Chapter 24: Power of the Dragon

The dragon sensed it.

The presence of an enemy, after a long time.

The Griffon with the shining eagle head was reasonably strong, but it fled after being struck a few times.

That was not the enemy.

The creature resembling a goblin standing before me was different.

With its shining single claw, it had split open my scales.

Such a small creature.

Moreover, even when cut and struck with my tail, it remained alive.

Even the breath attack was deflected with a dazzling display.

Furthermore, in a baffling turn of events, despite displaying overwhelming power, it continued to rise back up.

Delighted, I opened my mouth wider and concentrated power in my belly.

No tricks were needed. It wasn’t a breath of fire.

I was about to unleash something special.

That was my decision.

—

“Hey, hey, hey, what the hell is that?”

Lucius blurted out while still holding his sword.

Darkness could be seen within the dragon’s mouth.

It wasn’t like the flames from before.

Shadows were gathering.

In a panic, he released a burst of light with his sword, but the light was drawn into the dragon’s mouth and disappeared.

Darkness that even swallowed light.

The blinding dazzle was useless.

The darkness that was about to overflow from its mouth was suddenly unleashed.

It was a black line.

That’s the only way to describe it.

“Sorry, I couldn’t protect you…”

In the instant Lucius recognized death, his body was rapidly pulled and lifted into the sky by something.

As I was being pulled up into the sky, the scene below was peculiar.

It was as if someone had drawn a single line with ink on a photograph of the forest from above.

In the next moment, the surrounding trees and scorched earth were rapidly drawn towards the black line, and the area around the black line changed to a folded earthy color. Immediately after, the compressed trees and earth that had been pushed to their limits were expelled all at once and scattered around. The black line disappeared.

Only shattered debris remained afterwards.

“What are you spacing out for?”

I heard Olivia’s voice.

I regained my sanity and looked around.

“Whoa!”

It seems that I am being held in the grip of a Griffon.

Olivia is straddling the Griffon, while Matilda is firmly held in its front claws.

“Don’t be surprised just yet.”

As he was tossed into the air, Lucius grabs onto Olivia from behind.

“So, you managed to make a contract with the Griffon…”

“Yes, I did. Just as promised. Lucius, but more importantly, do something about that.”

Lucius recalls Olivia’s one-sided promise.

Olivia had promised to do anything if she could make a contract with the Griffon.

A massive figure with black-silver wings spreads behind the Griffon.

It’s a black-silver dragon.

The dragon seems to be faster, and the distance between us is gradually closing.

Its eyes are filled with the delight of the hunt, and a strong determination to not let us escape is evident.

“Do something…?”

I could wound it with a sword.

But that’s about it.

The destructive power of its breath, especially the second one, could easily be lethal.

“Lucius, you’re going to become a noble Baron who protects his subjects, right?”

As we pass through the clouds, a vast expanse of forest spreads out below.

Beyond the forest, in the distance, a small village comes into view.

It’s Silverheart Village.

The village we searched for tirelessly can be seen in an instant from the sky.

—If it’s a dragon, it can reach the village in no time.

Parents, villagers, being trampled by the dragon.

I absolutely cannot allow that to happen.

But what should I do?

Swords hardly have any effect, and the dragon has overwhelmingly superior firepower.

Dealing with it head-on is impossible.

The distance between the dragon and the Griffon is closing steadily, and we are just moments away from feeling the dragon’s breath.

At that moment, Lucius noticed the prosthetic arm, fitted on Olivia’s left hand.

Lucius sheathed his sword and tightly secured the straps.

“Olivia… Can you do a somersault? As soon as possible.”

“A somersault… Hold on tight!”

Olivia grasped the Griffon’s neck tightly.

Understanding his intention, the Griffon shot straight up into the sky, and just when it seemed like it would continue ascending, it flipped its belly toward the sky, performing a swift somersault.

Caught off guard by the sudden somersault of the Griffon, the dragon’s reaction was delayed.

“I’ll borrow this.”

Lucius swiftly removed the “Beast Rider’s Prosthetic Arm” from Olivia’s left hand and leaped off the Griffon.

“What are you doing?!”

Jumping at an altitude of several hundred meters, he landed on the back of the motionless dragon.

The dragon had a tough and rugged exterior.

With a body that seemed ready to bounce back from the recoil, he clung to the dragon’s scales.

He could strongly feel the dragon’s heartbeat.

Through the prosthetic arm he sensed the dragon’s magical power.

It felt like a concentrated mass of power.

Suddenly, the dragon, startled by being mounted on its back, began to thrash about.

“Do you think I’ll let go?”

Nevertheless, Lucius desperately held on.

If he was thrown off, a deadly last dive towards the ground awaited him.

On the other hand, the dragon resorted to erratic flying, desperately trying to shake off Lucius.

It was like a roller coaster ride with sudden braking that felt like a cradle.

Breath attacks were unleashed in all directions.

“Watch out!”

Olivia hurriedly avoided a breath attack that passed by her closely.

If the breath attack had hit her directly, it would have been game over in one strike.

