After being shown the room, we were given a tour of the rest of the palace .
There were facilities made for the royal family when in human form, so we would be able to stay here quite comfortably .
Still, each room had a very high roof .
“Now, I will show you the settlement!”
Leea said happily .
She was becoming more and more relaxed and talked in a comfortable manner .
Which seemed better for someone her age .
“Leea . Is the water dragon settlement very big?”
“It is! Much bigger than the palace!”
Serulis patted Leea on the head every chance she got .
She liked looking after younger children .
Leea seemed to enjoy it .
Some might have wondered if it was an inappropriate way to act towards the crown princess, but neither the Grand Chamberlain or Kathe said anything .
So I assumed it was not at odds with dragon tradition .
“Now, Ruck . Come and follow me . ”
“Groof-groof!”
Leea was riding on Grulf’s back as he ran off . I was happy to see them enjoying themselves so much .
Seeing her so lively like this made her look like any other kid .
And so everyone chased after them .
“Ah, Lord Ruck!”
“What? Did you say Lord Ruck?”
The other water dragons noticed us as we left the palace .
And they started to gather around .
“Leea is showing the guests around . ”
“I see . ”
“Her Highness is very great . ”
They all praised Leea .
It seemed that for the dragons, the royal family weren’t treated like gods as much as humans .
“And look at little Grulfie . ”
“Groof-groof . ”
Grulf looked happy to be praised as well .
And like that, the water dragons followed us on our tour of the settlement .
It was kind of unsettling having fifty water dragons following you around .
But Grulf and Leea didn’t seem to mind very much .
“This is the entrance . You can go in and out from between these pillars . ”
Leea pointed to two huge stone pillars that were set wide apart .
Even a giant dragon such as Drogo would be able to walk through comfortably .
“Princess Leea . May I ask you a question?”
Shia said as she raised a hand .
“No! Call me Leea . ”
“B-but, in front of your own subjects…”
I understood Shia’s hesitation .
I wouldn’t just refer to Eric by his name in front of his subjects either .
The king had his position and we had ours .
“Don’t worry about that! You aren’t my subject, Shia . ”
“That is true, but…”
Shia glanced over to Grand Chamberlain Morris .
“Her Highness is correct . None of you are water dragons . You are not even dragons . ”
“Is that all that matters?”
“Yes . You are not Her Highness’ subjects, but her friends . ”
“Still . Perhaps they would not mind if it was someone like Mister Locke, but I doubt the water dragons would like it if we called Her Highness by her name alone . ”
The water dragons heard this and looked at each other .
“Oh, not in particular…”
“Huh? Why?”
“Well, I would be angry if she was insulted…”
“But it’s what the princess wishes? Why would we be mad?”
Yes . ”
They all said .
It seemed that dragons thought very differently from humans .
Or maybe they just felt that there was a very big difference between humans and them .
Just like human subjects would not berate the king’s dog for licking the king’s face .
But I didn’t think that they necessarily saw us as dogs either .
After all, I could see how respectful their attitude was towards me and Eric .
They just understood that we were from different cultures, and so they did not want to force their rules onto us .
I could tell by looking at Dorgo . The expectations for human and dragon guests were not the same .
“So that’s what the water dragons think . ”
“Yes! So you can just call me Leea . ”
“I understand now . Leea . ”
“Hehehe . ”
Leea laughed happily .
Serulis watched this and smiled .
“Leea, you look so happy . ”
“Yes, I have never had friends who were near my own age before . ”
While all of the other water dragons were friendly, they were still her subjects .
And so they could not be friends .
“Huh? What about me? Am I not your friend, Leea?”
Kathe looked very shocked .
Apparently, she had been the only one to make that assumption . Poor thing .
“You’re like an older sister, Kathe . An older sister . We are friends, but not close in age . ”
“Hmph . Our difference in age is barely noticeable when considering the long life of dragons . Barely noticeable . ”
“But, I think it’s still different . ”
Leea considered herself still a child compared to Kathe, who had succeeded her father .
And so she did not see Kathe as a child in her age range .
“I see . So I am from a different age…”
Kathe was in a terrible shock .
“Kathe . You should be happy that you are still seen as a friend . ”
“Yes . Sister Kathe is a friend . ”
“So I am still a friend . That’s good . ”
Kathe looked like she didn’t have many friends, so it really was good .
I was a little relieved for her sake .