We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Between green and blue.
“I’m getting nervous.”
Crossing the mountain range, higher than the clouds, the forest green spread along the mountain slope gradually became deeper.
Nimia spoke, having crossed what seemed to be the main mountain range, releasing the Tyrannant.
Once free, the Tyrannant soared through the sky as if to declare its own superiority.
And then, Prince Friel whispered beside me.
“I’m looking forward to meeting the legendary winged dragon that received a noble title from the human race.”
When I smiled at him, Prince Friel nodded joyfully.
“Yes. It’s an honor to meet a dragon that soared the skies with our First King.”
Prince Friel probably has more feelings invested in this than we do.
Yugra is a great dragon who knew the first Yorttenitos King himself and the era of the kingdom’s founding. What is Prince Friel thinking about such a miraculous opportunity for the descendants of the founding king and that dragon to meet across eras?
And, although we have grown accustomed to immeasurable beings through Old Sleigsta and Asher, how will Prince Friel react when faced with an overwhelming presence?
I wonder if he’ll cowardly run away…
His heart must have been tempered by living with a flying dragon, so that’s unlikely.
“Still, Elnea, you are amazing.”
“Yes?”
Gazing at the mountain range’s ridge line from the sky, Prince Friel said.
“You have the amazing title of Dragon King, don’t you, Elnea?”
Before parting at the flying dragon’s nest, Prince Friel knew almost nothing about Dragon Peak.
Of course, he wouldn’t have known about the circumstances of those living on Dragon Peak, nor about the titles of the Dragon Race.
He must have learned many things from the flying dragon.
“It’s amazing that you’re recognized by other races.”
“No. I was just lucky.”
I met Old Sleigsta in the Dragon Forest. I encountered Mistral, and inherited the Dragon Jewel and title from Jiludo.
Since meeting Old Sleigsta, his guidance has brought me to where I am today.
“I don’t really want to say ‘luck is part of skill,’ but still, I believe encounters and the connections that spread from them are also one’s own ability.”
These are surprisingly mature words, I thought. Is this kind of thinking innate to his noble upbringing, or has living with the flying dragon truly matured Prince Friel so much?
“I will also become as splendid as Elnea. It’s thanks to Elnea that I can visit Earls like this, but I will grasp the connections from here on my own.”
“You’ve grown splendid.”
“You’re a sight for sore eyes.”
The Twin Princesses smiled at Prince Friel’s resolve.
To what extent do they see his growth?
The Twin Princesses looked at Prince Friel with satisfaction.
“We’re no longer needed.”
“You don’t need us anymore, do you?”
“Yes. I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble. But I’ll be alright now!”
Prince Friel made a fist at his chest.
“Now we can go to Elnea-kun without any reservations!”
“Now we can accompany Elnea-kun without any reservations!”
“Eh! … You two have that kind of relationship with Elnea!?”
“That’s right.”
“Indeed.”
“Then, my brother…”
“I don’t know.”
“We already have Elnea-kun.”
“Right!” they asked in agreement, and I was embraced by the Twin Princesses.
I was curious about what followed after “my brother…”, but that wasn’t the priority now. Mistral and Ruiseine joined in, trying to pull me away from the Twin Princesses, and a maiden war erupted on Nimia’s back.
“It’s hard to fly when you’re rampaging up there, nyan.”
Nimia is complaining.
I managed to escape the heaven and hell of the Twin Princesses on my own and took refuge in front with Prince Friel.
An unsettling atmosphere is brewing in the rear. It’s dangerous, so stay away.
it’s not my fault, by any means. The rampaging Twin Princesses are to blame.
“From my perspective, the cause is…”
“Nimia, don’t say any more!”
I grabbed onto Nimia and pleaded. Sometimes, escapism is necessary.
Prince Friel watched me and the womenfolk with a bitter smile, but offered no retorts.
“By the way, I heard that ‘Dragon King’ is a title, not a true king. Is that true?”
