Chapter 5: Baby Teeth and curse dolls
Five days had passed since the lava wrestling incident.
Livia was gnawing on half a wild boar that the Dragon Mother had tossed in—she didn't know what species this thing was, but it was a size larger than a cow from her previous life, with skin as thick as iron plate.
She was chewing enthusiastically when suddenly, there was a "crack" in her mouth.
A tooth snapped right off and fell onto the boar's carcass.
She glanced down.
A baby tooth, as long as a pinky finger, sharp, with a bit of blood at the root.
Livia gave it a glance and didn't take it seriously at all.
Dragon teeth; if they fall out, they fall out. They'd grow back anyway.
Standard dragon life, just a basic operation, no need to be impressed.
She casually flicked the tooth aside and went back to devouring her meal.
After finishing the boar, she pushed the bones away, lay down, and went to sleep.
She didn't even look to see where the baby tooth had rolled.
Three days later, however, she discovered a bizarre thing in a corner of her nest.
That corner was originally her "household waste disposal site," specifically for piling up leftover bones and discarded scales; she usually didn't give it a single glance.
Bored while lying there today, her gaze swept around randomly, and she suddenly spotted something off amidst a pile of bones.
She walked over and gently nudged it out with her claws.
It was a small doll.
Made of scales, hair, and teeth tied together, it was covered in thorns. It was quite delicately made, with a head, limbs, a small tail, and two small stones embedded where the eyes should be.
The most damning part was—
On the doll's chest, three letters were carved:
L·K·N
Livia stared at those three letters and fell silent for three seconds.
L·K·N
Livia Kelsina Novati.
She slowly raised her head and looked at Sephira, who was not far away.
Sephira was squatting in her own little nest, head down, licking her claws with extreme focus.
Licking one toe at a time, her gaze was as serious as if she were conducting precision scientific research, even her breathing becoming light.
Too focused.
So focused it felt a bit fake.
Livia looked down and examined the curse doll in her hand once more.
The scales—they were the old ones she had just shed a few days ago, a shade lighter than those on her body.
The hair—a few tufts of down she'd lost while rubbing against the rock walls.
The tooth—she flipped it over and saw that her baby tooth was being tightly bound to the doll's chest with thorns, serving as a heart.
A curse doll.
Those words exploded directly in her mind.
In her previous life, downstairs from her apartment in the urban village, there was a security grill shop. The proprietress was an old Miao woman who hung a row of these things at the door, fifteen yuan each, claiming to provide full instructions and guaranteed results to make someone unlucky for three days.
At the time, she had dismissed it as a "Stupidity Tax" and hadn't even looked at it.
And yet now, her own sister had arranged one for her.
A top-tier version with a tooth, no less.
Livia remained unfazed.
Silently holding the doll, she walked to the edge of the Lava Lake.
Sephira was still licking her claws, but the corners of her eyes were frantically darting in this direction.
Livia pretended not to notice at all and loosened her claws.
The curse doll fell into the magma with a "plop," tumbling twice on the orange-red liquid.
The thorns instantly turned to ash, the scales melted, and the baby tooth exploded with a "pop," emitting a small burst of sparks.
A few seconds later, not a trace remained.
Livia turned around, walked back to her spot, lay down, and closed her eyes in one smooth motion.
Sephira continued licking her claws, pretending nothing had happened.
That night, however, a piercing scream suddenly erupted in the nest.
Livia's eyes snapped open.
Sephira was jumping up from her nest, her tail thrashing wildly, letting out a scream so sharp her voice broke—it was an uncontrollable shriek of extreme pain.
She tried desperately to turn her head and bite her own tail, but she couldn't reach it, so she could only spin around frantically in place.
Carlos was woken up and raised his head, looking completely bewildered. "What's wrong with you? Did you get burned by lava?"
Sephira was in too much pain to speak, only able to scream.
Livia lay still, narrowing her eyes as she watched quietly.
