Chapter 138
Everyone's incredibly excited.
When I return to the wooden deck with the dragons, all my companions are gathered there.
Did everyone... know they were dragons?
Damn, this is the downside of not being able to communicate...
I suppose it can't be helped, but... sigh.
Ah, both children are surprised, too.
I've found some companions!
It's a relief, but as an adult, this is a little pathetic.
The language barrier is huge.
For now, though, there's the problem of their names.
All three of them seem to like their names.
I gave the Flying Lizard a different name, but it ignored me, too.
If I remember correctly, Marshmallow did, too...
No, I don't think I can change them.
Is it really okay to leave things this way?
Well, they don't understand Japanese, so they don't know what the names mean.
Then there's the red ball of yarn and the one with light-blue scales.
Why does it react when I call it "Yarn Ball"?
No, that's not it. I did call you that a little, though.
If it's a Fire Dragon, something cooler would be better.
Guren—I think that means the color of flames... How about Glen?
I want it to react.
Glen, don't you like that name?
...Yarn Ball... I see, Yarn Ball.
Why? Is the sound of it enough?
Pulling myself together, what about the other one...?
Fuwafuwa is water, the Flying Lizard is probably earth, Marshmallow is snow, and... the yarn ball is red, so fire.
This is only a guess, but Water Dragon, Earth Dragon, Snow Dragon?... Maybe Ice Dragon instead, and then Fire Dragon.
What kind of dragon is this one?
Going by its color, it's like a light-blue opal.
Light blue... It's paler than Fuwafuwa.
Hm? Did this one just react to something?
...It's probably my imagination.
The only other dragons I know are the Thunder Dragon and the Wind Dragon.
Maybe Wind Dragon... The magic it gives off somehow feels like wind.
If it's a Wind Dragon, Hayate would work—a name for a swiftly blowing wind.
Hayate, Hayate... It's not reacting much.
Hayate, you don't like it?
...No?
Wind... wind... Maybe based on its color?
Light blue... Please don't react.
I ignored it before, but the light-blue one really is reacting.
No, even if you look at me so expectantly...
Light Blue?
...Seriously?
The dragons' names have been decided.
Fuwafuwa, Flying Lizard, Marshmallow, Yarn Ball, and Light Blue.
...Is it the sound? The way it sounds? What do they like about these names?!
...
I want to get outside the forest.
Then what do I need to do to be able to get out?
I didn't sense a barrier.
I didn't sense anything unusual with my magic detection, after all.
The only other possibility I can think of is... a curse.
Was the forest so full of curses that someone sealed it to keep anyone from leaving?
There are old Japanese tales about sealing evil spirits in rocks, too, right?
Does this world have things like that, too?
Maybe it does.
If the curse completely disappears from the forest, will the seal disappear, too?
...I have no choice but to try.
Can I do it?
Um, first, I'll imagine covering the entire forest.
...It's huge... Should I try using Drone Clairvoyance?
From above... No, it's too vast. I lose sight of it.
I tried this before, too... What an idiot.
...I'll start over.
Ah, I'll use the wall that's sealing it.
Rather than sending magic against it, I'll imagine making it flow along the wall that's sealing it.
It's all right. I can picture it.
I'll cover the top with magic, too... The rest is underground, though.
Let it seep in, seep in... I can picture it reaching fairly deep.
"Phew... Purify."
Amazing. It's been a while since I've felt such a vast amount of magic disappear all at once.
...But what is this?
I can also feel an enormous amount of magic rushing back in at incredible speed.
This is the first time I've felt this.
...What an interesting sensation.
Wait, did it work?
Huh?
Somehow everyone's gathered around me. Why?
...Ah, right.
The purification magic gives off an intense light, so maybe it startled them.
Sorry.
Now, can I get out of the forest?
I imagine sending magic outside the forest all at once.
...It was repelled.
Is there still a curse in the forest?
I send Drone Clairvoyance out to investigate the forest.
I can't sense the unpleasantness I felt from the curse anywhere.
Maybe there's some left deep inside a cave or something... Could there be some left?
Once more, I'll carefully visualize everything from the tips of the trees' leaves to the deepest part of the cave, down to every last drop of water in the lake.
"Purify."
I still can't get out... Why?!