Book 9 Chapter 6
Episode 205
The sails swell snow-white in the fair wind.
It’s noon, and the sea breeze spills over the sails, making clothes flutter pleasantly.
“From now on, I will begin the early genius education for hatchling dragons.”
Rain declared, raising one hand.
If I leave them alone until they become monsters(?) like Aki, my life will become very difficult.
Honestly, isn’t having my head covered in drool for several months enough for one lifetime?
Aki’s drool was at least warm, but Nen’s drool stings and hurts…
“Instructor Pipi, who will assist with the education!”
“Instructor, instructor, instructor.”
As soon as her name was called, Pipi majestically spread her wings! She looks very dependable.
“And Assistant Aki!”
“Assistant! What’s that? I don’t know!”
“Dismemberment, mutilation, dismemberment, mutilation.”
Aki salutes, imitating Pipi, even though she doesn't quite understand the meaning! It’s deeply unsettling but cute, so it's fine. I believe that alone can save world peace.
“Arooo!”
Nen immediately reacted to Aki’s charm!
Perhaps due to the inherent trait of wyverns serving true dragons, Nen follows Aki very well.
Therefore, Aki's performance today promises to be quite spectacular.
“Lesson 1: Understanding simple commands!”
“Aroo?”
“Aki, sit!”
“Aki is sitting!”
Seeing Aki immediately react and sit, moisture welled up in my eyes. What kind of cuteness is this!
“Aki, stand up.”
Not just standing, but soaring into the sky, powerfully throwing punches and kicks, Aki’s sight made all the sailors exclaim in admiration!
That’s right, Aki.
With your fists and cuteness, shatter the hearts of everyone in this world.
“You have a wizard of the abyss-like expression, Rain Ludwig.”
“Fact, fact, fact.”
Valencidris and Pipi glared at Rain with narrowed eyes.
“Shut up. Nen, can you do the same?”
“How on earth can she do the same?”
It was Miria who sighed with a scolding tone.
She was practically holding Aki, who had started recklessly expending energy due to Rain’s praise, in her arms to subdue her.
However, perhaps greatly impressed by Aki’s movements, Nen stretched out her hands this way and that, as if asking to be put down from the embrace.
“Good. Nen, sit.”
“Aroo.”
Then Nen sat down.
“Good, Nen, lie down.”
“Arooo.”
Then Nen lay down.
“Good, Nen, stand up.”
Then Nen clumsily moved her hands and feet, standing up for a moment.
“Aruru.”
Her eyelids, shining more elegantly than any gold, and the adorable eyes beneath them send a look that says, ‘Please hold me now!’
“Huh…?”
My thoughts paused for a moment.
Something is strange.
Was this training originally this easy? Is it a natural result since dragonkin intelligence far surpasses humans?
- Did you mix in a fake? Why?
- Is their intelligence high or low?
But why, when training Aki… Huh, why are tears coming again?
“Abut?”
Well, as long as she’s healthy and cute, that’s all that matters.
To prevent Aki from losing her spirit, I should teach her Aki’s specialty subject.
“Lesson 2 is combat. A dragon should naturally be stronger than any other creature.”
Splash! Water spectacularly splashed on the deck. The grotesque creature at the center of the spray was… a sea turtle.
Rem, who had placed the turtle on the deck, scratched under his nose pleasantly and said,
“Hmph, turtle fishing is nothing for the super genius archer Rem.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“The method isn’t that difficult, but first, you infuse magic into the eyeballs… blah blah blah.”
“Good job, yeah. Aki, let’s start. Show us how you play with the turtle. But you must not hurt or kill it.”
Aki used to be scared of turtles.
But now that she has learned martial arts?
Seeing Aki effortlessly playing with the turtle, Nen would surely realize the greatness and power of the dragonkin and gain confidence.
“Aki, I’m… I’m scared.”
Right, seeing her cling to my leg like this… Hmm?
“Arooo…”
Perhaps the concept that sea turtles are beings even a true dragon cannot defeat was ingrained in her brain, Nen also clung deeper into my arms, terrified.
