Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation
74.5 The Missing Brother/Son

Three girls—two with dragon horns and one with rabbit ears—tumbled out of a rippling mid-air rift, landing in a heap of tangled limbs. After some awkward shuffling and muffled grumbles, they managed to untangle themselves and staggered to their feet.

“Ah! That bitc—!” Yanjiang began, her voice rising in fury.

“Yanjiang!” Yuetu interrupted sharply, her pale face betraying her panic.

“What?” Yanjiang snapped, glaring at her sister. She still hadn’t forgiven Yuetu for leaving their brother behind with their crazy aunt.

Yuetu didn’t answer, instead pointing a trembling finger behind Yanjiang.

With a huff, Yanjiang turned to look—and immediately froze, her expression mirroring Yuetu’s pale dread.

They were in the grand hall of their clan, surrounded by its most important figures. At the center of the room, their father sat atop his imposing throne, his presence as overwhelming as ever. Flanking him on the steps below were his wives—each a picture of elegance and authority, including their respective mothers, who now regarded them with expectant gazes.

“Uh… hi, Dad. Hi, Mom,” Yanjiang managed with a nervous chuckle, raising a hand in a sheepish wave.

Her mother returned the wave with a smile and small wave of her own, though it was clear she expected an explanation.

Long Qing wasted no time. His deep, commanding voice reverberated through the hall. “Where did you three come from, and where is your brother?”

Yanjiang swallowed, her nerves momentarily overriding her usual fiery temper. “That bi—I mean, Aunt Zui,” she began, speaking so quickly her words blurred together. “She dragged us to some weird courtyard and threw us into a pond! Then she said we had to be punished for eating her fruit, so she tried to make us part of her crazy experiments. Jinshu—he, uh, volunteered to stay and take our place if she let us go. I tried to argue, but she just waved her hand, and… well, here we are.”

Her words hung in the air, followed by a heavy silence.

Long Qing rubbed his temples, his expression darkening, before turning his attention to another of his daughters. “Bing, you tell me what happened.”

Bing, whose face was partially hidden by her long hair, blushed furiously. “Um… well… it was like Yanjiang said,” she mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper.

Long Qing sighed, clearly unsatisfied, and turned to his last daughter. “Yuetu, could you explain better?”

“Yes, Father!” Yuetu straightened her posture, her rabbit ears twitching from the movement. “We were taken to a secret location by Aunt Zui. After a brief… discussion, she announced that we were to become her test subjects for her experiments in awakening the Azure bloodline—”

The gathered clan members gasped in collective outrage.

“Blasphemous!” roared an elderly dragon with white hair and brown horns, his voice trembling with fury.

“Let her finish!” Long Qing growled, his voice booming through the hall.

The elder flinched, immediately bowing and muttering an apology before falling silent.

Yuetu resumed, her tone steady. “Earlier today, after breakfast, Jinshu proposed offering himself willingly as Aunt Zui’s test subject in exchange for our release. She agreed, knowing full well it was just a ploy to let us warn you, Father. But she was… unbothered. She claimed you would never find her.”

Long Qing’s grip on his throne’s armrest tightened, his knuckles whitening. The nearly indestructible material creaked ominously under the strain.

“Did she mention anything else?” he asked, his tone dangerously calm.

Yuetu hesitated, then shook her head. But Bing, fidgeting nervously, spoke up. “Um… she said she’d let us go in five years. So… she should let Jinshu go within that time… I think…”

Long Qing’s gaze darkened further, but he nodded, signaling that he had heard. “Come. Stand beside your mothers. We will discuss this further after this meeting.”

The three girls obeyed without a word, stepping down the hall to join their mothers, who enveloped them in a protective, silent embrace.

The same elder dragon as before stepped forward as the sisters reached their mothers. They recognized him immediately—Grand Elder Nitu Fen of the Earth Tribe. His weathered face was flushed red with anger, and his brown horns seemed to tremble as he spoke.

“Patriarch, we must find Long Zui and put a stop to her blasphemy once and for all!” he said, his voice rising with conviction.

“Are you suggesting we kill my sister?” Long Qing’s low, guttural growl reverberated through the grand hall, sending a shiver through the gathered crowd.

Nitu Fen’s face turned ashen. He dropped to a kowtow so quickly his forehead nearly struck the floor. “Not at all! I spoke poorly, Patriarch. Please forgive my lack of respect!”

