“Lydia! Ludia!”
“It’s been a while! How have you been?”
Upon entering the Crystal Palace, I was greeted by two girls, one about fifteen or sixteen and the other about six.
“It’s been a while, big sister, Athena!”
“We’re doing fine. How about you?”
“I’m good! I heard you were going on a journey, so Athena-sama and I prayed for you every day to make sure you didn’t do anything reckless.”
“I’d love to go on adventures too, so I’m really envious!”
So the girl called Athena was a boy… I see.
She had a silver tail, was wearing a white dress, and her beautiful hair, a pale sakura-tinged silver, was tied into twin tails, but she seemed younger than Yuri.
Her build, however, was impressive.
“It’s been a while, Lady Athena.”
“Ah, Emperor Folias. It’s been a while. Iris is waiting inside with her mother.”
“I understand. Yamato-dono, I apologize, but we will go ahead.”
So Iris, the Dragonian, is Emperor Folias’s fiancée.
My matter will likely take longer, so it’s better if His Majesty and his party finish their business first. It would help us out.
“Understood.”
“Then, excuse us for going ahead.”
Queen Heldinna gave a slight bow, and Emperor Folias and his party went inside.
“Nadia, once His Majesty’s business is done, I’ll have a little time, so let’s talk again later.”
“Okay!”
Freyas also called out to her daughter and followed Emperor Folias and his party.
“Well then, big sister, Athena. I’d like to introduce everyone, but is that reception room over there available?”
“It’s fine.”
“Okay! Let’s go!”
Pulled by my big sister’s hand, Lydia and Ludia walked towards the reception room. It seemed that Athena would introduce herself there as well, so I needed to introduce myself too, and we followed.
After entering the reception room and taking our seats, a Dragonian with beautiful jade-colored hair, reaching down to her waist, prepared drinks.
“Thank you, Eos.”
“Eh? This person is Eos?”
Mana exclaimed in surprise, and I was surprised too. This person was the Green Dragonian who had come to greet us!
“Yes. Eos is a G-rank Butler.”
Seriously? I mean, it’s not like Dragonian can’t register with the Guild, so it’s not impossible for there to be a butler, but I never thought a Hydragonian would be a butler.
“Not just me, Atropos-sama and Lachesis-sama are registered with the Trader’s Guild, and Clotho-sama is registered with the Crafter’s Guild. Hydragonians are also responsible for defending Mount Wilness, so we are registered with the Hunter’s Guild as well.”
Eos explained. Currently, there are five Hydragonians on Mount Wilness, including Gaia-sama. Eos is the youngest among them, but she is also of marriageable age, so she’s being told to descend the mountain soon. As Eos is a level 52 Green Dragonian, she apparently can’t easily find a partner. If she gets married, she’ll join her husband’s family. However, Hydragonians are more mobile and powerful in combat than other Dragonians. Therefore, many nobles are eager to propose, but Eos is tired of their ambitions and ulterior motives. For ten years, while active as a hunter, she didn’t intend to tie herself to anyone.
“That’s a rather unfortunate story.”
“It really is. But since we registered Eos during her hunter activities, she’s helped us with requests a few times, and even saved us.”
“Yes. If Eos hadn’t helped us, there were times we were in real danger.”
Ah, so that 10-year period is recent.
“You are Athena-sama’s best friends, and Nadia-sama’s younger sisters, so it’s only natural for me to help you. I consider you friends as well, so I would help even if that weren’t the case. More importantly, shouldn’t we proceed with the introductions?”
“Ah, that’s right.”
“Indeed.”
While that story is interesting, I need to introduce myself first.
“I’ll introduce ourselves first. I’m Athena Wilness Earthlight. I’m an Earthlight Dragonian.”
“I’m Nadia Sea Highwind. I’m Lydia and Ludia’s older sister, and I’m a Sea Dragonian!”
Athena is an Earth Dragon and Nadia is a Sea Dragon? More importantly, I understand Nadia having the surname Highwind, but what about Athena’s name? And Earthlight means she’s part Dragon too, right? Well, I can ask later.
“I am Yamato Hydrangea Mikami. I’m an M-rank Hunter.”
Everyone else introduced themselves after me. They seemed to have heard about us beforehand, so there wasn’t any particular surprise. They were also happy that Lydia and Ludia had become my fiancées.
“So you’re Yamato. You’ll be my sworn brother.”
Nadia said so, and she’s apparently 27 years old, so it’s true that I’ll be her sworn brother. However, it feels strange to be called sworn brother by Nadia, who is essentially a 6-year-old Dragonian. I should technically call her Nadia-san, but I can’t help but call her by her first name, making the “sworn sister” relationship feel more natural.
“But Yamato, you’re under an Order from Amister, right? That means Lydia and Ludia will be going to Amister too, won’t they?”
“That’s right. But it’s normal for a bride to go to her husband’s home, so you knew this would happen eventually, didn’t you?”
“It’s definitely sooner than we expected.”
She told me she didn’t expect us to get engaged before reaching adulthood. I also didn’t expect to get engaged to Lydia and Ludia, but looking back, I’m glad I did. So, Lydia and Ludia will be coming to Amister, but I still want them to be able to visit Valentia sometimes.
“It can’t be helped since you’re getting married.”
“That’s true, but I’m still envious.”
Nadia seems to understand things well for her age, but Athena still seems reluctant. Iris will marry Emperor Folias, and there won’t be any other children her age, so I understand feeling lonely. But won’t Athena also be descending the mountain soon?