Olivia looked at Matilda, whom she had grabbed with the front paw of her griffin.

Earlier, Matilda was the maid whom Lucius had valiantly protected.

Olivia couldn’t afford to get involved and had no choice but to retreat from the rampaging dragon.

Furthermore, maintaining the manifestation of a creature as powerful as a Griffon consumed an enormous amount of magic.

Reluctantly, Olivia landed the Griffon on the ground.

She placed Matilda, whom she had been holding with her front paw, on the ground, and the Griffon vanished.

Matilda seemed completely unable to comprehend what had just happened and opened her mouth to speak.

“L-Lord Lucius… is he…”

Olivia, with her magic reserves depleted and her body on the verge of collapse, forcibly propped herself up.

“He’s still up in the sky.”

“That’s not possible!”

Matilda gasped.

“You should run away. I will stay here and wait for Lucius.”

“But…”

“If Lucius fails, I need to divert the dragon’s attention, preferably to a place far away from the kingdom. You have to inform the outside world about the presence of the dragon, to your father or Baron Dragon. They should be able to take some action.”

Olivia’s face was filled with determination.

It was as if she was saying she was willing to die.

“…No, I will wait too.”

Olivia responded briefly while keeping her gaze fixed on the sky.

“…I see.”

Lucius, with every breath unleashed, felt the tremendous heat and gravity, yet he used his entire body to cling on and not be thrown off.

“Ugh…”

Emotions transmitted through the prosthetic arm.

“Rejection.”

One could say that emotions were riding on the magical power.

The flowing magical power melted into his nerves, and the torrent of emotions directly reached his brain.

Despite the dragon’s magical power flowing in one after another, it never mingled with Lucius’s own magical power.

Lucius couldn’t fully handle the immense influx of magical power, causing it to overflow from the prosthetic arm.

The dragon was a special-grade magical creature, while Lucius’s magical power was only at a first-grade level.

—It’s not in balance with myself.

He knew that very well.

There was no other choice left.

The dragon soaring at high speed increased its altitude even further.

The temperature dropped rapidly, turning the breath, which should have been in the midst of summer, into a white mist.

If things continued like this, eventually his stamina would run out or he would freeze.

Lucius had no confidence that he could establish a contract with the dragon.

—How can I make a contract?

Olivia’s magic core was supposed to be of second-grade level.

However, she was able to make a contract with a first-grade magical creature, the griffin.

There must be some method.

Even if their ranks were different, there had to be something.

He recalled the creatures he had seen so far.

Griffon, Peruton, Cloud Sheep, Hippogriff…

Siren.

When he thought of the Siren, he remembered the words Guffel had uttered during the “Ritual of Contract.”

“Stop. It’s a violation of the contract.”

Words to stop a rampaging Siren.

Was there really a violation of the contract?

Wasn’t it just a matter of compatibility?

—No, it’s not just about compatibility. If it were, it wouldn’t be considered a violation of the contract.

There must be something beyond mere compatibility to make a creature a familiar.

As soon as he had that thought, the emotions accompanying the flowing magical power from the dragon became more distinct.

He could sense emotions other than rejection.

—A craving for power.

The dragon purely desired power.

In that moment of realization, Lucius felt as though he was being questioned by the dragon.

“Are you someone who can grant me power?”

It would be easy to respond with a simple affirmation.

But he couldn’t do it.

This is not that kind of contract.

Literally, it is questioning the state of one’s heart when living as one entity.

Perhaps, if he were to accept, he would have to continuously fulfill the dragon’s craving, at the cost of his entire life.

Indeed, Robel had said it. The contract is about equality.

It is not just about the familiar unilaterally granting power and formulas to humans.

Humans must also respond to the demands of the familiar.

While the consequences of violating the contract are unknown, there are likely heavy restrictions that cannot be easily dismissed.

If the ranks are different, the constraints feel even heavier.

Perhaps Olivia had sworn to the Griffon. How she would live the rest of her life.

It could be considered as compatibility.

The way of life, values, perspectives on life, and what one pursues at the risk of their life.

The name doesn’t matter.

If the familiar and the human’s desires align from the beginning, there may be no constraints at all.

What remains is whether there is room for accepting each other’s magical power.

But a craving for power.

Lucius does not possess such a thing.

He desired the power to protect his subjects as a baron, but he did not seek power that surpasses even the dragon.

As he became conscious of it, the backlash from the dragon’s magical power became even stronger.

――Is it really necessary?

No, that’s not it.

Without power, I can’t protect anything.

That’s why I’m desperately clinging to the dragon’s back right now.

With that thought, my thinking becomes clear.

“I swear, dragon. I don’t know what to do, but I’ll give you power.”

As soon as I made that oath, the dragon’s rejection vanished.

At the same time, an enormous amount of magic power surged through the “Beast Rider’s Prosthetic Arm” and flowed into me.

The magic power of the dragon and Lucius entwined with each other.

I feel the intense pain of being overwhelmed by magic power, which I haven’t felt in a long time.

I can’t suppress the overflowing magic power flowing into the Rider’s magic core in my left hand.

More magic power than the vessel can handle is forcibly being sent into it.

