We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
A Sweet Night
I entrusted the White Sword to Old Man Sleigsta. Of course, my wives also handed over their beloved weapons, but Mistral, as always, kept his jet-black one-handed club.
Well, without that, I wouldn’t be able to punish Old Man Sleigsta for his pranks, right?
And so, watching Old Man Sleigsta desperately try to persuade Mistral to hand over his one-handed club, I entered the depths of the Dragon Forest with a laugh.
When I reached the Moss Garden, there was a place I absolutely had to visit!
That’s right. I have to go to the roots of the Spirit Tree and deal with the Spirit King of the Spirit Tree. Otherwise, the capital of the Armēdo Kingdom will be swallowed by the treacherous forest.
Now then. I wonder how many days it will take before I’m released this time!?
The moment I entered the depths of the Dragon Forest from the Moss Garden, I began to feel the dense presence of spirits all around me, and I braced myself for a new disturbance.
“Gasp, gasp…”
And then, five days later, in the evening.
I returned to the Moss Garden, battered and bruised.
“Oh, welcome back?”
Even though it was evening, Mistral was in the Moss Garden.
“I-I’m back. Why are you, Mistral, still in the Moss Garden at this hour?”
Old Man Sleigsta, as usual, was lying on his side, his mountain-like body relaxed. Beside him, Mistral was leisurely drinking tea alone.
I tilted my head.
Mistral gave a wry smile, and Old Man Sleigsta opened his closed eyelids, looking back at me with his golden eyes.
“Hmm, as you predicted.”
“Predicted?”
What could he be talking about? Tilting my head further, I walked over to Mistral’s side.
Mistral offered me some tea.
I thanked him and poured the tea down my parched throat. After watching me, Mistral smiled and told me.
“We all predicted you’d be back in five days. That’s why, even after finishing my morning duties, I didn’t go back and waited for you.”
“How could you have predicted that!?”
I was covered in wounds. Even so, they were just dirt and scratches from interacting with the spirits. There were no significant injuries that would cause me to be severely ill. Mistral examined my entire body and confirmed this, chuckling, “Couldn’t anyone imagine that?”
“Because, it’s like this, isn’t it? You left the mansion in the Forbidden Territory, and the rendezvous point at the Wind Valley was set for five days later. But you got caught up in Alice’s commotion and arrived five days after the deadline. If the Spirit King heard about that, he would surely say, ‘Then you shall spend five days here too,’ wouldn’t he?”
“That’s exactly what happened!”
Yes. Just as Mistral said, it was as predicted!
It had been a while since I last visited the roots of the Spirit Tree in the Dragon Forest, and I had been dealing with the Spirit King and the spirits for five whole days!
I danced the Dedication Dragon Sword Dance, played tag and hide-and-seek. When I got tired and sat down on the ground, they told me various adventure tales.
When we defeated Kongo no Kirisame, the spirits of the Dragon King’s Forest also cooperated a lot.
To repay their favor, I wholeheartedly engaged with the Spirit King and the spirits until they were satisfied.
The result of that is me being covered in wounds…
“For someone like you, who isn’t of the Mimicho Race, to interact so deeply with the spirits. You realize you’re gaining valuable experience and making it your own, don’t you?”
“Yes. It was a fulfilling five days!”
“But for us, who were left waiting, it felt like a long five days, you know?”
“Ugh. I’m sorry for always making you wait, okay? But it’s strange. If you could predict I’d be back in five days, why aren’t everyone else here too?”
As I accepted the second cup of tea from Mistral, I honestly voiced my question. Then, Mistral puffed out his chest triumphantly.
“Fufufu. Well, you see. I have morning duties, so I have to come to the Moss Garden, right? But what about Ruiseine and the others?”
“Wow. You’re a mean one, Mistral! So, you made sure everyone knew that you could handle today’s duties alone, and came by yourself?”
To get from the Forbidden Territory to the Moss Garden, we had no choice but to rely on Old Man Sleigsta’s spatial transfer Great Dragon Arts.
