Chapter 48.2 - Elder Dragon Vivre (2)
Chapter 48.2 - Elder Dragon Vivre (2)
The sound of rustling echoes through the woods. A monkey with black fur and long fangs flees through the trees.
Dont let it get away! Nel, Chaos!
Having received Havocs orders, I finally start casting. However, with my confusion, Cornelia is faster than me. She shoots, and her arrow pierces the monkeys hand with accuracy. The monkey screams as its hand slips and it falls from the tree.
I cant see the monkey since its hiding in the trees, but a little while after the sound of the crash, I grimace as I hear a high-pitched shriek.
Nice work, Liam says, returning with a blood-stained sword. He immediately started running after the monkey when it started running away after its ally was killed, so I guess he finished it off. Now, weve defeated all the enemies in the area.
So there are monsters in this region as well, Emilia says.
Thats because there are no full-time adventurers in the area, Cornelia says. The residents of the village are the only ones who can kill the monsters. But they also have normal lives, so they cant spend all their time fighting monsters, and its dangerous. Fur and such isnt profitable enough that people can make a living through that alone. But if they arent dealt with, theyll damage the crops.
I guess stuff like thats the same no matter where you go, Liam says.
The monsters we defeated were small fry. Theyre so weak that at my level, I could defeat them singlehandedly even if they had me surrounded. Even so, from the locals perspective, theyre pests that threaten peoples livelihoods and are dangerous to fight.
So it really helps that everyones lending a hand in keeping their numbers down, Cornelia says.
Were getting delicious food in return, so of course I will! Liam says.
As they say, those who dont work wont eat, Emilia adds.
The reason were fighting monsters in the forest is to repay the kindness we received from the villagers. Ever since we arrived in Cornelias hometown, weve been staying in a vacant house in the village instead of her familys house. When the villagers heard that we were guests that Cornelia brought, they gave us a warm welcome. Havoc suggested that we hunt the monsters in the area to return the favor, and everyone else agreed.
But Ive been useless. Most of the monsters were defeated by Havoc and the others, and the most I could offer was support. And all the spells Ive been using are spells like Chain Bind that prevent the enemies from moving instead of spells that attack the enemy directly.
In the game, when a party member defeats a monster, the experience points are distributed to all party members. So even if you dont play an active role in the party, you can gain experience without attacking or taking a single step in extreme cases.
Even in this world, that rule still applies. If the others defeat a monster, Ill also receive experience points. Even if I havent attacked the monster even once. In the game, people who receive rewards like experience points without contributing in combat are hated and called parasites, but thats basically what I am now. No, if anything, Im worse, since its a job where their lives are on the line.
But no matter the situation, I cant defeat enemies. Havoc and the others are the ones actually getting their hands dirty. Im just forcing other people to do the dirty work.
Back in Clermont, my plan was to use those same spells to stop any Weichsel soldiers I encountered. But that was in the middle of a war. A soldier who cant move is just a sitting duck. If I encountered a Weichsel soldier, any Commune soldiers who were nearby probably would have finished off a Weichsel soldier who was rendered defenseless.
Im realizing just how careless I was. Back then, there was so much going on in my head that I couldnt see the whole picture. If even one thing had gone wrong, I probably wouldnt be here right now.
I should stop, thinking about this is just going to give me nothing but negative thoughts. I need to take my mind off of this.
Where did my s****y old man wander off to? Cornelia curses in clear displeasure as were on our way back to the village.
Apparently, her father, who is the groom of the wedding, left the village to travel. I dont see why he would need to travel right before the wedding, but it seems like they planned it to occur in time for Cornelia to return. It was uncertain when Cornelia would arrive, so all I can say is that our timing was bad.
Your dad is the chief, right? Is it really okay for him to abandon the village like this?
There are also the elders, and theres nothing going on that requires the chiefs presence, so it wont cause any problems for the village. Also, hes been doing this for a long time, so were used to him leaving the village like this.
It kind of sounds like your dad just does whatever he wants, Havoc says in amazement.
I know, right?! Cornelia agrees. Seriously, that guy is just out of control! And just when I think hes wandering aimlessly like usual, he somehow finds himself a woman! He even brings total strangers back to the village sometimes! I wouldnt be surprised if I had brothers or sisters out there that I dont know about! Do you have any idea how terrified I am every time I see a kid with the same hair color or facial features as my s****y old man?!
By how she describes him, hes a stereotypical bad dad with a cheating habit.
Changing the subject, if a baby is born between a human and an elf, would it have long ears like an elf? I say, asking a question Ive been wondering about. Though, Im also asking to try to shift the conversation away from her dad a bit.
Being born from a human and an elf doesnt necessarily mean theyll have long ears, Cornelia says. Until theyre born, theres no telling whether their physical characteristics will more closely resemble that of a human or an elf, so its hard to tell if someones a half-elf or not. Apparently, there are some who dont even know theyre half-elves and think theyre humans. Though, their life expectancy is typically longer than humans.
Then, there must be a lot of half-elves.
