episode_0113

Dragon’s Nest

“Oh dear… I started a little late because I was dyeing my hair… I wonder what Launcher-nim, who is in the air, thought of us when he saw us…”

“Sigh… I forgot there were such side effects… It seems it would be better to find a way to permanently dye my hair…”

Aria, still saddened that part of her hair had returned to its original blonde due to Seonghwan’s radiance, began to ponder deeply what means existed to permanently change her hair color. Yes… It might be better to find that… That way, Aria would be able to use that ability comfortably…

“Hm… I wonder if I should have asked Dio V Runner-nim if he knew of any way to dye hair…”

“You’re right… Won’t he come down to the ground when we arrive at the Dragon’s Nest?”

“Hm… Alright. Let’s ask him then.”

“Hm… But is Dio V Runner-nim planning to even have his meals in the air? It’s quite a distance to the Dragon’s Nest…”

As Dio V Runner expressed concern about whether he’d eat in the air on the way to the Dragon’s Nest, I was dumbfounded. Earlier, he was so against accompanying us… Is it really okay for him to suddenly worry like this?!

“Hm… If we make food, he could receive it and eat it in the air.”

“…I truly hope that’s not what you mean… Anyway, it’ll probably take about two hours to reach the Dragon’s Nest. It won’t even be evening when we arrive.”

“Ah, I see. But Zeke-nim. Will there be a Saintess and priests in the Dragon’s Nest too?”

As Aria wondered if the Saintess and priests she’d heard about from Yuria would be in the Dragon’s Nest, I, too, became curious. Hm… Since we don’t know their scope of activity, I am indeed starting to get curious… But would they really go all the way to the Dragon’s Nest, where those mighty dragons live…? Is there someone as strong as Aria there too?

“If there’s a Saintess there… and they tempt Zeke-nim… I don’t think I could ever tolerate that. I will have to beat them to death with my staff.”

“Your personality couldn’t change after all?!”

When Aria gave a chilling warning that she would beat anyone who dared to tempt me to death with her staff, I shouted in great shock. As expected, your possessiveness hasn’t changed at all, Aria… In the end, I guess I’m just a little less tired, is that all…?

“Phew… But can a Saintess really defeat a dragon? Dio V Runner-nim said earlier, didn’t he? That you broke through what even his dragon friend couldn’t sever. They wouldn’t carelessly go to that nest unless they were as strong as you.”

“Then if dragons tempt Zeke-nim, I will turn them all into meat.”

I felt a shiver down my spine again at Aria’s chilling warning that she would kill even dragons if they tempted me, not just a Saintess. By the way, those huge creatures courting me? What nonsense.

“There’s no way those huge, stubborn dragons would tempt me, right? Our species are different to begin with…”

“Dragons are known to be able to transform into creatures they know. So, if they transform into a human and tempt Zeke-nim… I will dye the ground with blood with this staff…!!”

I, who had no idea that dragons could transform into other species, felt a shiver down my spine again after hearing Aria’s warning. Th-that… That won’t happen… Those proud and stubborn creatures… transforming into the appearance of humans they look down upon and tempting me…? Th-that’s like a myth… Th-then… Surely it’s not real…

“Phew… Can dragons speak too?”

“Of course. Because they are intelligent creatures, they are beings that can even communicate using language, just like us. However, it is said that no one has ever returned safely after conversing with a dragon… Hehehe… Couldn’t Zeke-nim be the first human to succeed in conversing with a dragon?”

“…Well, yes… I managed to return alive from the Kriton region too… By the way, you said they can communicate, right? That’s fortunate then… We can resolve this through conversation…”

“Oh… no? As I mentioned before, dragons are very proud, you see. They look down on us humans, citing various reasons like our short lifespan, so will they listen to us?”

“Yeah… I think it might be possible because you’re here…”

When I suggested that communication with dragons might be possible because she was by my side, Aria pointed at herself, tilted her head, then her face flushed with embarrassment as if I trusted her. Well… Either way, if I fail to converse, you’ll just threaten the dragons with force, won’t you…? Sigh… I just hope there’s no bloodshed… But…

“Aria, what kind of standards do you have now?”

“Huh? What do you mean by ‘standards’? I don’t understand what you mean?”

“Hm… Then I’ll tell you a situation. If this situation occurs, could you tell me what action you would take?”

“Well… something like that… Alright. Please ask your question.”

