We live at the Foothills of Dragon Peak.
Go, Ruiseine!
Asher approached the Moss Garden and began a slow descent.
Old Man Sleigsta, lying down, greeted us with just his eyes, while Ruiseine and Priscilla-chan waved enthusiastically.
Priscilla-chan, in particular, looked up at us with a wonderful smile.
Nimia and I averted our gazes from their innocent stares.
“Um, um!”
“Uwah!”
Priscilla-chan, unable to wait any longer, used Spatial Jump to fly onto Asher’s back.
Startled by Priscilla-chan suddenly appearing before me, I instinctively caught her.
“Um, a souvenir!”
Just as I thought!
Faced with Priscilla-chan’s dazzling smile, full of anticipation, Nimia and I sweated and darted our eyes around.
“?”
Priscilla-chan, not understanding the situation, tilted her head cutely.
Unaware of the awkward situation between us and Priscilla-chan, Asher landed safely in the Moss Garden.
“Uh, well…”
I hesitated.
“Meow.”
Nimia meowed plaintively.
“Here you go, little one. Over here.”
Asher, with a bitter smile at our predicament, beckoned Priscilla-chan over.
“What is it?”
Priscilla-chan cheerfully flew towards Asher.
In Asher’s hand, as Priscilla-chan approached, was something.
Nimia and I exchanged glances and quickly moved closer.
Ruiseine also cautiously approached Asher.
“I’m back.”
“Yes, welcome back. I’m glad you’re safe.”
After exchanging greetings with Ruiseine, we joined them by Asher’s hand.
Priscilla-chan was happily clapping Asher’s hand.
“Oh, dear. Honestly.”
Asher sighed, looking at us with a sense of exasperation, and opened his hand.
“Uwah, what is that!?”
“Um, meat?”
“Meow.”
In Asher’s large palm was a large quantity of meat that could be held by one person.
“It’s Wyvern meat.”
“W-w-what did you say!?”
We recoiled in surprise.
Priscilla-chan’s eyes sparkled as she gazed at the lump of meat.
“Meat! Meat!”
It’s good Priscilla-chan is happy…
Is this the Wyvern meat that appeared in the valley while we were gone?
Did it not just threaten us?
More importantly, is it permissible for dragons to take dragon meat?
Is that alright?
“I figured you’d forget about souvenirs. You should be grateful to me.”
“Ah, thank you.”
I was genuinely grateful that he had considered us.
But, the meat…
“What, birds sometimes attack other birds, right? It’s no different.”
“I-I see.”
I smiled bitterly but understood.
Beside me, Ruiseine, who didn’t quite grasp the situation, tilted her head, looking at Asher and me.
“Um, I’ll explain later.”
“Yes, please do.”
Ruiseine smiled.
“Meat! Meat!”
Nimia jumped onto the head of Priscilla-chan, who was dancing with joy.
“Hmm, if you’re going to cook the meat, you’ll need Mistral.”
Old Man Sleigsta watched us kindly.
“Oh my, oh my. I can cook meat just fine, you know.”
“Even if you can cook it, you’ll have no tools or seasonings.”
“Ah, that’s right.”
Ruiseine smiled bitterly.
“I’ll summon him. Wait here.”
With that, Old Man Sleigsta closed his eyes.
Is he communicating with Mistral somehow? Being able to communicate with someone far away, Old Man Sleigsta is truly amazing.
“By the way.”
I turned back to Asher.
“What happened to the Wyvern? It seemed like there was nothing there.”
From above, the valley had turned into a world of white ash. It seemed only Asher and the Dragon Race people were there.
“It turned to ash with my single blow, so you probably overlooked it, blending into the scenery. I wasn’t about to let the Dragon Race take the rest of the meat, so I turned it all to ash.”
I see, so that’s what happened.
I nodded.
“Hmm, Mistral will return in the evening. Until then, play and work up an appetite.”
At Old Man Sleigsta’s words, Priscilla-chan rejoiced.
“Um, I’ll play and get hungry, and eat a lot!”
How gluttonous can you be?
We all laughed at Priscilla-chan’s energy.
So, what should we do? As I pondered this, Priscilla-chan suggested a game of Tag.
Tag, huh? Priscilla-chan likes Tag, doesn’t she?
I don’t mind playing Tag, but what about Ruiseine? After all, playing Tag with Priscilla-chan is far beyond what an ordinary person would imagine for Tag.
Priscilla-chan can use Spatial Jump, and the spirits can disappear if necessary.
I can also use Spatial Jump, though not consecutively.
Nimia, if she senses danger, flies high up where no one can reach.
It might be tough for Ruiseine to participate, as she has neither the means to escape nor to chase.
Despite my worries, Ruiseine seemed quite eager.
“Ruiseine, are you alright?”
“Elnea-kun, what are you worried about?”
Ruiseine’s confidence was palpable.
Ruiseine must have seen the morning’s Tag game and known how unusual Priscilla-chan and the others are.
Yet, she seemed confident.
“Fufufu, as a Battle Priestess, this is certainly interesting to me.”
It seems she’s taking it as practice for dealing with opponents who fly in space.
If Ruiseine is motivated, I’m not against it either.
Delighted by everyone’s enthusiasm, Priscilla-chan summoned the Wind and Earth Spirits.
And so, with the Wind Spirit as the first tagger, our game began.
“Pant, pant.”
I gasped for breath and collapsed onto the moss carpet.
