We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
The raging storm and tears of mourning.
“Wait, just a moment, Ruilala!”
I parried Ruilala’s sharp thrust and protested.
But Ruilala’s eyes gleamed strangely, and she unleashed her next attack towards me, radiating killing intent.
What a demon!
To pursue her own desires at a time like this!
I dodged Ruilala’s two consecutive upper-body slashes by sliding to the side.
Just then, a cursed Dragon race warrior who had approached attacked me.
Dealing with Ruilala alone was already difficult, and now three cursed warriors had appeared.
In this emergency, the power of the Spirit Tree automatically activated.
Now that I was fused with Ares-chan, Ares-chan would handle the Spirit Tree’s arts.
Numerous leaves appeared around me, forming a multi-layered barrier that protected me from the cursed warriors’ attacks. However, they couldn’t completely block the fierce assaults. I dodged the weakened attacks and unleashed a flash of my White Sword, slicing open the abdomen of one of the cursed warriors.
The wounded warrior, however, attacked me without even seeming to care about the pain.
“Elnea-kun, if you take your eyes off me, you might die.”
“Hey, are you mad?!”
“Hahaha, I am mad. Don’t try to apply human common sense to demons.”
I parried Ruilala’s horizontal slash with the Spirit Tree Wooden Sword. Against the cursed warrior attacking from behind, I spun my body and swung my White Sword to keep him at bay. I also kicked Ruilala, sending her flying.
The moment Ruilala was blown away, I launched a series of attacks on the other cursed warriors.
While holding off Ruilala and the three cursed warriors, I glanced at the Giant Demon Lord.
Our gazes met.
Please do something about your foolish subordinate, Ruilala!
I appealed to her with my eyes, but she just pouted and averted her gaze.
Is that so? You won’t interfere?
It seems I’m expected to deal with this hardship on my own.
Mistral and the others, who had been trying to infiltrate the Necropolis, looked back at me with uneasy expressions.
“I’m fine, so everyone, go and rescue the imprisoned people!”
Everyone nodded at my shout, kicked away the soldiers at the entrance, and entered the castle.
I wanted them to proceed without any worries. That’s why I sent them off with an air of confidence. But the truth is, it was quite dangerous.
Ruilala’s swordsmanship was sharp, and she attacked me, exploiting the openings in my Dragon Sword Dance. Moreover, the cursed warriors were strong.
Listea had told me once that the ability of a magic sword user remained the same as their ability before being cursed.
I was facing three Dragon race warriors, who are said to be stronger than demons, and they were all warriors. This was too harsh.
Furthermore, they didn’t seem to feel pain even when wounded, launching terrifying, desperate attacks.
Ruilala’s triple thrust grazed my neck. As I leaned back to narrowly avoid it, a cursed warrior swung his magic sword at me from the side.
I activated Spatial Jump and narrowly escaped.
However, my posture was unstable, and I fell down after the jump.
The cursed warrior instantly detected my jump and approached.
One of the cursed warriors charged at me.
But this became an opportunity for me.
I quickly sprang up and slashed sideways with my White Sword at the cursed warrior who had broken away alone.
The cutting power of my White Sword was terrifying. It sliced from the cursed warrior’s left shoulder to below his right chest, cleaving him in two.
I could feel the magic power flowing from the gem embedded in the hilt of my White Sword.
I had been too focused on the battle in front of me and had lost the ability to contain the magic power.
But I didn’t have time to worry about that. If I let my guard down for even a moment, Ruilala or the cursed warriors would kill me.
As the magic power began to flow through my body, thunderclouds started to gather in the sky. Faint thunder rumbled in the distance.
I continued to perform the Dragon Sword Dance against the remaining two cursed warriors and Ruilala.
The gently falling sparkling raindrops gradually began to resemble storms, and a fierce gale began to blow.
Fortunately, most of the undead in the Necropolis had already disappeared due to previous purifications. However, the few remaining undead were eliminated not by a gentle purifying rain, but by a forced, raging storm.
