We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Nyan.
It’s not as large as Sleigsta the Old Man, who is like a small mountain, but the fake Nyanko transformed into a winged dragon that was still overwhelming. I wonder if it’s about three times the size of a wyvern.
Once the fake Nyanko stretched its body, it let out a cute “Nyaaa.”
“Nyanko!” Priscilla-chan, her eyes sparkling, leaped towards the giant fake Nyanko. Before anyone could even say “Be careful,” she had used Spatial Jump to land on the fake Nyanko’s back.
“W-W-Old Man. What in the world is going on?” Mistral looked flustered, something I rarely saw.
“Fufufu. This little girl must be a Snow Dragon child.”
“Snow Dragon?” Her fur is pink at the tips, but overall she’s white, so isn’t she a White Dragon? Or rather, she really was a Dragon Species, wasn’t she? I’d had a vague feeling she was ever since I saw her horns and wings. I bet everyone except Priscilla-chan had noticed.
“Indeed. This little girl is a Snow Dragon. White Dragons are Ancient Dragon Species that protect the Spirit Trees of the snowy plains. Snow Dragons are Guardian Battle Dragons that protect a section of the twelve-layered outer wall encircling the Ancient Capital. Of course, they are Ancient Species.”
The Ancient Capital? Guardian Battle Dragon? I tilted my head at the words I’d never heard before. Mistral also seemed to not know, and we both had question marks floating above our heads.
“Hahaha. The point is, this little girl is an Ancient Dragon Species from far away.”
“S-So, she’s the same Ancient Dragon Species as Sleigsta the Old Man.”
“That is correct.”
I felt like I still had about half my questions unanswered, but at least I finally knew the fake Nyanko’s true identity.
Priscilla-chan chattered happily on the fake Nyanko’s back. The fake Nyanko didn’t seem to mind. As I watched Priscilla-chan, the fake Nyanko turned its face towards me. Our gazes met.
“Hello, Nyans. Mysterious big brother.”
“Whoa!”
“Wow! The Nyanko talked!”
The fake Nyanko suddenly spoke, and I was so surprised I fell right on my backside. I looked up to see if Mistral was also surprised, but he was looking at me with a wry smile.
“Mistral, you weren’t surprised by that?”
“Well, if they are Ancient Dragon Species, they can speak human language.”
*Grrr*. Is that so? I didn’t know.
“Hello, Fake Nyanko-chan,” I said, composing myself.
“Nyan.” She narrowed her eyes happily and chirped.
“My name is Nimia-nyan!”
“Nimia-nyan-nyan!”
“Yes. Nyan-nyan.” The fake Nyanko, now Nimia-chan, leaped and rejoiced when Priscilla-chan said her name. She was hopping cute, but she was about three times the size of a wyvern. The ground shook with each thud. Also, I don’t think the “-chan” suffix is necessary. She’s enormous, after all.
“Nyan also likes -chan, nyan!”
Whoa, can this child also read minds? I’m so surprised.
Seeing Nimia-chan happily running around the Moss Garden, and Priscilla-chan happily chattering on her back, the atmosphere became peaceful. Although, when Nimia-chan ran, moss flew everywhere and the garden became bare. Is that okay?
“This much is no problem. My snot is omnipotent, even against moss.”
Ah, I see. She’ll fix it with her snot. *Ugh*.
“At least we know her identity and name, but why is a Snow Dragon here in the Dragon Forest?”
“Hmm, there’s no other way but to ask her directly.”
“Nyan!”
Called by Sleigsta the Old Man, Nimia-chan ran over. She ran towards us with incredible force, shaking the very ground, and then stopped abruptly. If she had charged straight at us, she would have been terrifying, no matter how cute she looked, due to her size. I really think the “-chan” suffix should be dropped.
“Ugh, that’s mean, nyan!” Nimia said, her eyes welling up with tears as she looked at me.
“Umm. You shouldn’t make nyans cry.” Priscilla-chan peeked out from above Nimia’s head and scolded me. I shouldn’t, these two are dangerously cute.
“Now, little Snow Dragon girl, why have you visited the forest I protect?” Sleigsta the Old Man asked, his voice coming from even higher above the massive Nimia.
“Nyan. I’m currently running away from home, nyan. I was flying around, got hungry, and smelled something delicious, so I came, nyan.”
“Fufufu. Running away from home. What a tomboy.”
“Nyan.” Sleigsta the Old Man laughed merrily, and Nimia chirped happily. Hmm. Is this really a cheerful event? Isn’t an Ancient Dragon Species running away from home a serious matter?
“Your mother was also a wild daughter. Is this little girl like her?” Sleigsta the Old Man spoke as if he knew Nimia’s mother dragon. Perhaps he met her in the past.
“Very well, I will permit you to stay here until you feel like it. However, you must not harm the forest, and you must not approach the Spirit Trees. If you cannot abide by these conditions, I will show no mercy even to you.”
With that, Sleigsta the Old Man let out a roar. The Moss Garden trembled, the ancient trees swayed like waves, and the branches of the Spirit Tree far above rustled. Startled by the intimidating roar, Nimia’s eyes widened and she tumbled over. Priscilla-chan, scared, started crying.
“Waaah! Great-Grandpa is scary!”
“Old Man! What are you doing scaring a little child?” Mistral rebuked him. Sleigsta the Old Man drooped, his former dignity gone. I picked up Priscilla-chan, who had started crying and returned via Spatial Jump, and comforted her.
“N-No, this is…”
“No excuses. Apologize.”