“Hmph. Stand!” Long Qing ordered, his sharp tone leaving no room for argument. As Nitu Fen rose, Long Qing continued, his gaze cold but measured. “I understand the need to stop her. However, despite all this time, none of us have ever been able to locate her hideout. Unless someone here has new information, this matter is closed for now.”

“Yes, Patriarch!” the assembled dragons answered in unison, bowing deeply.

Long Qing swept his gaze over the hall. “Is there anything else that must be addressed? If not, I will end this meeting to focus on retrieving my son.”

A hesitant hand rose from the crowd. Its owner was an older man without the signature dragon horns—only two prominent bumps on his forehead. He was Jiao Eyu, Patriarch of the Jiao Clan.

Long Qing inclined his head slightly. “Eyu. Speak.”

“Thank you, Patriarch.” Jiao Eyu stepped forward and bowed deeply. “One of our clan members has recently ascended to become a full dragon. We humbly request that he be considered for inclusion in a tribe.”

Long Qing nodded thoughtfully. “Very well. Speak with the elder in charge of ceremonies and arrange for the tribe’s elders to oversee the selection process.”

Jiao Eyu bowed even lower, his gratitude palpable. “Thank you, Patriarch! We are honored by your consideration.”

Long Qing gave a final glance around the room, his patience clearly wearing thin. “That will be enough. Any further matters can be resolved among yourselves. This meeting is over.”

With a wave of his hand, Long Qing turned and strode toward the hall’s back door, his wives and daughters following close behind. In a flash, they disappeared from view, leaving the grand hall abuzz with murmurs and lingering tension.

***

Long Qing, Jiamei, the three sisters, and their mothers entered his private study at the back of the grand hall.

The room was grand yet intimate, dominated by a large, intricately carved desk at the far end. Long Qing moved to take his seat behind it, while Jiamei stood silently at his side, her calm presence a contrast to the tension in the air. With a wave of his hand, three chairs materialized in front of the desk, their craftsmanship as elegant as the rest of the study. He gestured for his daughters to sit.

Once they were seated, their mothers positioned themselves behind their respective daughters, standing with poised elegance. Long Qing’s sharp gaze swept over the group as he folded his hands atop the desk.

“Why did you four leave the mountains without our permission?” he asked, his voice steady but carrying an unmistakable note of disappointment.

Yanjiang squirmed in her seat, her usual confidence wavering. “W-well, I… I asked them to come play with me…” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

Long Qing sighed heavily, rubbing his temples. He muttered something under his breath, too low for the sisters to catch, though it was clear he was displeased.

“Hey! It’s not her fault!” Yanjiang’s mother, Huo, snapped, her fiery tone cutting through the room. She had caught the muttered words even if her daughter hadn’t.

Long Qing raised a hand to calm her. “I’m not blaming her,” he replied evenly. “I only wish she’d act with more responsibility as the eldest sister.”

Huo pursed her lips but didn’t argue further, though her protective stance behind Yanjiang remained firm.

“What happened after you left the mountains?” Long Qing asked, his tone sharper now, though not unkind.

“Not much,” Yanjiang began, shifting slightly in her seat. “We flew around for a while, here and there… until we found that tree.”

“Tree?” Long Qing repeated, narrowing his eyes. “Ah, the one Long Zui was so furious about?”

“Yes.” Yanjiang nodded, her cheeks turning faintly pink. “We ate some of the fruits growing on it, and they made us… act a little strange.” Her blush deepened as she recalled herself dancing wildly in the forest.

“Strange? How so?”

“Like we drank too much wine,” Yuetu supplied matter-of-factly, her rabbit ears twitching slightly.

“Yeah, like that,” Yanjiang confirmed with a sheepish grin. “Then we fell asleep, and when we woke up, a young Golden Roc tried messing with us.” Her expression twisted into one of disgust at the memory.

“What do you mean he ‘messed with you’? Did he attack you?” Long Qing’s gaze sharpened, his protective instincts rising.

“Um… no, not at first,” Yanjiang admitted reluctantly. “He showed off this fan with painted images of Rocs carrying dead Dragons. It was clearly meant to provoke us. So… we attacked him.”

Long Qing’s lips curled in disdain, and he tsked audibly. “Arrogant bird. Then you three killed him? Good riddance.”

“Uh…” Yanjiang faltered, glancing at her sisters for support. “Yeah, well… we might’ve lost if it weren’t for our little brother’s help.”

