After the incident with Unagi, people began to recall the spirits that once felt so close. Many fairy tales and legends took on a completely new aning. For several weeks, there was nothing but excitent over this topic. Every evening, the villagers gathered in the center of the village around the bonfire and shared everything they had ever heard from their parents or grandparents.
The stories ran out quickly... After all, the few inhabitants of Kiyoshi Island grew up in a small community, but this didn't stop them—it only added to their enthusiasm. They started making up stories on the spot. I also love to spin a yarn, especially since I've seen many spirits with my own eyes. These gatherings reminded of sumr camps, where, among ancient trees and fresh air, the entire squad—or even several—would co together. It was the most carefree ti.
The situation with the eggs added a touch of cody. The future rulers of the waters required a constant flow of energy, and I never left them for a mont. By the next day, I realized how hard it is for all creatures—animals that spend days, even weeks, hatching their offspring. I had to make a backpack so I could go about my business without worrying about forgetting the little Unagi.
But these small worries were more than offset by the benefits they brought through their simple developnt. At first, I thought they could only enhance my energy channels and source, but I was deeply mistaken—it was more like a pleasant bonus. The main advantage is understanding the processes that nature or the world embeds in these amazing creatures. I had never seen or felt how the elent of water behaves when creating life. It was this understanding of the birth of magical creatures that gave a qualitative leap in my mastery of water magic.
I already know that with the activation of my energy, a natural transition to a higher rank in the water elent will follow. So, it's ti to think about new elents. It's a serious matter, so I should read Van Shi Tong's records about the inhabitants of the Spirit Realm. The library awaits in its embrace, but I should warn Driya not to read books of questionable content.
Driya may not realize it, but with her sunny personality, she naturally draws people to her. I was afraid her attractive appearance would create a rift among the won and girls, but it seems I worried for nothing. The Kiyoshi warriors warmly welcod my companion, and now she can be seen among the other island residents. I hope they don't spoil her, though... knowing the kind of books she's read, I wonder who will end up spoiling whom...
"Where am I standing?" I asked Suyuki, who stood with a bandage over her eyes.
For a whole week, Suyuki has been walking barefoot and with her eyes closed. I think the sooner she learns seismicsensitivity, the faster her control over the elent will develop—though there are no complaints about that yet. The girl has been accustod to discipline and hard work since childhood. Where others rely on talent, she relies on her perseverance.
"Here," she pointed at with her finger. Let's complicate the task.
"Correct!" I sent her my approval through our connection. "Now, I'll start moving. Ready?" Seeing her determined nod, I began walking in a random direction. As the exercise progressed, I gradually picked up the pace, and by the end, I was jogging lightly. I could have gone at full speed, but only at a gentle pace do I avoid making noise that she could use to determine my location.
"So? How did it go?" Suyuki asked impatiently, practically dancing in place.
"Perfect! Only a few possess such a useful skill—you have every reason to be proud!" I ssed up her hairstyle. "Hold on," I held back Suyuki's glowing hand as she tried to remove the bandage. "We need to let your eyes gradually adjust to the light. We'll take off the bandage at ho, with the curtains closed."
"Yippee! Soon I'll be able to hunt koi fish again!" She raised her fist in the air. Suyuki's favorite technique is simply throwing a stone—basically the most basic technique for earth mages, which is why many don't stop at it and move on to more complex thods. But effectiveness lies in simplicity! Why invent tricks when it's often enough to accurately hurl a stone at soone's head?
We involved Unagi in this endeavor. She would spend whole days sadly looking toward the village, apparently missing her children. To keep the snake from looking even more gloomy, we decided to distract her with sothing else. Suyuki ca up with a small ga to improve accuracy: Unagi dives underwater and scares the fish toward the shore, where a little surprise awaits them in the form of an earth mage. The stunned or already dead fish are imdiately picked up by local fishern—no sense in letting good fish go to waste! Two birds with one stone!
My intimate monts with Shizuka felt sohow rushed, and I couldn't shake the feeling that the audience had only grown, especially when I had the backpack on. You move forward, and then the eggs hit you in the back—it sounds awkward, but that's how it is.
Sotis, we're visited by little Kiyoshi—that's what they decided to na the girl I helped deliver. The first earth mage born on Kiyoshi Island has the right to bear the proud na of its founder. Kiyoshi can already walk and talk, as if it was only yesterday that I saw her tiny bottom being spanked. Looking at her, I realized once again how fleeting ti is... Good thing I spend it only on what I love!
By the end of the fifth week of my stay on the Island, my fragnt had accumulated enough "mass" to nourish Suyuki's gift until it fully dissolves.
"Is everything really okay? It doesn't seem like enough," Suyuki said for what felt like the hundredth ti. She had grown too fond of sleeping with us in the sa bed. But there's no longer a need for such close contact.
"Yes, everything's fine. Now you can sleep in your own room," I replied for what felt like the hundredth ti.