This is no good!
The gem I received from the Giant Demon Lord is too dangerous.
It doesn’t mix with Mistral’s Dragon Energy or Ruiseine’s Hōryoku. Instead, it has too good a compatibility with my Storm Dragon Arts, pushing aside and forcefully merging with Mistral and Ruiseine’s powers.
And most importantly, the curse is preventing the Dragon Sword Dance from stopping.
“Nice, nice. Elnea-kun, you’re really getting into it!”
“That’s not it! My body is just moving because of the curse.”
I blocked Ruilala’s joyful attacks and counterattacked. Just then, the two cursed warriors approached from my blind spot.
However, to me, who could perceive space, they were clearly visible.
Although the Dragon Sword Dance couldn’t be stopped by the curse, I could still move my body freely according to my will.
Lightning resided in my White Sword. It attacked the cursed warrior, releasing a painful flash of light.
The moment my White Sword and the magic sword collided.
The lightning exploded, shattering the magic sword and sending an electric shock through the cursed warrior.
I glared sharply at the other cursed warrior.
The sky flashed brightly, and lightning struck the last remaining cursed warrior.
“You too… that’s enough!!”
As if responding to my strong will, countless lightning bolts flew towards Ruilala.
“Hahaha. Using magic in a sword fight is cheating.”
However, Ruilala only gave a slight spasm when she received my lightning strikes and seemed unconcerned.
“Now, shall we continue?”
I frowned at Ruilala’s excited voice.
She really is an imbecile when it comes to sword fighting!
I can’t be bothered to deal with a demon like her.
While I parried Ruilala’s sword strikes, I waited for an opportunity.
The Giant Demon Lord pretended not to notice Ruilala attacking me. So, she won’t care what happens to her retainers after they fought me!
I slowly accumulated power, waiting for the right moment.
“Elnea!”
Mistral shouted.
Everyone had rescued the people imprisoned in the Necropolis and returned.
“Everyone, get away from the castle!”
Mistral and the others, along with the rescued people, hurriedly fled.
Ruilala, seemingly unable to comprehend what I was about to do, furrowed her brow.
“I think you need to be punished.”
I smiled gleefully.
Ruilala eyed me suspiciously but swung her sword.
This is the moment I’ve been waiting for!
I blocked Ruilala’s sword with the Spirit Tree Wooden Sword.
Then, I sent my Dragon Energy into the Spirit Tree.
The vines entwined around the guard and hilt quickly extended and wrapped around Ruilala’s arm.
I activated Spatial Jump.
I performed Spatial Jump together with Ruilala.
The destination was inside the Necropolis.
“Guh…”
Ruilala clutched her chest and groaned in pain.
“Experiencing Spatial Jump for the first time causes extreme nausea, you know.”
I retracted the vines that had been wrapped around Ruilala.
Even for a demon like Ruilala, sudden nausea seemed to be unbearable. Her face turned pale, and her movements became sluggish.
Seeing this, I performed Spatial Jump once more.
Leaving Ruilala behind in the Necropolis.
Returning to my original position, I performed the final Dragon Sword Dance.
I intensely glared at the eerie Necropolis, constructed from bones, and powerfully swung down my White Sword, held high!
A mass of lightning, furiously swirling in the sky, descended upon the Necropolis.
Along with a thunderous roar that shook the ground, a flash of light, so intense it was impossible to look at, engulfed the Necropolis.
The attack had consumed all my power, and I instantly depleted my Dragon Power, collapsing.
The rescued Dragon race people were speechless at the sight before them.
“Elnea-sama, are you alright?”
Before the thunderous roar had even subsided, Lyra, who had arrived faster than anyone, embraced me.
“Yeah. I’m fine. More importantly…”
I looked at the rescued people.
