Chapter 208: Voyage to the Unknown
— Third day of stay on Rango Land Island.
「Uuunn, I want the baby to be a girl, neh!」
「You can only have girls… wait, Queen Dareda! Did you disguise yourself as Are again to sneak in here?」
No matter how much she tried to hide in the darkness, wrapping a white cloth around her chest, it was impossible to mistake her with those unnaturally firm boobies.
To put it another way, it was a little alarming that I only realized who it was after touching.
Today, it was obvious right away, but last night, I never expected Dareda to sneak in while disguised as Are.
I nearly ended up genuinely reproducing.
In the small room provided for us at the Dragon Palace, there was a large hammock for Are and me to sleep in together. We had a teleportation magic circle on the ship, allowing us to return to the castle every day, but it felt wrong to take advantage of such hospitality.
Besides, it had been a while since Are had come back home. I decided to let Kaara use her magic to explore the surrounding areas of Rango’s main island instead of teleporting, and I chose to stay with Are for the night.
That was fine, but the fact that Queen Dareda, disguised as Are for two days in a row, kept sneaking into the hammock was getting out of hand. Given that I had trouble distinguishing between the Dragon Maids, her perfect disguise, even in the dark, made it hard to believe it was just a harmless joke. 「You could be a little more affectionate with your mother-in-law, you know? Takeru, you’re being distant, neh.」
「Can you stop with the moral dilemmas, Queen? By the way, where’s Are?」
「Oh, that child is sleeping over there, neh.」
When I lit a candle to check the floor of the room, I saw a large hole that looked like it had been made by an explosion. Peering under the raised floor, I found Are sprawled on her back, looking disheveled.
「AAHHH! My wife, who swore to protect me even in death, is dead!」
「I-I’m alivee….!」
I thought she was dead, but Are was barely hanging on. I hurriedly pulled her out of the hole and treated her with a healing potion.
It was quite disheartening that the potions were seeing more action here.
As I cared for Are, I felt the soft, plump chest of Queen Dareda resting on my head, her gentle smile masking the fact that she was actually stronger and more skilled than Are. The queen of Rango Land Island was not to be underestimated.
Are relied on her brute strength as a Dragon Maid, but Queen Dareda was a master of controlling dragon chi. She was an invincible martial artist of expert level.
I had heard that the muscles of seasoned fighters were often soft, but now I understood what that meant as I felt the softness of her squishy breast pressed against me. It was like a bouncy slime.
Apparently, if Queen Dareda were to get serious, it would be easy for her to immobilize me with her dragon chi techniques and complete her nightly visit—this was supposedly a sort of dragon joke.
While it was humorous that Are often ended up half-killed in these scenarios, it seemed that rough-and-tumble brawling was the way this martial artist mother-daughter duo communicated.
Although Queen Dareda appeared composed, she was even more extreme than Are. They truly were a terrifyingly violent family.
Honestly, I didn’t want to get involved, but the undeniable fact that I was already entangled in this bloodline weighed on me more heavily than Dareda’s chest resting atop my head.
Given that we had already been intimate every night, it wouldn’t be long before Are would bear my child. Naturally, our daughter would be a descendant of the dragon god, a member of the strongest race—Dragon Maids.
「Education is key…」
I reminded myself of the importance of education, hoping that my daughter wouldn’t turn out like this brain-dead dragon mother-daughter pair.
※※※
While I spent my time at Queen Dareda’s Dragon Palace, the crew of the Silesie Fleet was also spread across the island.
It was a welcoming place for men. Despite the lack of inns and taverns and the absence of a proper welcoming system in the port, there were no issues arising from cultural exchanges.
However, troubles of a different nature emerged during the night.
On the third night of my stay, when I returned to the flagship, the Beautiful Silhouette Queen, I was met with a near-scream report from Admiral Drake: We’ve reached our limit!
「Twelve crew members have fallen ill? If they’re not dead, you should be able to treat them with healing potions.」
「Unfortunately, their condition can’t be healed with potions.」
I see. When I inquired if what was needed were stamina potions, I learned that they had already consumed the Dragon Maid’s secret stamina tonic in excess. Given my own experiences, I could easily imagine the severity of the situation. It sounded serious.
Admiral Drake, now sporting a white beard, had long since graduated from that kind of activity, yet he was being relentlessly pursued by the dragon maidens who favored romantic older gentlemen, forcing him to retreat into the ship for shelter.
Drake urged me to set sail as soon as possible, his expression more desperate than when we had been fighting the Castilian fleet.
Even though the opponent was a young girl, the power of the Dragon Maids was not something mere humans could withstand, so I understood why he was in such a predicament, even though it was a bit amusing.