There was something I was genuinely curious about. I wondered what kind of reaction Aria, whose demeanor had changed a lot from before, would show now. Shall I… ask Aria questions by giving examples of situations I had experienced so far?

“What if someone tries to kill me?”

“I kill that person.”

Hmm… As expected, Aria would give this answer… It seems this one thing doesn’t change… Well, it’s natural, since she already said she’d turn dragons into meat if they attacked me… Then, for the next question…

“What if someone tries to harm me?”

“I strike that person with my staff.”

“Huh? You’re not killing them?”

“Hm… because I don’t think Zeke-nim would want that much.”

When Aria’s answer wasn’t to kill but simply to strike with her staff, I was surprised, and I was even more surprised when she even read my mind that I wouldn’t want that. Originally, Aria would only choose to kill anyone who even tried to harm me, regardless of my feelings… So, she really has changed, hasn’t she?

“Then… what if someone tries to accompany me?”

“I would strongly oppose it. In the past, I would have immobilized that person… but now I know very well that I would be disliked by Zeke-nim for doing so…”

“…You’ve really improved. It seems almost all of your frightening former self has disappeared.”

“…!! Hehehe… I’m so happy to hear Zeke-nim’s praise… so much so that I worry about how I would live in this world without Zeke-nim.”

Even so, Aria still likes my praise, and then as now, she gets embarrassed when I compliment her. You haven’t completely changed, Aria. Knowing that makes me feel a bit more at ease…

“Oh, Zeke-nim. Look over there. See… aren’t there some rocks that seem to have risen in pillar shapes?”

“Huh? Ah… We’ve arrived, after all…”

While talking with Aria, I hadn’t even realized I’d arrived near the Dragon’s Nest. A plain full of rocks risen in pillar shapes… This is the Dragon’s Nest. Dragons are said to lay their eggs on top of such rocks… Hmm?

“Uh… But I don’t see any dragons in the sky…? This is definitely the Dragon’s Nest, isn’t it?”

“Hmm… Even if they went hunting, I thought some dragons would remain here to protect the eggs… but there’s nothing on top of the rocks…”

“Whoosh!”

The moment Aria wondered about the absence of anything on top of the rocks, Dio V Runner, who was in the air, descended rapidly and landed beside us. We were startled to see Dio V Runner suddenly land next to us. Doesn’t this person just come down without warning?!

“Well… So this is the Dragon’s Nest. Do the dragons of this world inhabit plains…?”

“Oh! You startled me! What do you mean by just appearing without warning?! You startled me!”

“Hm? Ah… My apologies, Zeke. I didn’t think of that. By the way, is this really the Dragon’s Nest? I looked from the air, but I didn’t even see a dragon’s shadow…”

“You’re right… We also felt something was off, so we were checking if this was indeed the Dragon’s Nest. Aria said earlier that not a single dragon was visible on the rocks… Is it the same from the air?”

“I told you, not even a dragon’s shadow is visible? There’s nothing, Zeke. Only strangely risen rocks overgrown with grass.”

As Dio V Runner also said there was nothing on the rocks, just like Aria, I began to feel doubt. What is this…? The map shows this as the Dragon’s Nest… Is the map too old? Or have the dragons recently moved their habitat? If not… then… Oh… Surely not…

“…Surely not…”

“Huh? Zeke-nim? Why is your face suddenly turning pale? Are you feeling unwell?”

“Zeke? Why are you suddenly like this?”

While looking for reasons why the dragons weren’t in their nest, a plausible reason popped into my head. And as soon as that reason came to mind, I was engulfed in anxiety for a moment, and at the same time, the thought that it might be true, and if it were, it would be a huge problem, made my face gradually turn pale. Surely not… No way… Even if life is full of bad luck… surely it’s not real…

“Hey, Zeke. Snap out of it! If you’re suddenly like this, Aria will get anxious too, won’t she? Are you thinking all the dragons are dead?”

“Zeke-nim? What’s wrong…!! Please… at least explain why…”

When I stood rigid, my face pale and silent, Aria was restless with worry, thinking something had happened to me, and Dio V Runner wondered why I was reacting this way. Uh… Right… I… I should probably speak first…

“Um… Dio V Runner-nim… you said you had a dragon friend, right…?”

“Hm? That’s right.”

When I suddenly asked if he had a dragon friend, Dio V Runner tilted his head and replied yes. Wouldn’t he know some other reason…? Since he has a dragon friend…

“Then, perhaps… when does your friend leave his home…?”

