We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
In search of the legendary Golden Potato.
With each passing night, the accumulated snow grew deeper. The temperature dropped day by day, and I realized how pathetic I had been, shivering in the early winter.
But now, I wouldn’t be defeated by the cold.
From before the sun rose, I made it a daily routine to shovel snow alongside the village men.
At first, my arms and back ached, and I was useless. But once I learned how to use my strength, I became quite capable.
However, I never knew snow could be so heavy.
I cleared snow from the roofs of houses and shoveled the plaza.
When my whole body was wracked with muscle pain, I had the wicked thought, “Why not just blow it all away with dragon arts?” But as I started participating in the snow removal work, I gradually began to realize. This was also training. The men voluntarily shoveled snow to train their bodies without relying on dragon energy.
I wonder if I can become as muscular as Zan and the others if I just push through this winter.
When I told Mistral and the others about this, for some reason, a Snow Removal Ban was issued.
Why would that be?
I didn’t understand, so I continued shoveling snow even now. The women, however, were displeased.
I want to do my best for the village too!
“I think this is enough for today.”
At Zan’s instruction, this morning’s snow removal work ended.
From now on, the village women would come out and begin preparing breakfast. I was hungry from working hard since morning, but there was still some time before breakfast. So, I decided to go for a morning walk with Zan, which had also become a recent daily routine.
Zan and I walked side-by-side out of the village. We passed through a small forest, then past the place where the earth dragons had finally made their nests and started living, and into the mountains.
Zan melted the surrounding snow as he walked, though he didn’t emit any flames. “How convenient!” I thought. I followed him from behind, on the path he had created.
“Are you going on patrol in the Dragon Forest today too?”
“Yes. There aren’t many troublemakers left, though.”
Thanks to the warrior elves and magic beasts, the troublemakers who had once been rampant in the Dragon Forest were cleared out. Those who had harbored malicious intentions, intimidated by the merciless guards of the Dragon Forest, quickly gave up their misdeeds in the forest. After all, neither the magic beasts nor the warrior elves showed any mercy. The magic beasts, when capturing troublemakers, didn’t consider whether they lived or died. When I’m with them, I handle things by tackling them, but otherwise, they bare their fangs and claws mercilessly. It’s said that adventurers, with their arms bitten off or legs deeply wounded, were repeatedly seen fleeing the forest in the capital city.
The warrior elves, as members of the Dragon Forest’s protectors, also showed no mercy to wrongdoers. They would issue a warning first, but the fate of those who ignored it was sealed. Apparently, sometimes when the human forest patrol entered the forest in the morning, corpses were piled up at the entrance.
Neither the warrior elves nor the magic beasts would go easy on wrongdoers just because they were human, like me. In the first place, they only recognized humans as just one of many races. Their sole recognition was to deal with anyone who tried to commit evil in the Dragon Forest without any leniency, including death.
Adventurers and those plotting evil, who had mistakenly believed that I could communicate with magic beasts and was on friendly terms with the warrior elves living in the Dragon Forest, were forced to reconfirm how strictly the Dragon Forest was guarded. With an official order from the country, there are now hardly any people committing evil in the Dragon Forest like there used to be before the commotion.
“It’s like a daily routine now. I do train in the Moss Garden, but not all day. Since Dragon Peak is covered in snow as you can see, I can’t play there, so I patrol while playing with everyone in the Dragon Forest.”
“There’s nothing you can do on Dragon Peak in winter.”
The number of visitors to Mistral’s village has also decreased significantly recently. Only those who can fly through the sky with human-dragon transformation or those with elemental powers that are unaffected by snow visit. It seems that, as it is, the scattered Dragonfolk villages across Dragon Peak will spend the winter in isolation.
We also see fewer and fewer Wyverns flying in the sky. The earth dragons also huddle together and sleep until the sun rises.
This is the winter of Dragon Peak. “It’s harsh,” I thought as we continued our walk.
“Speaking of which, Zan, do you know about the Golden Potato?”
“What is it, do you need it?”
Zan asked, without stopping his steps, to my question.
“Yes. Actually, I heard that the Grand Elder of the warrior elves has fallen ill.”
“What!?”
At my words, Zan stopped and looked back in surprise. I never expected Zan to react like this. He didn’t react to the golden potato, but he reacted to an elderly woman of another race. It’s kind of strange.
