Ch.4Kidnapping Like This (1)

“Yes, Olivia.”

“What?”

“Didn’t you say this was a kidnapping?”

“Yeah.”

“…..”

Glacia couldn’t hide her bewilderment.

‘We’re just going openly like this?’

Even a dragon as naive about the ways of the world knew how kidnappings were supposed to work.

Isn’t kidnapping supposed to be done secretly, stealthily?

She didn’t know much, but she was certain that kidnapping wasn’t something done in broad daylight, especially not by someone riding on a dragon’s back.

But instead of asking more questions, Glacia kept her mouth shut. It was the result of learning firsthand (?) that Olivia was a person with whom common sense didn’t apply.

‘She looks like some noble, but her personality is worse than a Red Dragon Lord.’

Honestly, Olivia’s appearance was quite impressive even to a dragon’s eyes. Her silver hair and haughty gaze naturally created the aura of an ice beauty.

The mana she exuded was so pure it was hard to believe she was human.

But who would believe that beneath that exterior lurked a psycho that even demons would back away from?

‘She’s a complete witch, a witch.’

Glacia swallowed her words internally. Actually, calling a mage a witch was a terrible insult. It was like calling a dragon a lizard.

As she was consoling herself with these thoughts, Olivia’s irritated voice reached her ears.

“Can’t you fly more smoothly?”

“…I’ll do my best.”

“Tsk. Maybe I should get a saddle.”

“…..”

Glacia’s eyes trembled.

A saddle was going too far. It’s not like she was going to go around bragging to everyone, “I got ridden by a human.”

“Um, what exactly is uncomfortable for you?”

“Your scales are too hard. Can I cut off a few? They’ll grow back anyway.”

“…..”

“If you don’t like that, then get a saddle.”

Worse than a demon, this one.

In the end, she had no choice but to make a decision.

“Please… be gentle.”

Glacia squeezed her eyes shut.

‘Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it! I shouldn’t have left home! I should have listened to mother!’

Dragons are considered separate individuals the moment they leave their parent’s lair. Carthian had said, “I’ve raised you to adulthood, now go live your life,” and sent Glacia away.

It felt good at the time.

Breaking free from her parents’ protection, she could live the life she wanted.

If she had known she would meet this demon, she would have delayed her independence for a hundred years.

‘I’m sorry, mother. This life is ruined.’

Glacia squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the pain she felt on her back.

Plop!

It was miserable.

Drop!

These weren’t tears of pain. They were tears of self-pity.

“Huuuuuung.”

“Stop crying. Your scales are so big I only removed four.”

Olivia stuffed the scales she had removed with magic into her bag.

“That’s much softer now.”

Glacia’s body trembled with indignation at those words.

This thing is supposed to be a mage?

This… thing?

Surely the definition of a mage must have changed in the last few years.

“Wake me when we reach the tower.”

Olivia lay down on the soft exposed skin. Then she closed her eyes and fell into thought.

Magic Tower.

A repository of knowledge where like-minded mages gather to pursue academic studies.

The Red Tower studied fire, the Blue Tower water, the Green Tower wind, the Black Tower earth, and the Golden Tower space-time.

That’s how the five great towers came to be.

But as time passed, five towers proved woefully inadequate to handle all the elements.

Light, ice, lightning, darkness…

And so several more towers were established.

Among them, the White Tower studied light.

Light, commonly known as white magic.

In fantasy, what comes to mind when you think of light?

Virtuous priests who believe in God, great mages who illuminate darkness, hope…

That’s not wrong.

In fact, most mages affiliated with the White Tower are either devout believers in light or naturally pure-hearted people.

In short, they’re excessively kind.

The reason they built their tower on top of a ridiculously high mountain was to prevent magical beasts living in the snowy mountains from descending to the villages, which gives you an idea of their character.

Yes, that’s right.

They scored high on the character scale.

If she was going to kidnap someone, wouldn’t it be better to kidnap someone who would remain polite even to people they disliked?

She had neatly organized her list of kidnapping targets.

Honestly, at first she hadn’t planned to resort to kidnapping. There was nothing more foolish than revealing her location when she needed to hide for at least a decade or so.

‘But if not now, I won’t get another chance.’

If she had woken up in the City of Beginnings, it might have been different, but she woke up in the northern snow mountains, so things got complicated from the start.

‘The princess would have noticed something strange. She might even suspect that I’ve regressed too.’

After all, someone who should be in the City of Beginnings had disappeared.

There’s an incomparable difference between not considering the possibility that your opponent has regressed and taking that possibility into account.

Not only would they block contact with individuals who would become key figures in the future, but they would also circulate sketches among their inner circle, warning them to be extremely cautious of persons of interest.

It might seem excessive, but her opponent was the princess.

‘So you started this, Princess. I didn’t plan to resort to kidnapping.’

If she couldn’t influence the future protagonists, it was only natural to shift her focus to the supporting characters.

As Olivia was rationalizing her kidnapping to herself, she sensed something strange and sat up.

“Have we arrived?”

“Yes.”

