Chapter 437: Dragon kid
I felt like I was sobering up……at once, but I was still a little dizzy, so I ran back to Laila with somewhat unreliable steps.
“Ho. What are you going to do?”
“Laila, now there……eh?”
“I don’t need a detailed explanation. I’ve been listening in on all your conversations”
As expected of a dragon. It seems that she was able to properly check the content of my conversation in the midst of the commotion on the street while drinking with her hand at the mansion.
“What happened?”
Neia, who seems to have sensed an unusual tension from our voices, asks for an explanation. As expected, she seems to have let her guard down and she holds skewers in each hand that she seems to have bought at a stall somewhere, but I guess it’s kindness that she doesn’t touch the mismatch. It’s not a duty that we, who are drinking, can say.
“I heard that a dragon went berserk in the neighborhood. A whole village was burned to the ground”
“Eh……”
“Maybe it’s Rainer Exceliza……?”
Seeing Neia made me think of it, so I murmured it and Lailaa shrugged her shoulders.
“I don’t think so”
“……Is that so? Perhaps I somehow learned about Neia’s movement……”
As I make my bad prediction, Dianne, who was drying laundry in her room with Anzeros and Aurora, enters the conversation, underwear in hand.
“You perceive Rainer Exceliza too much as an evil ringleader. He hasn’t been indiscriminately destructive, nor has he shown any particular intent to kill Neia so far”
Then Laila holds up a finger and offers a different line of reasoning.
“That’s not the point. I told you before. There are still tens of thousands of dragons hiding on the continent. And they are not united in their ideology. It would be somewhat unreasonable to blame one of them for the problem. “Besides, perhaps……Rainer´s mount is not the one who burns”
“……What?”
“There aren’t many fire dragons that like to live in the north. Well, it’s not a sure thing”
Laila glanced at Neia.
“You said you’ve met a dragon from a nearby palace. Have you seen their body color?”
“……Sure, white……no, it might have been silver”
“White and silver are ice dragons. The strongest species corresponding to black in fire dragons is silver and white is an intermediate species corresponding to red”
“……White and black are not of the same rank?”
“Silver is the higher rank. ……But it’s just that there are many that are relatively strong and if it’s between individuals, it’s a different matter if they’re strong or weak”
……I explained that Airi was sulky and Laila smiled wryly.
“What do you mean?”
“In terms of basic fighting ability, humans are the weakest class next to elves, but that Bonaparte could probably defeat a dragon. That’s what I’m talking about”
“……I see”
That said, old man Bonaparte’s combat power is so extraordinary that it’s a little doubtful that he’s the same human being, so it’s hard to get a real sense of it.
“Unless Reiner caught the dragon at a great distance, it’s highly unlikely that he was here and did bad things. ……Now the question is, what are you going to do about it?”
Laila suddenly stared at me and I flinched.
“How……?”
“The dragon has done evil. And if you want to conquer it, I and Maia will be happy to help you. But not if the enemy is the rider. As I mentioned, the dragon pact forbids dragons to directly touch riders as an unrighteous act. If this is a matter between dragon riders, it is wise to stay out of it”
“……R, Right”
In other words, if the dragons are just running amok on their own, Laila and Maia will take care of them. But if the dragon riders are involved, I have to talk directly to the other rider and settle the matter. And if it comes to a head-to-head fight, I’m not even a first-rate fighter, I’m so weak that I could lose a fight to an old guy from the town. Laila implicitly said that I shouldn’t get carried away and go in there.
“Even if you are a shy, gawking mountain goat, it’s the same thing if the other rider has a fighting spirit. So it is not uncommon for riders to hide themselves in the city with their dragons and not reveal their true identities to avoid trouble between riders. This is also wisdom for survival”
Laila took her cup again. As if to say that the story is over.
“……But Laila is trying to stand out in order to bridge the gap between dragons and humans”
“I don’t need you to be compliant with my ideas. The reins are yours. How dare you expose yourself to the flames for the sake of my pipe dream?”