“I was taken care of by Yuuri-sama when I was little. I’ve been to visit Mistral many times.”
“Ehehe, is that so?”
Imagining a young Zan holding Mistral’s hand, walking through the Dragon Forest, and visiting the warrior elf village made my heart feel warm.
“Don’t have creepy thoughts like that?”
“Fufufu. I’ll hear about that time from Mistral later.”
“Elnea, do you want to be burned?”
“Hii! Help me!”
Flames ignited in Zan’s fist, and I hastily fled into the snow.
“So, how is Yuuri-sama’s condition?”
To Zan, showing his concern, I replied, “Don’t worry.”
“She just got a bit tired from the recent commotion. She was made to deal with the Giant Demon Lord…”
“Isn’t that your fault?”
“Ugh. No, it’s Grandpa’s fault.”
“Well, the responsibility for that doesn’t matter. Continue.”
“Yes. So, she became bedridden due to exhaustion and the recent cold. But she was told she’d recover immediately if she ate something energizing.”
“So that’s why the Golden Potato.”
“Right!”
When we heard from Carly that Grandma Yuuri had fallen ill, we were also surprised and worried. However, Grandma is always full of energy even at her advanced age and recovers quickly even when she occasionally falls ill. The warrior elf people laughed and told me that my lifespan wouldn’t come before Grandma’s.
Like Old Man Sleigsta, I don’t understand the sense of lifespan of long-lived beings…
In any case, it was not only Zan but also us who were relieved to hear that she would recover by resting and eating delicious food.
And I heard from Mistral last night. Apparently, Golden Potatoes grow wild on Dragon Peak. They are said to be very, very sweet and packed with nutrients. However, cultivation is very difficult, and one can only search for wild ones. And Golden Potatoes are apparently not found easily.
“Golden Potatoes certainly do appear this time of year. However, as you can see, Dragon Peak is buried in snow. We don’t know where they grow wild, and it’s difficult to search for them when they are covered in snow.”
“I know. That’s why I was wondering if you knew of a place where they grow wild, Zan.”
“I see. Golden Potatoes, huh…”
Zan pondered for a moment, but his reply was not encouraging.
“If we can find them, they would certainly be a good gift for Yuuri-sama. But why the Golden Potato of all things? You’ll have to search patiently on your own.”
“I see. You don’t know either, Zan. Is there anyone else who might know?”
“If you’re asking who might know… perhaps the tribal chief or a few of the travel enthusiasts.”
“I’ll ask them when we get back. Thank you.”
Golden Potatoes are also a specialty of Dragon Peak. It’s said that some people search all over Dragon Peak for them throughout the winter. However, they are not found easily.
But I won’t give up! I will try my best to find them for Grandma.
As I finished my walk with Zan and returned to the village, I pondered how to find them. However, with my limited knowledge, I couldn’t come up with any good ideas. That’s only natural. My knowledge of Dragon Peak is insufficient, so how could I possibly think of the location of a legendary Golden Potato growing wild somewhere on it?
“So, Nimia. Please help us.”
“I’ll do my best, nyan.”
“Um, I’ll do my best.”
“Excursion, excursion.”
And so, the Golden Potato Search Team was formed!
After finishing breakfast, the search team immediately jumped onto Nimia’s back.
“Be careful on your way. Don’t overdo it. And, be back by dinner tonight.”
Mistral said so, and we, the search team, took off into the cold sky. The biting cold wind momentarily froze our cheeks. But soon, Nimia’s blessing softened the cold.
In the end, my Blessing Technique was not yet complete.
“Which way should we go, nyan?”
“That way.”
“This way, this way!”
Priscilla-chan and Ares-chan pointed in different directions, and Nimia meowed with a troubled voice. The three of us laughed.
“I asked Kōa, the tribal chief. He said that Golden Potatoes tend to grow wild on gentle slopes.”
“Nyaa. Then, let’s find a slope, nyan.”
“Good luck, Nimia!”
“I’ll give you a little if we find them, you know?”
“Just a little, just a little!”
“H-horrible, nyan…”
Nimia meowed again at Priscilla-chan’s strict reward conditions.
“We’ll share the rest with everyone, nicely, that I brought to visit Grandma.”
