Evil Dragon: The young dragon I picked up keeps planning on becoming an empress

???

Give her a chance to become an heir?

Let a princess become the heir to a count?

Having grown so old, she had only heard of people with titles being chosen by the Royal Family to become heirs, never of a princess being selected by a count to be an heir and going to assume the position.

The Count Lance by her side was an interesting... and somewhat strange person. As a princess, she had met many titled lords, but she had never seen one like Lance, who completely entrusted his fief to his subjects.

It was a true delegation of power; the systems, taxation, and military forces of the fief were really none of his concern, allowing his subjects to develop and perform freely...

Normally, a lord like this would only have one end: to be overthrown by his vassals and become a puppet, followed by a sudden death within a few years.

Lance, however... having fully empowered his subjects without becoming a puppet, had instead become a lord revered by the people of his fief. Before coming to Saint Blue, she had neither heard of nor seen such a thing.

Not to mention, this Count Lance had disappeared for nearly six years. In all that time, instead of being forgotten by the people of his fief, there were even signs that they had deified him...

Is this how one becomes a legend?

She had collected a fair amount of information about this "Viscount" during this period.

Some subjects of the fief said that the Viscount left when the lives of his subjects were getting better and better...

Before leaving, he also left behind many paintings.

The fief was developed entirely according to the images depicted in the Viscount's paintings...

Some of the older subjects in the fief also told her about the situation before the Viscount came to their land...

In the description of those subjects, before the Viscount came to Saint Blue, the place was desperate and shrouded in despair.

Elderly people would die off in batches come winter... And the children, due to malnutrition... were weak and sickly, and it was hard for them to survive.

Added to that were the regular appearances of predators, monsters, and wild boars, making life exceedingly difficult.

Not to mention the environment – dirty, broken, and chaotic.

People struggling to survive had neither the time nor energy to care about the environment.

Just when they were about to give up, the Viscount arrived.

He was like a beam of light, dispersing the despair and oppression that loomed over them.

The Viscount, so clean and refreshing, began to research village by village, working the fields alongside the peasants who reeked of strange odors.

The face of the Viscount was always adorned with a slight smile, encouraging them with words and painting them a picture of a bright future.

From the information she collected, it was hard to imagine this young, handsome, refreshing, and bright Viscount... mingling with those poor commoners...

Oh, right, according to the subjects of Saint Blue, the Viscount also formulated potions at that time and treated them for free.

Some critically ill children, after taking the potions made by the Viscount, recovered.

The grown children of Saint Blue take pride in being able to serve the Viscount.

From a young age, they train their bodies and practice combat, hoping to fight for the Viscount and for Saint Blue when they grow up.

In Saint Blue, the Viscount has already become a legend.

"You speak interestingly, so... as a young count, what can I inherit from you if I become your heir?"

"My title, and my fief."

"And in what capacity do you wish for me to inherit your fief and title?"

"As an adopted daughter."

???

Leia rolled her eyes; she might be a few years younger than Lance, but definitely not an entire generation younger.

"You should speak less of such matters in the future, Count Lance, as it smacks of insulting the princess. However, if you truly wish for me to inherit your fief, I might seriously consider the issue of marriage with you. It would be more appropriate for me to inherit your fief as your wife."

What on earth are the little girls in the Human World thinking day after day?

A Black Dragon that has lived for more than three thousand four hundred years in a romance with a human girl who has lived just a dozen or two years?

It's too perverse; it's a thought he has never entertained.

"If you lived for three hundred years and a young lad of nineteen or twenty expressed a desire to marry you, how would you feel?"

"Is there really such a good thing?"

"......."

Leia's single comment rendered Lance speechless....

So there really were people who could be this perverted....

"Your feud with McDonna... I have no interest in getting involved, and Saint Blue isn't too keen either. If you're looking for supporters, leave this place and look elsewhere.

Your disguise and the Illusion Technique that can deceive the senses may fool Tixia and the others, but they can't fool me and are of no use to me. I'm not interested in which Royal Family you belong to.

If you're here to travel or live in Saint Blue, you're welcome, but if you're thinking of dragging Saint Blue into your chariot... of making Saint Blue charge into battle for you... drop that thought early.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

They're still my subjects, after all, and as their lord, I won't let them die in a meaningless war."

Appearing in Saint Blue disguised as McDonna's daughter, she saw the potential of Saint Blue and wished to use it to help her reclaim her kingdom.

Well-planned and meticulous in thought.

Tixia should have sent someone to investigate this princess in the capital, and their findings must have included McDonna's daughter coming to Saint Blue.

The princess from the former dynasty, disguised as the daughter of McDonna, showed up in Saint Blue... The real daughter of McDonna... must have been imprisoned by this princess.

Fighting and killing didn't interest him; he preferred... visiting relatives and friends... nurturing offspring, watering plants, reading books, drinking tea, traveling...

Of course, he also wouldn't advise this princess before him to give up on her family and country's vengeance; he wasn't qualified to do that.

Without enduring others' hardships, one shouldn't advise them to be kind. Even if one has endured, one may not be as virtuous.

Leia's smile remained unchanged, "It seems you're not testing me, but truly seeing through my disguise. A young and promising person like you... why did you choose not to stay in the capital back then?"

"The capital had nothing that could attract me to stay."

"Do you think... Do I still have a chance to become queen?"

"Don't ask, because if you do, the answer is no."

"...You... You're this blunt and straightforward about uncovering my identity. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you when you're not paying attention?"

Lance pondered thoughtfully for a moment before saying, "If you want to try to assassinate me, just let me know; I'll try to cooperate with you... If you don't believe me... disguise yourself as an assassin tonight... and come to stab me, I promise I won't resist."

"???"

Is he really not afraid of dying?

Leia stared into Lance's eyes, but the Count's gaze was fixated on the little Dragon fishing in the river.

Seeing the little Dragon accidentally fall into the river, he laughed.

Seeing the little Dragon catch a fish and get slapped in the face by its tail, he laughed out loud.

"What are you planning to do with me?"

"Just leave on your own."

"Count Lance, please answer one question seriously for me."

"Ask."

"Do I really have no chance to become queen and restore the glory of the Red Maple Royal Family?"

"How can a short-lived wretch become the queen of a kingdom?"

"???"

Short... short-lived wretch?

She, Leia, is a short-lived wretch?

Lance also dabbled in physiognomy, and Leia's facial features showed... she had a life-and-death crisis...

If she were still the princess protected by the nation's fate, she might survive this crisis, and her luck could turn after overcoming this hurdle.

The problem is she's now a wandering princess, with extremely low fortune. When the crisis of life and death erupts, she'd probably drop dead right then and there.

With such a fate, how could she become the queen of a kingdom?