“Ah, that can be a bit misleading for the human race.”
When people hear ‘king,’ they immediately associate it with a ruler. That’s probably even more so for Prince Friel, who is royalty.
“It’s merely a title, and we don’t have the power to rule the Dragon Race or the land. However, Dragon Kings are viewed with respect by the Dragon Race.”
“So Elnea too? That’s amazing, to be respected by the Dragon Race.”
“No, no, I’m just seen as an oddity.”
Ashamed by Prince Friel’s dazzling gaze, I replied.
“A king without being a ruler. A respected figure. I want to be like that too.”
“Prince Friel, you can become a splendid Dragon Knight.”
I can’t possibly say “king.” Prince Friel is the fourth prince. His claim to the throne is the lowest among his siblings. And that sarcastic prince is the most likely candidate for the next king. I want the Prince Friel I’ve grown to know to do his best, but it’s not something I can openly say.
Prince Friel showed a complex expression at my encouragement.
“Certainly, at first, I worked hard with the sole desire of becoming a Dragon Knight. But now, it’s a little different. It’s something… I can’t quite express in words.”
“You’ve set a larger goal?”
“Yes, that’s right!”
Prince Friel nodded happily.
I hope his goal, larger than becoming a Dragon Knight, will bring happiness to the people of Yorttenitos Kingdom and to all of humankind.
“Please do your best.”
“Of course. I will do my utmost for my people, for the dragons, and for my sister… Laira!”
“We will also offer as much support as we can!”
“Thank you!”
Prince Friel and I hugged tightly.
“A new pervert, nyan.”
“That’s not it!”
I slumped my shoulders at Nimia’s retort.
Nimia had been flying at a slower speed since we crossed the mountain range.
This was partly because the Tyrannant was flying around the vicinity, and partly to avoid alarming the members of Carnela’s clan and the winged dragons with high-speed flight.
“To meet Earl, we need to stop by Carnela’s village first, right?”
“Nyan. It seems difficult to spot from above as it’s hidden in the forest. So I’m watching carefully, nyan.”
Ah, there’s that reason too.
“Carnela is the chief of the Dragon Race, isn’t she?”
“It seems so. The Dragon Race lives in clusters by tribe, and the one in charge becomes the chief, acting as the village representative. However, when making decisions, it seems the basic practice is to consult with everyone in the tribe.”
“Wow. Elnea, you know so much.”
“I’ve stayed on Dragon Peak a little longer than Your Highness.”
“A society not ruled by a king…”
Prince Friel nodded with deep emotion.
“Speaking of which, I heard that the social structure of the Demon Race is also a bit unusual.”
“Social structure?”
Prince Friel began to explain the specifics to me, who tilted my head in confusion.
“Yes. Like the human race, they have a class society with a Demon Lord and demon nobles. However, I heard from a flying dragon that they sometimes change countries.”
“Ah, you mean that!”
Something came to mind, and I nodded.
When the conflict between the Dragon Race and the Demon Race broke out in the village on the west side of Dragon Peak, a Demon Lord calling himself the ‘Giant Demon Lord’ descended before us.
Despite his appearance as a peerless beauty, the Demon Lord seemed like an immeasurable being radiating overwhelming terror.
The Giant Demon Lord originally ruled a central country among the demon-ruled nations. However, during the period when conflicts between the Dragon Race and demons intensified around Dragon Peak, he seems to have moved to a country bordering Dragon Peak.
Normally, this is impossible. Exchanging the countries they rule, no matter the circumstances.
If we were to compare it to humans, it would be like the kings of the Armēdo Kingdom and the Yorttenitos Kingdom switching places.
No, no. No matter how friendly they are, even if they are called twin kingdoms, an exchange of rulers like kings is absolutely impossible.
Yet, it happened in the Demon Race’s country.
This was due to the peculiar class structure of the Demon Race.
