Chapter 654
Chapter 654
Take a calm breath and expand your senses as much as possible. Just by taking that simple action, you can feel the magic of the dragon that introduced itself as a servant wriggling.
Although it seemed like she didn’t show any reaction on the outside, she could probably do whatever she wanted with that kind of shell anyway. I calmed down Este, who was trembling slightly, who was aware of my nervousness, and pretended that it was a normal meeting as much as possible. After that, I had to pray and pay attention to the dragon the whole time the conversation continued.
There are too many things to worry about.
It is meaningless to discuss strength. Compared to the fragments that are revealed on the surface because they could not hide everything, Wind King Iranoleph is nothing more than a lizard that has both the dragon nature and the skills torn apart.
It’s not a bad thing to realize that the differences in abilities between mortals are so extreme, but it’s not very pleasant because it’s not information that I wanted to know, as I was thrown into a situation where I opened my eyes to find myself with a bomb necklace, rather than having a knife pointed at my nose.
It feels absurd that a living, breathing creature could be so strong. Of course, the real problem is that such an absurd being is walking around calmly in the middle of the dwarven kingdom.
But one thing was clear, as it was certain that the vomit was strong enough to make me vomit.
He’s not exactly holding the kingdom hostage, nor does he have any malicious intentions.
If they had wanted to do that, the dwarven kingdom would have disappeared from this world long ago.
“Aside from the pleasantness of meeting the warrior, I really want to ask this. When I listened to the messenger, I heard that the elves’ territory also offered prayers to the World Tree. What was the reason for that?”
“After witnessing the grace of the gods firsthand, I could not help but be thankful.”
“A god who only looks down on other races… There is no question more stupid than this.”
Of course, there was a separate story behind how I came to serve Ephaga, but in any case, it was not known to the outside world, so it was a very sloppy question to ask in front of me, a human who serves the demon god. Still, it seemed like it was just a question that came out reflexively, not something with some other meaning, so King Dena apologized by tapping his helmet.
I feel like even everyday conversations are going by in a blur because I’m investing about 80% of my energy into that sinister dragon. Fortunately, this time, unlike the World Tree, there was no change even though I prayed. I wanted to avoid the unfortunate event of being dragged to the sacred grounds defenselessly while an unidentified dragon is right next to me.
“I would like to hold a banquet and praise the achievements of the Dragon Slayer, but… I have already received the detailed story from the Empire. The banquet held by the Empire was also forced, and the person concerned wants to help his comrades on the front lines as soon as possible, right?”
“···Yes·”
Although it was a little twisted, it wasn’t completely wrong, and since I didn’t want to have another annoying banquet, I quickly answered. King Dena nodded with regret, licking his lips inside his helmet, and turned his gaze to General Miwood, who was sitting quietly.
“Then it is the turn of General Miwood from here on. I do not have the insight like you, so I do not know whether this warrior has ulterior motives and is pretending to be faithful to please us. It seems to me that he is just one of the people who is uncomfortable in this place and wants to finish his business quickly and return to his hometown.”
What the heck? It’s not that you don’t have an eye for detail, but you’re just really fucking awesome. How did you figure out my psychology so well?
King Dena laughed heartily as if he believed he had made a funny joke, while expressing admiration in his heart and only showing a relaxed smile on his face. When he tried to get up, he waved his hand as if to tell him not to, and even spoke to General Miwood.
“But more than anything, since he protected the people of the kingdom from the vampires that attacked the train, as the king, I cannot help him even if he has other intentions.”
“Even if a single case arises, I will try to adjust it according to Your Majesty’s will.”
“Um, let’s get the things we’re going to ride ready.”
The king nodded again, saying that it was okay, and continued speaking, patting my shoulder as I sat there.
“A deal is a deal and a favor is a favor. The kingdom will not forget this, so I will be waiting for you to conclude the deal amicably with the warriors.”
Then, without looking back, he started walking away from the temple.
The reaction was so cool that I wondered if this was right, but seeing him go out and order his followers to investigate the vampires, it seems that King Dena is going to do what he has to do.
“Isn’t this an unfamiliar sight to humans?”
He laughed and gestured to the dragon who claimed to be his servant, and the dragon who claimed to be his servant, helped him up. I thought he was going to start a stress interview right away, but it didn’t seem to be the case. The dragon Miwood who had gotten up gently gestured to me and told me to follow him.
“I also agree to make weapons for you, my lord. However, as the representative, I cannot force the warriors to do things, so I think I will have to help you out a bit. Is that okay?”