“You shouldn’t play tricks when your little sibling is watching.”
“I’m scared.”
“Hey! Where did all that spirit go, the one that punched the Dragon Slayer, to be scared of a turtle?!”
Miria watched the non-commotion on the deck and pressed her temples with a sigh.
“I don’t know what they’re doing in the middle of the day.”
“For someone who says that, you look like you want to join in.”
Just as Miria was about to flare up at Valencidris’s remark, a dark object appeared above the horizon.
It didn't just appear; it grew from a tiny dot into an increasingly clear and large shape.
Valencidris squinted one eye and slightly raised his chin.
“A griffin?”
* * *
“Then, I will summarize what we have found out so far.”
Dragon Spirit Hall.
Located on the top floor of the Papal State, the headquarters of the Gwangnyongjeong Church, the status of those gathered here was difficult to describe.
Doran Slade, standing on one leg with a crutch, spoke.
“It was Zernix who resurrected the Slayers. Although a grotesque method was used, as the resurrection of the Demon Slayer seemed to have failed.”
The absolute beings surrounding the Dragon Spirit Hall were the cardinals of the Pope, the yellow true dragons.
This meeting, where all major matters were discussed and decided in place of the ailing Gwangnyong, was called the Five Pillar Council.
Only three true dragons were gathered here now, as two true dragons were out in Harbardonia and the Red Mountains, respectively.
「The shame of Ryuken, revived by the authority of the Abyss, was something the Gwangnyong informed us of centuries ago, so we knew.」
Cardinal Hargon briefly hummed.
「What we do not know is its purpose. Have you found out who is behind it?」
Doran shook his head, looking apologetic.
“With the help of Sir Yoshuhar, we interrogated Chief Engineer Ocelot, but the Abyss ran wild just as we were about to reach the core…”
As soon as they attempted to shake his mind with Cardinal Yoshuhar’s authority to force him to confess his purpose, his whole body convulsed, and the Abyss within him ran wild, turning his body into a mass of fat.
- A new order…
During the interrogation, the only content that could be considered meaningful was this phrase.
- A new order, a new order, a new order. A new order to bring a wave of self-cleansing to this ailing world!
Could it be referring to the rule of the Abyss? But if so, it would have said so…
What was chillingly frightening was that the Abyss ran wild while being dominated by Yoshuhar’s light.
Doesn’t that mean the opponent is an entity of the Abyss using power equal to or greater than a true dragon?
“It was also Ocelot who spirited away Lista Alter Shirpain and the Extreme Holy Sword Shirpain during the Black Spot incident. We don't know for whom they were intended, or how they plan to use them.”
In the past, there was no specific concern, but it is different now that they know what happened to the Demon Slayer.
Ominous.
Truly ominous.
What do they plan to do with the hero’s corpse? Why did they take even the Extreme Holy Sword? Resurrecting them like Cassel Linkan would be impossible.
「…」
Yoshuhar, who cherished Lista like his own daughter, quietly closed his eyes and fell into thought.
‘If anything were to happen to that child, the only being who could save her in this chaotic era is…’
Only you, child of the spring breeze.
Meanwhile, Doran Slade finished his final report and left the Dragon Spirit Hall.
“Is this your retirement?”
Doran shrugged at the question from the heroic woman leaning against a pillar in the corridor, arms crossed.
“As you can see, I can no longer work on the front lines.”
Mikaela Alter Pladimarte, currently the most senior Faequeria, furrowed her brow.
“Don’t make me laugh. I won’t tolerate it. What kind of state is the world in now? If a capable magician like you retires, who will I entrust the Special Operations Division to? I only have about two or three years left of my lifespan.”
“Are you saying I shouldn’t retire?”
“Yes… what?”
“Originally, I was thinking of retiring gracefully like this.”
Doran touched the brim of his fedora, a somewhat wistful smile on his face.
“After receiving a compliment from a great senior, I felt it would be a bit of a shame to step down like this.”
A great senior?
