Chapter 919: Flying smoothly.
The northern sky remained covered by dense clouds as Strax traversed the icy winds at a moderate speed. Unlike his usual flight, cutting across continents in minutes or disappearing beyond the horizon like a living arrow, at this moment he maintained a tranquil, almost lazy pace. His enormous silvery-white wings moved steadily through the air currents, supporting them both above the frozen plains that stretched as far as the eye could see.
The reason for this slowness lay clinging to his back.
Vex.
The small dragon sat among the scales near the base of his neck, holding on tightly as she observed the world below. A few hours earlier she had seemed like an unstoppable little hurricane, running from side to side, asking questions incessantly and consuming enough energy to power an entire city.
Now, however, the situation was completely different.
She was still lively.
She was still curious.
She still asked questions.
But the intensity had decreased considerably. It seemed she had finally expended a significant amount of that infinite energy she possessed.
The snow rolled beneath them like an endless white ocean as mountains occasionally appeared on the horizon. Small villages dotted here and there, tiny points scattered across the icy vastness of Mercedes’ territory.
Vex watched everything.
Silently.
At least for a few seconds.
Which, considering who she was, was already enormous progress.
Strax noticed this immediately.
"You’re finally tired?"
The little dragon let out an indignant sound.
"I’m not tired."
"Of course."
"I’m just... resting a little."
"I understand."
"Those are different things."
"Completely different."
She narrowed her eyes.
Even without being able to see her face directly, Strax knew exactly what expression she was making.
"You’re mocking me."
"Maybe a little."
Vex crossed her arms.
Or tried to.
The result was almost losing her balance.
She quickly regained control of her scales.
Strax chuckled softly.
The little dragon also ended up laughing.
After a few seconds observing the horizon, she spoke again.
"You can see very far from here."
"You can."
"It’s beautiful."
"I think so too."
She continued observing the landscape for a few more moments before continuing.
"I like to fly."
The statement came out so sincerely that it made Strax smile.
"That’s good."
"I like it very much."
"I noticed."
"It’s different from walking."
"Definitely."
Vex partially rested her chin on her arms as she observed a mountain range in the distance.
"When I fly, everything seems smaller."
"Because it does." "But that’s not all."
She thought for a few seconds.
Trying to organize her thoughts.
"It’s as if the whole world is easier to understand."
Strax was silent for a moment.
Because that observation was surprisingly mature.
More mature than one would normally expect from someone who looked ten years old.
But again...
She was a dragon.
And dragons often perceived certain things in different ways.
"I understand."
Vex seemed satisfied with the answer.
Then she returned to observing the world below them.
The silence lasted a little longer that time.
Until another question arose.
Naturally.
Inevitably.
"What did you do when you were little?"
Strax let out a small laugh.
"Many things."
"What things?"
"Some clever ones."
"Hmm."
"Some extremely stupid ones." "That sounds more interesting."
"I figured you’d say that."
She smiled.
Then she continued.
"Mom and I do a lot of things."
"Really?"
"Yes."
Strax immediately noticed that the subject seemed to make her happy.
So he decided to continue.
"What do you do?"
Her eyes lit up.
And that should have served as a warning.
Because it meant a long answer was coming.
Very long.
"We go for walks in the mountains, visit villages, I practice magic, I learn history, I learn geography, I learn politics, I learn how kingdoms work, I learn about monsters, I learn about trade, I learn about military strategy..."
The list went on.
And on.
And on.
Strax listened patiently.
Because, to be honest, it was interesting.
Mercedes was really trying to teach him practically everything she knew.
Which partially explained the mental state he found her in.
When Vex finally finished, she sighed.
"But there’s one annoying thing."
Strax raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
Her expression immediately turned sulky.
In that specific way only children could.
"Everyone calls me Young Lady."
Strax had to suppress a laugh.
"Does that bother you?"
"Very much."
"Why?"
"Because I have a name."
She answered that as if it were the most obvious thing in the universe.
"And what is your name?"
"Vex."
"Are you sure?"
"Daddy."
"I’m just kidding."
The little dragon let out a dramatic sigh.
Then she continued.
"I always tell them to call me Vex."
"I understand."
"And they never do."
"Not even once?"
"Not even once."
Now she seemed genuinely indignant.
"I tell them my name is Vex."
"Yes."
"And they reply: ’We would never do that to Your Majesty.’"
Strax closed her eyes for a moment.
Because she could imagine the scene exactly.
Perfectly.
The extreme formality.
The knights freezing in panic.
