We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
It’s just me, Laila, and Tyrant.
“Well then, I’ll be counting on you from here.”
With that, Mistral, Ruiseine, and Priscilla-chan rode on the back of a giant Nimia and left the village.
Mistral had some business today. It seems that dragonkin with considerable ability, who live in various parts of Dragon Peak, were gathering for a discussion.
The agenda was about Orta, who might have resurrected, and the traitorous tribe.
Regarding Orta, they were gathering evidence to confirm if she had indeed resurrected, and if so, to find her hiding place. Another topic was: if Lady Laza was still alive and the seal was still effective, wouldn’t now be a good time to break it?
The traitorous tribe refers to a settlement of dragonkin who have been secretly working with the demon race since last year.
Apparently, they had a general idea of who it was. However, they lacked concrete proof, and if they showed suspicion openly, it could lead to conflict between races, so they were being cautious.
It was a discussion dealing with considerably difficult matters. However, as Mistral was about to head there, Priscilla-chan started throwing a tantrum.
She wanted to visit other villages too.
Mistral, who was surprisingly lenient with Priscilla-chan, agreed to let her accompany them by asking Ruiseine to take care of her during the meeting.
And so, everyone else departed, leaving Lyra and me behind.
Lyra wanted to go too, but Mistral convinced her to focus on her Dragon Energy training, which was far behind mine.
After seeing everyone off on Nimia’s back, Lyra decided to meditate in the village plaza.
I assisted her, helping her re-learn the handling of Dragon Energy from the very beginning.
Lyra’s self-taught way of using Dragon Energy was rough and inefficient.
Just as I had done with Lady Cerise after the ritual of declaration, I placed my hand on Lyra’s head to show her how to channel and refine Dragon Energy.
My handling of Dragon Energy seemed more delicate than that of the dragonkin. Some interested youths and warriors began meditating with us.
Lyra seemed to grasp what I was trying to convey immediately and was meditating well.
Seeing this, I felt relieved and began to meditate myself.
The high-altitude village had become quite warm. Meditating in the sun warmed my body.
As I meditated comfortably, time passed in the blink of an eye.
When I stopped meditating, everyone else had already finished and were taking a break.
Meditative fatigue?
As for me, I constantly draw power from the Dragon Veins, refine it, and channel it into the Spirit Tree and my body during meditation, so instead of getting tired, I actually feel energized.
However, those who cannot sense the Dragon Veins continuously consume Dragon Power, making long periods of meditation difficult.
“How can you meditate for such a long time?”
“I have to admit defeat, grudgingly.”
Perhaps I had ignited the fighting spirit of the warriors. Since I arrived in the village, they had been training harder than ever, as Zan had mentioned.
It was noon. “Where’s lunch?” “Make it yourself!” As men and women bickered, a flying dragon’s shadow streaked across the distant sky.
Tension enveloped the village.
Even with a flying dragon, a few warriors would be more than a match.
But that was a different issue from being on guard.
Koa instructed the non-combatant villagers to take shelter inside the buildings.
I couldn’t see Zan, but he must have been stationed somewhere, concealing his presence. His role was to disappear and catch attackers off guard.
Lyra and I looked up at the sky from the shadow of a longhouse.
The village was at a high altitude, close to the clouds. This meant that flying dragons, unable to fly above the clouds, would fly at a considerably lower altitude.
Even so, it was still high enough to look up at.
The shadow of the flying dragon, flapping its wings fiercely beneath the clouds, gradually grew larger.
Lyra, beside me, tensed up with nervousness.
But I recognized the outline of the flying dragon that had begun to appear, and felt relieved.
Then, I started walking towards the center of the plaza.
“Lady Elnea.”
Lyra called out to me with concern. I replied that it was a familiar flying dragon.
The flying dragon approaching the village was Tyrant.
The villagers knew Tyrant had reformed, but due to its past actions, they remained vigilant.
In the midst of the tense village, only I cheerfully waved to Tyrant.
Tyrant circled twice above the village before slowly descending.