The light from the Lava Lake illuminated everything clearly:
Three large lumps had swollen on Sephira's tail, red and shiny, each as big as a fist, looking as if she'd been stung by a swarm of hornets.
After spinning for a long time, Sephira finally couldn't take the pain anymore and lay down, gasping for breath, her tail still twitching incessantly.
She suddenly turned her head and looked at Livia.
Her gaze was incredibly complex—
There was pain, anger, grievance, and a hint of "seeing a ghost" disbelief.
Livia closed her eyes and continued to feign sleep.
The corners of her mouth curled up slightly.
A curse doll?
Fifteen yuan each in her previous life, full instructions included.
Sister, you're still too young.
When your sister was playing this game, you were still sound asleep in your egg.
Sephira lay on the ground in pain for a long time; the lumps didn't subside but instead grew even more swollen.
She tried licking them with her tongue, but as soon as she touched them, she shuddered in pain and gasped.
Having no choice, she could only look up at the Dragon Mother and let out a small, pitiful cry.
The Dragon Mother was lying on the giant rock in the center of the lake, eyes open, watching the scene.
After two seconds of silence, she spoke flatly:
"It will be better tomorrow."
Sephira was stunned on the spot.
That's it?
Nothing else?
No medicine? No comforting?
The Dragon Mother had already closed her eyes and returned to her slumber.
Sephira looked down at her tail, which was swollen like a loaf of bread, then looked up again, staring intently at Livia.
Livia's breathing was steady, and she slept with a peaceful expression, as if she knew nothing.
Sephira stared at her back for a long, long time.
Finally, she could only limp back to her nest, carefully placing her tail in front of her and staring blankly at the three large lumps.
Carlos had long since fallen back into a deep sleep, his snoring as loud as thunder.
Livia wasn't asleep at all.
She could clearly feel Sephira's gaze pricking her back like needles.
But she remained motionless, continuing to play dead.
After a long time, Sephira finally looked away and lay down to sleep.
The nest grew quiet again, with only the sound of the churning magma and Carlos's snoring remaining.
Livia quietly opened her eyes, glanced at Sephira's back, and then looked toward the darkness deep within the nest.
That breathing sound was still there.
It was there every night.
Getting closer day by day.
She closed her eyes and complained inwardly:
Little sister plays with curse dolls; big sister plays with Auto-reflect.
That's good; as a family, we should all play mind games together.
Early the next morning, the swelling on Sephira's tail had completely vanished.
The three large lumps had turned into three small red dots, as if she'd been bitten by mosquitoes.
She squatted in her nest, staring at the three red dots, her gaze so gloomy it could drip water.
Livia walked past her to gnaw on the breakfast the Dragon Mother had tossed in.
Sephira looked up, staring intently at her.
Livia didn't even give her a glance, focusing on her meal and eating with great relish.
Sephira stared at her back for a long time before finally lowering her head to continue licking her tail.
At noon, the Dragon Mother suddenly spoke, her voice calm:
"Last night, who threw something into the Lava Lake?"
The three young dragons stopped their movements simultaneously.
Livia continued gnawing on the meat, not even raising her head.
Sephira raised her head and opened her mouth, but just as she was about to speak, the small red dots on her tail suddenly throbbed with pain. She gasped and forced herself to swallow her words.
The Dragon Mother's gaze slowly swept over the three little dragons, finally resting on Sephira's tail.
The nest was silent.
"Some things," the Dragon Mother said slowly, her tone neither heavy nor light, "are not for you to play with right now."
Sephira silently lowered her head.
The Dragon Mother withdrew her gaze and settled back down.
Livia finished the last piece of meat, licked her claws clean, and wondered:
Was that meant for my sister, or was she warning me as well?
She instinctively looked toward the depths of the nest.
In the darkness, that breathing sound made a soft noise.
This time, it was so close it seemed... right at the entrance of the cave.