Thats right. There also are some who moved to this village. Though, most of the old people here are pure elves. In the past, humans and elves were discouraged from intermingling. But the children have done no wrong simply by being born. A guy who has an indeterminate amount of lovers and puts his hands on a young girl who his daughter loves like a sister would be a bigger problem.
Ah, I poked a hornets nest.
You understand, right, Liam? I cant believe that my little sister who I love so dearly is getting married to that no-good womanizer. And hes known her since she was little.
Yeah, thats just unforgivable.
Liam, who has a little sister of his own, is completely on Cornelias side. Well, from what Ive heard of her dad, theres no room for sympathy there.
No matter how I look at it, even though those two probably wont go out of control during the ceremony, the atmosphere will be so tense that Ill feel it in my stomach. Now I know why it was Havoc, not Cornelia, who first invited me to the village. I look at Havoc with a slight glare, and he quietly whistles, feigning innocence. That b*****d.
Hes the man your sister chose. You should give her your blessing, Emilia says. Just as youd expect of the partys healer, shes trying to calm their anger. Shes way more dependable than Havoc, who is quickly falling in the rankings.
But even if hes settled down, Im worried hell fall back into his cheating habit, Cornelia says. Although shes somewhat accepted the marriage, apparently, she still has some concerns.Th.ê most uptod/at𝓮 n𝒐vels a/re published on n(0)velbj)n(.)c/o/m
Emilia thinks for a moment and says, Hmm, youre right. If he makes her cry, then
Then?
Ill pulverize him.
Automatically, my gaze falls to the mace she always uses. I dont want to ask what exactly Emilia is planning to pulverize and how. When I look up at Havoc and Liam, theyre wincing. Im sure Im making the same expression.
Suddenly, a strong wind blows. We all look up at the sky.
Hm? Thats
I can see a small black dot through the trees.
A dragon?
Yes. Its much bigger than a normal dragon. They wouldnt send a dragon all the way out here for a dragon flight. Its probably a wild dragon, Cornelia says.
I cant tell if its a dragon or not, but something pretty huge is flying this way. I check it on the map, and theres a huge green marker on it.
Normally, when theres a green marker on the map, it means theyre friendly and non-hostile, like an NPC or a player. If it was a normal monster, it would show a red marker.
Then, does that mean this dragon is friendly? Of course, there are also friendly entities like Elizabeth, who was a ghost.
I cant just declare that this dragon is actually a friendly monster. Besides the fact that itd be tough to explain how I know that its friendly, theres no guarantee that something the map recognizes as friendly isnt going to attack.
Like the war that recently occurred in Clermont with humans fighting each other. Even though Weichsel and Commune were scattered all over and engaged in combat, Alexia and the other Weichsel soldiers were identified as friendly and displayed green on the map. Of course, Commune soldiers were also shown as green on the map, so it was difficult to tell who was an ally or not.
In other words, the criteria for who is identified as friendly on the map is very ambiguous. If the only criteria is their attitude towards me specifically, then theres no guarantee that it wont be hostile towards Havoc and the others, so I cant say for certain that its safe.
Isnt that dragon coming this way? Liam asks with his voice trembling, and everyone turns pale. Just as he says, the black dot which was blurry before is becoming much clearer, and the green marker that seems to be the dragon is getting closer.
Dragons as a species are pretty strong monsters. In the game, there are different levels of dragons, but if its a high-ranking dragon, its strong enough that at my current level, I would be killed instantly. If I upgraded to a Rank 2 class, thatd be one thing, but even if I fight with Havoc and the others who are only around the same level as me, we dont stand a chance.
R- run! Havoc shouts, and we run as fast as our legs can carry us.
But its too late.
On the map, the green marker is rapidly closing in on us at a speed faster than any human is capable of. With conviction, I look up at the sky. Theres no doubt about it, its the dragon I saw.
Its here, its here, its heeere! We gotta run! Liam shouts.
We cant run back to the village! Itll attack the villagers too! Cornelia says.
Then where do you suggest we run to?! Emilia says.
Maybe this is the sort of animal strength you get in a crisis, because were running faster than we should be able to. Though, its not exactly reassuring. A flying dragon is overwhelmingly faster than a human.
This is bad. I hurriedly try to change directions, but I hear a creaking sound as trees are knocked over. The sight of its enormous body crashing through as if prying open a hole in the forest can only be described as stunning.
The black dragon stands on four legs as it looks down with us with its bright red eyes. Then, it spreads its wings toward the sky and lets out a majestic roar. Its booming roar is loud enough to shake the trees around us. Theres nothing we can do except fall on our backsides.
Oh, pardon me. Do you all live around here?
Just when we thought the dragon was going to rampage, we suddenly hear an unfamiliar voice speak to us. Its a womans high-pitched voice. And not Cornelias or Emilias, either. I look around in confusion, but there are no other women present.
The threatening dragon lowers its wings and its head.
Ah, I apologize for startling you. It is I, the dragon you see before you, the dragon says, bowing its head in apology.
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