Then, it landed with a deliberately powerful gust of wind.
There’s no point in trying to intimidate me.
“It’s been a while.”
As I greeted it, Tyrant snorted and looked down at me.
“Where is the Dragon Princess?”
“Mistral? Mistral is busy and not in the village right now.”
“Then you will suffice.”
With that, Tyrant, without a word, seized me.
“Uwah, what are you doing?”
“Obey me without question!”
As Tyrant was about to take off without any explanation, Lyra leaped out in front.
“What are you going to do to Lord Elnea?!”
Tyrant was surprisingly startled by Lyra’s sudden appearance. Moreover, it took several steps back in shock.
Aren’t you a bit too surprised?
“Lyra, it’s alright. Tyrant won’t harm anyone. Tyrant is also Lyra’s friend.”
“I am your wife.”
Tyrant growled at Lyra’s resolute spirit.
“You are a terrifying one.”
“What do you mean?”
Is he surprised that there was a bride besides Dragon Princess Mistral?
“Lord Elnea, are you perhaps talking to this flying dragon?”
I see. To those without Dragon Hearts, it must look like a terrifying flying dragon rumbling and my eerie muttering.
“Yes. For some reason, Tyrant is trying to take me somewhere.”
“Then I will go with you.”
“You jest.”
Tyrant’s face twitched, showing a clearly displeased expression.
Sensing Tyrant’s presence, Lyra suddenly became somber.
“Lyra can come too, right?”
Tyrant responded to my proposal with a sharp glare.
“Very well. Originally, I intended to take the Dragon Princess.”
With that, Tyrant grabbed Lyra with its other hand.
“No, no, I don’t know where we’re going, but at least let me ride on your back.”
No matter what, I didn’t want to travel through the air being held in both hands.
Tyrant reluctantly let us go. I held Lyra and leaped onto Tyrant’s back.
“Where are we going?”
Suddenly, Zan appeared in the garden.
“I don’t know. But it seems to have some business.”
Tyrant shot a vigilant glance at Zan, perhaps not noticing his presence.
It’s not surprised by this.
“It’s unclear what will happen. At least take your weapons.”
With that, Zan threw Lyra’s two-handed staff.
“Thank you.”
Before Lyra could even say thank you, Tyrant took off.
“Uwah, hey! There’s someone who isn’t used to riding, fly more carefully!”
It paid no heed to my protest. Tyrant flew off roughly and left the village.
Then, it headed west at high speed beneath the clouds.
I had ridden on Asher’s and Nimia’s backs before, and I had ridden Tyrant just a little while ago.
But this was Lyra’s first time.
“Hey, isn’t it amazing to be able to travel through the sky on the back of a flying dragon?”
I said, turning to her.
Lyra was overcome with emotion and was crying.
“I never thought I’d see the day I could ride on the back of a dragon.”
Well, I understand being moved, but is it really something to cry that much about?
Large tears danced in the wind.
“So, where are you taking us?”
“Humans should solve their own problems.”
But Tyrant said nothing more and continued to fly at high speed.
It seemed to be in a hurry.
This wasn’t going to be leisurely sightseeing. Tyrant’s urgency made me serious as well.
Lyra was still shedding tears, watching the flowing scenery with emotion, but it was her first time, so it couldn’t be helped.
Tyrant flew west at high speed.
It weaved through mountain ranges far higher than the clouds, passed by lakes, and crossed forests.
What on earth was making Tyrant hurry so much? Tyrant continued flying without rest.
“Hmph. Did we make it in time?”
And then, beyond several more mountain ranges, we witnessed it.
Black smoke rising. Flashes of light, and the sound of explosions boomed even from above.
“Lady Elnea, the village…”
Lyra pointed to the village where intense fighting was taking place.
“Revalia, what is this?”
“Fly low. Go down and see for yourself. That’s as far as I go.”
With that, Tyrant, lowering its altitude rapidly, entered the village.
Holding Lyra, I jumped off Tyrant’s back, protecting our surroundings with Dragon Energy.
