The morning after the night I spent with Liese.
When Biner, the archer among the “Ten Dragons Divine Artifact Generals,” woke up, I called out to her.
“The whereabouts of the remaining two ‘Ten Dragons Divine Artifact Generals’—Keter and Gebra?”
Biner asked me back, and I nodded.
Those two were undoubtedly the ones I had to defeat.
“Yeah. I understand you don’t want to sell out your kin, but—”
“No, I will. That’s the resolve I’ve made.”
Biner replied with a serious gaze and looked outside from the cave entrance.
The rain from yesterday had stopped, leaving a fantastical landscape of dappled sunlight and morning dew falling amidst the green of the trees.
Yesterday, Biner had spoken of her determination, saying, “Even if it means making enemies of my own kin who intend to destroy humans—”
The “resolve” she spoke of was likely of that kind.
The young archer continued.
“I don’t know their current whereabouts, but I have an idea of a place they hold dear.”
“A place they hold dear?”
“Yes. In a remote region a few days’ journey from here, there’s an ancient ruin called ‘Dragon’s Agito.’ It is said to be the place for the Queen’s resurrection.”
An ancient ruin said to be the place for the Queen’s resurrection.
For them, it would indeed be an important place.
“So, if we go there, there’s a high probability of finding them.”
When I said that, Biner shook her head.
“I can’t say for sure. However, if we go there, we can thwart Keter and the others’ ambitions.”
“If we cut off the root of their ambitions, their schemes will also be crushed, huh?”
“Yes. If you’re concerned about the accuracy of the information, please confirm with Tifereth. I’m sure she’s still in the village.”
“Yeah. That might be necessary, but…”
More than that, I was surprised by Biner’s decisiveness.
To so easily hand over crucial information given to her in trust.
This girl, with her cute face, is surprisingly ruthless.
… No, perhaps it wasn’t easy.
It might be now, after surpassing her own internal conflict.
“However—”
Biner wore a slightly displeased expression and added more information.
“I’ve heard that the ‘Queen’s Resurrection’ can occur in an incomplete form even if the human blood is not fully gathered. In other words, it can happen at any time.”
The young archer’s words were extremely important information.
The resurrection of the Dragon race’s Queen—the ten-headed Dragon King Sephiroth—can happen at any time.
That means—
“So, if we go to ‘Dragon’s Agito,’ we might run into the Queen’s resurrection in progress.”
“Yes.”
That was hardly welcome news.
If we were present at the scene, we would likely have to fight the resurrected Queen.
“What’s the specific method for the Queen’s resurrection?”
“I don’t know. Only Keter and some elders seem to know. The elders of this village didn’t know.”
“So, we have to go in blind.”
“Yes. I believe so.”
Well, well.
It seems I won’t be allowed to take it easy.
“Have you heard anything about the Queen’s strength?”
“No, nothing specific. But it is said that the power of the ten-headed Dragon King Sephiroth is such that even ten Ancient Dragons working together would not be a match for it. Even if the human blood for sacrifices is insufficient and the resurrection is incomplete, her power can be inferred.”
“Ugh. That’s truly terrifying.”
I couldn’t help but force a smile.
Ten Ancient Dragons combined wouldn’t be enough.
With power inflation progressing this far, it’s truly entering the realm of myth.
Even facing one Ancient Dragon was a struggle.
No matter how much I’ve gotten stronger, if such a monster were to be fully resurrected, I would be completely out of my depth this time.
Well, it doesn’t feel real.
Even if told that such a mythical monster would be resurrected in this world, it’s hard to grasp.
But for such a great calamity, it would be too late to panic by the time it feels real.
It’s fine to act even if I don’t feel it.
Then, after a moment of hesitation, Biner looked at me with determined eyes.
“So, Douglas-san. I wanted to ask you to come with me to ‘Dragon’s Agito.'”
“Yeah, I figured.”
“But my request is just that. You have no obligation to follow it.”
“That’s right.”
“Still, I will ask you to come with me to a death trap. Human hero Douglas—will you please come with me to ‘Dragon’s Agito’?”
With that, Biner extended her right hand towards me.
This was the place for my final decision.
If I took her hand, there would be no turning back.
I took a deep breath.
Then I told Biner, “Please wait just a moment.”
After that, I called out to my wives.
First, to my axe on my shoulder, Lombardia.