"Yuki will only sleep with now," Shizuka stuck out her tongue at Suyuki, wrapping her arms around from behind. And what's gotten into you? Why are you adding fuel to the fire?!" she whispered in my ear. "Keep an eye on her face—she's so adorable when she's angry."
There it is—her face is slightly flushed, her cheeks puffed up, and her eyes—her eyes are shooting daggers! A real combat hamster!
"Hmph," she finally lifted her nose. "I was only asking Yuki. Don't butt into other people's conversations,' she added, waving her hand dismissively. A worthy response from Suyuki—I gave her a ntal thumbs-up.
"So that's how you talk to your mother!" Shizuka pretended to take the bait, though she couldn't hide her smile. "Soone's in for it now," she threw a pillow at Suyuki.
"You need to practice your accuracy more!" Suyuki dodged the projectile and imdiately ran out of the room—just in ti, as Shizuka wasn't planning to stop there and chased after her.
From another room, Driya's head popped out, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. Without even knowing the situation, she decided to join the chase.
"Save , Yuki!" I heard a cry for help from outside the house.
"I want to play tag too!" And there's Driya...
"Divine tickle technique!" Shizuka is feeling playful today.
"Ha-ha-ha, I give up, I give up, stop!" ca Suyuki's laughter.
"What kind of ruckus is this in the middle of the night," I shook my head with a smile, but—"I'm coming to the rescue!" I shouted, running after them.
*
"They're about to hatch!" I yelled to the other inhabitants of the house as soon as I saw one of the eggs begin to crack.
In less than five seconds, everyone stared expectantly at the eggs, which, following the first, started showing signs of imminent hatching.
After a minute, the first one broke through the shell... a dragonling? Its blue-tinted face resembled that of a Chinese dragon: the sa whiskers, small horns, short legs, and a rather fierce jawline. Scanning the entire room with its intelligent eyes, the dragonling took its first unsteady steps toward . It recognizes ! After the first, the others erged. The second one was white, and the third was quite unusual—its scales were red. Who fathered Unagi's eggs? Maybe it was the dragons revered by the Sun Warriors? Like Ran and Shao, perhaps. Oh well, I won't pry into their personal affairs.
Unable to resist its amusing appearance, I decided to pick it up—though I still don't know how to determine its gender. As soon as my skin touched the little body of the advanced Unagi form, my water energy began to be absorbed.
"Wasn't it enough for you?! This is the last day I'm feeding you. From now on, let your mother take care of you."
The next day, like a true man, I kept my word and handed the joyful mother her children. That's how the story would have ended, if not for the night when I felt a brazen intrusion into the house. Scanning with my senses, I found out who had co to visit us.
"What are you doing here?!" I whispered, looking at the faces of the future dragons as they struggled to climb up the blanket onto the bed.
I couldn't shoo them away. Curling up at my feet, they began doing what was natural to them—draining my reserve. I could have forced them out, but my hand wouldn't lift... Plus, they make this cute purring sound when they sleep. My weakness is cats—in my past life, I even walked quietly around the house while the cat was sleeping. Sotis, it felt like I wasn't the one in charge...
They ca for two more nights. I thought I'd never be rid of them, but it turned out to be simpler: their "organ" responsible for absorbing external energy, which contains many impurities, was still tuning, so they kept coming to .
I thought I wouldn't get to see their abilities, but what they showed during their play was enough to understand the basic differences between them. The first one, with blue scales, can already shoot a water stream—and all this without any water reservoir like Unagi's mother. It gathers water from the air! Lucky thing—ordinary water mages need years to achieve that, but so creatures co with these "default drivers installed."
The second one, with white coloring, calmly shoots ice needles—though they're just simple needles for now. Once it grows up, those needles will turn into massive spears. I already feel sorry for the ship captains who might lose not only their vessels but also their lives.
The red one creates high temperatures with its body alone, causing water near it to boil as if it were hot. It can exhale hot steam, though its attack range is short. Still, it already has more pronounced musculature and looks physically stronger than its siblings.
It wouldn't be bad to secure their support in the future. The ocean is their ho, and I can see them erging from the water to swiftly attack enemy ships—before the enemies can counterattack, they're already back underwater. There's a good chance of this happening because I fed them my energy, so they see as a strange but close relative who was just unlucky to be born so ugly, without scales or a tail. Well, that's how I interpret their pitying glances at my skin.
There's a good chance they'll be more intelligent and smarter than their mother. Another factor is the insufficient local energy—it's not noticeable while they're small, but for full developnt, they'll need to move to other places.
I'll be able to lure two of them to the North Pole—the environnt is suitable, and there's the Spirit Oasis nearby. I think they'll like it. As for the red one, it's a big question mark. I think it would be much more comfortable near the Fire Nation Archipelago, where there are many volcanoes. I won't make any plans yet—let them grow up first.
As for Driya and , we should hurry to the Shi Wong Desert. Knowledge awaits.
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