We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Fly, Chicken Dragon.
Monsters are truly mysterious creatures. Many possess forms that deviate greatly from the unique appearances dictated by their race and ecology, such as humans, beasts, and plants, making them difficult to describe.
Some appear to be beautiful flowers, only to have roots like animal tentacles. Others have bodies so plump and amorphous they’re neither liquid nor solid. And then there are monsters called Earth Snakes, which have a long, serpentine body but no eyes, ears, or nose on their heads—just a round tube with a mouth split wide open horizontally.
Of course, monsters known as Earth Snakes will have similar features, and those called Earth Dolls or Rock Dolls also share similar appearances within their own kind. However, they undeniably possess an appearance governed by a logic different from our own.
That’s only natural.
Through our past experiences, we have come to understand monsters deeply.
Monsters are lower-ranking beings of the Yoma, and are evil creatures born from the distortions of the world. And the Yoma, in turn, are lower-ranking beings of terrifying entities like the Demon King and the Evil Race.
While monsters ultimately trace their origins back to the world’s distortions, they are also a necessary part of our ecosystem.
When you defeat a monster, you obtain Magic Crystal Stones of various attributes.
Magic Crystal Stones are the core of monsters, the source of their life.
We use the Magic Crystal Stones from monsters to start fires and purify water.
The Evil Race, the enemy of the world. The lives of people are supported by the Magic Crystal Stones left behind by monsters, which reside at the very bottom of that hierarchy.
Truly, monsters are mysterious creatures.
However, no matter how useful the Magic Crystal Stones they provide are, monsters remain the enemies of people.
The Earth Snake is also a detestable monster that attacked people and devoured one of the men.
“Now, come at me!”
I stand in the middle of the street, provoking the monster that fled underground.
While I don’t have my familiar White Sword and Spirit Tree Wooden Sword in my hands, I won’t be outmatched by a monster that appears in town.
I sharpen my mind and read the surrounding presence.
First, I sense the presence of nearby people.
Families hiding indoors, holding their breath. People peeking from second-floor windows or higher vantage points, acting as spectators.
The man I saved earlier seems to have managed to escape to a higher place on his own.
It seems we are the only ones standing on the ground outdoors.
Next, I focus my consciousness on my feet.
The Earth Snake camouflages with the ground and burrows underground.
A vague presence is coming from beneath my feet.
However, I cannot pinpoint its exact location. This is the characteristic trait of an Earth Snake hidden underground, making it difficult to defeat and easy to be attacked by.
Nevertheless, I spread my awareness around, not missing even the slightest anomaly.
And then, I keenly sense the Earth Snake’s movement.
“Lady Mary, be careful below!”
“Y-yes!”
Lady Mary, who answered, jumps.
No, that’s not right!
“L-Lady Elnea. Something is coming up from underground!”
As I speak, Lady Mary jumps again.
Madeline, who is attending to a woman nearby, and the trembling girl also shake vertically.
It appears the Earth Snake is attacking from underground, attempting to break through Lady Mary’s barrier.
“Mary, concentrate so the barrier is not destroyed.”
“Yes, Head Miko!”
Enduring the vibrations from underground with a “thump, thump,” Lady Mary focuses her consciousness to maintain the barrier.
“Hmph, why is it going there?!”
I stomp my foot in frustration.
Why does the Earth Snake target Lady Mary and the others, who are protected by a strong barrier at the center of the road, instead of me, standing there without a barrier?
I can’t decipher the Earth Snake’s intentions. Moreover, if the Earth Snake is beneath Lady Mary and the others, it means I cannot attack it.
This is because my powerful Dragon Arts, if used to defeat the Earth Snake, would also involve Lady Mary and the others.
“Ah. I see!”
Only after thinking that far do I realize.
“The Earth Snake decided that Lady Mary and the others, protected by a barrier, are easier targets than me, standing defenseless.”
I was waiting, without a barrier, to lure the Earth Snake out. However, I was concentrating my mind and spreading my awareness, ready to unleash Dragon Arts at any moment.
The Earth Snake must have sensed my presence. And then, it judged that it would be better to destroy Lady Mary’s barrier and attack those inside rather than attacking me.
“It’s my fault for emitting unnecessary presence.”
I recall.
Just two days ago, we talked about it in the Moss Garden of the Dragon Forest.
It’s a waste of effort to direct killing intent or intimidation toward someone who has no reason to be threatened. Releasing ki that isn’t converted into arts is also a futile act. That’s why, the more skilled someone becomes, the less they will release unnecessary ki or spread their presence.