At first, they were filled with the joy of rescue. Then, after witnessing the fierce lightning strike, the Dragon race people opened their eyes wide in confusion. However, as they looked at the corpses of the cursed warriors lying around, their expressions gradually darkened.
With Lyra supporting my weakening body, I moved towards the Dragon race people.
“I’m sorry. To save you all, I had no choice but to defeat them.”
I consider myself the representative of those who came here. The Giant Demon Lord might be the highest authority. To the Dragon race, Mistral might be the most important person. But it was I who decided to come here, and I take pride in being the center of my family.
Therefore, I must apologize on behalf of the warriors.
As I bowed deeply, a sobbing sound reached my ears.
Everyone else bowed their heads with grief-stricken expressions.
“You…”
“Ah, my son…”
Even though I knew they were cursed and couldn’t be saved, seeing the bodies of their family and lovers still filled them with immense sadness.
This situation was something we had known from before the battle began. But we had no other choice.
And all we could do now was offer our sincerest apologies.
As I bowed deeply, an old man approached.
“You are human, aren’t you? Why are you here?”
I looked up and met the gaze of the old man. His wrinkled face was wet with tears.
“I am the Dragon King Elnea Eris. I came with Dragon Princess Mistral to rescue everyone who was imprisoned by the demons.”
“…But, isn’t the woman behind you a demon?”
“She is the Giant Demon Lord. She is cooperating with us for certain reasons. Our enemy is the Northern Demon Lord Kusharilla. The Giant Demon Lord is an ally.”
I wonder if this explanation will be accepted.
Because of demons, their kin were cursed, and they themselves were imprisoned. Demons are all the same. They are an enemy race. It’s understandable that they would think that way.
The old man’s expression turned complex as he listened to my explanation. Then, with unsteady steps, he began to walk towards the Giant Demon Lord.
Worrying what he might do, Lyra and I followed him to the Giant Demon Lord’s side.
The old man walked up to the Giant Demon Lord and stared intently at her.
The Giant Demon Lord looked back at the old man.
Then, the old man bowed deeply, just as I had done.
“I am grateful for your assistance.”
Saying only that, the old man returned to the Dragon race people.
“Tribal chief…”
Someone voiced their dissatisfaction to the old man.
However, the old man shook his head sadly.
“It’s fine now. It’s fine. Though it is sad, I believe you all understand. It is our fault for not being able to stop the warriors. It is our folly to have been captured without being prepared to take the lives of our kin, knowing they could not be saved.”
The old man then turned to face us.
“Young human Dragon King, I thank you. For saving us. And for allowing our warriors to rest as warriors.”
The old man said, as if convincing himself, tears streaming down his face, that dying in battle is an honor for a warrior. That the warriors were honored by being defeated in a direct confrontation, not by schemes or surprise attacks.
We had no words to offer the weeping Dragon race people and could only watch as tears of mourning flowed.
“Wow, that was thrilling.”
Amidst the sorrow of the Dragon race people filling the ruined Necropolis, Ruilala appeared before us with a cheerful voice.
So that lightning strike didn’t cause any major injuries…
Ruilala’s clothes were torn, and she had a few scratches on her face, but she approached with seemingly unfazed steps.
“This match ends in a draw, too.”
Behind Ruilala, the Necropolis, built from bones, had been blown away without a trace.
Yet, I couldn’t defeat her, let alone inflict serious injury. Could it be that Ruilala is stronger than a Demon General?
“Ruilala, the play is over. Along with the Black Wings, thoroughly search to ensure no one was left behind.”
“Understood.”
Ordered by the Giant Demon Lord, Ruilala bowed respectfully, waved at me, and disappeared into the Necropolis.
The safety of this place will likely be secured by the demons.
It still feels strange to leave the safety check to demons, but if the Giant Demon Lord has taken it upon herself, we have no choice but to entrust it to her.
It will probably take some time for the Dragon race people to recover from their grief and regain their spirits.
Judging that the immediate crisis had passed, I buried my face in Lyra’s chest and began to rest.
