A Conversation with the Fire Dragon

They pressed on with frequent stops to rest.

They must have climbed quite a distance by now.

Hot wind blew all around them.

"It's so hot…"

"Yes. My clothes are sticking with sweat. It's hard to walk."

Yohane grumbled and wiped the sweat from his brow.

Alexia voiced her agreement, sounding exhausted.

"My, how sexy."

"I couldn't be less thrilled."

Alexia fanned her clothes with a flapping motion.

It was quite a provocative sight, but the only audience was Yohane and their own group.

She didn't care in the slightest.

Elza was cracking jokes with a cool expression, but the sheer volume of sweat gave away that she was putting on a brave face.

The deeper they went, the higher the temperature climbed.

Apparently it was having a significant impact on the local flora and fauna as well.

A creature as powerful as a Dragon could reshape the very environment around it.

"Watch your footing."

Azu, walking at the front, kept her steps steady.

She checked behind her at regular intervals, adjusting her pace so no one fell behind.

Orleans had finally been done in by the heat.

Yohane was carrying her on his back.

They continued onward.

In heat like standing at the rim of a volcano, they finally caught sight of the Fire Dragon.

Its child was there as well.

The Dragon and its offspring lay curled up, their massive bodies still, apparently asleep.

Azu advanced slowly.

The Dragon slumbered in a wide, empty clearing.

Before Azu could get very close, the Fire Dragon must have sensed their arrival.

It lifted its body and fixed its gaze on them.

"You've come. I see you brought company, but no matter."

Yohane set Orleans down and gave her water.

After confirming she was still alert, he stepped back.

Cloaked in the Fire Elemental, Orleans walked forward to face the Fire Dragon.

Yohane and the others could only watch from a short distance behind.

Azu didn't even feel the urge to draw her sword.

This was not an opponent they could fight. It never had been.

"So, sealing that place was the covenant."

"Indeed. So you remember. Long ago, your ancestor begged me for aid. For protection from monsters. A reckless human, but…"

The Fire Dragon turned its eyes skyward, as though reminiscing.

After a pause, it faced her again.

"She was a woman beloved by the Fire Elemental. That is why I lent my strength. But it is not eternal. The covenant was set to be renewed once every hundred years."

"Thank you. You've been protecting us all this time."

Orleans bowed her head.

The manor estate and the monster wellspring were fairly close to one another.

Without the seal, there was a high chance that overflowing monsters would have reached the estate.

"You are young, but you bear a strong resemblance. One look at the Fire Elemental tells me as much."

The Fire Dragon rose to its full height.

"Which makes this all the more regrettable. The covenant ends here."

"Why?"

"The power of the Sun God grows. I must conserve my strength."

With those words, the Fire Dragon placed its child on its back and spread its wings.

As it began to beat them, its colossal body lifted from the ground.

"It is fortunate I could confirm the covenant. When the seal breaks soon, my fire shall burn the monsters away."

The Fire Dragon departed, and the oppressive heat gradually faded.

That it hadn't ended in a fight was a blessing.

This should be enough to give the duke a satisfactory report.

"What should I do?"

"Tell him exactly what happened. Knowing in advance is better than nothing. Certainly better than fighting a Dragon."

It was far from a wasted trip. Ending things peacefully had value in itself.

The wind picked up again. Strong enough to feel cold.

When they descended the mountain, the duke was waiting for them, pipe in mouth.

He must have seen the Fire Dragon fly off.

"It seems there were no problems."

"That's right. But…"

"If the Fire Dragon left, that's good enough for now. I'll hear the rest once we're back."

The duke cut off the conversation.

He must have been anxious.

Otherwise, he would have simply sent a subordinate and been done with it.

He must have come because he absolutely needed to hear it with his own ears.

"Um, is this all right?"

"I'd say so. This was really the duke's responsibility to begin with. It just happened to come due now."

"It'll be fine. They were afraid the Dragon would attack in a rage, after all."

"No need to worry."

A monster wellspring was a persistent headache for any lord.

Dealing with one took enormous time.

Naturally it ate through the budget, and there were cases of impoverished cities being overrun by monsters entirely.

Ateil faced no such danger.

One look at the city was enough to see it had more than sufficient resources.

Compared to dealing with a Dragon, anything else was manageable.

Once everyone was seated in the carriage, it began to move.

"My hands were trembling…"

Azu said this while staring at her own hands.

Elza took them and began massaging them gently.

"That was scary, huh. It's okay now, Azu-chan."

"That was incredible. There's just nothing you can do against something like that."

The tension was finally draining away.

They traded impressions about the Dragon.

When they'd come to Ateil, they hadn't gotten a proper look, but this time they'd been able to observe it closely.

The conclusion was still that it was utterly beyond them, but having made it through unharmed brought a wave of relief.

I just want to sleep, Yohane thought.

Once this was over, Orleans would need to be returned to the estate.

The duke already knew she was a serf. She likely wouldn't be punished, but…