As soon as we landed in the village, fireballs flew towards us.
Lyra blocked them with a barrier of Dragon Arts she had just learned.
We pushed aside the smoke and looked around the village to assess the situation.
“Lady Elnea, I will reinforce the dragonkin.”
Lyra acted immediately.
Clad in Dragon Energy, she swung her two-handed staff at the enemies of the dragonkin who were defending themselves.
The surprise attack from Lyra sent an enemy flying, its face caved in. It was a demon!
Demons were attacking the dragonkin village?!
Monsters with black bodies and goat heads, spider bodies and scorpion tails, ogres and imps. Terrifying and grotesque beings I had never seen before were attacking the dragonkin.
A demon wielding a scythe-like weapon found me and approached with murderous intent.
I blocked the scythe with my Spirit Tree Wooden Sword and cut it down with my White Sword.
“I’ll assist!”
Lyra approached the dragonkin she had saved and took a ready stance.
“Who are you?!”
A male dragonkin was surprised by me and Lyra, who had jumped from Tyrant flying overhead and dispatched the demons with a single blow each.
“We were brought by Tyrant from Dragon Princess Mistral’s village. Although our strength is limited, we will help.”
My words must have contained many questions. However, the male dragonkin nodded and readied his weapon with us.
Fireballs rained down.
We erected a barrier together to defend ourselves.
I confirmed the direction from which the fireballs were coming and refined my Dragon Energy.
As the smoke cleared, I spotted a demon in my field of vision.
I immediately fired a Dragon Art arrow.
My arrow was dodged, but a barrage of arrows from the dragonkin and Lyra followed, and the demon was defeated.
“Thank you. We were caught off guard and were at a standstill.”
Sounds of explosions, screams, and war cries echoed from all over the village.
No doubt fighting was taking place elsewhere as well.
“Let’s join up with the others!”
Fighting individually here would be futile. The enemy’s strength was unknown, and if overwhelmed by numbers, it would be too dangerous.
“I would like to, but there is a place that concerns me.”
With that, the man led Lyra and me.
He instantly cut down a goblin that emerged from behind a burning building.
The man appeared to be quite skilled, but I didn’t think he was a warrior. His presence and aura were different from Mistral’s village warriors.
Lyra and I ran, fending off demons that appeared on narrow paths or from the sky with Dragon Arts.
The man seemed to be heading out of the village. We leaped over the destroyed village outer wall and entered the forest outside.
There were demons in the forest too.
These were winged demons, the kind I had seen in the ruins of the capital city.
The man dodged an attack from a demon that ambushed him from a tree.
Lyra swung her two-handed staff to draw its attention.
At that moment, I used Spatial Jump to appear behind the demon and cut it in half with my White Sword.
Even against a dragon-attribute opponent, the White Sword showed terrifying sharpness.
The man’s eyes widened in surprise at my movement and the White Sword. But he quickly regained his composure and ran through the forest.
“There are still people left in the village.”
Lyra looked back anxiously as we ran.
“No problem. Most of them should have escaped. Those who remain are not warriors, but they are all capable.”
“What happened to the warriors?”
“They were tricked. The village warriors were lured out by the demons and are absent.”
“That means…”
Didn’t the demons plan this systematic attack on the dragonkin village?!
What on earth happened between this man’s village and the demons?
Lyra looked at me with concern, but for now, we could only follow the man.
We raced through the forest. Then, further ahead in the woods, a commotion was occurring.
“Damn it! They were being attacked here too!”
The man accelerated.
Deep in the forest, we saw dragonkin women, children, and the elderly fleeing in panic.
And many demons were surrounding them, closing in.
“Lyra, work with the man and deploy a defensive barrier with all your might!”
With those words, I rapidly refined my Dragon Energy and activated Spatial Jump.
Immediately after, I cut in between the fleeing dragonkin and the demons.
“Ryū Sō Ranbu!!”
I unleashed a barrage of Dragon Lances towards the group of demons.
