Chapter 553: Crystal Palace 2
At the back of the Palace there was a staircase that seemed to be cut into the ground, winding its way to the basement of the Palace.
“It looks like a secret basement……for storing something important”
“There is a custom among the silver dragons to store 『Dragon Jewels』. It is a warehouse to collect them”
“……Dragon jewels are like those gallstones”
“Don’t talk about it like it’s something dirty”
But it’s just a secretion that forms automatically inside your stomach, right? Jeanne said that she crawled into Laila’s belly and retrieved it. As for whether it’s judged as not dirty……I think it’s a questionable point. Well, I know it looks pretty.
“Sometimes people’s children even keep their missing teeth for safekeeping. It is something like that”
“…………I don’t think it’s a very proud custom after all”
I said that and Lado became silent. Yeah. It’s true that in some regions there are customs like that. It’s not something that everyone brings in and saves, is it? Well, since they are different races with completely different body structures, it might be strange to meddle in that. Actually, it wasn’t me who started talking about gallstones, it was Laila.
“Anyway, the elder is right up ahead, isn’t he? It’s not good to keep them waiting. Let’s get going”
Naris took the initiative and pushed me and Lado along.
“Naris-chan, you’ve got some courage against dragons, don’t you?”
“Huhuh humans grow”
“Eh, but if you were asked to fight, you would refuse with all your might, wouldn’t you?”
“It’s natural! I mean, it’s generally strange to think that you might be able to do it, even if only for a little while! Even the most daredevil Gauntlet Knights, there are not a lot of people who would go along with such a request!”
“Yes, yes, okay, okay”
The ponytail of Naris, who was speaking passionately toward the back, was pulled back to silence her and we descended the narrow passage in the rock wall, which was like a cut-through.
At the far end of the staircase is a door made of old, heavy-looking wood. And in front of it there are two silhouettes that look like silver dragon humans.
“Lado”
“Damedo. Open the door. You could hear them from here”
“But……”
“It’s a pact. It’s logical for a dragon to obey its rider”
“……”
The silver dragon man who seems to be the jailer, who was about to ask something to Ladi, glanced at me, looked at the other jailer and then he slowly unlocked the lock.
“You fell for him, Lado?”
“Though I have no contract with him”
“Then why?”
The prison guard, called Damedo, tries to question Lado, who is acting as if she were my subject, even though she was almost killed by me. I tried to stop her with my hand, but she seemed to be getting nowhere.
“Our interests coincided. That’s all
“You are taking advantage of Lleida, rider of the outside world”
“I don’t mind if you can be my guide. As long as I can meet the elders, that’s fine”
“…………”
“Stop it, Damedo. ……This person and his friends are strong. If I don’t stand between them, this palace will be in serious trouble, no joke. That’s what I thought”
“Have you forgotten your pride, Lado? A dragon will not bow down to power”
……The pride of a dragon is a troublesome thing, isn’t it? They may be pretending to be the strongest creature in the world, but when one of their own is killed, their emotions take precedence. Perhaps their ethics don’t allow for the existence of a 「Person stronger than the dragon」, which makes for some strange logic. I was about to faint, wondering if I should say something again.
“Don’t use words like pride when you just can’t keep up with your feelings and make a lot of mistakes, Damedo”
A voice came from behind the slightly opened door.
“Words become lighter if you use them when you don’t need them. Even though you’re a dragon, you don’t respect your rider, you don’t trust your fellow humans……how much weight does that word of pride that you bring up hold?”
“…….Ku”
Damedo stopped standing there, as if he realized that he had no logical chance of winning if he got involved any further. I let Lado open the door and finally meet the silver dragons, who are locked up in a small room with a large pile of 「Dragon Jewel」.
“It’s been a long time. Andy Smithson-sama”
“Elder. ……Thank you for doing this for us”
The elder is the only one who appears to be barely unscathed; the other dragons are all lying down or sitting by the wall and their wounds have not yet regenerated. Laila had said that rather than forcing the wounds to disappear, it would be better to let nature heal at its own speed and wear and tear would be reduced. So even though it looks bad now, everyone will eventually come back to life…….
“Ray, Emma!”
“……Smithson-sama, the way you look”
The wounds that have opened up from the shoulder to the second arm are painful and Ray looks shocked when he sees that my right arm is missing.
Emma, who was lying on her side, looked as mortified as her brother, even though she had been wounded in some sort of attack that had left one of her legs mangled to the point where the bone was visible and more grotesque than my wound.
“I’m sorry, we’re just so worthless
“Not at all. I’m saved. All I cared about was whether you guys were okay”
I wasn’t sure how to help Emma up, so I gently lifted her upper body and hugged her.
“Thank you. ……I was so happy when I heard that you worked so hard that I almost cried”
“……It’s a waste, your words……”
Perhaps because Emma is weak, she entrusts herself to my embrace without resisting in the slightest. Ray was also nodding with deep emotion at the sight of his younger sister, but he stood up a bit and knelt down next to me.
“I’m sure you’ve come this far, does that mean you can see victory in your battle with Rainer?”
“Just in case. My friends in the outside world are incredibly reliable”
“I’m showing you an unsightly appearance, but my injuries are relatively shallow. I’m sure there are things I can do to help you, even in this condition, such as packing and transporting”
“N, No, don’t take it too hard. The fact that you’re safe is enough for me. If anything, I’d be glad if you could keep the dragons at bay so that they don’t suddenly try to enter the fray”
“I’m a strong woman, you know. Don’t be afraid to ask”
“It’s okay”
“As a dragon, not being able to participate in the big event from now on is much more painful than being hurt”
“I’m still relying on you and Emma, so don’t try anything reckless like that!”
“Ha……”
With my desperate persuasion while still hugging Emma, Ray finally relents.
“Emma needs to get well again and help everyone in the valley from now on, so don’t say things like that, okay……?”
“……Yes, that……I´m happy……”
Emma nods, her cheeks red, her eyes wandering a little restlessly and she squeezes my clothes.
“”Eehuh””
Tetes and Naris cough at the same time and Maia folds her arms and looks at me with a slightly bored look on her face. You guys, don’t react too condescendingly when you see me in this state. Maia, however, after a moment’s pouting, said.
“Are you going to sign a contract?”
“Eh, no……”
……So that’s a different story.
“I don’t think it’s fair to thank a girl who has put her life on the line for you just by saying something like that”
“I don’t know anything about contracts or anything like that.10-man captain Smithson can only show so much sincerity”
“Why are you guys in such a weird back-pushing mode!?”
“Shut up! Sometimes I get a little annoyed because I don’t know if you have a sense of responsibility or not!”
“Master is always ready to take responsibility when you do something naughty, but in some weird way he’s not very pushy, or he’s just not very good at it”
“Emma, I’m really looking forward to it. If you are going to decline, you have to decline again”
“…………”
Look at Emma. She fidgets a little and averts her gaze. Look at Ray. He had a refreshing smile on his face and lightly raised his palm, as if to say that I was free to take care of his younger sister. Look at the elder. He kind of nodded. I don’t like being cornered like this and being forced to confess my feelings. That’s what I was thinking.
“I’d like to ask you to sign a contract with me!”
“No, that’s a little reckless here, isn’t it!?”
I thought she finally said something that went against the flow, but it was a bite back attack by Lado. ……For now, let’s calm down a bit and then talk about this seriously, okay?