“Keep flying in place. I need to check something.”

A massive barrier surrounded the tower. Olivia reached out and touched the barrier. The next moment, a current of electricity flashed and pushed her hand away.

‘That stings.’

Olivia clicked her tongue and backed away. It wasn’t a strong barrier. She could break it with a Blizzard spell like the one she had used on Glacia, without resorting to high-tier magic.

But she couldn’t use Blizzard here.

It would be one thing if she only destroyed the barrier, but if someone inside died, it would be a disaster.

“Keep circling around.”

“What?”

“Circle around until they open up for us.”

Glacia looked down. The mages of the tower were running around in panic.

Well, that was the normal human reaction when facing a dragon.

But thinking about how she had been caught by a human who treated dragons like insects made tears well up in her eyes.

“Do you think they’ll open up willingly?”

“They can’t see me. They only see you.”

Imagine the situation: a dragon that had been living quietly in the snowy mountains suddenly appears at the tower.

But it’s not attacking, just quietly flapping its wings outside the barrier.

Surely a being as powerful as a dragon could break through the barrier if it wanted to.

Any thinking person would deactivate the barrier and let Glacia in.

Soon after, the barrier disappeared, opening a path for them.

“Land slowly. You know what happens if your butt hurts, right?”

Glacia didn’t bother adding that this was the best she could do.

There was no point.

Softly.

‘…Was that okay?’

Glacia anxiously waited for Olivia’s evaluation. She had never understood why dwarves trembled with anxiety when bringing tributes to her lair, but now that she was in this situation, she understood.

‘So this is how it feels.’

Being on the receiving end made her realize what a terrible thing it was. When you think the other person holds your life in their hands, cold sweat runs down your body.

When Olivia said nothing, Glacia let out a sigh of relief.

“What should we do now?”

“Wait until the Tower Master comes out.”

*****

The White Tower was in a state of emergency. Even the normally calm elder mages had to get up off their seats when faced with a dragon.

“Why would a dragon…”

If that was the state of the elder mages, the condition of the ordinary mages needed no explanation.

“Aaaaaaah!”

“We’re all going to die!”

“Please spare us! Please spare us!”

Some hid under desks, trembling; others chattered their teeth as if they’d lost their minds.

The sight of these supposed seekers of truth cowering in fear wasn’t pleasant to see.

But it couldn’t be helped.

Dragons possessed the power to paralyze the minds of lower beings.

“This is rather extreme, though.”

Senior Mage Aramis looked at them with a face full of contempt.

“Don’t be like that, Aramis. They don’t want to be this way. Since you seem to have your wits about you, please tend to the injured.”

“…Yes, Elder.”

Even after years at the White Tower, he still couldn’t understand the teaching to help the weak.

“Th-thank you, Sir Aramis.”

“Get out of the way, you’re a hindrance.”

What was there to gain from helping these people?

Moreover, these were mages. Those who should never back down in their pursuit of truth were cowering at the sight of a mere dragon?

He couldn’t understand the Tower Master’s policy of embracing even such people.

At that moment, the room became noisy. It was a different kind of commotion than when the dragon appeared.

“It’s the Tower Master.”

Aramis’s gaze naturally turned around. A kind-faced old man was walking through the crowd toward the outside.

A pure white robe symbolizing light. A face full of dignity.

But Aramis detected a slight anger hidden behind that kind face.

Indeed, the White Tower Master was angry.

“Third Elder. Have you identified that dragon?”

“Yes. According to the documents, it’s the White Dragon Glacia.”

“Hmm… I believe it’s a young dragon that hasn’t even lived a thousand years.”

“That’s correct.”

“Hmm…”

There are only two occasions when dragons appear in their true form.

When they’re angered by humans, and when they want to fill their lair with treasures.

There was no way the mages of the White Tower had disobeyed his orders and angered the dragon.

How could they possibly anger it when he had restricted access to the mountain range where its lair was located?

So the answer was clear.

It had come to extort treasures.

The wrinkles on the White Tower Master’s face twitched.

“What shall we do?”

“What else? If the great being desires treasures, we must provide them.”

“But…!”

“Treasures, that is.”

The elders who understood the Tower Master’s meaning closed their mouths.

Dragons don’t fill their lairs with gold alone. They collect precious metals, works of art, artifacts with special histories, and anything else they can get their claws on.

Rather than confronting a dragon, it was better to hand over such treasures and resolve things peacefully.

But occasionally, they demanded things other than treasures.

Dwarves and mages.

Dwarves were relatively better off. Although they had to create crafts for the dragon until they died, at least they didn’t suffer direct harm.

But mages were different. Mages taken to a dragon’s lair were used as experimental subjects until their minds and bodies broke, and then they died.

They called it experimentation, but in reality, it was little different from play.

The White Tower Master looked around.

These were young mages. People who came to this remote White Tower with nothing but passion for learning.

If the dragon demanded these students, what should he do?

‘Absolutely not.’

Even for a dragon, there were lines that shouldn’t be crossed.

With a resolute face, the White Tower Master said:

“Open the gates.”