We live in the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Preparations for the journey have already begun.
When I awoke from my slumber, I was buried in a warm futon.
“Good morning, Elnea-sama,” Lyra said.
“Good morning, Lyra.”
And Lyra was also buried in the futon with me.
“Did I fall ill and become bedridden? Is this Lyra’s room?”
“That’s correct.”
Lyra shuffled closer inside the futon. I embraced her, seeking warmth.
“Hahaha! You foolish couple! Your evil deeds end here!”
“Hahahaha!”
“Astel!”
But our moment was quickly interrupted. The futon that had warmly enveloped Lyra and me was yanked away with great force. By Astel!
“Fufu, fufu. You seem to be enjoying yourselves in bed?”
“Even you, Elin-chan!? And this is Lyra’s room, so you can’t just barge in!”
Alas, this is problematic.
The mansion in the Forbidden Territory is vast, with countless rooms. We’ve allowed everyone staying at the mansion to choose their own rooms and use them as they please. However, there are basic rules for communal living. Besides separating our family’s quarters, the Mimicho race’s living area, and guest quarters, there are other rules. For example, even family members are not allowed to enter a room being used by an individual without permission.
This room is for Lyra’s personal use, so neither I nor my other wives would enter without permission. Yet, Astel and the Puppet King…
“Hehehe, that’s why you’re an idiot. You stupid Dragon King!”
Astel laughed at me as I sighed in exasperation.
What do you mean? I tilted my head, and Lyra curled herself up sadly.
“Fufu, fufu. My capricious cat-girl and I are here with permission, you know?”
“We have been tasked with monitoring your evil deeds! Too bad for you!”
The King of Puppets and a cheerful Astel watched us, huddled together on the bedding stripped of its futon.
“Uh, Lyra?”
I couldn’t expect a clear answer from Astel and the King of Puppets. So, I decided to ask Lyra, the occupant of this room.
Meeting my gaze, Lyra looked down guiltily. It seems there’s some reason behind this.
“Come now, Lyra, tell me?”
I gently conveyed that I wouldn’t be angry no matter the reason, and Lyra spoke while curled up on the bed.
“I was also ill until yesterday.”
“You too, Lyra? Why?”
Apparently, I had been asleep for three days. And Lyra had also been incapacitated by weakness for the past two days.
“Hahahaha! After Elnea-sama lost consciousness due to weakness, I tried using the Spirit Current Sword myself.”
“I see. So you were weakened by absorbing dragon energy.”
“It’s humiliating.”
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I’ve had my dragon energy absorbed and been bedridden for longer than you, Lyra. But why did you use the Spirit Current Sword?”
I looked around Lyra’s room, but the Spirit Current Sword was nowhere to be found. Astel and the King of Puppets didn’t have it either, so it must be stored somewhere. By the way, while I was listening to Lyra, Astel and the King of Puppets were happily rummaging through Lyra’s room.
Exploring other people’s rooms is fun! Not! I’ll scold them later. Anyway.
“I wanted to learn about dragon veins too.”
Lyra’s confession made me so happy that I hugged her.
“That’s right. It’s better for all of us to train in dragon veins together! You took the initiative to work hard, Lyra.”
“However, I failed.”
“Everyone fails at first. Even Lord Reed took ten years to master the basics of dragon veins.”
I myself have only grasped a sliver of it. The training is just beginning.
“So, how does that connect to Astel and Elin-chan’s surveillance?”
Astel grinned and turned to me, as if he’d been waiting for this.
“I’ll tell you because I have no choice. The Puppet King and I were tasked with monitoring since there was a chance you two might try something behind the backs of the fierce Mists. Too bad for you. Your evil deeds have been prevented!”
Beside Astel, who spoke proudly, the King of Puppets sighed.
“Fufu, fufu. That’s a lie. When you two were sleeping, we were ordered to monitor you because you tried to use the Four Star Guardians to play around and were stopped.”
“That foolish Lord Reed!”
Lyra and I burst out laughing.
In other words, we were both put to sleep in Lyra’s room to be cared for, as we were both weak and asleep. However, there was a risk that Lyra might try something if she woke up first. Therefore, Astel and the King of Puppets, who had their malicious plans against Lord Reed thwarted, were ordered by Mistral to monitor us.
Still.
These two really enjoy doing bad things, plotting against our new guest, Lord Reed, as soon as possible because they can’t plot against us. Also, Lord Reed, who easily thwarted the coordinated malicious plan of the two Primogenitors, is truly amazing.
“Well then, where are Mistral and the others who assigned you your roles?”
“Who knows? It’s still morning, so they’re probably honing their fierceness somewhere as usual.”
Astel’s words made me realize it was still early morning.
“Then, shall we go there too? Hehehe, it’s a place Astel and Elin-chan can’t go.”
“Fufu, fufu. That’s an interesting story. However, I don’t want to go to a place where formidable individuals are gathered, so please, go ahead by yourselves.”