“Lombardia, I intend to go to ‘Dragon’s Agito’ with Biner. But I can’t do anything alone. I need you. So, Lombardia—please come with me.”
“Fufufu, of course? What are you saying now? We are one. We will never be apart.”
From Lombardia, a delighted thought, free of hesitation, returned.
I smiled and teased my dear partner.
“Well, on the bed too, we were entwined, one in body and soul.”
“Wh—!? You’re not talking about something like that, are you!?”
“Hahahaha. I know, I know.”
“Geeeeh! I’m the older one though!”
I laughed and calmed down the flustered Lombardia.
Next were Miina, Elen, and Seraphina.
My feelings towards them were a little different.
“—So, I’m going to ‘Dragon’s Agito’ with Lombardia. But this time, there’s no guarantee we’ll come back alive. We don’t even know if it’s a good bet.”
The three wives nodded.
I continued.
“Unlike Lombardia, I can give all of you the freedom to choose. If you feel you can’t follow a reckless old man like me anymore, you can abandon me here—ouch! Ouch! What was that!”
All three of them kicked my shin at the same time.
Even Seraphina, who would never normally do something like this, joined in.
Looking at them, all three had angry expressions.
Why? Miina said.
“Douglas… Why didn’t you ask Miina and the others to ‘come with you’ like you did Lombardia! Is that all you think of Miina and the others!?”
“N-no, that’s not it! Lombardia is indispensable for combat power, but for Miina and the others, it’s not to that extent—”
“Hmph. So, you mean Miina and the others are useless hindrances! I’m sorry for being small fry!”
“That’s not it. For important matters like this, you have to decide for yourselves—”
Even as I tried to explain, Miina didn’t seem convinced at all.
She stood with her arms crossed, puffing out her cheeks in anger.
Next to me, Biner made a “Achoo” face, and a pitying thought came from Lombardia, “You…”
Then Elen leaned in close to me.
The swordsgirl, in her momentum, pointed her index finger right at my nose.
“Hey Douglas! Was our relationship with you only that much? If so, I won’t forgive you for choosing to save the people of the world over us! Hey, us or the world, which is more important!?”
“N-no, you’re talking nonsense!”
“It’s not nonsense! I’m asking you, us or the people of the world, which is more important!”
“No, I mean…”
I don’t think it’s something to compare, but if she puts it that way, does it mean I’m prioritizing the people of the world over Elen and the others…?
No, if it were a comparison between the world and Elen and the others, I would definitely choose my wives…
Hmm, how did it come to this?
As I was flustered, it was Seraphina’s turn.
She maintained her usual calm demeanor, but she looked at me with a definite dark aura and pressure.
“Douglas-sama. While I find Elen’s words questionable,”
“Eh, wait, Seraphina, betrayal?”
Elen interjected, but Seraphina ignored her.
The young sage looked only at me and pleaded.
“I understand that what Douglas-sama said just now was out of your kindness. But I—wanted to hear the words ‘please come with me.’ The same words you directed to Lombardia. Because otherwise, wouldn’t it be too formal! Was the bond between us and Douglas-sama really like that…!?”
Seraphina’s eyes were moist with tears as she cried out.
Looking around, Miina and Elen were the same.
This is quite a situation…
I curved my mouth and scratched the back of my neck.
It seems I misjudged how to handle this.
Alright, I’ll admit my mistake.
I turned to face the three of them again.
“Sorry, let me rephrase that. Miina, Elen, Seraphina—the place we’re heading to might be an even greater death trap than before. But please, come with me. I want to share our fate together.”
With that, I unexpectedly hugged the three of them together.
“Nya!?” “Whoa!” “Yes!?” came their surprised voices—
But those voices quickly turned into affirmative ones.
“Honestly, you should have just said that honestly from the start, nya.”
“Ehehe. That’s more like it.”
“Thank you, Douglas-sama. I, Seraphina, am a happy woman.”
With that, all three hugged me tightly.
The affection I felt for the three of them overflowed my heart.
After releasing my wives, I took Biner’s hand again.
“It’s decided. I’m going to ‘Dragon’s Agito.’ My wives are coming too. —But before that, can you give me some time?”
Biner smiled softly and said,
“Yes, I understand. That’s something Douglas-san and the others need to do right now, isn’t it?”
“Yes, that’s right. Before saving humanity, I—want to have plenty of lewd fun with my wives.”
When I said that with a serious tone, Biner replied, “I knew it,” and laughed.
