We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Let’s use it according to the dosage and administration.
Pulled by Mistral, I continue my walk in the forest.
Hmm. Mistral, I’m not used to calling you so casually. But if I don’t do it in my heart, I’ll end up calling you “Mistral-san” when I actually speak your name.
If I call you “san,” it feels like there’s still a distance between us, and I might drift apart again after we’ve become friends.
So, I’ll do my best to call you by your name.
“Now, Elnea.”
“Yes, Mistral-san.”
“Hm?”
Oh no. I immediately called you “san.”
How pathetic am I.
“Uh, uhm. What is it, Mistral?”
“Fufufu, that tone is fake.”
“Guh, I just got flustered.”
Mistral smiles at my strange tone.
“Let’s get a grip. Elnea.”
“Yes.”
My flustered heart tightens at Mistral’s slightly serious tone.
“Shall we talk a little about the Dragon Vein?”
“Speaking of which, there was something I needed to be cautious about, right?”
“Yes.”
That’s right. I’d forgotten.
On our walk, I needed to ask Mistral for more details about the Dragon Vein.
“Are you getting used to handling the Dragon Vein?”
I tilted my head at Mistral’s question.
“I wonder. Compared to the beginning, I can feel the Dragon Vein much more easily now.”
“Easily, you say. Normally, even Dragon Race people have to train to be able to sense it.”
Ah, speaking of which, Old Man Sleigsta said something similar at first.
“Elnea, you have a rare talent for a human.”
When Mistral says that, I start to think of myself as a pretty special existence.
“But, Elnea. That’s precisely why you must be more careful in handling the Dragon Vein.”
While walking through the Ancient Tree Forest, Mistral turned to me with a serious expression.
“Was it that dangerous?”
“Is it dangerous? For you, right now.”
Mistral tightened her grip on my hand. Mistral’s hand is warm and soft, and nice.
“Elnea. Do you know what happens when humans drink alcohol?”
Oh. The topic jumped quite a bit.
“Umm, they get drunk.”
“Yes. And drunk people want to drink more. And some people become addicted. Now, next question. Do you know what happens when sorcerers or miko deplete their power?”
“Uh. I learned it in school lectures. They become temporarily severely weakened, and some people sleep for days.”
“Yes.”
I remember Listea, who was a sorcerer, sleeping for days after she used up her curse power after defeating a Yōma.
Still, what’s the connection between these two questions?
“Sorcerers have something called curse power, and miko have magic power. Likewise, dragons and Dragon Race people have Dragon Power.”
I listen to Mistral’s explanation, nodding.
“Curse power, magic power, and Dragon Power are, so to speak, the invisible sources of power used to perform supernatural arts. Do you understand?”
“Uh, how is it different from Dragon Energy?”
Mistral patiently explains my doubt. She’s so kind.
“You can think of Dragon Energy as the flow of the Dragon Vein within your body. Dragon Power is the ability to store that flowing Dragon Vein within your body.”
I see, the ability to store it. I had always converted the Dragon Energy I drew from the Dragon Vein into power immediately, so the concept of ‘storing’ hadn’t occurred to me.
If that’s the case, then curse power and magic power are also stored within the body to use sorcery and magic, aren’t they?
Seeing my understanding, Mistral continues.
“Ancient Dragon Species like myself have immeasurable Dragon Power. Then there are the Dragons, who also possess immense power as they age, far beyond what Dragon Race can match. As for the Dragon Race, well, we’re average. However, just as there are individual differences among sorcerers and miko, there are also differences among us.”
“Wow, is that so?”
I thought that even if Dragon Race people couldn’t feel the Dragon Vein without training, they all naturally possessed immense Dragon Power by default.
“And so, Elnea.”
Mistral stops walking and looks at me with a serious expression.
“Normally, humans do not possess Dragon Power.”
“Eh?”
I’m surprised by Mistral’s unexpected statement.
Does that mean I can’t store Dragon Vein power within my body?
“That’s right. You cannot store the power of the Dragon Vein within your body.”
Mistral, sensing my surprise, says this.
“And that’s why this is important.”
Mistral takes my other, free hand, and speaks with an even more serious gaze.
“You, a human without Dragon Power, have been converting the power drawn from the Dragon Vein into Dragon Energy and using it immediately. Now, I asked you about alcohol first.”
“Yeah.”
“You are currently in a state similar to drinking alcohol. There is alcohol, meaning the Dragon Vein, that you can obtain, and you are drawing and drinking from it endlessly. The more you drink, that is, the more you draw, the more you crave the Dragon Vein, and you are on the verge of addiction.”
“What?! Is that how it was?”
I’m astonished by something I had no self-awareness of. I thought I was only drawing the necessary amount when I needed it.
But now that you mention it, that might be true. When the magic sword user appeared in the ruins, I was careful at first, but perhaps in the latter half, I drew as much as I could and used it like water.
“And next. You heard about those whose curse power or magic power was depleted.”
“Y-yes.”
From the flow of the conversation so far, I’m getting a very bad feeling.
“If curse power or magic power is depleted, your health deteriorates. The same applies to dragons and Dragon Race people. If our Dragon Power is depleted, we also experience health problems and may even collapse.”
“The type of power is different, but the symptoms you fall into are the same.”
“Yes. And, you have no Dragon Power.”
“Y-yes. That’s right.”
I was sweating cold sweat.
