Chapter 220 - Something More Valuable Than Mithril
Bell-bucho and Seth's story went back to before my and Mion's live stream began. Today was supposed to be a meeting of the 'Silver Manor' guild members, followed by a victory celebration for Thunder Empress Leona-sama. Leona-sama had achieved an overwhelming third consecutive victory in the F(Fulldive)・(Virtual)V(Idle)・(Champion)C(ship) main tournament. Next time, it would be a 'Legend' slot, where the winner could challenge her, or something similar…
"Leona-sama always live streams her victory celebrations. Haven't you seen it?"
"She invites close friends to a studio and they play games, right?" Mion said. I hadn't seen it, but Mion seemed knowledgeable because she was a former fan of Bell-bucho.
"It's usually a lively stream you don't normally see, with many guests, but this time, it was my suggestion to do it inside IRO."
"Heh~ Sounds really interesting…"
In a studio, only really close friends can be invited, but in IRO, even regular fans could participate.
"Surely the archive should be public by now?"
"Yes, it should."
So, the celebration stream continued until just before they came to the Virtual Club Room. Which means…
"Argenta-san appeared during that live stream?"
"Well, well, let us all watch."
Bell-bucho opened Leona-sama's channel and started playing the recently published archive. Of course, we couldn't watch it all from the beginning, so…
"Around here, I suppose."
A victory celebration, or an outdoor barbecue venue? There was a huge amount of food and drinks prepared, so perhaps it was a bring-your-own-stuff kind of event where anyone could join.
"Lots of Dwarves, are those NPC Dwarves who came to Mine mixed in?"
"Indeed, those are Grad-dono and his comrades, the NPC Dwarves. When we informed them there was a celebration with sake, they brought two Ranziboas they had hunted."
I was thinking they'd become quite friendly, when suddenly several Winged Folk appeared and started arguing with Grad-san and his group.
"What happened?"
"It seems Grad-dono and his men had started exploring the Ancient Ruins in question, but had not paid the 'tribute' that the Winged Folk demanded."
"That issue was still ongoing…?"
I thought they had just given up and gone home after dumping the problem on someone else and failing to manage it. Leona-sama approached the commotion. I expected something to happen.
"We are acting on a request from the White Dragon Princess! We have no reason to take orders from mere flightless beings!"
"Ho! You said that, did you! Then let's hear it from her!"
"Eh?"
Grad-san raised his right hand to the sky, and from it… a flare? Something shot into the sky, exploding with a sound and light like fireworks. And then…
"Whoa…"
A silver dragon appeared at that spot. Definitely Argenta-san. Is that a magic tool to create a Transfer destination at that spot?
"N-No way…"
The Winged Folk collapsed to their knees, uttering such weak lines. Argenta-san landed right in front of them, carefully avoiding crushing the tables that were set up…
"Argenta-dono. These ones claimed they 'received a request from the White Dragon Princess'. We here, and everyone around, are witnesses!"
At these words, Argenta-san glared at the Winged Folk. His demeanor was completely different from when I met him.
"Foolish children who borrow the dragon's might. The Princess would never ask such a thing of you!"
"B-But…"
"Return to your village swiftly! Judgment shall follow!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The Winged Folk flew away as if fleeing… Am I the only one who thinks he's surprisingly kind, despite everything? Well, most of the players there were dumbfounded, so they were probably too shocked to retort.
"Grad-dono, I leave the rest to you. I have urgent business from the Princess…"
"Aye, leave it to me!"
Argenta-san flew off after hearing the reply. He didn't transform into a human there, but was it okay that he transformed during my stream?
"Alright! The feast continues!"
"""Oooohh!!!"""
The celebration venue was filled with cheers. Leona-sama, accompanied by Bell-bucho and Seth, headed towards Grad-san… and the playback stopped there.
"That was a sudden development."
"I was nervous when they first started arguing. 'Such a waste of a celebration,' I thought…"
Right, she was the one who suggested it, probably the organizer too.
"So, what exactly did the Winged Folk want?"
"According to Grad-dono, there appears to be a hierarchy even among those under the Dragonkin's protection. They are at the bottom, so they likely wanted to make some kind of achievement."
"Was that the collection of ore?"
"The main prize seemed to be Mithril. Perhaps they thought by presenting that, they could gain some favor."
How shallow… And even if they got Mithril, I didn't think Argenta-san would be pleased with it.
"Brother's sweets are superior to rare ore!"
"That's right!"
"That 'urgent business' was to go to Shou-kun's island to get sweets, right?"
"Ah, I guess so…"
What a pain. Did he fly there in an hour or so? The distance from the Kingdom to the island must be considerable.
"And there's one more thing I need to confirm with Brother."
"Of course, if you don't want to answer, you don't have to."
"Huh?"
What could it be? I didn't think there was anything more than meeting Argenta-san.
"Have you met any other silver dragons besides the one who came to us?"
"Ah, no. Argenta-san is the only one I'm in contact with. The word 'Princess' pops up occasionally, so I just assume there's a Dragonkin princess out there somewhere."
By the way, Argenta-san directly serves the Princess, so he must be a high-ranking dragon. Don't even know the total number of Dragonkin.
"Is there something to that?"
"Several Game Dolls fans tried to cross the White Dragon Mountain Range and were caught by the Scarlet Dragon."
"…"
Yeah, sorry. That's because I told them in a letter…