――The magic core is being shattered from within!

Lucius supplies magic power not only from the Rider’s magic core but also from the other three magic cores, desperately suppressing the magic core that is about to burst with sheer force.

――Will I be defeated? Ahhhhh!

Amidst being able to do nothing but watch, Matilda couldn’t help but continue praying.

How much time has passed? Only a few minutes, but it feels incredibly long.

“Oh, please, I beg of you.”

Occasionally, red and black streaks dash through the sky.

Being at a distance, Matilda cannot sense the magic power herself.

However, the immense power of the dragon is clearly visible to her eyes.

Thick rain clouds are gradually torn apart by the dragon’s breath.

And when the dragon’s breath erupts into the sky once again, a large hole is pierced through the clouds.

It truly feels like a celestial phenomenon, an upheaval of nature.

As sunlight began to pour through the gaps in the clouds that had been dispersed by the dragon, a black dot appeared in the center of the sun.

That black dot was steadily approaching in a straight line and gradually growing larger.

When it descended to the vicinity of the Silver Tree, its figure became clear.

It was a dragon.

“Hii!”

Matilda let out a scream, her face contorting in fear.

Olivia, though she didn’t vocalize it, felt the same way.

The dragon descended further and finally landed near Olivia and the others with a resounding thud.

“Thought I was a goner,” a voice of relief and nonchalance could be heard from somewhere.

“….Lucius-sama?”

Lucius had jumped down from the dragon’s back.

“Is it really Lucius-sama!?”

“What are you talking about, Matilda-san?”

Lucius struggled to stand on unsteady legs.

“But… from the dragon…”

Matilda pointed at the dragon, but it transformed into black particles and was absorbed into Lucius’s left hand, where the prosthetic arm was worn.

“Wait, huh, what?”

“I subdued the dragon and made it my formula.”

Matilda’s mouth opened and closed like a stranded fish.

“Matilda-san, more importantly, do you know if dragons can use wind spells?”

Matilda didn’t respond. It seemed like the words weren’t registering in her ears.

Seeing that it wouldn’t lead to any further conversation, Olivia approached Lucius with a hint of exasperation.

“So, you really managed to make a dragon your formula. Is it because of the Dragon family’s legacy, or is it just you?”

Olivia approached Lucius, slightly bewildered.

“I don’t know, but I was desperate. I felt like if I didn’t do something, I wouldn’t be able to protect anything.”

“I understand.”

Olivia took a deep breath and then turned towards Lucius and Matilda, assuming a formal posture.

“I apologize for involving you in my selfish actions.”

Olivia bent down deeply, showing a sudden return to her ladylike demeanor.

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”

“Despite being saved by you both multiple times, I still tried to run away on my own. It’s a shameful act for a noble and someone aspiring to be King. I accept any criticism.”

“I see, well then.”

Lucius spoke as if nothing had happened.

“…Well then,” Matilda said.

“If you’re reflecting on it, then let’s leave it at that. It’s natural for children to act without thinking things through. My father used to say that incidents like this happen every year. Besides, if we hadn’t noticed this dragon sooner, it could have resulted in a major disaster.”

Matilda joined in laughter with Lucius.

“If Lucius-sama doesn’t blame you, then I have nothing to say. However, just one thing. Please take care of yourself. Your reckless actions might someday harm many people. Especially when you become King.”

“Yes, I will engrave it in my heart.”

Matilda’s words caused Olivia to slump down.

“Yes, let’s call it a day. Take some rest and recover your mana, then we can leave the forest,” Lucius clapped his hands.

“Why are you suddenly using formal language?” Olivia approached Lucius, sounding dissatisfied.

“I guess I’ve reevaluated you. Seeing you acknowledge your mistakes and trying to correct them. I thought you were just an ignorant princess. Besides, you were not only able to form a contract with a Griffon but also saved us from the dragon’s breath. If you had been a little later, Olivia-sama, you would have been caught up in it too.”

“Lucius, you were in danger too, you know…”

“Anyway, I apologize for my numerous rudeness inside the forest,” Lucius gracefully bowed.

“You’ve changed so suddenly,” Olivia remarked.

“It’s nothing of the sort. Someday, you will be the head of the Norris Windsor family, and I will be the head of the Dragon family. We have a close relationship as foster siblings. That’s what’s right,” Lucius explained.

“Fine then. Lucius Norris Dragon. I order you as my future foster sibling. You may continue to interact with me casually in private,” Olivia commanded.

“Well, that’s…” Lucius hesitated, perplexed by the vague command.

“In that case, Olivia, while we rest, why don’t you tell us what’s happening in the northern region and why you aspire to become a king?” Matilda suggested.

“…You’re willing to listen now?” Olivia asked.

“Yeah, from the current Olivia,” Matilda replied.

“And you weren’t interested in listening to the previous me?” Olivia pouted.

“To be honest, no,” Lucius laughed.

“Ugh!” Olivia sighed, sulking.

“Well, fine. Let me start with the situation in the northern region…”

The three of them took a deep breath, finding a moment of respite in the depths of the forest.

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