“I-I’m sorry, nyan.” Mistral’s scolding made Sleigsta the Old Man dejected. Every time, he brings it upon himself. And honestly, Sleigsta the Old Man saying “nyan” isn’t cute.
“Elnea, you are cold-hearted.”
“I am on the side of cute things.” Priscilla-chan stopped crying as soon as I patted her head. Nimia also returned to her smaller form and flew to Priscilla-chan’s side. In just a short time, these two have become quite friendly.
“By the way, Nimia, how old are you?” Sleigsta the Old Man called her a little girl, but you can’t tell the age of ancient dragons by their appearance.
“Don’t know, nyan.”
“Eh? You don’t know?”
“Fufufu. Dragon children don’t care about age when they’re small. I’m sure only their parent dragon would know.”
“Oh, really?”
“She is likely around a hundred years old.”
“Whoa. That’s surprisingly old.” A hundred years old and still a child? A human couldn’t live that long, no matter how hard they tried.
“Is my true form the larger one?”
“Nyaa. If I’m big, my mother will find me, so I’m usually small, nyan. My true form is the one from before, nyan.”
“Umm. The small one is cute.”
“Don’t you grow out of cute, nyan?”
“No. You’re cute.”
“Nyaa.”
“Fufu. So, Priscilla, how old are you?”
“Umm.” Come to think of it, how old is she exactly? She looks about five, but since she’s from the long-lived Mimicho Race, what if she’s actually over a hundred? Priscilla-chan folded her small fingers.
“Umm. Eight?”
Why is she asking as a question? But it’s almost her apparent age, so that’s good.
“Priscilla, are you not good with numbers?”
“Umm. Don’t know.” I see. She’s still young. Maybe she asked with a question mark because she could barely count her own age.
“Then, if you want to stay with Elnea from now on, it’s study time.”
“Ouch. Older Sister is mean.”
“Nyan.” Teased by Mistral, Priscilla-chan buried her face in my clothes.
“Speaking of which, what should we do about Priscilla-chan?” I had completely forgotten about her due to Nimia.
“Hmm, explain yourself.” Prompted by Sleigsta the Old Man, I talked about Priscilla-chan.
“Um. Priscilla-chan is a special Mimicho Race who can command Spirit Tree Spirits, and since the Spirit is dwelling in my Spirit Tree Wooden Sword, she seems to want to be near me to interact with it.”
“Hooh, Spirit Tree Spirits, you say?” Sleigsta the Old Man looked with interest at Priscilla-chan, who was still clinging to me.
“I, for one, thought you brought her with you as a third wife out of personal preference.”
“Wh-wh-wh-what are you saying! I am by no means a pervert! And what do you mean, third? Who is the second?”
“Oh, that girl you saved a little while ago. Louiseigne, wasn’t it? Is she not it?”
“Oh? Elnea, you seem to be having fun even outside the forest.”
*Ahhhhh!* Mistral’s cold gaze was too painful.
“I-It’s not like that! W-We’re just a little close at school. Grandpa, why would you say such a thing? Mistral suspects me!”
“Hahaha. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” This wicked dragon added fuel to the fire. Mistral reached for the blunt weapon at his waist.
“M-Misunderstanding, Mistral!” I tried to stop him in a panic. Since Priscilla-chan was still clinging to my lower body, I lost my balance and lunged at Mistral. Suddenly pounced upon, Mistral, I, and Priscilla-chan all fell down.
“Hauah!”
“Kya!”
“Waa!”
“Nyaa!”
As I fell, I instinctively hugged Mistral. When I regained my composure after falling, I felt a soft sensation on my face. And a wonderful scent. I wanted to take a deep breath. Mistral swung his blunt weapon around, but he wasn’t muscular at all, and it felt really good to hug him.
*Not that!* I quickly got up. It seemed the soft sensation was Mistral’s chest.
“What a shame you’re small.” Sleigsta the Old Man said with a smirk, saying something even more outrageous.
“Elnea!”
“No, no! I don’t think like that!”
“Mistral has small breasts.”
“Are big breasts better, nyan?” Everyone is saying such things. Of course, a girl like Serise with bouncing breasts is the ultimate, but Mistral’s perfectly sized chest is also wonderful.
“Oh ho, bouncing breasts are the ultimate, are they?”
*Waaaah*, Sleigsta the Old Man is bullying me.
“I-I’m sure I’ll… grow…”
“Unlikely. Neither your mother nor your grandmother were large.” Mistral sat down, covering his face at Sleigsta the Old Man’s words.
“Grandpa, what are you saying!”
“You’re the cause!” Mistral threw his blunt weapon at me when I tried to comfort him. I dodged it in a panic. Hey, that’s dangerous. It would hurt if it hit me.
“Just you watch, someday… surely…”
“Unlikely.”
“Old Man and Elnea are idiots!” Mistral screamed and ran into the Ancient Tree Forest.
“…Grandpa, that was too much.”
“Hmm, did he surprisingly care?” We stared blankly into the depths of the forest where Mistral had disappeared. Ah, it was already starting to get dark. I’d forgotten about the time passing due to all the commotion since we arrived at the Moss Garden. What should I do? I have to go home, but I can’t just leave Priscilla-chan and the others.
“Mistral will return soon. Until then, I will entertain the girls. You should hurry home.”
“Onii-chan will go away?”
“Nyaa.”
“I have to go home today, but I’ll come back tomorrow after lunch.” I patted the forlorn Priscilla-chan and Nimia.
“Then, I shall escort you.” With that, Sleigsta the Old Man’s golden eyes intensified their glow. And then, I was enveloped in light. From tomorrow on, things are going to be tough, I thought with a wry smile within the light.
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