Only those acknowledged by Old Man Sleigsta can reach the Moss Garden in the Dragon Forest. Moreover, to go there from this Forbidden Territory, we need to be teleported by Old Man Sleigsta’s Great Dragon Arts. But if Lyra and I were to head to the Moss Garden, Astel and the King of Puppets would surely try to stop us. We were surprised by the King of Puppets’ words, which went against our expectations.
“As expected, you’re a foolish Dragon King. Have we ever interfered with your morning plans before?”
“Now that you mention it…”
Indeed, have Astel and the King of Puppets ever stopped us from going to the Moss Garden? Well, sometimes they cause trouble if they make a fuss before we even set off. But I’ve never heard anyone like Mistral complain about Astel or the King of Puppets’ mischief.
“Fufu, fufu. While those esteemed individuals are terrifying, Mist is also terrifying, isn’t she?”
I was about to clap my hands in understanding, but I restrained myself. If I agreed with that, Mistral would lose patience with me. Mistral doesn’t get angry unreasonably. But when she does get angry, it’s usually because the other party is at fault. The King of Puppets and the others were probably scolded by Mistral when I wasn’t paying attention.
“Hmph, it’s not because I’m afraid of giant dragons! I’m just not a morning person.”
Come to think of it, Toris mentioned that Astel is bad-tempered when he just wakes up.
“Then, I’ll take you up on your offer.”
Finally, I took Lyra’s hand and got up.
“Right. I don’t know where you’re going, but take this. I got inspired by that Spirit Whatever Sword and made it. Hehehe. Suffer greatly, heroes.”
Astel casually threw two swords towards us, and Lyra and I hurriedly caught them.
“Uh, what is this…?”
One is a thick, straight sword. Its red sheath, red guard, and red hilt give it a flashy appearance, and it’s a heavy sword. When I tried drawing it, even the blade was red. The other is a bright blue longsword. This one is also predominantly blue, and of course, the blade is also blue. The intended users are Listea for the red straight sword and Slaton for the blue longsword.
“What kind of performance do these swords have? And aren’t they a bit too flashy!?”
Just as I’m entering the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country incognito, the hero and her partner will also have to hide their identities. Therefore, they cannot bring holy swords that could identify them into the Demon Race’s Country. It’s unclear how much information about Listea and the others has reached the Demon Race’s Country, but possessing holy swords created by the Eastern Magician could lead to immediate identification by high-ranking demons. Therefore, we had promised to prepare different swords for Listea and Slaton, not their beloved weapons. Of course, this plan was based on Astel creating those weapons. However, I couldn’t just hand over swords of unknown origin casually, so I questioned Astel, who muttered unsettling words.
“The idiot is asking an idiotic question, you idiot. If I tell you, it won’t be interesting, will it?”
“As expected, that’s how it is!”
Well, I already knew that before I asked. Still, I have a responsibility to ask.
“There aren’t any strange curses or troublesome abilities attached, are there? Since you based them on the Spirit Current Sword, does that mean they have some difficult way of handling them?”
The Spirit Current Sword probably requires mastery of dragon vein manipulation to even swing properly. These red straight sword and blue longsword might possess similar abilities. However, I couldn’t get a direct answer from Astel.
“If you cannot wield those swords by next year, you will abandon those two. Hehehe, I can already imagine their despair and it’s delightful.”
“Hmm, should I consider this Astel’s way of testing them? Of course, they have amazing abilities if we can wield them, right?”
“They’ll make the old holy swords seem dull.”
“That’s going too far!”
It’s Astel, after all. He’s embedding problems that could cause trouble later in places like this. Still, I gratefully accepted the two swords.
“Thank you, Astel. I’ll convey Astel’s warning to Listea and Slaton and give them the swords.”
“And then despair.”
“We’ll see. While Slaton might struggle, Listea is a rare and great hero. She will surely achieve results beyond Astel’s expectations.”
“Fufu, fufu. It would be nice if that were the case.”
“Even you, Elin-chan, are saying ominous things…”
I trust Listea. She will surely overcome Astel’s capricious trial with ease. The King of Puppets has also made some modifications, but I’m sure it will be fine!
“Elnea-sama, we should go see Sleigsta-sama now. Everyone is waiting for Elnea-sama to wake up.”
“Right. Astel and Elin-chan, behave yourselves in the Forbidden Territory, okay? Otherwise, Mistral will get angry.”
“You should be the one getting angry!”
“Fufufufu, scary, scary.”
Lyra and I first ushered Astel and the King of Puppets out of the room. Then, we headed together to the teleportation room. Apparently, all our family members except Lyra and I have gone to the Moss Garden. There was no sign of anyone in the Ys Family’s section. Lyra and I held hands and entered the teleportation room. From there, Sleigsta teleported us to the Moss Garden. And then, we saw it. Mistral and my wives were collapsed on the moss, and only Ruiseine, holding the Spirit Current Sword with ease, stood majestically.
“W-what on earth…!”
Lyra and I froze, witnessing the gruesome scene.
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