"You silly child, you must be half-asleep. What good would it do Mom to do that?"
This time, it was Selene who avoided Tike's gaze, still trying to cover things up.
"The scent is different when you lie, Mom." Tike's voice remained low. "I clearly smelled your scent lingering on Deliora and Gray back then. Why on earth did you do that?"
"You..." Seeing that she couldn't hide it anymore, the Moon Dragon God spoke with some difficulty: "I did all that to figure out if you really were my child."
"Is that the reason why you refused to show yourself and acknowledge me back then, even though you were nearby?"
"Your human transformation magic is too perfect, just like Vitanos'. You can even completely change your own aura. I really couldn't confirm your identity at the time." Selene hastily added, "But now I can be sure that you are my child, my Parquino."
"Even if you couldn't confirm it then, you could have just explained everything to me directly after finding me. Why go to such lengths and involve so many people who had nothing to do with this?"
"Because I didn't want you to know that I failed to recognize you immediately." Selene's voice dropped, carrying a trace of unspeakable shame.
For this purpose, Selene had carefully selected from the memories of the humans Tike knew. She found Deliora, the most suitable demon to test Tike with, and used Gray as bait, meticulously setting up a trap to lure Tike step by step to Brago.
It wasn't until Tike brought down that golden rain to save the residents of Brago that he emitted the scent Selene was familiar with, the scent unique to her child.
She had been manipulating everything from behind the scenes the entire time, doing her best to erase any trace of her presence, just so Tike wouldn't realize her involvement and calculation in all of this.
After all, not only did she fail to recognize her child immediately, she even had murderous intent for a moment. How could she let him know that?
In the end, he found out anyway.
Just as Selene expected, Tike was very angry right now.
"I recognized you instantly!"
"I'm sorry, my Parquino. Can you forgive Mom this time?"
"...Do you think I'm only angry about this?"
Tike could clearly feel the strong motherly love radiating from Selene. That part wasn't fake.
But this motherly love wasn't as pure as the bond between Ur and Ultear. Instead, it was tainted with a repulsive, complex scent that Tike hated, like rotting flesh.
"You're no different from the adults at the Magic Development Bureau. You just want to get something from me to satisfy your own selfish desires!"
Tike had tried to ignore the strange scent on his mother. That was why he bathed with her, ate with her, slept with her, and practiced magic with her—just to distract himself with these things.
But in the end, he couldn't do it. He couldn't deceive himself, nor could he persuade himself to accept this impure affection.
She was his mother! How could she be like those adults who only knew how to use him?
"Selfish desires? No, that's not right, my Parquino. That isn't some selfish desire, but a mother's most beautiful expectation for her own child."
The gentle expression on Selene's face faded, replaced by a slightly hideous and twisted countenance, her eyes turning fanatical.
"I wish for you to grow into the strongest dragon, capable of dominating everything and standing above all living beings! Whether it's that Black Dragon King Acnologia, the other Dragon Gods, or those humans lowly as ants, they will all deserve only to crawl at your feet, instead of dying a worthless death like Vitanos!"
"That is not my wish." Tike's voice dropped to freezing point. "You keep saying it's for me, but the one who really wants to dominate the world is you, isn't it?"
"What is the difference? My wish is your wish! Realizing my wish is the sole mission for which you were born into this world as my child!"
Hearing these words, spoken from the heart without a shred of falsehood, Tike was utterly disappointed.
"You're full of yourself, Moon Dragon God."
"Parquino, to address your own mother like that... have you already reached the so-called rebellious phase after being human for such a short while?"
A dangerous light appeared in Selene's eyes, and her outstretched hand was about to land on Tike.
Just then, countless dragon-like wooden tentacles shot out from the giant tree Tike had just enchanted, instantly binding the unsuspecting Selene firmly.
"Do you think magic of this level can trap Mom, who is known as the Moon Dragon God?"
Selene sneered and was about to use her strength to break free, when she saw that Tike had snapped a sharp wooden branch from the giant tree at some point and unhesitatingly aimed its pointed tip at his own throat.
"Don't get in my way! Or else I'll... I'll die right here!"
Selene's movements froze instantly, and all color drained from her face, leaving it ghastly pale.
She read from Tike's cold eyes that the child was serious.
"Little Parquino, you just woke up and your body is still weak. If you use that magic again at a time like this, you really will die!"
Tike's right hand holding the wooden branch paused slightly.
The scent emitted by Selene's words contained only concern for him.
However, this concern wasn't enough to change his mind.
He had endured long enough; he didn't want to endure anymore.
"That's none of your business."
Tike extended his left hand and drew a circle outlined in water in mid-air, opening a portal connecting to an unknown space.
"I'm going to find Mom Ur and Big Sis Ultear. They smell much better than you. Being with them is much more comfortable and happier than staying here as your son."
"Little Parquino..."
Selene tried to make him stay, but Tike interrupted her sharply.
"Don't call me by that name anymore. I am Tike, not a tool for you to achieve your ambitions!"
"Goodbye, Mom."
With that, Tike stepped into the portal emitting a faint blue glow without looking back, his figure vanishing instantly from the spot.
After Tike left, the wooden tentacles binding Selene dropped weakly, releasing her.
Selene stumbled to her feet, raising her arm to draw a circle in the air as well, wanting to open a spatial portal to catch up to Tike and bring him back.
But she stopped abruptly halfway through the motion. Instead, she covered her mouth and began to cough violently until she coughed up a large mouthful of bright red blood, staining the ground in front of her crimson.
The power of the Black Dragon King was even greater than it had been four hundred years ago. Although Selene had successfully inflicted heavy damage on him, she herself had been gravely injured, even aggravating old wounds.
She had been forcing herself to hold on, not wanting Tike to see her weakness so that he wouldn't worry.
Although dragons possessed powerful vitality and self-healing abilities, injuries caused by dragons of the same level or even stronger could not be recovered by relying on one's own strength.
If Tike didn't stay by her side and use the magic power he unconsciously emitted to soothe her injuries, in her current state, she would at most last less than half a year before exhausting all her life force and dying.
Selene slumped to the ground, leaning against the now-quiet giant tree, and closed those eyes that had once been full of majesty and ambition.
Compared to the physical pain, what hurt Selene more was that the child she had finally found actually hated her because of this kind of thing.
Was she... wrong?
Thud~
Suddenly, Selene felt something gently hit her head, carrying a faint fragrance.
Selene instinctively reached out and touched a round, smooth object. It was an apple.
"This is..."
Selene brought the fruit to her nose, sniffing the familiar scent it emitted. She opened her mouth and took a gentle bite.
As the fragrant and sweet fruit entered her mouth, Selene felt that her wound, which had been burning like fire, was slowly recovering, although extremely faintly.
Selene looked up and saw that the giant tree, which had stopped growing, was now full of fruits containing healing magic power, just like the one she held.