“But I’m the dragon and I flaunt my form, but when it comes down to it, I’m a tail……everyone’s disappointed”
“They don’t know that you are a rider. I’m the only one who should be embarrassed. Don’t confuse shame with the weight of your life”
Laila looked at me with a slightly wry look.
“I hope you’re not going there for that”
“I wouldn’t say that”
I scratch my head. ……Isn’t it obvious if I say things like 「Your thoughts are precious」 from the front?
“Dragons aren’t stupid. I’m sure there’s a reason why they burned it……and most importantly, I’d love to meet any other dragon riders besides me. I’d like to meet them sooner than Rainer Exceliza”
“……You”
“If you say that Rainer is a dragon rider, then it’s just as well that a bad contact would be my undoing. But if I deliver Neia to the country, contact is inevitable, and I’d rather make contact with a little thought than go in at the drop of a hat”
Laila was stunned by my twisted logic and supported her forehead, but Dianne nodded her head in agreement before Laila could say anything.
“Indeed. ……Good idea”
“What do you mean, Dianne?”
“I heard it. Isn’t this a perfect opportunity for a rehearsal?”
“Are you kidding me, Dianne? Dragons are by nature different creatures. They don’t always have the common sense and naivete you might expect”
“But Andy can’t save Neia if he continues like this. If Rainer Exceliza wants to antagonize you, the thought of trying to save her will destroy you. You cut it down to what it can’t be helped, the frustration of your master”
“……I will never cross the danger of gambling twice”
“The point is, when the time comes, I don’t need to rely on you or Maia. That’s what you’re saying, isn’t it?”
“……What?”
Dianne laughed.
“Whether or not it conflicts with the 『Pact』, all you have to do is answer me, Laila”
—————-
The next day, based on the rumors we had gathered, we set out for the southern village. It had only been a few days since the incident, but to those with quick ears, it was a well-known story.
“……Around there”
『I guess so. ……Hmm, maybe its because its a lake area……I think its going to burn more quietly than I heard』
I looked out from the platform and checked ahead (the magic of the windshield is on, so I hardly feel the wind pressure) and Chibi Laila nodded. My companions were Dianne, Anzeros and Aurora, plus Sharon, Almeida, Neia and Maia. The other members of the group were a little doubtful about their ability to protect themselves in case the other party was violent, so they stayed in Helicon. Tetes and Naris are also strong in their own way, but Naris would not be able to fight calmly against a fire dragon and Tetes has a record of using a dragon slayer, so she is suspended as an uncalculated element.
『……If it comes to that, you plan to fight against dragons and riders instead of taking out dragons. It’s true that it wouldn’t violate the pact, but……the opponent’s dragon can freely attack anyone other than the rider』
“If the opponent can’t use its breath, there is a way to fight. If they can’t attack the rider, that means they can’t attack with their breath as long as you are near the rider himself, right?”
Dianne crossed her arms grimly.
“If it weren’t for that, dragons would be little more than slightly larger animals that sometimes fly”
“……That’s already too much to ask from my point of view”
There is no Naris now who should butt in on Dianne’s super-bold theory. I have no choice but to push in instead. The other people just nodded at Dianne in a dependable manner. Neia, while putting her hat back on firmly, says with a somewhat exultant look on her face.
“Certainly, if that’s the case……then we have a chance to win. 100-man commander Dianne is amazing……!”
“I mean, first of all, let’s stop talking on the premise that we’re going to kill each other. If anything, I’d rather not get into a fight”
“I understand. But it would be better if we were on our guard, wouldn’t it?”
“Well, yes, but……”
And Maia dangles her legs a little bored while riding in the carriage with everyone.
“……Either way, me and Laila-sama, if we get into a fight, we’ll just be left behind……”
To that, Chibi Laila admonishes.