“Of course we should. We’ve already had a good rest on the train, so let’s go right away.”
Even though we were talking with smiling faces, my attention was on the dragon. I was trying to check if the dragon was reacting to my every move first and treating the dragon like a puppet, but surprisingly, the dragon did nothing and just helped the dragon.
“···It seems like the person next to you has been assisting the commander for a very long time.
Even if it is not just a show, but there is consideration in every action. If you were to look at it without knowing the style, you would have believed that the dragon’s staff was just a decoration and that the dragon was a living, breathing staff.
“You saw it exactly. Now, just thinking about moving without this guy is depressing.”
There is no sense of pretense or falsehood in the words of the dragon general. There may have been a very small change, but at least that is what I saw.
Seeing him taking such good care of me, I didn’t think he would suddenly attack me and needlessly put the dragon general in danger. Judging that, I eased my strength a little. For some reason, the magical power that had been surging around the dragon seemed to calm down a little, which surprised me a little.
Even though my life is full of unbelievable things happening often, the dragon’s reaction was especially so. I had already suppressed my magic power as much as possible long before I encountered him.
It’s only natural for a magic user to recognize another magic user, but I’m someone who crossed the Demon Territory while deceiving even those magic users. And you read that, even though my magic power was apparently at a meager level from their perspective?
···In order to resolve the deepening doubts, it seems that an environment where one can be alone without worrying about the eyes of others must be created.
“By the way, what kind of weapon are you trying to make, sir?”
“First of all, I had the armor in mind. The armor I was using before was very damaged during my trip to the Demon Realm.”
The armor that Esmue gave me as a gift has become a complete rag after being overworked without ever receiving proper maintenance. Of course, it can still function as armor against some enemies, but the problem is that my enemies are always more than just average.
“Um… This may be presumptuous of me to say, but I understand that the armor you were using before wasn’t bad armor at all. It was a gift from the White Star of the Empire, right?”
What? How do you know that? I opened my eyes wide in surprise at the unexpected reaction, and the dragon general smiled slightly at me.
“The Empire’s military technology is not theirs alone. Since they have a close relationship with the Dwarven Kingdom, if it leaks out of the Empire, a report with specific reasons will be sent. Although they have retired from the field, they naturally found out about it because of their position.”
That’s how it continues. Since he was the one who readily told me the story that he didn’t need to tell, I decided to explain it properly.
“It was a good armor, as you said. Unfortunately, I was badly injured when I fought the Wind King, Iranoleph, who was consumed by the evil spirit’s energy.”
My attempt to repay kindness with kindness, though it was not intentional, provoked an unexpected reaction. The dragon, which had shown no signs of abnormality until now, showed an unusual reaction for the first time.
I don’t know why, but at least he’s not hostile. Thanks to that, my level of vigilance toward him was able to be lowered just a little bit.
“A dragon consumed by the spirit of evil… I remember that the armor wasn’t made with that in mind. You almost suffered great humiliation.”
“They say that crises always come from unexpected places, but it was quite difficult.”
It’s a bit of a shame for Esmue, but in the fight against Iranoleph, the armor was barely functional. As the dragon general said, the problem wasn’t his strength, but his sorcery using the power of the evil god.
If it weren’t for the orb given by Saint Teneasi, the battle would have been much fiercer and I would have been in great danger. I don’t know if the armor made from dragon byproducts would be able to block such attacks, but right now, I need to have the best armor possible.
“I’m relieved to hear that you came here to overcome such ‘realistic’ problems. Surprisingly, many people tend to mistakenly believe that they can obtain something one-of-a-kind and universal if they just have the dragon’s byproduct, and that can be quite a headache. Do you have any other magical effects in mind?”
“I’m an outsider who rarely uses enchanted equipment, so I didn’t think about it separately.”
A carriage that is being pulled by a lizard… no, it’s strange to call it a carriage. What should we call it? Should we call it a carriage, using the character for lizard?
Anyway, the dragon commander, who had gotten on the mount with the help of the dragon who had calmed down the lizard that was bulging its chin as if it was going to spit fire at any moment, let out a short sigh as if it was a bit burdensome, and then smiled gently again and said,
“Please take a ride. It’s a bit far, so I’ll explain a little bit on the way.”
In fact, I was worried about the dragon, so I planned to ride the lizard King Dena had prepared for me, but since I had eliminated my own excuse for refusing, I had no choice but to accept his offer.