In the end, I think I was the one who was ‘it’ the longest.
What happened!?
As I caught my breath, I looked back.
The miscalculation was Ruiseine’s tactics.
Ruiseine certainly didn’t have any techniques to deal with Spatial Jump.
But she had something to compensate for it.
It was magic!
Ruiseine skillfully used magic for evasion and interference.
For evasion, she used the magic spell “Hoshiwatari,” which allowed for high-speed horizontal movement. It was the spell she used when she was the fake hero.
And even when opponents entered her range with Spatial Jump, she skillfully dodged with her well-trained physical agility.
And the most troublesome thing was the binding magic.
Ruiseine cast binding spells on opponents other than the tagger, so she wouldn’t be targeted as much.
The tagger, of course, would aim for the person whose movement was stopped.
We had to be wary not only of the tagger but also of Ruiseine’s magic.
As a result, I couldn’t use Spatial Jump repeatedly and couldn’t counter Ruiseine’s tactics, so I ended up being the tagger most often.
“To be toyed with by your wife, you’re still quite green.”
Kukuku, Old Man Sleigsta chuckled.
“How pathetic.”
Asher sighed.
“Ugh, you all ganged up on me.”
“Oh my, oh my, isn’t that a sign that you’re loved?”
Ruiseine came over and gave me some water.
“Then, Ruiseine, who targeted me, loves me, right?”
I blurted out, and my face turned red.
“Getting flustered like that yourself doesn’t accomplish anything.”
Ruiseine’s laughter made my face turn even redder.
“Um, it’s Older Brother’s loss.”
“Grrr, I’m so frustrated.”
“Since you lost, no meat for you.”
“Eh?! We never promised that!?”
Priscilla-chan’s sudden declaration flustered me.
It’s Wyvern meat! Super high-class stuff! I absolutely want to eat it.
Everyone in the plaza burst into laughter at the sight of me begging a young girl to let me have some meat.
“Still, Spatial Jump is amazing.”
Ruiseine said, stroking Priscilla-chan’s head in praise.
Priscilla-chan looked happy to be praised.
“Um, Ruiseine, you should learn it too.”
“Eh!?”
Priscilla-chan hugged Ruiseine.
And then she disappeared.
“Where did she go?” I frantically looked around for the two of them.
“Ugh, ugh, ugh!”
There they were!
Priscilla-chan and Ruiseine had, incredibly, jumped onto Old Man Sleigsta’s head.
“Ah, waah!”
I panicked.
Of all places, his head!
While Old Man Sleigsta is usually friendly and gentle, he is actually a legendary dragon protecting the Dragon Forest.
I shuddered at the thought of what might happen if they pushed it too far.
Priscilla-chan and Ruiseine had landed on the head of that legendary old dragon.
“R-Ruiseine, are you okay?”
I shouted to her.
Don’t throw up.
Ruiseine pressed her hand to her mouth, struggling against nausea.
Yes, that’s right.
Spatial Jump can cause severe nausea and dizziness for those unaccustomed to it.
I myself threw up three times before getting used to it.
If she throws up on Old Man Sleigsta’s head, it would be a disaster.
“Hey, Priscilla. I told you not to suddenly use Spatial Jump on someone who’s not used to it.”
As I was sternly reprimanded, we all looked towards the entrance of the Ancient Tree Forest.
“Um, welcome back!”
Priscilla-chan, unfazed by the scolding, cheerfully waved to Mistral, who had just returned.
“There’s meat.”
Priscilla-chan, ignoring Ruiseine who was desperately fighting nausea right in front of her, jumped onto Mistral’s chest.
Mistral calmly caught her.
And then, one strike.
Mistral lightly punched Priscilla-chan on the head.
“Ugh.”
“Honestly, you…”
Mistral sighed, exasperated by Priscilla-chan’s wildness.
“Um.”
I went over to Old Man Sleigsta.
“It’s fine. Go help her.”
With Old Man Sleigsta’s permission, I used Spatial Jump to fly to Ruiseine’s side.
“Are you okay?”
I gently rubbed Ruiseine’s back.
“Y-yes. I think so.”
Ruiseine, sweating on her forehead, managed a smile at me.
“Priscilla’s punishment is no meat.”
“Eeeeh?! N-nooo!”
Far below us, I could see Priscilla-chan finally showing some remorse as Mistral declared she wouldn’t get any meat.
Actually, this was my first time riding on Old Man Sleigsta too.
Since his head was lying down, it wasn’t as high as Asher’s back, but the Moss Garden looked like a different world from that vantage point.
“Riding upon me, it has been since the twins Armēdo and Yorttenitos.”
Old Man Sleigsta said, raising his head.
My field of vision suddenly increased in altura.
“Ah, that’s unfair.”
Priscilla-chan, still held by Mistral, flew over to us.
“Honestly, you…”
Mistral looked troubled by Priscilla-chan, who clearly wasn’t remorseful.
“Welcome back.”
“Yes, I’m back. Though I have to leave again tomorrow morning.”
“You’re busy.”
“Yes. There are many things I need to do.”
Mistral, Ruleine, and I all shared a wry smile at the joyfully playing Priscilla-chan, enjoying the view from Old Man Sleigsta’s head.
Nimia, by the way, was watching us from atop Asher’s head.
Click the heart to easily convey your support. (Login required)
Support
Log in if you have an account
Learn more about the reading experience on Kakuyomu
