Chapter 37
Phew... It took a huge chunk of my magical power, but I managed it.
"Was that Reiji just now!?"
"Y-yes!"
"Well done!"
Dantes-san, facing the dragon alongside Josef-san some distance away, gave me a brief word of praise.
Now that I took a closer look, both Josef-san and Dantes-san were battered. Their bodies were covered in wounds, and their equipment was scorched or broken in places.
"The real trouble starts now..."
"Yes."
There were fewer than half as many adventurers as there had been at the start, and those still standing were wounded and utterly exhausted.
That was precisely why I wanted to bring it down in one fell swoop with the first heavy blow we'd dealt it—but...
"A wounded beast is the most dangerous."
Rikila-san had said that many times while we were hunting with Silver Balance, and Dantes-san had nodded along.
The dragon hadn't been fighting carelessly up to this point, either. If it had stopped fearing injury and attacked with complete disregard for its own safety, the adventurers would have been wiped out long ago.
That danger was still there.
"What do we do... Huh?"
Rikila-san suddenly turned his gaze toward the other end of the street. At the same time, the adventurers erupted in cheers.
More than a hundred domain soldiers came trotting toward us, with over thirty mounted soldiers at their head. Reinforcements.
"Finally, damn it... For all they act so high and mighty, those guys sure are slow at their jobs."
Despite his sharp tongue, Rikila-san seemed unable to hide his delight.
We could join forces with the domain soldiers, or the adventurers could fall back.
Either way, the threat of all of us being wiped out had been averted.
"Thank goodness..."
I, too, let out those words with heartfelt relief—but I was able to relax only until I saw who was at the head of the cavalry.
"...They're struggling this much against a dragon? There are only weaklings here."
The man, his smooth blond hair streaming in the wind, had unusually pale skin for a human, and his ears were slightly pointed.
His equipment was clearly different from that of the other domain soldiers. He wore a cloak made of the finest cloth and glittering clothes that made him look like a noble. He wasn't wearing armor, as if to say he had no need for it.
"I look forward to working with you."
"Hmph."
When a stern-faced man with a beard bowed his head, the blond man dismounted and strolled over.
Everyone's eyes were drawn to him—even the dragon's.
"—Isn't that the guildmaster?"
"—Then does that mean that blond pretty boy is an adventurer?"
I could hear the adventurers saying that.
"It's a dragon. No mistake about it. But... what are you? Don't you speak?"
"...You're an elf...? Why is an elf here?"
Everyone was startled by the words that suddenly rang in their heads.
A dragon... was talking?
Could we communicate with it?
"...Elf, do not interfere. In accordance with the ancient covenant, I am merely punishing humans..."
A covenant? What covenant?
"...Hm?"
At that moment, the dragon stopped moving.
"...I see. High-level 【Fire Magic】 and 【Magic Capacity Increase】. But two of your Skills are sealed... You are a half-breed, are you not?"
At that instant, wrinkles creased the half-elf's nose.
"What did you just say?"
"...Hit a nerve, did I? A pitiful half-breed born of a union between people who should never have mingled. Did they crush two of your Skill Holders and exile you from the elven village as punishment for your transgression? Yet it seems even the elves have compassion. To think they would grant you such a rare Talent..."
"I thought you weren't going to speak, but you're quite the talkative dragon. However, you are mistaken about two things."
"...Mistaken?"
"First, I was not exiled. I left that stagnant garbage heap of an elven village of my own free will. Second—"
The half-elf opened his right hand and thrust it toward the dragon.
"A lowly creature shackled by the world like you has no right to address me as an equal. Die."
Intense light gathered in his right hand. The flames spiraling at tremendous speed shot toward the dragon the next instant.
The dragon twisted its head aside to dodge, but the flames struck part of its torso and triggered a huge explosion.
"W-whaaaaaaaat!?"
The blast sent the adventurers flying. Fortunately, I was behind the shelter of a building and escaped unharmed, allowing me to see what happened next right away.
The dragon spat out a burst of flame, but the half-elf flew diagonally away at tremendous speed.
(What was that speed!?)
According to the dragon—or rather, can dragons use something like a Talent such as Appraisal?—the half-elf had only two Talents. Even so, how could he fly at that speed...?
The dragon swung a foreleg at the half-elf as he leaped into the sky. The half-elf dodged along a trajectory that defied inertia.
"Haaaaah!"
Five blasts of flame burst from the half-elf's hands in rapid succession. They struck the dragon, and the resulting blast battered it, but the half-elf sent himself gliding away with his cloak fluttering as if he were controlling the wind.
The growling dragon swung its half-severed tail, but the half-elf dodged it once again with an impossible change of direction.
(Why? How is he dodging that? He can only use 【Fire Magic】... I see—magic is all he needs!)
I finally realized. He was using the explosions from 【Fire Magic】 to move his body while making sure not to injure himself.
Such astonishing magical control. If what the dragon said was true, he didn't possess the Talent 【Magic Manipulation】.
(Could I do that, too...? I might be able to. I might get a little burned, though.)
The half-elf seemed to be wearing exceptionally sturdy boots. He was using 【Fire Magic】 on them and moving with the resulting explosions.
I was beginning to think the dragon was right. The Talent 【Magic Capacity Increase】—Mimino-san had mentioned it before, saying it was incredibly rare.
【All Creation】 seemed to have learned even that rare Talent. I could feel magical power gradually filling my body.
"Amazing! So that's a Heavenly Silver-ranked adventurer!"
"They're on a whole different level."
"As expected of 'Crimson Dragon Slayer'-sama!"
I could hear the voices of adventurers watching the battle nearby.
Heavenly Silver rank! So that's what it looks like!
No wonder... He was toying with that dragon all by himself. Magical power had begun covering the dragon's scales again, but his spells were powerful enough to blast it away and inflict direct damage.
"Is that all? Dragons are as sluggish as ever. How boring."
The half-elf wore a cruel smile and raised both hands to the heavens—an enormous flame appeared there.
"Get 'em, Krista-san!"
One of the adventurers who apparently knew the half-elf shouted.
So that's their name—Krista. A Heavenly Silver-ranked adventurer, a half-elf, and Krista...
...Huh?
——Reiji... Even if I can't destroy the Kingdom of Rigula, I still have to land at least one blow against it. Then I... I can't forgive that cold-blooded bastard.
Who had said that?
——The half-elf Heavenly Silver-ranked adventurer, Krista=La=Krista. I will be the one to kill that bastard.
I turned to look behind me.
Rikila-san, who had been standing there, was gone before I knew it—