kscans

Chapter 614 - The Earth Dragon's Bed

An otherworldly majesty. The pressure of an extraordinary being. Faced with this unknown, of which we knew nothing but the name the world had given it, Lux and I likely shared the same intuition.

“Tch… Har-kun!”

“I know!”

Namely, that getting too close would be a very bad idea.

In the virtual world, ‘hunches’ and ‘intuitions’ are often things that shouldn’t be dismissed as ‘just your imagination.’ It’s an occult-like theory that’s often whispered about, but I myself have had countless experiences of that kind, so I’m a believer.

Furthermore, if the [Traveler], whose danger sense far surpasses that of others regardless of her personality, agreed with me, then it became a certainty.

Therefore,

“Sapphire!”

Faced with a ‘dragon,’ I summoned a dragon. Out of the shadows emerged wings of the starry sky.

The massive body of the manifested tamed beast caught us as we fell… and for now, there was one thing to do. I increased the number of shadow threads that were just loosely attached, and restrained Lux.

Why? Well, that’s because—

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!”

“Your reaction is about two months too late, you hermit…!”

I hadn’t had the chance to meet her myself, so I hadn’t told her, but the fact that I had succeeded in taming Sapphire was made public some time after I conquered the ‘Arena.’

In other words, it was information she could have easily learned if she had wanted to, but she was as ignorant of the world’s affairs as I was in high school. It seems Sora-san also took my “let’s keep it a secret” to heart and kept it under wraps.

So, this was truly her first time seeing him.

And when she, who had been clamoring to ‘tame a big dragon’ since the first [Starry Paradise] event, came face to face with Sapphire…

“W-what is that?! Not fair, not fair! You were hiding this, Har-kun, you bastard!”

“Shut up, stop struggling, and consider the situation, you…!”

Well, it was predictable that she would start acting like this.

“I’ll set up a petting corner for you later! I’ll tell you everything, all the info!”

“Whoaaaa, it’s looking at me! It’s flapping its wings! So coooooool, so biiiig, so cuuuuuute!!!”

“Are you even listening to me?!”

And as for my dear servant Sapphire, he seemed genuinely perplexed by the situation. Suddenly summoned into this crazy environment, with a strange woman having a meltdown on his back, who was in turn being held by his master.

Well, he doesn’t have a face, but I could tell what he was thinking from the way he timidly bent his long neck to look back at us.

In any case, this was by no means a situation where we could feel at ease…

“For now, are we out of danger… I guess?”

I looked up at the ceiling, which had receded as we fell, and at the ‘hole’ I had made myself.

I had expected the pursuing mole-dragons to expand the entrance and come flooding in, but there was no sign of that.

Did they lose us? Did they give up? Or perhaps…

“…”

Ignoring the idiot who had forgotten the situation and was chattering away at Sapphire, I returned my gaze downwards. The super-giant ‘Chrysalis,’ which exuded an overwhelming presence even without looking at it… but for some reason, strangely…

I didn’t find it terrifying or frightening.

[Novem, Earth-Governing Dragon]—zero information, no clues, a complete unknown. But now, facing this thing that was definitely pulsing with life, what I felt was…

“It’s not an enemy, is it…”

At least, not right now.

As long as we didn’t get close, this thing wouldn’t try to annihilate us. A baseless certainty… and it seemed I wasn’t the only one.

“Lux—hey, how long are you going to flirt with my tamed beast? Get back here, you idiot!”

“Ouch?! What was that for?! There was no reason to hit me! And calling me an idiot is rude!”

Furthermore, the fact that the Lady [Traveler], whose danger sense far surpasses that of others, had completely let her guard down and was acting like an idiot, was telling.

“What happened?”

“You’re ignoring me…! —Well, it’s fine now. The ‘path’ is confirmed.”

Once again, our intuitions were aligned.

“Good work, Har-kun. Aren’t you glad I came to help?”

“I’m going to toss you out of here while you’re still tied up, you know.”

“That’s a death threat!”

I too finally relaxed and slumped down onto Sapphire’s back.

It had been a long time since I’d been this exhausted from a pure adventure. But… as much as she sounded like she was talking nonsense, Lux’s words were actually backed by solid evidence.

What was that evidence? Well, it was—

“We can take that and go home without it getting angry, right?”

“No problem, no problem. My ‘treasure’ says so.”

It was due to the brilliance of the ‘best ending,’ which was even better than just surviving.

On a dragon, above a dragon. As we both relaxed for a momentary break, our gazes were fixed on the canopy of the super-vast space—at its center.

From the ‘Chrysalis,’ Novem, a visible ‘something’ swayed… a draconic aura rose in a thin, thin stream towards a giant crystal pillar formed like a stalactite or icicle.