In other words, I am currently emitting too much presence unnecessarily, and because of that, the Earth Snake is wary and no longer targeting me.
So, I suppress my own presence.
Erasing my presence is something I can do with ease now. However, if I erase it completely so the Earth Snake cannot sense it, it would be meaningless.
I am the bait. I need to make it seem like I am an easier and more satisfying meal than Lady Mary and the others, who are confined within the barrier.
Besides, just suppressing my presence isn’t enough.
I need to defeat the Earth Snake that took the bait and rescue the man who was eaten.
The Earth Snake has a mouth that splits open at the end of its tubular body, but there are no teeth in that mouth. This means the man who was eaten must have been swallowed whole.
Therefore, there is a possibility that I can still save him if I hurry.
Nevertheless, it’s a race against time.
The longer time passes, the lower the chances of the man’s survival become.
Now, this is no time to let the situation stagnate!
As I suppress my presence, I look ahead.
How will I defeat the Earth Snake?
Suppressing my presence is equivalent to suppressing my power, that is, my Dragon ki.
If that’s the case, I might fail to finish off the Earth Snake, even if I attack it like I did before.
So, how can I surely finish it off…
Suddenly, a Chicken Dragon catches my eye.
Perhaps because I am continuously focusing my consciousness, I can maintain the Chicken Dragon’s art.
“This is it!”
And then, I have an idea.
No, that’s not right. I remembered my beginner’s spirit.
Something I thought about while meditating on the lawn of Madeline’s family home.
The basics of Dragon Arts. What are Dragon Arts? I recall them anew.
Dragon Arts are arts that materialize the phenomena envisaged by the user using Dragon ki.
If you intend to destroy a target, you create an exploding art. The appearance of a Dragon Lance, for example, signifies aggression through its lance form, and dragons symbolize destruction.
And the appearance of my Chicken Dragon art is, fundamentally, meant to lull the enemy into a false sense of security. They wouldn’t expect a creature in the form of a chicken to bring about weakening in the enemy or recovery for allies.
I chose the form of a chicken to lull the enemy into a false sense of security. Later, I improved it to the form of a Chicken Dragon, but the basic principle remains the same.
However, it’s not suitable for the current situation.
I want to defeat the Earth Snake. I want to rescue the man. Yet, with my Chicken Dragon art, I can’t even rescue the man, let alone defeat the Earth Snake.
Furthermore, because I am maintaining the Chicken Dragon art, the Earth Snake remains hidden underground and does not show itself.
No matter how cute the Chicken Dragon’s appearance is, to an Earth Snake that reads presences, it must be a terrifying mass imbued with strong Dragon ki.
So, I further sharpen my consciousness.
“As long as my Chicken Dragon and I are connected, the Earth Snake will be wary and won’t target me. Therefore, I should separate them!”
That being said, it’s not easy.
The Chicken Dragon art maintains its form and exhibits chicken-like movements precisely because it is constantly connected to me and supplied with Dragon ki. If that connection is severed, not only will its realistic movements be compromised, but its form itself might not be maintained.
But then, I remember.
“Hero Listea also embodied something through sorcery. If that’s the case, I should be able to do it too!”
Hero Listea, who wielded the Flame Holy Sword. He not only converted his magical power into the form of a phoenix but also made it behave like a real one. Moreover, he kept it separate from himself most of the time, using it as a source of magical power for emergencies.
It’s similar to my Chicken Dragon art. If that’s the case, I should also be able to make the Chicken Dragon exist independently, like Listea’s phoenix!
This is because Dragon Arts are arts that materialize the user’s emotions.
And then, I recall the words of Old Man Sleigsta.
“Strong power resides in the eyes.”
Old Man Sleigsta taught me that unneccessary power is stripped away, and the power that fills the inner self is concentrated in the eyes. The eyes see the world. They recognize perceived phenomena and define the state of the world.
That’s why I believe those with Magic Eyes can exert terrifying power with just their gaze.
So, I try it too.
First, I give just enough Dragon ki to the lump in the shape of a chicken that wanders at my feet. Then, I disconnect it from my consciousness.
The Chicken Dragon, having lost its connection with me, stops moving. However, thanks to the Dragon ki imbued with my emotions, which I filled beforehand, it maintains its shape.
Next, I consciously block the power and presence I was releasing unnecessarily.
I focus my consciousness on the Dragon ki flowing throughout my body.
The rough Dragon ki welling up from the Dragon Jewel. The tremendous power drawn from the Dragon Vein. Until now, I maintained inner harmony by unconsciously releasing the remnants of such power outward.
However, if I continue as I have been, the Earth Snake will only be wary. At worst, it might get disgusted by my presence and escape.