The villagers almost having a heart attack.
All because a little dragon wanted to be called by her own name.
"And then?"
"And then they keep calling me Young Lady."
She crossed her arms again.
This time without almost falling.
"It’s annoying."
Strax laughed.
Not out of malice.
But because it was genuinely funny.
Vex immediately noticed.
"You’re laughing."
"A little."
"It’s not funny."
"It is a little."
"It isn’t."
"It’s quite funny."
The little dragon snorted.
Which only made him laugh more.
After a few seconds, he decided to explain.
"Vex."
"Hmm?"
"Your mother is a queen."
She blinked.
"I know."
"A very important queen."
"I know that too."
"For those villagers, Mercedes is probably the most important person they’ve ever known."
Vex remained silent.
Listening attentively.
"She protects those lands."
Strax continued.
"It protects the cities."
"Yes."
"It protects the families."
"Yes."
"And it protects them."
The girl nodded slowly.
Beginning to understand.
"So when they look at you..."
"Hmm?"
"They don’t just see a girl."
She tilted her head.
"They see the queen’s daughter."
The little dragon became thoughtful.
The wind continued to sweep across the skies as they slowly moved south.
"So they get nervous?"
"Very."
"But I’m not scary."
"You’re a dragon."
"But I’m small."
"For now."
Vex spent a few seconds processing that.
Then she sighed.
"This is complicated."
"It is."
"I understand why they like Mom."
"She deserves it."
"Yes." The answer came immediately.
Without any hesitation.
Which made Strax smile.
Because it was evident how much she admired Mercedes.
"But I’m not important."
Strax let out a low laugh.
"Do you really believe that?"
"Of course."
"Vex."
"Hmm?"
"You’re the daughter of the Ice Monarch."
She grimaced.
"And the daughter of an absurdly powerful dragon."
She grimaced again.
"And she’s a dragon too."
Now she seemed even less convinced.
"That sounds like trouble."
Strax started laughing.
"And maybe it is."
"See?"
"But it also means that people will naturally pay attention to you."
Vex sighed again.
A small sigh.
But sincere.
"Even so, I wish they would call me by my name."
"That will happen."
"When?"
"When you grow up a little."
"How long will it take?"
"Probably."
She seemed deeply offended by that answer.
Silence returned for a few minutes.
Only the sound of the wind accompanied the journey.
Until Vex spoke again.
This time in a much lighter tone.
"It’s funny." "What?"
"Me complaining about being treated coldly."
Strax took a few seconds to understand.
Then she started laughing.
A genuine laugh.
Loud.
Amused.
Because she had finally realized.
Vex also started laughing.
"I live on an ice mountain."
"Exactly."
"With the Ice Monarch."
"Yes."
"In a frozen kingdom."
"Correct."
She covered her face.
"Now it sounds like a very silly complaint."
"A little."
The two continued laughing for a few moments.
And that was good.
Light.
Simple.
Natural.
After the laughter subsided, Vex observed the horizon again.
The white of the plains gradually began to change as they moved towards less extreme regions.
Then another question arose.
"They say Asgard is beautiful."
"It is."
"Is it also cold?"
Strax shook his head slightly.
"Not exactly."
"No?"
"We’re in winter."
"Hmm."
"So there’s snow."
She seemed pleased.
"Great."
"But not like here."
"No?"
"Not even close."
Vex watched intently.
Then he continued.
"In the North, snow dominates almost everything."
"Yes."
"In Asgard, it appears during part of the year."
"I understand."
"But in a few weeks winter ends."
Her eyes shone again.
"And then?"
"Then the sun warms everything again."
"Even the snow?"
"Especially the snow."
"Does it melt?"
"Yes."
The girl seemed fascinated.
"So the city changes?"
"Completely."
Now she was really interested.
"How?"
Strax smiled.
Because that was a question he liked to answer.
"The trees turn green again."
Her eyes widened.
"Flowers appear."
More interest.
"People spend more time in the streets."
She kept listening.
"And Asgard gets warm again."
Vex watched the horizon for a few seconds.
Imagining it all.
A different city.
Without snow.
Full of colors.
Full of people.
Full of new things to discover.
Then a huge smile appeared on her face.
"It sounds incredible."
Strax smiled back.
As they continued crossing the skies of the continent.
"It is."
And for the first time since leaving the North, Vex seemed completely at peace.
Not because her curiosity had vanished.
That probably never would.
But because, at that moment, she was simply happy watching the world go by while flying on her father’s back.