Mistral pauses.
“In other words, since you cannot store the Dragon Vein power you draw, you have been repeatedly experiencing both replenishment and depletion of Dragon Power in a short period.”
I was speechless.
I drew from the Dragon Vein so easily because I thought I could obtain it, and converted it into Dragon Energy to use.
But by exhausting the Dragon Vein power I drew each time, I was in a state of Dragon Power depletion at that moment.
Since I don’t possess it naturally, that’s what happens.
If that’s the case, then collapsing and sleeping when I returned from the ruins was because my body was weakened by the depletion of my power.
“Your power was still small, so it was fine this time. But if it were a large amount of power over a long period, there could have been a risk to your life.”
Mistral looks at me with concern.
If I overexert myself further when I’m already weakened, it could be life-threatening.
I sometimes see newspaper articles about sorcerers who pushed themselves too hard and died.
So, it was Old Man Sleigsta’s consideration that Mistral came to the ruins, sensing that I might be in danger due to the overuse of the Dragon Vein.
I trembled at the magnitude of the situation.
And Mistral gently hugged me.
“Don’t overdo it from now on.”
“Yeah.”
But there’s something else I’m curious about.
“Then why did Old Man Sleigsta teach me about the Dragon Vein?”
Old Man Sleigsta knew about my Dragon Power, of course. So why did he teach me, knowing it was dangerous?
“That’s because.”
Mistral told me, still hugging me gently.
“Sensing the Dragon Vein, the ability to draw from it, and converting it into Dragon Energy are essential for the Dragon Sword Dance. The Old Man wanted to bestow the Dragon Sword Dance upon you. He taught you what was necessary for that.”
“But, I don’t have Dragon Power, so it’s dangerous.”
“Yes. That’s why I taught you meditation first.”
As I brush against her, I look up at Mistral’s face, so close to me.
“It’s like alcohol. You get drunk quickly when you’re not used to it, but as you get used to it, you gradually become more tolerant. The Old Man had you meditate to have you sense the Dragon Vein and get used to it.”
“Yeah,” I nod.
“And as you got used to it, he then taught you how to refine it into Dragon Energy and use it.”
“But, since I don’t have Dragon Power, isn’t it dangerous to keep depleting and replenishing it?”
“Yes, so he had you use it little by little, again, to get you used to it.”
“Uh, is that something one gets used to?”
Is there such a thing as getting used to being weakened?
“Hmm, well…”
Mistral looks troubled as she struggles to explain.
Mistral tilts her head, and her hair brushes against my face. Her hair, almost silver, is fine and delicate, and smells wonderful.
“When you refine the Dragon Vein into Dragon Energy, Elnea, you learned to circulate it within your body, right?”
“Yeah, I learned to circulate the Dragon Vein’s power within my body and turn it into Dragon Energy.”
“That’s right. That’s the important part. By circulating it within your body, you make your body and mind aware of the Dragon Energy. Then, your instincts will try to get used to it and create what was lacking.”
“In other words, something that wasn’t there at first, Dragon Power, is created later.”
“Very well done.”
Mistral smiles and pats my head.
Girls often say they are happy when their heads are petted, but boys are happy too.
When Mistral pats my head, I feel a warm and fuzzy feeling.
“Once Dragon Power is born within your body, you can store it. Then, the dangerous situation of depletion every time you use it will be gone.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Meditation training had such a deep reason behind it. I had mistakenly thought that sensing the Dragon Vein was the most important thing.
“Alright, next question.”
“Ugh, I’m not good at questions.”
“Fufufu, if you get it wrong, there’s a penalty. Now, based on what we’ve discussed, what are the precautions? Summarize them.”
A summary question. I’m really not good at these.
“Uhm. In other words… in my current state, converting and using Dragon Energy leads to immediate depletion and is dangerous. I become weakened, and at worst, my life could be in danger. Just because I can draw from the Dragon Vein doesn’t mean I should draw it recklessly. First, I need to meditate and cultivate Dragon Power within my body.”
“Yes. Very well done.”
Mistral smiles with satisfaction at my answer.
I’ve been too casual about Dragon Veins and Dragon Energy. That’s why Mistral scolded me this morning. I regret it.
“If I did well, I want a reward.”
I demand. I want *that*. That thing.
However, Mistral senses my desires and looks down at me with a cold gaze.
“My lips are not cheap, you know.”
Gyafun. I was expecting something, but I’m so sad.
Mistral chuckles, seeing my dejected expression.
“Here, it’s not exactly a reward, but we’re almost at our destination.”
Mistral releases me from her embrace and points to the front of the Ancient Tree Forest.
I look in the direction she’s pointing.
In front of us, beyond the Ancient Tree Forest, I can see the trunk of a giant Spirit Tree.
Before I knew it, Mistral and I had arrived near the Spirit Tree.
It was so enormous, its trunk so thick, that I had only recognized it as part of the scenery until she pointed it out.
“Is the Spirit Tree our destination?”
“Yes, I’m looking for something there.”
“Looking for something? Did you lose something?”
“Fufufu, not exactly. It’s just a little something.”
Mistral’s words are enigmatic.
Speaking of which, Mistral and Old Man Sleigsta had a meaningful conversation when we went for a walk.
I wonder what it is. I feel like I’m being brushed off.
Ignoring my thoughts, Mistral takes my hand again and starts walking.
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