Mistral had already laid out various traps and schemes to ensure he himself would be the one transferred. And once he arrived at the Moss Garden alone, all he had to do was wait for me.
“Do you think Laira would succeed with such elaborate schemes for a shortcut too?”
“Fufufu, perhaps. But I also had a miscalculation.”
“And that is?”
“I didn’t expect you to return in the evening.”
“Ah, I see!”
It seemed Mistral was lamenting that, despite all his careful planning to monopolize my time, I returned in the evening, leaving only a little time left.
“Well then. I suppose I should give Mistral, who won the battle for me, a proper reward, shouldn’t I?”
Sensing my inspiration, Old Man Sleigsta slowly closed his eyelids.
It seemed he was encouraging us to enjoy ourselves, just the two of us.
I gathered strength in my tired body again. Standing up, I took Mistral’s hand.
“Shall we spend tonight together like this? And then tomorrow morning, after taking care of Grandpa again, let’s return to the Forbidden Territory?”
Mistral’s eyes sparkled at my proposal.
“That’s a wonderful suggestion. Very well, I shall indulge my husband’s selfish whim.”
“Yes, please indulge my selfish whim tonight! So, Grandpa. I know I just got back, but Mistral and I are going out for a bit?”
“Old man, we’ll be leaving for now.”
Mistral and I, holding hands, left the Moss Garden.
From behind us, Old Man Sleigsta’s warm words echoed, “Enjoy yourselves to your heart’s content.”
“So, Elnea. Do you have any plans?”
“Hmm, let’s see.”
As soon as we stepped out of the Moss Garden, we were in the deep Dragon Forest, where ancient trees stood tall.
Looking back, the Moss Garden was no longer visible.
The Dragon Forest, enchanted by Old Man Sleigsta with a bewildering technique, confused even us.
As I walked through the deep forest of ancient trees, holding Mistral’s hand, I consulted him about my thoughts.
“I’ll ask Ares-chan to get ingredients for dinner, but what if we spend tonight by the lakeside in the south? The stars will surely be beautiful there!”
“Oh, that sounds lovely. Let’s go with your suggestion, then.”
Mistral and I, just the two of us. However, Ares-chan, who is one with me, will surely come along. Everyone, not just Mistral, knows this.
But Ares-chan understands the situation.
When we want to spend time alone as a couple, she doesn’t interfere or manifest. She even conceals her presence.
Perhaps she goes to play with Spirit Tree-chan during those times?
This time too, Ares-chan took out enough ingredients for one night from a mysterious space and handed them to us before quickly disappearing.
“Thank you,” we both said, and a gentle breeze enveloped us.
“Now, let’s head for the southern lake!”
“Do you think we’ll get there safely?”
“Mistral, if you say something so ominous, we’ll get lost in the Dragon Forest for five days again!”
“Oh, I wouldn’t mind that at all?”
“You’re such a mean Mistral tonight!”
We walked through the Dragon Forest together, chatting and laughing.
After a few steps, the scenery changed. As we avoided the ancient trees, the view changed further.
Enjoying the changing scenery of the forest, painted in the twilight hues, Mistral and I continued our walk side by side.
“By the way, is it rare for us to go out alone like this?”
“Yes. Someone always interferes or causes trouble, don’t they?”
“But that’s part of the fun, isn’t it?”
“Fufufu. It’s probably a pleasure only your wives know about?”
“Whoa. I’m so jealous.”
Mistral told me that there had been various topics of conversation during the five days I was visiting the Spirit Tree.
I laughed at the lively daily lives of the wives Mistral described, and in return, I recounted the events of the past five days with the spirits.
“…Speaking of which, Mistral?”
“I know what you want to say.”
“Then, shall we say it together?”
I gazed into Mistral’s eyes.
Mistral gazed into my eyes.
And then, at the same time, we both voiced the thought that had been on our minds.
“When will we ever reach the lakeside?”
We laughed together.
“So, you thought the same thing too!”