“Hm? Well, he goes out when there’s something to do, just like humans. But you shouldn’t think he’s the same as the dragons of this world, because he’s completely different from them. He’s kind to humans.”

“…What if… let’s say this nest was empty because all the dragons here went out somewhere temporarily… What would they think if they returned and saw us in their empty home…?”

“…Damn it, they’ll treat us like thieves…”

To my question about what the dragons would think if they returned to find us in their empty nest, assuming they had all gone out somewhere together, Dio V Runner, as if he immediately grasped the intention of my question, clutched his head and replied that they’d treat us like thieves. Right… I don’t know why this place is empty now, but… everyone must have gone out temporarily to do something important to them… and if they return…!!

“Aaaah! We’re in trouble!!! Then all the dragons will attack us at once, won’t they!!!”

“Hmm… If those massive monsters charge at us all at once… it could indeed be a bit of a problem…”

“Then I will protect Zeke-nim. You… you can take care of yourself, right?”

“Even as a companion, that’s too much, Aria…”

Dio V Runner expressed a slight bitterness and said it was too much to Aria’s question about whether he could take care of himself while she protected me. No, is that the problem right now, everyone?! We don’t know how many dragons there are, so what are you thinking of fighting?!

“Sigh… Fine… I’ll manage to survive myself, but… then what do you think would be the reason for them to leave their home?”

“Hm… All the dragons of this world are very proud, you see. Perhaps a danger that threatens their kind has arrived… Or… Hm… Do you have any predictions, Zeke-nim?”

“The situation is too chaotic right now, I can’t think of anything at all…”

At the thought that I might die if I stayed here, I couldn’t predict anything at all. Since this is the Dragon’s Nest, there must have been many dragons… If over twenty dragons attacked us…? Wow… It means we’d be in the midst of a catastrophe!!

“Let’s not stand here like this and run away quickly! Exploring is good, but shouldn’t we save our lives first?!”

“Well… That’s true… If they’re dragons as strong as my friend… it could definitely be difficult to fight. For now, as Zeke says, it would be best to get out of here…”

“Hm… It seems too late, doesn’t it?”

“What…?!”

The moment Dio V Runner was about to agree with my opinion that it was important to survive first and suggest they leave, Aria looked up at the sky and said it seemed too late, which flustered both Dio V Runner and me. I, who knew Aria’s ability, let out a hollow laugh in despair, while Dio V Runner, who didn’t know her ability, asked Aria, dumbfounded.

“Hahaha…”

“Too late already, what does that mean?”

“Zeke-nim knows, but I can sense living beings that enter the range of my ability. So right now… I can feel some enormous creatures rapidly flying towards this place.”

“…A detection-type ability… Ah, that’s right… she found the cave I was living in earlier using a similar principle. So, how many of those creatures are there in total?”

When Dio V Runner asked how many creatures were flying this way in total, Aria closed her eyes and began to count each sensed creature individually. Then, after she had counted them all, she opened her eyes and spoke to Dio V Runner.

“Hm… About… forty?”

“…What?!”

“Hahahahaha…”

When Aria said that the number of creatures coming this way was close to forty, Dio V Runner was so surprised that his mouth hung open, and I became even more despondent. Hahahaha… Damn it… We’re screwed…

“Hm… And it seems they’ve already noticed our presence, too? They’re flying rapidly towards our location, not the Dragon’s Nest. Perhaps… even if we’d noticed them earlier, it would have been too late.”

“Who are these lowly humans who dared to trespass into our territory?!”

“Hahahahahahaha…”

The moment Aria said it would have been too late even if we had fled earlier, someone in the air shouted in a booming voice, asking who the lowly humans were that dared to trespass into their territory, and I started to tear up. Damn it… That voice… they’re talking about us!!! The moment I realized the owner of the voice that had just been looking for us was a dragon, enormous figures began to slowly appear around us. And they were enormous figures about six times the height of a human…

‘So these are dragons… But… I didn’t want to meet them like this!!!’

“Oh my… There are so many dragons, aren’t there? And they seem hostile towards us… Can Dio V Runner-nim handle all of them?”

“Well… We’ll have to see about that… It seems we can’t even run. Look at their expressions. Isn’t that the face of someone who’ll chase us to the ends of hell if we try to escape?”

Dio V Runner told us that the dragons were so hostile towards us that their faces were scrunched up, and that it seemed we couldn’t escape. Damn it… Even if I’ve received power from many people so far… aren’t there too many of them?!!