We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
To the North.
“Everyone, you’re safe!”
“Oh, it’s the kid. And Mistral too.”
“What are you guys doing? Weren’t you on your honeymoon to the east?”
“Kuwaa. What was that explosion and shock just now!”
Near where they were restoring the suspension bridge, chicken dragons had built nests since early spring. That’s why I came to check on them because I was worried.
For some reason, the dragon people who were supposed to be working at the suspension bridge restoration site were hiding in the chicken dragons’ nests.
Among them, I found a man I knew from Mistral’s village, and we confirmed each other’s safety.
“We were attacked early this morning and had to flee in a hurry. Then we were saved by these dragon folk.”
“It was tough. Even for us, we couldn’t fight against nearly twenty wyverns and earth dragons.”
After being ambushed, the dragon people who were staying at the worksite apparently fled in all directions.
The chicken dragons had dispatched scouts due to the disturbances that occurred nearby, and they sheltered the dragon people who had fled and hidden in the forests and valleys.
“It’s all thanks to you, kid. We were saved because you were on good terms with these folk.”
“No thanks are needed. We unite against evil!”
“Thank you, thank you.”
“Kuwawa. What is this fruit!? It’s delicious!”
Despite saying no thanks were needed, we couldn’t help but laugh as the chicken dragons immediately pecked at the Spirit Tree Fruits that Ares-chan took out.
“I’ll collect the seeds.”
“I’ll take the seeds too.”
“Twin princesses, are you planning to collect even more seeds…?”
“Still, that explosion earlier was amazing.”
Ares-chan took out five Spirit Tree Fruits from a mysterious space. The chicken dragons shared them and pecked at them. Mistral said this, looking pleased with the chicken dragons’ behavior.
“That’s right. What was that?”
Urged by Laira, Yufilia took out several Spirit Tree Jewels from between her breasts.
“I thought of it as a reward for Asher. And realized it could be useful.”
“I thought, ‘Instead of a defensive formation, if we imbue it with an offensive formation, it could become a weapon’.”
“But, that power was…”
Revalia said that Spirit Tree Jewels greatly amplify the power of the imbued Dragon Arts, but is that really true?
“Could you please imbue a jewel with an art again here? Let’s say, a barrier type if possible. A destructive type would be too dangerous to verify.”
At Mistral’s request, Yufilia performed a demonstration.
As we, the entourage, the chicken dragons, and the dragon people watched with interest, Yufilia imbued the jewel with Dragon Energy.
This time, to make it easier to understand, she placed the jewel on her palm and sent Dragon Energy into it. Then, the milky white Spirit Tree Jewel began to glow gradually.
It started to emit light as if light was overflowing from its center. However, unlike the jewels we received from Asher, it didn’t shimmer with a beautiful rainbow color, but with a shimmering light that overflowed wavy.
Perhaps it looked somewhat like a rainbow depending on the angle and situation. It might be why Nina saw it as a rainbow for a moment when she dropped it from behind Revalia.
However, no special effects were observed so far.
“Hmm. You have more Dragon Energy than I’d expect from a human.”
“Whoa, that’s more Dragon Power than I have. I’d be drained of Dragon Power with that much.”
“What a mysterious girl.”
Apparently, Yufilia’s Dragon Energy was extraordinary even to the dragon people.
“But. The jewel has Dragon Energy in it, but it’s just a lot of it, isn’t it?”
To my question, Mistral took the jewel from Yufilia and looked at it intently. Then, she handed it to Nina.
“Well then, could you activate it?”
“Leave it to me.”
Nina, who received the jewel imbued with Yufilia’s Dragon Energy, concentrated her consciousness.
This time, the Dragon Energy in the jewel on Nina’s palm began to change.
“This is…”
“Uwaa! Amazing!”
Revalia and Fiorina gasped from behind.
“Hya!”
Nina threw the jewel towards the center of the chicken dragons’ nest. Immediately. The area around the nest shone like soap bubbles, and a powerful barrier was erected.
“Th-this is amazing.”
“What incredible power!”
“Kuwaa. It’s on par with dragons.”
The barrier Nina activated was so well-made that even the dragon people marveled at it.
And watching the series of events, we understood. This must be a special technique of the Twin Princesses.
“The power of that explosion wasn’t amplified. It was just that Yufi’s Dragon Energy was extraordinary.”
“The meticulousness of refining Dragon Energy felt even more advanced than that of dragonkind. It was probably more finely refined than Elnea-kun’s.”
When Yufilia and Nina use Dragon Arts, they are like one person. Yufilia, who possesses extraordinary Dragon Power, cannot refine Dragon Energy. Conversely, her younger sister, Nina, lacks Dragon Power but can finely refine Dragon Energy.
Their compatibility. Because they are twins, they can freely transfer Dragon Energy through objects. Extraordinary Dragon Power and delicate refinement that surprises even dragonfolk. If these conditions are not met, techniques using jewels like those of the Twin Princesses are impossible.
In other words, it seems to be a Dragon Art that only Yufilia and Nina can use.
And they were originally skilled at a indiscriminate Dragon Art called Ryū Sō Ranbu. It’s a Dragon Art that scatters dragon lances in all directions, and while each individual lance is not as powerful as my or Mistral’s dragon lances, if all of them were gathered into a single strike, it might have the same power as this explosion.
“Honestly, your kin is unbelievable…”
Revalia sighed in exasperation.
But what does she mean by sighing at me?
Everyone is working hard to grow, and this is one of their achievements, so they should be blessed, not sighed at!
We decided to take a break in the chicken dragons’ nest, where a powerful barrier had been erected.
The food we brought as a souvenir for the chicken dragons was consumed together with the dragon people who were present.