“Judging by this, it seems we might really get lost in the forest for five days?”
“Then, shall we give up on arriving tonight and look for a place to camp?”
“Hmm.”
As we continued to discuss while walking.
Suddenly, our vision opened up.
The sky, beginning to be dyed in the colors of night.
A vast expanse of water, beautifully reflecting the color of the sky.
Between the forest and the water’s edge, there was a small space with only undergrowth, a perfect spot for camping.
“Did Grandpa do us a favor?”
“Who knows? If it were Grandpa, I suspect he’d play a trick on us, though?”
“That’s true. Then, we were only able to reach our destination through sheer luck!”
“Fufufu, yes. Shall we boast about it to everyone when we get back?”
“If we do, our secret will be revealed to everyone, and I’ll be in a lot of trouble!”
Well, that would be fun too, wouldn’t it! As I honestly confessed my feelings, Mistral laughed, “What a troublesome husband, fond of commotion.”
“Now, before it gets completely dark, let’s prepare for camping.”
“Yes, let’s!”
While walking through the Dragon Forest, I had been picking up branches that could be used as firewood.
First, we flattened the ground to prevent the fire from spreading to the wilting undergrowth before winter. Then, we arranged larger stones collected from the lakeside in a circle to create a makeshift fire pit, and lit the firewood.
Mistral quickly began preparing dinner.
I took care of preparing our sleeping area.
Compared to the Forbidden Territory, the winter east of Dragon Peak is not as severe. Even so, if we were careless, it was already starting to get cold enough to freeze.
I took out some fur from my luggage to keep warm and used it as a futon.
If it was just Mistral and me, we should be able to get through the night with this fur.
“Speaking of which. Before winter arrives, don’t you think we need a bit more thick fur to get through the cold winter?”
The Forbidden Territory has become quite crowded lately.
Our family. All the Mimicho Race. And then, Shooting Star Sama’s group and Alice-san.
Even though we opened the Dragon King’s Inn, none of us expected such a large number of people so soon.
To get through the harsh winter of the Forbidden Territory, fireplaces and firewood alone won’t be enough. We need warm fur and undergarments for everyday use.
And, in my estimation, I feel like we’re a little short on fur.
Huh?
As for calculating women’s underwear, I can’t possibly do that.
So, I’ll leave that part to my wives.
But putting that aside.
As Mistral served the freshly prepared dishes into bowls, he answered my question.
“Fufufu. We haven’t overlooked that. While you were waiting, Priscilla went to the Northern Land with Nimia. They are scheduled to negotiate with the monkey-like beast race to get the necessary fur.”
“…Hey, Mistral. Doesn’t that sound a little unnerving? Just Priscilla-chan and Nimia alone!?”
I almost dropped the bowl containing the stewed fish that Mistral handed me.
Seeing that, Mistral let out a amused laugh.
“Don’t worry. Jab is with them. Jab will be spending this winter back in the Northern Land. We also need to consider Mei, you know?”
“That’s right. Jab is still living a double life between the Forbidden Territory and the Northern Land.”
Someday, Jab is scheduled to move to the Northern Land as well. However, Jab’s presence is still indispensable to the beast race.
“So, what materials did they take to negotiate with the monkey-like people?”
The beast races basically trade goods for goods, rather than buying and selling with currency.
To receive fur to get through the harsh winter of the Forbidden Territory, we have to prepare goods of equal value on our end.
“That would be the unimagined amount of sea fish you brought back, and specialties from the Forbidden Territory.”
Mistral seemed to have cooked quickly, but somehow, a wonderful meal was soon laid out before us.
Steaming hot stewed fish. Long grilled fish with salt. A small dish made of pounded fish paste and vegetables. Baked white fish.
“Itadakimasu,” we said in unison before letting out sighs of satisfaction.
As we ate, we talked endlessly.
As we ate the delicious meal, I glanced up and noticed that the curtain of night had fallen.
We were captivated by the starry sky.
Suddenly, a shooting star streaked across the night sky.