“Great-grandmother will surely be happy.”
Priscilla-chan, who said that, was the happiest of all.
“Potato, potato.”
I prayed that it would be a fun potato digging, as I looked down at the scenery of Dragon Peak flowing by below.
To the right and to the left, snow. Snow. Snow. The snow-covered Dragon Peak sent a chilling landscape into my vision. Strong winds blowing across the surface kicked up the snow, and we passed through several mountain ranges that looked like they were covered in a white haze.
While flying, Nimia and I searched for the gentle slopes we had heard about. Then, when we occasionally found a place that matched the conditions, I would have Nimia descend. Nimia, stepping onto the snow, dug like a dog searching for Golden Potatoes.
But we couldn’t find any. That’s why they are precious and become a specialty, even when we know the conditions for them to grow. We searched patiently, but still, we couldn’t find any. Nimia and I searched with all our might, but Priscilla-chan, possibly bored partway through, ended up hugging Ares-chan and falling asleep.
“I told you I’d only give you a little if we find them, right?” Nimia and I couldn’t help but laugh at Priscilla-chan’s childish logic, rather than get angry.
“Shim-shin.”
Then, Ares-chan, who had been hugging Priscilla-chan, murmured.
“Down?” You mean?”
“Potato, potato.”
When she was a young girl, her words were childish and incomplete. However, I understood what Ares-chan meant perfectly.
“Nimia, she says there are potatoes down there.”
“But it’s not a gentle slope, nyan?”
“The Earth Spirit is telling us.”
“Ah, that’s right!” I finally realized. I looked at Priscilla-chan, who was sleeping warmly in front of me. “We had the ultimate weapon right here from the beginning, didn’t we? Why didn’t I realize it?” The Earth Spirit knows the earth well. It’s an extremely difficult task to search for Golden Potatoes from above the snow. However, underground is the specialty of the Earth Spirit. If I had asked Priscilla-chan’s Earth Spirit, I could have found them easily.
Nimia landed at the spot I indicated. And as she dug deep into the snow, there they were! Under the snow, yellowish-brown leaves spread out. I was amazed by the plants that were living powerfully under the cold winter snow.
“Priscilla-chan, it’s time to dig potatoes.”
“Whoa. Amazing.” Priscilla-chan, who had been sleeping moments ago, jumped off Nimia energetically. Nimia took a break, shrunk down, and relaxed on Priscilla-chan’s head.
“Is this a potato?”
“Yes. If you pull out the vine, the potato will come out.”
Nimia was resting, and Ares-chan was protecting us from the cold. Nimia had already done enough, and Ares-chan was protecting us from the cold. So, let’s leave the rest to Priscilla-chan and me. I took hold of the vine stretched across the ground. The touch of the cold vine made my hands tingle.
“You know, Priscilla has gloves.”
“Whoa, those are cute! Where did you get them?”
“Um, I got them from the Demon Lord’s aunt.”
They’re not cursed, right? For a brief moment, aStrange thought crossed my mind. No, it’s fine. The Giant Demon Lord dotes on Priscilla-chan. Since the Dragon Forest patrol celebration, he’s been coming to the Moss Garden occasionally to play with Priscilla-chan. It’s unlikely that such a Giant Demon Lord would give cursed gloves.
Priscilla-chan put on her warm gloves and gripped the potato vine. “Heave-ho. Ho-heave.” Then, she pulled with all her might. But it wouldn’t budge. With Priscilla-chan’s small strength, it’s no wonder it wouldn’t budge. The potatoes were all connected by vines underground. I also grabbed the vine with both hands and pulled with Priscilla-chan. “Uoooooh!” Huh? It’s not coming out at all. I pulled with all my strength again. But it wouldn’t budge. Together with Priscilla-chan’s mysterious chant, “Heave-ho. Ho-heave,” we pulled. …It still wouldn’t budge.
“I won’t become muscular, nyan.”
“Guh!”
Perhaps seeing our struggle, Nimia became large again, grabbed the vine, and pulled. Then, to my pleasant surprise, one after another, the potatoes popped out of the ground with ease. Nimia’s relentless charge was painful, but I was moved by the golden glow emerging from the earth. The potatoes, sparkling and gleaming golden as they reflected the white snow, were like streaks of light piercing the winter Dragon Peak.