Jiamei, who had been silent until now, visibly perked up at the mention of Jinshu. Her sharp gaze fixed on the girls. “Oh? How did Jinshu help?”

The sisters exchanged nervous glances, hesitating. They weren’t sure if they should admit how badly Jinshu had been hurt.

Surprisingly, it was Bing who broke the silence. “W-we lost sight of the Roc, and it used that opportunity to charge an attack. If it had landed, we’d have been… severely injured, if not…” She trailed off, but the implication hung heavily in the air.

“But Jinshu came out of nowhere,” Bing continued, her voice growing steadier, “and attacked it from below, drawing its attention away from us. In the process, though, he got hurt—really hurt—but he’s okay now!” she added quickly, her wide eyes darting toward Jiamei. “Yuetu gave him a pill, and it worked perfectly!”

Jiamei exhaled softly, her expression unreadable as she processed Bing’s words. Behind Long Qing’s stoic facade, his fingers tightened slightly on the desk’s edge.

“Jinshu acted bravely,” Long Qing finally said, his voice low but firm. “But this only reinforces the need to bring him back as soon as possible.”

Long Qing tapped a finger rhythmically on the desk, his sharp eyes fixed on his daughters. “And what happened after Zui took you away?”

Yanjiang snorted, clenching her fists as irritation flared across her face, but it was Yuetu who calmly began to answer.

“We appeared in the air above a courtyard surrounded by a pond and flowers. Aunt Zui dumped us straight into the pond, then told us we needed to be punished for eating her fruits.”

“The fruits from the tree that made you feel drunk?” Long Qing interjected, his brows furrowing.

Yuetu nodded. “Yes—”

“She planted that tree in the middle of a forest because she thought trees couldn’t grow alone!” Yanjiang interrupted with a bark of laughter, her mirth bubbling over.

“Right…” Yuetu continued patiently, though her nose twitched slightly in irritation. “The courtyard was strange. When we arrived, there were no buildings, but when we turned around, there was a massive palace.”

“Oh yeah! It just appeared out of nowhere!” Yanjiang chimed in enthusiastically, nodding vigorously.

Long Qing’s tapping increased in tempo as he absorbed their words.

“T-there was nothing—no,” Bing stammered before correcting herself. “We couldn’t see anything past the walls. It was like there was… nothing out there.”

“Really?” Yanjiang turned to Bing with surprise.

“I hadn’t noticed that,” Yuetu admitted thoughtfully, her rabbit ears twitching slightly as she recalled the details.

Long Qing’s finger stopped abruptly mid-tap.

“The fruit is clearly important to her,” he said after a pause, standing abruptly. He began pacing the room, his hands clasped behind his back. “She wouldn’t leave the tree unprotected, especially if it needs a forest to grow. Her hideout must be nearby.”

He stopped pacing and turned to face the women, his expression resolute. “I’ll send people to search the area thoroughly. If any of you remember anything else—no matter how small—come to me immediately. But for now, go and rest.”

The three sisters stood and bowed respectfully before leaving with their mothers, their footsteps fading as they exited the study. Jiamei remained behind, her sharp eyes lingering on her husband as he stood in contemplative silence.

“I will find him,” Long Qing said firmly, his tone carrying the weight of his resolve.

Jiamei approached him from behind, her voice soft but resolute. “Don’t.”

Long Qing turned, his expression a mix of confusion and frustration. “Don’t?”

Jiamei met his gaze with calm certainty. “I know our son. He chose to stay with Zui because he feels it’s the best way to protect his sisters.”

“And?” Long Qing’s brow furrowed. “Shouldn’t I bring him back so he doesn’t have to shoulder that alone?”

“That’s the thing,” Jiamei said gently. “Protecting his loved ones is his greatest dream. It’s who he is. Being with Zui gives him the chance to do that. I can guarantee he’ll ask her to train him while he’s there. Five years… it’s but a blink of an eye to us.”

Long Qing’s jaw tightened as he turned away, his fingers tracing the edge of the desk. “Hmm…” He didn’t agree, but neither did he argue. “Even so, I’ll still send people to search for her hideout. If things go too far—”

Jiamei smiled faintly, cutting him off with a knowing look. “Hm, sure,” she said lightly, but her tone carried an unspoken understanding.

Long Qing let out a low sigh, staring out into space as the conversation ended, his thoughts still dwelling on his son.