『If the other party doesn’t hesitate to be called an evil dragon, or if the evidence is obliterated, then he might use his breath to burn it down. If you can withstand the dragon’s breath, there is no more reliable defense than the body of a dragon of the same genus』
“……Yes”
Apparently, fire breath does not work on fire dragons and blizzard breath does not work on ice dragons.
『If a dragon is so mad, it can never be blamed for directly punishing it. This time it’s a fire dragon, so the primary defense will be my role, but if we’re going to fight dragons in the future, everyone will play an important role』
“I see”
……I wonder when Dianne-san was thinking about this anti-dragon tactic, with so little information. If you’ve been actively accepting conventional forces other than dragons in anticipation of this……no, it’s not that Sharon, Almeida and Neia have fallen in love with me because of Dianne’s intentions. I know, but. As I look at everyone around me in terms of personnel for tactics, I get a little scared because we have too many suitable people. No, it’s only because we have enough forces that she could even think of doing a rehearsal. In many ways, Dianne is once again unfathomable.
“……Hmm. Even if it’s called a village……is it like this?”
Laila, who landed, looks down at us as we get off the carriage and looks around in her dragon body. This place used to be a settlement until a few days ago. Here and there there is the wreckage of half-burnt houses. Laila, however, sounded disappointed.
“It may not be a dragon. It’s not that powerful……but I think we can fool it with oil, fire arrows and illusionary techniques”
“Is that all?”
“You’ve seen me blow with all my might a few times. A grown-up dragon’s breath can do a lot more than this. Here you see only twenty or so houses half charred at most”
“……If that’s the case, then maybe it’s the work of thieves who blame the dragons”
We were so deflated by the seriousness of the story that we had prepared ourselves as best we could. But then, seeing us, someone slithered out of the black house, which seemed like it would no longer be occupied.
“……Emm”
“Eh……a, ah, what?”
Anzeros, who was just nearby, turned around. Standing there was a dark elf……no perhaps a half. He’s a brown-skinned young man whose ears are slightly different from Dianne’s.
“Dragon……are you looking for Sahul-kun?”
“Sahul……? Who is it?
“No, it’s fine if it’s different. If you could just forget about it……”
“What happened here? If you still live here, you know what happened, don’t you? Like bandits or something came to your place or something like that……”
“No, I mean……sorry”
The young man tries to sneak back into the house. When Anzeros catches him and tries to interrogate him, something suddenly jumps out of the house with great momentum and hits Anzeros. No, as expected of Anzeros, she was just in time to guard it with her sword in its scabbard.
“Whatt!?”
“Anzeros!”
“Anzeros-san!”
Immediately, Dianne and Aurora formed a defensive formation to protect Anzeros, while the others formed a defensive formation around me. The one who jumped and hit Anzeros was a child.
“Tsk……whoever you are, let Oscar go and fuck off! You’re not the ones I’m waiting for!”
The kid said with a cocky look on his face. They all looked at each other in amazement.
“……What the hell are you?”
Laila, still in her dragon form, asked in a whisper on behalf of everyone.
“Sahul. What are you doing here?”
It would be very troublesome if only my name was mentioned. In the midst of the ambiguity of what was going on, the boy looked around and seemed to have come up with something and suddenly took back his stance that had once been unraveled.
“Now then……you kidnapped Rika!?”
“Who’s that?”
“You’re a big guy, but you don’t know that! The dragon who messed with a dragon rider is over! Evil dragon!”
The boy thrust one hand high in the air and his whole body burst into flames like a tornado and then.
He transformed into a red dragon.
But it was small. Maia’s dragon body is quite small compared to Laila’s, but the boy’s is even smaller, only about half the size of Maia’s. Still, it is more than enough to be a normal animal. But compared to Laila, who was towering over us at the moment, it was rather pitifully small.
“Take judgment!!”
……One person, or rather one head, is irritated, but we look at each other without knowing how to react. I don’t know the situation at all. One thing I do understand.
“Laila”
“What?”
“……Dragons aren’t all smart, are they?”
“Children are like that”