However, her diminutive hands struggled with the toast topped with eggs, so she instead grabbed a flaky croissant, which was nearly as large as she was. Despite her small size, Mavislin's joy was palpable as she savored each bite, reveling in the bounty before her.
Zenos noticed the change and stood up to help the dragoness to place the toast onto her plate, earning a small 'Yippee' from Mavislin.
"Are you going to remain in that form to eat?" asked the Viceroy, as Mavislin stuffed a hashbrown into her hungry mouth.
"You've got a problem with that? I always hunt for my breakfast but since you insist then I have no choice. I am more comfortable eating in this form, my arms and hands are more fitted for combat, not eating like a royal…" complained the little dragoness.
"I do not, but I think you might find it a bit difficult to eat poached eggs without cutlery…"
"Why?"
Zenos blinked in disbelief as he realized that Mavislin wasn't joking—she had never eaten poached eggs before.
The Viceroy sighed, gesturing for her to push her plate closer. With a curious tilt of her head, Mavislin nudged the large plate toward him using her snout and watched intently.
Demonstrating the refined skills of someone accustomed to luxury, Zenos carefully sliced into the perfectly poached egg.
The rich, golden yolk flowed out, cascading over the toast below. He presented the delicate creation to Mavislin, his movements precise and practiced, while the little dragon's eyes widened in shock and horror.
"You've ruined it!" exclaimed a very upset dragoness, dropping down onto the breakfast table.
The Viceroy didn't know if it was a good time to laugh or flick the crying girl's forehead to get her to quiet down. He chose the first one as he patiently sliced up the crying dragoness' toast into pieces that would be easier for her to hold.
"Here, stop your crying and try this. You might like it."
Mavislin sniffled before she devoured the entire sausage link in one go. She then tried the toast with the golden yolk, taking a tentative bite.
Her eyes widened as the flavors exploded in her mouth, a delightful experience unlike anything she had ever tasted. She almost lunged for more, her tiny dragon form brimming with excitement.
"No."
The single word from Zenos was enough to halt her advance. With a pout, the little dragoness reluctantly resumed her breakfast, savoring each bite, including the fluffy pancakes that followed.
Meanwhile, Zenos watched in silence, his gaze softening as he observed Mavislin's contentment with the simple pleasures of the meal.
"Have you truly not known that tastes of a mediocre breakfast like this?" quizzed Zenos as the little dragoness transformed back into her proper form.
"You call this mediocre?! I used to have to find bugs beneath floorboards to prevent myself from starving, this is like a dream come true!" said Mavislin, smiling as if she was on top of the world.
The Viceroy shook his head, unable to comprehend what was going on in that little head of hers.
"But enough about breakfast, let's proceed with the matter on hand. But of course, I would rather discuss that with you in a better setting. Let's head back to your room," said Mavislin, switching back to her usual demeanor.
The Viceroy nodded in acknowledgment, and the two of them returned to his room in silence. However, the quiet didn't last long.
As soon as the dragoness got her hands on the reports, the atmosphere shifted, and the room soon filled with the rustling of pages and the focused intensity of her scrutiny
"These reports are a complete disaster… I'm having a hard time figuring out where to even begin. Everything's so disjointed and scattered as if they were thrown together from multiple sources without any coordination."
"I can't even tell if they're describing the same enemy or different ones! Let alone if they are from the Legion in the first place..." complained Mavislin, slamming the stack of reports onto the table in frustration.
"Perhaps you'd like to take a break? Fresh eyes might-"
"Zip it, blondie. I'd like a damn word with your intelligence task force in charge. How did all this get approved for archiving? In the same report, there are three different descriptions of the same monster, scattered all over and from different people!"
"How is no one catching this? Seriously, do you even check if the monsters are the same or not? Ugh, it's infuriating!"
Zenos was taken aback by the snapping dragoness who continued to rake her fingers through her hair in anger.
"My apologies... I'm used to keeping my reports in an orderly fashion. An incident report like this cannot be combined or else this will happen. I don't have a clear report on incidents so I wouldn't know what to look out for…"