lowered my head and hid behind the bushes.

The silver-haired Julia appeared.

Unfortunately, she looks dirtily pretty again today.

Tia, fully dressed in a fur hat, was with her.

I wonder if they’re thinking of going shopping today.

“Huh?!”

But there was one more person coming out from inside.

At first, I thought it was a man because of his tall stature and flat chest, but it wasn’t.

It was none other than my sister, stepping out while rubbing her waist.

I almost screamed in surprise and had to cover my mouth with my hand.

“You need to do some house repairs.”

“I’m fine. I’m not going to live here long. It would be a waste to spend money.”

“There’s wind coming in. You plan to live like that for a while?”

“If I wrap myself in a blanket, it’s manageable.”

What could they have been doing inside?

My head started to heat up with delusions.

After cooling off for a moment, I immediately began to tail the two of them.

It was still early, with more than two hours until work.

I can’t predict where the three of them are heading.

“A clothing store…?”

The first place the three arrived at was a clothing store.

Since I couldn’t see inside at all, I had to disguise myself and follow them in.

“How does this coat look?”

“It looks terrible. What is this check pattern? You clearly don’t know how to dress.”

“Tch. Then let Irina choose for me.”

“Hehe. Just wait a minute.”

Are they picking out coats together?

Winter is approaching, so maybe they’re preparing for it.

It seems Julia, in despair over her catastrophic fashion sense, asked my sister for help.

Julia looks smart at first glance, but she can be a bit clueless sometimes.

That’s fine.

But…

“A lingerie store?!”

Why did they go straight to a lingerie store next?

When did they become so close to pick out lingerie together?

Curious about what kind of lingerie they were choosing, I ventured in, and upon realizing they had totally revealing and risqué pieces, I panicked and fled.

Maybe my sister or Julia has something like that beneath their clothes…

Ah. Just imagining it made my nose bleed.

What lewd place will they go to next?

Surely, they wouldn’t head straight to a motel?!

Tia is with them!

“What do you think about this?”

“Isn’t that a hat for half-humans?”

“Yes. That’s why the ears can stick out. These types of hats have become a trend among humans now, so Tia wouldn’t look odd wearing one.”

“Oh…”

Thankfully, the next destination was a hat shop.

They seemed to be selecting hats for Tia.

Watching from a distance, both of them looked genuinely happy.

Irina, in particular, was smiling non-stop, which looked quite unusual.

Helping to pick out a child’s hat too, huh?

Doesn’t that seem like they’re promising a future together?

‘I shouldn’t be thinking like this.’

I had decided to stop daydreaming about my coworkers.

But today, I couldn’t help it.

Two women who lost their husbands meeting and healing each other’s wounds…

Ah. I started bleeding from my nose again.

At this point, isn’t it not just a fantasy but a reasonable suspicion?

Am I a delusional yuri fanatic?

There’s no way.

I haven’t done anything wrong.

If there’s anything wrong, it lies with the two who not only put on suspicious behavior.

What kind of outing would that be for coworkers?

It’s clearly a date course for lovers.

Still, I won’t do something foolish like exposing their relationship or interrogating them.

I’ll just silently cheer them on from the background.

Before I knew it, work time was approaching, and the three were heading toward the tavern.

Tia had been in my sister’s arms for some time.

Ah. That’s so sweet.

I feel like I’m going to rot.

Feeling blissful, I decided to go in a little after they did.

But I suddenly felt something strange.

So, I peeked inside through a slightly opened door.

“Ha. Haha. May I ask why you’re not receiving baptism?”

“…..”

But the atmosphere inside was unusual.

A priest dressed in ceremonial robes stood there, and both Julia and my sister were looking at him with strangely hostile eyes.

What’s happening?

…

“What’s that?! Did you really buy it to wear in winter?”

“Huh? Yes…”

“Seeing that it doesn’t have insulation, it’s clearly not a real coat, just a costume! Refund it quickly!”

“Can I refund it?”

“If not, I’ll complain for you. Keep your schedule open for tomorrow. We need to go somewhere before work.”

Somehow, I ended up making a plan to go out with Irina.

The coat I thought would be warm enough turned out to be useless.

It seems they’re quite behind in winter apparel technology here compared to modern times.

So for now, we went out together and bought a proper winter coat.

“What about Tia’s clothes, Julia?”

“Um. Should I go buy some? It feels like she’ll outgrow them quickly.”

“Right. Agh, she seems heavier than she was yesterday.”

“Do demon kin grow this quickly?”

“I don’t really know about that. Well, then, I’ll make Tia’s clothes. I still have clothes the kids used to wear at home. We can modify those, and they should last quite a while.”

“Really? Thank you, Irina!”