Did he meet Skarge or Madelia? He would have come directly to the Papal State from the Tersh Archipelago, wouldn’t he?
As Mikaela tilted her head, unable to grasp the meaning of his words, Doran walked away to the far end of the corridor, waving his hand lightly.
“Though I may not be able to work on the front lines, I intend to struggle as much as I can. To become a junior I’m not ashamed of.”
* * *
“P-Platinum rank?!”
Rem’s jaw dropped.
He had opened the letter handed to him by a hired griffin rider from the Adventurer’s Guild with little expectation, but…
Considering your contribution, we have decided to promote you.
Bart Yuriyuns: Platinum 11th.
Rem: Gold 13th -> 2nd.
Miria: Silver 112th -> Gold 78th.
Please visit your nearest Adventurer Guild branch as soon as possible to update your identification tag.
Platinum rank? Isn’t that an honor earned by only the top 11 adventurers, excluding the Diamond rank?
“Even so, does this explosive surge make sense? Why is Bart Platinum before me?!”
Valencidris thought it wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.
It likely meant that the Special Operations Division and the Papal State had given immense scores for this Slayers subjugation campaign.
And the credit for that achievement, originally belonging to Rain Ludwig, had been distributed among those three.
‘It seems it was reported that the number one disciple of that Southern Ring fought the Dragon Slayer one-on-one.’
The main character of this incident seemed to have no interest in the achievement in the first place, judging by his idly chatting next to them.
“Wow, if Bart is Platinum rank first, shouldn’t we change it from Rem and Bart’s Money Duplication Adventurer Group to Bart and Rem’s?”
“Change it, change it, change it.”
“Shut up! And it’s the Pit-a-pat Money Duplication Adventurer Group, got it? Don’t leave that out. Just, ugh.”
“What is Platinum?”
“Dismemberment, dismemberment, dismemberment.”
“Arooo.”
In a noisy corner, Miria had to sink into strange thoughts, gazing at the notification.
“I’m Gold rank…”
Uncle Long, focusing only on goblin hunting, always stayed at Silver rank, but I instantly surpassed that.
What would Uncle think if he saw this? Would he be happy with me?
Why does it feel like a passage from the prison of the past, the ‘Goblin Slayer,’ to a new future?
‘It’s natural to be happy, as it’s a hierarchy coveted by adventurers, but it's not all good.’
However, the judgment of the always cautious and calm Valencidris was slightly different.
‘Platinum 11th is a position always checked by the top-ranked Gold adventurers…’
If contribution levels were similar, skilled Gold-ranked adventurers could challenge for a promotion match.
‘To be free from that annoying task, one must climb higher as soon as possible, but from Platinum rank, the gathering of elites, the standard of contribution is on a different level.’
Amidst such talk, Bart’s reaction, who should have been the happiest, was a little peculiar.
“…”
As if displeased, or finding it hard to accept, he sighed and went down to the cabin.
“Huh?”
“Hey, Bart.”
Just as Rem and Rain exchanged puzzled glances, Aki suddenly jumped onto the figurehead and pointed to the distant horizon.
“Dad, a new island has appeared!”
As the color of green stood out between the light blue sky and the dark blue sea, Rain felt his heart pound dizzyingly.
The sensation of sailing across the sea with his old comrades quietly crossed his mind.
The cries of seagulls in the sky, the sound of waves crashing on the white sand are heard. The scent of a wet forest mixes with the salty smell of the sea.
- Rin, do you see that?
Times have changed, and everyone is gone, but nature remains the same… It’s the exact same sight as 300 years ago.
“Aki, seeing that island means we’ve arrived at the Adrion Continent.”
Rain approached the side of the figurehead and said. Aki raised her chin, looked back, and replied,
“Adrion!”
“There’s a famous small city there called Orvenheim.”
Starting from the day Lista's party landed at that port, humanity's counterattack began.
Wherever they went, there was light, and those who despaired in the darkness gathered one by one.
Is that why, at some point after the war, that city began to be called Orvenheim, meaning ‘the city of beginning’?
“Do you want to see what kind of place it is?”