I had vaguely learned about it in school lectures, but the Demon Race’s countries seemed so distant. I hadn’t paid much attention, and moreover, detailed information about the Demon Race’s countries rarely reached the human nations.
So, I learned about it again from Mistral and the Dragon Race people.
I conveyed what I learned to Prince Friel.
The prince listened intently to my words, perhaps because he didn’t have knowledge of the countries in the distant western part of the Demon Race.
First, in the Armēdo Kingdom and the Yorttenitos Kingdom, there are only noble titles up to Earl. From the bottom, they are Baron, Viscount, and Earl, and above them are the royal family.
The generally recognized higher titles of Marquis and Duke do not exist, though they may or may not exist in other human kingdoms.
Since there are no other human kingdoms nearby besides the Armēdo Kingdom and the Yorttenitos Kingdom, that part is a bit ambiguous.
Now, the demon hierarchy. This was a bit unusual.
The title they can achieve through effort or meritorious deeds is Baron. This is the lowest title. There may be other classifications below Knight, but I heard about this from the Dragon Race, who don’t have a formal state, so I’m not entirely sure. In any case, it’s similar to humans.
Above that is the Viscount title, which is bestowed upon the legitimate children of a special demon race called the Primogenitor Race. Ruilala, whom we faced in the west, was a Viscount.
Next is the Earl title, which can be attained by those who have strived for several generations, contributed to the Demon Race, or possess particularly strong demonic power. The title of Marquis above that, I hear, cannot be attained without power and authority far removed from the lower titles.
And then, the Duke Rank.
This is a rank granted only to the Primogenitor Race.
Primogenitor Race.
I learned about this for the first time from Mistral.
After great conflicts and epidemics, where many creatures die, negative energy, miasma, gradually accumulates in the land.
And after many long years, from the densely accumulated miasma, new demons are born very rarely.
Demons born from miasma possess immeasurable power and knowledge. If they were to run amok as they pleased, it would be a great blow to the demons themselves, so they are confined with the status and territory of Duke Rank to suppress them.
However, the entity that bestows this Duke Rank is not the Demon Lord.
In fact, in the social structure of the Demon Race, the Demon Lord is just one of the ranks.
The Demon Lord is above the Duke Rank. In terms of hierarchy, it is the highest rank, granted a country and the privilege of ruling demons.
But, who bestows it? That becomes the question.
There exists an entity that rules over all of the Demon Race.
That being, who makes even the Demon Lord obey, is an absolute existence for the demons. The true ruler bestows the rank of Demon Lord and other titles.
The Primogenitor Race, which Mistral described as having immeasurable power, are confined to noble ranks, and there exists an entity that makes even that terrifying Giant Demon Lord obey.
And then, that absolute ruler assigns countries to the Demon Lords. It is also this being’s intention that the Giant Demon Lord, who previously ruled the central region, moved to a country bordering the eastern Dragon Peak.
Although I didn’t explain the incident at the western village to Prince Friel, I told him what I knew about the Demon Race’s society.
Prince Friel listened to my story with a pale face from the middle.
“To think that such a terrifying being existed…”
“Yes. When I learned about it, I was so scared I couldn’t sleep at night.”
We are now about to clash with the demons, who have such a terrifying being behind them.
No, we shouldn’t be fighting.
That’s why Wol, one of the Eight Great Dragon Kings, is going to the Giant Demon Lord to try and reason with him.
However, there is a presence of other Demon Lords, not the Giant Demon Lord, who seem to be plotting behind the scenes.
Prince Friel trembles knowing about the Demon Race’s society, but I turn pale at the potential turmoil that might occur.
“I’ve found the village, nyan.”
Nimia’s cheerful voice broke through the gloom that had settled over me and Prince Friel.
“Demons are scary, nyan. So let’s all cooperate and get along, nyan.”
“Yes, you’re right.”
I nodded.
In the direction Nimia was pointing, several houses were peeking out from behind a great tree, just before a cliff-lined valley.