Thanks to that, I didn’t have to worry about Tia’s clothes anymore.

Next up was underwear.

The underwear I had was too thin to attach a pad, so I really needed some new ones.

As soon as I entered the lingerie store, I was so embarrassed I could barely find a place to look.

But still, I felt a bit relieved that my mind was still male.

Next was Tia’s hat.

It turned out Tia’s horns had started to grow, so she needed a hat that could cover them…

I thought about a thick fur hat, but Irina suggested a half-human hat with raised areas for the ears.

I found it fascinating that half-humans have to keep their ears down when they wear a fluffy hat, leading to the creation of such hats.

Since it’s considered rude to touch a half-human’s ears, wearing a hat like that would lessen the risk of someone touching her horns unexpectedly.

Of course, there are always those without manners and decency, so I had to stay vigilant.

“Master! I’m clocking in!”

“Me too… Huh?”

The moment we entered the shop, Irina and I froze.

An unusual customer was there.

A priest in white ceremonial robes, looking somewhat older.

He scanned our faces and started to rise from his seat.

Feeling something was off, I quickly took Tia from Irina and held her.

Seemingly just waking up, Tia began to stir.

“Say hello. This is Father Alexander.”

“Hello…”

Under the innkeeper’s urging, we forced ourselves to nod and greet him.

The priest, wearing simple white robes and round glasses, seemed to be from a different region than the church’s priest here.

I refrained from asking why a priest from another area was in such a disreputable tavern.

After all, priests must also have human desires.

But I wondered why he needed to wear ceremonial robes while making it clear he was a priest.

While I hesitated, Irina clasped her hands together, plastered on a fake smile, and stepped forward.

“What brings you here?”

“Actually, I’m looking for someone and just stopped by for a moment.”

“What kind of person is it? If we can help, we’ll do our best.”

“Someone known as the Holy Maiden.”

Silence fell for a moment.

Does the Holy Maiden refer to me?

I felt my heart drop.

Just then, Tia started to cry.

I feigned being flustered by Tia’s crying and stepped back a little to soothe her.

“The Holy Maiden means…?”

“Yes. She is the one chosen directly by God and is blessed with the ability to never die.”

At that moment, the priest’s gaze shifted towards me, causing me to flinch and tremble.

To think, never dying.

Was it a body that was truly incapable of dying by any means?

I couldn’t trust the priest’s words fully, but I didn’t want to test it by hanging myself in a noose.

“But what happened to the Holy Maiden?”

“Oh, nothing in particular. We merely wanted to visit her and offer hospitality, but we have no idea where she is. We don’t even know her name, which makes searching quite difficult.”

“I… hope you find the Holy Maiden.”

“Thank you.”

The priest’s gaze again flickered towards me.

I feared he might burst into joy upon seeing me, but it seemed he truly didn’t know the Holy Maiden’s name or face.

But wanting to find the Holy Maiden and offer hospitality…

I thought that if I revealed myself as the Holy Maiden now, I could enjoy some luxuries, but…

‘Do you really want to die? Are you out of your mind?’

I shook my head and discarded that thought right away.

As long as I have Tia as a burden, I can never reveal to anyone that I’m the Holy Maiden.

If the church finds out that the Holy Maiden has given birth and is raising a child of a dragon, they would have to quietly assassinate me to maintain their prestige.

No. Since my body can recover infinitely, I wouldn’t die; I’d be imprisoned forever.

That’s far worse than dying.

“Excuse me, lady?”

“Yes?”

“Could I see your face for a moment?”

“……”

Just as I was about to sneak upstairs, I was caught.

I sighed softly and turned to face the priest.

I wonder if I’m managing to maintain my composure.

“What’s your name?”

“Yu, Julia.”

“……”

The priest seemed to be thinking for a moment, as silence lingered.

I nervously swallowed.

However, upon seeing the priest smile again, I relaxed.

It seems he really didn’t know the name of the Holy Maiden.

“Your child is very handsome. A future general.”

“Everyone says that. It’s a daughter.”

“I apologize. Has she not been baptized yet?”

“Yes.”

“Then shall I perform a small baptism right here? I happen to have holy water with me…”

“I will refuse.”

Fearing he might misunderstand, I immediately made my rejection clear.

As I covered Tia’s head with my hand, I felt her rigid horn.

It was unavoidable that he would touch her head during the baptism process.

There would be no way to hide the horns.

“Ha. Haha. Then, may I ask why you’re refusing to be baptized?”

“……”

But the priest’s demeanor was strange.

Though his mouth was smiling, his eyes clearly showed displeasure.

Looking around, I noticed Irina and the innkeeper’s faces had turned pale as they sent me anxious glances.

That’s when I realized.

I must have made some sort of mistake.

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