To prevent that, I suppress the Dragon ki and presence that I unconsciously release, directing them inward.
The Dragon ki circulates throughout my body and is refined. The Dragon ki, so dense it seems it could become visible, is about to overflow from me. I consciously guide it back inside my body.
The power surging with the release of the Dragon Jewel and the power of the remnants that could not be released mingle complexly within me.
“Kch…!”
I realize how difficult and painful it is to store power internally.
I realize that the burden is far greater than I imagined.
And then, I understand.
How much power have I been wasting until now?
However, in other words, the power I was wasting is my reserve, and if I can correctly suppress and freely control this power, I will surely achieve even greater results than before.
So, I will make sure to use my power completely without waste!
While somehow suppressing the unruly power within my body, I move to the next stage.
Unnecessary power is suppressed. Next, I need to suppress my presence.
If I have the presence of an ordinary person, the Earth Snake should target me, defenselessly standing in the middle of the street, rather than Lady Mary and the others, who are inside the barrier.
Erasing my presence is something I can do with ease.
I calm my heart and pacify my spirit.
I regulate my breathing and release unnecessary tension.
Now, only a little preparation is needed.
With my presence small, I will surely appear as just a youth, indistinguishable from an ordinary person.
However, the Earth Snake still does not target me and continues to target Lady Mary and the others within the barrier.
“As expected, it’s the presence of the Chicken Dragon.”
No matter how much I suppress my presence, if there is a mass of powerful Dragon ki at my feet, it is meaningless.
So, I enter the finishing stage.
I induce flow into the wild power within my body.
I guide the Dragon ki that circulated throughout my body to my eyes, where power resides.
My eyes also glow when I merge with Ares-chan. This means my eyes have the capacity to hold the power of the Spirit Tree.
If so, then the power overflowing from the Dragon Jewel should also be able to reside in my eyes.
The Dragon ki, raging and threatening to burst outward if I let my guard down, becomes a great river within me.
It flows like a torrent, merging with tributaries, and pours into my eyes.
“Ugh!”
The depths of my eyes grow hot. A heavy, throbbing pain shoots through them.
“Luiseine must have endured this kind of pain every time…”
With each surge of Dragon ki into my eyes, the heat increases, and the pain intensifies.
Luiseine, whose Dragon Eye was in rampage, must surely have experienced such pain.
My vision blurs from the heat and pain.
Nevertheless, I continue to pour Dragon ki into my eyes.
I may not have the skill level to awaken it as a Magic Eye, but I should still be able to temporarily house power.
And then, with eyes imbued with Dragon ki, I look down at the mass of Dragon ki at my feet, which appears to be the Chicken Dragon.
“Now, move!”
The Chicken Dragon, having lost its connection with me, should still be controllable.
Just as Yufilia, Nina, and Sefina-san could control the arts of others with whom they had no connection.
Eyes housing Dragon ki.
Along with Dragon ki, my strong will also resides.
“Dragon Arts are arts that embody will. If that’s the case, even without a connection, will can be conveyed. If I think and wish it so!”
It’s the same as the Dragon Heart.
Even when separated, we can connect.
And when our wills connect, power will surely reach.
As if responding to my gaze, the Chicken Dragon raises its head and looks up at me.
Next, just like a chicken, it moves its legs.
Move. Act freely!
“Kueh,” the Chicken Dragon cries.
The Chicken Dragon begins to walk around me, taking small steps.
However, as it is now, I still won’t be able to lure the Earth Snake out.
No matter how freely the Chicken Dragon moves, as long as it has its feet on the ground, the Earth Snake will sense its presence.
So, how about this!
With a rustle, the Chicken Dragon flaps its wings.
Flapping its wings vigorously, it leaps.
However, it ends in a short jump.
Like a chicken, the Chicken Dragon cannot fly in the sky.
“But you were born from my Dragon ki and will. So, your potential is infinite!”
“Kueh—!”
The Chicken Dragon roars.
Then, it spreads its wings wide.
Like a chicken’s, its small wings are not enough to lift its plump body. No matter how wide it spreads them, no matter how vigorously it flaps them, its body doesn’t lift like a bird’s. Those small wings, however, rapidly grow large and magnificent.
Not only that.
Its neck extends, its body tightens, and its tail feathers lengthen.
I recall the image of the Rainbow Dragon I saw recently at the Wyvern Hunting Ground.
The strong will residing in my eyes is conveyed to the Chicken Dragon as a gaze.
And finally.
“Kuo—n.”
The Chicken Dragon, letting out a divine cry, takes flight into the vast sky in its reborn form.