“Athena, won’t you be able to descend the mountain soon too? Then you can decide what to do then, can’t you?”
“If that were the case, yes, but my mother is a Holy Mother Dragon, so she’s telling me to wait and see for a bit.”
“Ah, I see.”
“That can’t be helped, I suppose.”
Indeed, since Athena is the daughter of Gaia-sama, the Holy Mother Dragon, nobles wouldn’t leave her alone. Of course, trying to force themselves on her would mean making enemies of the Dragonians. If that happens, it would be pointless to have Athena descend the mountain knowing that. She’ll likely have guards, but the four Hydragonians on Mount Wilness are also responsible for its defense, and Eos needs to descend as well. It would be tough to have two Hydragonians leave, wouldn’t it?
“In that case, I’m jealous of Iris.”
“She found someone to meet.”
Apparently, Iris is Athena’s twin sister. I thought Dragonians could only get pregnant once, but it’s different with twins. The father of Athena and Iris came to Helios Orb a little before Sayuri-sama. He apparently couldn’t evolve into a High Human and died about 40 years ago. That guest, Saya Tomari, seemed to have been a literary person. Because of that, he was terrible at fighting, but after meeting Gaia-sama, he dedicated his life to the protection and development of Mount Wilness, and became an A-rank Crafter. Besides Gaia-sama, he surprisingly married three other Hydragonians besides Eos, and had four more children besides Athena and Iris, who have apparently already descended the mountain. Saya is treated like a saint among Dragonians, so I heard his remains were placed in a coffin and sunk into Crystal Lake. His name is famous in Valentia as well. Because he was an A-rank Crafter and married four Hydragonians, including Gaia-sama, he was targeted by nobles and even the Royal Family of that time. It seems he was always guarded by someone other than Gaia-sama, so he wasn’t viewed favorably despite his name. How selfish.
“It seems that the Crown Prince at the time was in the same situation. Therefore, after the Dragon King abdicated, it was forbidden to lay a hand on Saya-sama. In fact, the magic tools Saya-sama developed were highly useful for Dragon Knights.”
I’m curious about what those magic tools were. Since they were well-received by the Dragon Knights, they’re probably military secrets in Valentia, so it’s probably useless to inquire with the Crafter’s Guild.
“I’ve heard rumors.”
“Yeah.”
“Yes. I heard it was a magic tool that combined Knight Magic: Shielding with light magic.”
Just as I thought, our couple of Crafters knew about it.
“You know about it well.”
“Of course. Initially, it wasn’t for Dragon Knights, but for the Dragonian wives and the flying mounts, and some of it was transmitted to the Crafter’s Guild. However, the Dragon King and the Commander of the Dragon Knights at the time recognized its usefulness, and the country bought the manufacturing method for that magic tool.”
Bought the manufacturing method? Can they do that?
“They could back then. But that technology became exclusive to Valentia, and it became unusable by other countries and even Hunters. That’s why the Grand Crafter’s Master at the time completely prohibited the buying and selling of the manufacturing method.”
I felt relieved hearing that. If the manufacturing methods for jade silver and blue-gray iron were bought by the country, they would be completely monopolized. Even though we know the methods, if they were bought, their use would be prohibited, and it could even lead to war.
“That story is famous in Valentia. Rather, it seems the truth is that Saya-sama appealed to the Grand Crafter’s Master. Because of that, the country became chaotic, and it almost led to the refusal of cooperation from the Dragonians. So, that Dragon King abdicated in a hurry.”
Of course. Buying the manufacturing method for magic tools could lead to nobles pursuing their own interests. In that case, the common people would suffer, and the Dragonians living on Mount Wilness would also likely be affected. In fact, the people of Valentia were apparently on the verge of raising an army due to the oppression of that Dragon King. The Dragon King apparently even considered suppressing the rebellious populace with Dragon Knights, but since the Dragonians refused cooperation and even turned against them, the contracted Dragon Knights couldn’t move, and as a result, he was captured by the Crown Prince and lived out his life in confinement after abdicating.
After the Crown Prince became the Dragon King, the Crafter’s Guild apparently proposed buying back the manufacturing method from Valentia, but the Grand Crafter’s Master had already established new regulations, so they couldn’t buy it back. While it wasn’t impossible according to the regulations, they would have to return ten times the purchase price, and even negotiating with the headquarters of the Crafter’s Guild for such funds was impossible.
So, Saya-san tried to develop a similar item, but development was difficult, and as his lifespan approached, he decided to entrust the completion to future generations by releasing the magic he had bestowed.
That Dragon King is recorded in history as a dark ruler, but he was truly incompetent.
“So, if we can complete that magic tool, Saya-sama’s wish will be granted, is that right?”
“Yes. Moreover, it allows for an unconditional rank-up. However, it’s incredibly difficult. Several people have apparently completed it, but it’s said to be the same as Valentia’s secret magic tool, and its performance was inferior to what Saya-sama created. My father also made it, and he said something similar.”
Even the Grand Crafter’s Master could only create a degraded version of Saya-san’s?
The magic used was light-attribute magic and Knight Magic: Shielding. I can somewhat guess what kind of magic tool it is, and if I make it as I expect, it will probably be the same as that magic tool. In that case, should I change the magic itself? Once I return to Feel and register as a Crafter, I’ll try it.