We briefly recounted the story from the Yorttenitos Kingdom, and the topic shifted to the recent commotion at Dragon Peak.
“There is no other place outside the village where so many dragon people are gathered like this. That’s why they launched the assault. If many dragon people were sacrificed, the influence of those in the north would increase.”
“Then, are the merchant caravans that headed to the capital city also in danger?”
“They should be fine. They are more skilled than us.”
Speaking of which, everyone who can move freely around Dragon Peak after leaving the dragon people’s village is a top-tier warrior.
“We and the caravan folks don’t need to worry. If you’re willing to help with the dragon people’s commotion, we would be deeply grateful.”
“We know the kid’s abilities and character. You’ll be fine, so do your best.”
Everyone who was involved in the suspension bridge restoration work responded favorably to us.
“By the way, Mistral. Did you see the face of the person riding the wyvern?”
“I’m sorry, I haven’t confirmed it.”
The black dragon knight who was the command center flew away from Revalia, and was crushed to death, so not only Mistral but we also didn’t get a good look at his face.
“I see.”
Seeing the shadow fall on the man’s face, Mistral asked again. Then, an odd answer came back.
“I hope I’m mistaken. But that person was from Orta’s home tribe.”
The man apparently caught a glimpse of the face behind the black dragon knight’s helmet by chance during the attack. And he said it was a face he had seen during Orta’s commotion three years ago.
However, I couldn’t grasp the meaning of the man’s words.
There have been cases before where dragon warrior men were cursed by magic swords and became magic sword wielders, attacking us. Each time we investigated which tribe they were from, but is there a special problem if they are from Orta’s home tribe?
Certainly, Orta’s tribe was an aggressive, power-worshipping tribe. But during the commotion three years ago, they were hostile to Orta, who was from the same tribe?
What do you mean? I turned to Mistral, and our eyes met as she was deep in thought.
“If that black dragon knight was truly a warrior from that tribe… Revalia, there’s a place I want you to go. Can we depart immediately?”
To our question of “What’s suddenly wrong?”, Mistral quickly began to prepare.
“I’ll explain in the air. There’s something I want to confirm as soon as possible.”
“Mistral, isn’t that dangerous?”
To the man who asked, Mistral shook her head in response.
“Even so, I must confirm. Otherwise, no one will be able to stop Orta anymore.”
Our sudden break ended, and we quickly climbed onto Revalia’s back.
Apologizing for not being able to help with the suspension bridge restoration, we hurriedly returned to the sky.
“Revalia, to the Dragon’s Mausoleum. Head towards the northernmost dragon folk village.”
At Mistral’s command, Revalia let out a roar and flapped her wings towards the north.
“Dragon’s Mausoleum?”
We tilted our heads at the place name we heard for the first time.
“Orta’s village, where she was born and raised, is located at the northernmost part of Dragon Peak. However, that is not the northernmost point of Dragon Peak itself.”
Dragon Peak stretches long from north to south, forming a buffer zone separating the demon races of the west from the human races of the east. Furthermore, it extends south to the Divine Race Empire, and north to the edge of the continent.
However, the dragon folk villages are not scattered all the way to the northern coast. Rather, the villages do not spread out that far to the north.
“The northern part of Dragon Peak is entirely inhabited by dragons. Even dragon folk cannot easily enter due to the harsh environment. And that is why dragons, when they reach the end of their lives, head north. They seem to want to die peacefully in a world without dragon folk, a domain solely for dragons. That is why we dragon folk call the northernmost edge of the north, ‘Dragon’s Mausoleum’. And the northernmost village among the dragon folk villages is exactly where Orta was born and raised.”
There are several paths leading to the Dragon’s Mausoleum. The northernmost dragon folk village is located on one of these paths.
Not only is the natural environment harsh, but it is also extremely dangerous as dragons sensing their approaching death roam north.
One careless step can lead directly to death. That is why Orta’s tribe sought power. And their ideology became that power is everything.
Then, why do they build their village in such a dangerous place and continue to live there? They apparently also possess pride and conviction in protecting the Dragon’s Mausoleum. They have spun history and tradition over many years. Perhaps it is not our place to interfere with it.
I listened to Mistral’s explanation while on Revalia’s back.
“Then, how do the words of Miss Mist and the fact that someone from the northernmost village was cursed connect?”
Mistral said that no one would be able to stop Orta. What did she mean?
“The people of Orta’s village, while seeking power, have immense pride. Therefore, they did not participate in the commotion of the northern dragon folk.”
Not all dragon folk living in the north are causing trouble. There are, of course, tribes that cherish the bonds of their race, and tribes that dislike collaborating with demon races. The northernmost village also maintained a distance from the tribes causing the commotion.
They were also hostile to Orta when she rampaged three years ago, so it seems they do not drown in greed even though they seek power.
“However, if someone from Orta’s village was cursed and became a black dragon knight… it’s possible that the village was attacked by Orta or demons.”
“Ah!”
Mistral looked at me and nodded.
“They can control the paths leading to the Dragon’s Mausoleum. This means they can accurately attack dragons nearing their death. And then, curse them.”
“Could that possibly be…”
By now, everyone had understood what Mistral was trying to say.
I remembered the multi-headed dragon in the Yorttenitos Kingdom.
Unable to die even though they wanted to, and then being cursed…
“If Rotten Dragons are being controlled, we won’t be able to fight back. Furthermore, there is the Ryūhōken in the northernmost village…”
“Ryūhōken?”
“Yes. It is said to be a pair of sacred swords offered by a dragon folk hero in the distant past to the King of Dragons who ruled Dragon Peak. If Orta takes those, no one will be able to defeat Orta anymore.”
Mistral glared north with a grim expression.