An object that was likely formed not by dripping water, but by rising energy.

At its tip was a single point of light that was captivating even from a distance.

“Alright, then, Har-kun.”

Still wrapped up like a sausage, the [Traveler] stood up, turned around, and grinned smugly.

“Let’s grab the treasure and head home!”

“…I’ll be expecting a peaceful route on the way back.”

Her golden eyes shining at the undeniable ‘dragon’s treasure.’

◇◆◇◆◇

As they say, the journey there is easy, the journey back is hard. But for this adventure, aside from the chaotic part in the middle, both the journey there and back were easy.

On the way back, perhaps the power of [Treasure Hunter] was in a good mood, and we returned to the surface without encountering any mole-dragons. There were a couple of extra scenes, like the three of us having to console a mysteriously dejected Nia…

“—I’m starting to find this whole thing hilarious.”

“Fuguu…!”

What was supposed to be a small adventure turned into an unexpectedly grand one, and with me leading the charge, everyone was more or less exhausted. So, the party was temporarily disbanded. We decided to share the spoils and have a post-mortem later—or at least, that’s what we said. After we parted ways, seemingly for good…

I was alone in the atelier, having made a detour after telling Sora, whom I had warned on the way back and who was in on the plan, that I was going alone. Nia, who was still moping, was appraising the ‘item.’

“What happened to your usual quick recovery?” I laughed at the sight of the jeweler, and what came back was not a complaint, but a death rattle.

“I told you, don’t worry about it. It’s not like it was anyone’s fault. That’s not me being considerate, it’s just a fact. If anything, I’m sorry for scaring you.”

“I-I know, but…”

“If you know, then you don’t need to be so down.”

Is it a thing with high-level artisans, like Kagura-san, that once they decide something is their fault, they become extremely self-deprecating?

I can kind of understand the feeling, but seeing her unusually depressed face was starting to stir my protective instincts… or rather, I was getting worried.

“If anything, the one who should be bowing his head infinitely right now, for various reasons, is definitely me—so how about you puff out your chest and grant me your teachings, Sensei?”

“That’s… well, I’m okay with that, but…—Haaah, fine, I get it.”

She closed her eyes, which had been intently focused on the appraisal as if to escape my gaze, slapped her cheeks a few times, and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes again…

“—Mm…!”

She spread her arms towards me, as if asking for something.

I could guess what she wanted, but doing that with her, when I couldn’t use my role as her partner as an excuse, was a bit too much for my sense of reason—

“Here, make do with this.”

“…I suppose this will have to do.”

“She’s suddenly so high and mighty…”

I moved behind her, patted her head a few times, and then, mustering my courage, I combed my fingers through her hair.

I know it’s strange, but something as simple as this was far more difficult and heart-pounding than facing a giant dragon alone.

I have a tendency to be flustered by Nia’s girly, vulnerable side.

“S-so, with the bothersome formalities out of the way—let’s get down to the ‘request.’ How’s the ‘item’ looking?”

I quickly pulled my hand away and just as quickly changed the subject.

It’s not like I was running away. It was a strategic, mutual consideration to protect both our hearts—including Nia’s, whose ears were red even from behind.

“Nngh… R-right. Well, to put it simply—”

Nia, who was repeatedly fiddling with her hair to compose herself, her cheeks still red, poked the ‘item’ on the desk—a fist-sized, colorless, transparent, shining raw gemstone—with her fingertip.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a gem better than this one from a natural field drop, you know…? Excluding special unique items from dungeons, like a certain someone’s hair ornament.”

“…………Which means…”

Even while she was moping, she had been muttering things like “Ooh…,” “Eeh…,” “No way…,” and “Seriously…?” so I hadn’t doubted it. The ‘treasure’ that Lux and I had brought back—the [Novemheart Diamond]—was, without a doubt…

“Aha, ha… It’s the type of monster that I’m scared to even touch. Congratulations.”

What I had been looking for, a one-of-a-kind, truly unique item.

---

[Novemheart Diamond]—A draconic crystal stone that is the core, life, and ‘treetop’ of the great crystal pillar that grows under the influence of the draconic aura emitted by the slumbering earth dragon. The crystal pillar is not a stack that grows downwards, but a type of living organism that grows by consuming the dragon’s energy. Therefore, this, the tip and the seed of its beginning, is the part that has been bathed in ‘power’ the longest, making it the finest part.

To be blunt, it’s like a first-discoverer reward from a super-hidden secret area. The next one will bear fruit in a few years, a few decades, or a few centuries in Arcadia time…

If you want it, seek out the other ‘Dragons’.