It was funny that even a seasoned veteran like Admiral Drake, who had joked about being crushed by the mast during fierce naval battles, couldn’t handle the passionate advances of the Dragon Maids. But now was not the time to laugh.
「If it’s just this much, it shouldn’t affect the ship’s operations.」
「Actually, that’s the problem. Some of the crew have gotten so used to life on this island that around twenty of them want to stop sailing and settle down here. If this keeps up, we’ll be in serious trouble.」
I see, so that’s another concern.
If things had escalated to this point by the third day, then after a week, the number of dropouts would likely increase even more.
To be honest, I had underestimated Rango-Land Island.
The demand for men from the Dragon Maids was indeed formidable.
「If I had known it would turn out like this, I should have brought more crew members.」
「Your Majesty, you brought plenty of trade samples and construction materials, so there wasn’t much room for more. We’ve already finished resupplying water and food, so let’s set sail for the adventure as soon as possible before we can’t leave.」
Bringing on more crew would require additional supplies of drinking water and food.
There were limitations to the ship’s capacity, making logistics difficult.
Drake’s concerns were valid; if the crew continued to dwindle, we wouldn’t be able to move until we could get new crew members from Silesie’s second fleet. After the port at Hadasht, having to send crew to Rango-Land Island too would surely leave Admiral Jean shaking his head in disbelief.
「Let’s get going before we can’t.」
「Oh, King General! That’s the spirit!」
「We’ll take two of the elite Black Cedar warships from the Silesie Ocean Fleet, manned only with the finest crew, and aim for the New Continent far to the west.」
「You brought ten ships, so are we not using the remaining eight?」
「The adventure isn’t just about the number of ships. To avoid suffering major losses, it’s better to keep it to a select few. We were initially planning to survey the eastern coast of the Afri continent, so we’ll split the fleet, sending the rest of the ships there.」
「I see, so that’s your strategy. Alright, let’s assemble a team of daredevils for the ships heading to the New Continent.」
We had navigational charts taken from the Castilia Kingdom as compensation up to Rango-Land Island.
However, from this point onward, we would truly be entering uncharted waters. We would face it with the most advanced ships and the best crew available.
The decision to take just two ships was made with the understanding that if one were to be lost, we could continue the voyage with the other.
Even the strongest Black Cedar warships of the Eura continent would need to be used up if it came to that.
I had once seen a merchant caravan annihilated after becoming embroiled with monsters. I had no desire to repeat that foolishness. I had to stay sharp and focused.
While I would leave the selection of crew members to Admiral Drake, I also needed to think about who to choose for the starting lineup heading to the New World.
「Nation’s Father, you made it to the ship.」
「Yeah, Kaara, you’ve worked hard. I need you to join the select team; you’re a must.」
「Yes, I’ll do my best.」
「That’s reassuring.」
Kaara, who had just finished scouting the area, would be one of the necessary personnel. The teleportation magic circle was of utmost importance; it could serve as an emergency escape device during a perilous voyage.
Being able to fly in the sky and scout visually was a significant advantage.
In that case, perhaps I should also call Oracle-chan. Just having Kaara alone made me feel uneasy.
If that is the case, Are, who could also fly with her dragon wings, could be a candidate as well. Her naturally high physical abilities would be useful in case of emergencies.
「I would also like to join as the Light Staff by all means.」
「No, Ria, you should stay quietly at the royal castle.」
Ria, dressed in a holy robe and unnecessarily making her staff glow, probably wanted to emphasize her role as the “Light Staff”. I decided not to poke fun at her.
Although she often claimed to be a representative of Asama and frequently visited the ship, her role would end once we reached Rango-Land Island.
「Why not!」
「Ria, have you forgotten? The divine power of Asama won’t reach the New Continent. It’s obvious that you won’t be able to use your holy magic there.」
「However, Takeru, I believe I am needed for the night watch as well.」
「No…」
But it was also me who decided to make Ria off the children’s upbringing given the bad influence she might inflict on the children.
Good grief, where do I put her? I don’t think the Asama Church will take her in now, won’t they?
「Are you thinking something rude?」
「Can you tell? Well, I’m not even trying to hide it…」
「If I can’t use holy magic, would that make me a nuisance?」
「No, even if you could use it, you’d still be a nuisance… wait, that was harsh, I’m sorry.」
Ria sulked in response. But having a saintess who couldn’t use holy magic was a real headache.
「Ugh, so I’m unnecessary to Takeru, huh?」
「Well, yeah, Ria. But you do have your special skill: breastfeeding! There are plenty of babies around, so why don’t you try being a wet nurse?」
I was being a bit flippant, but somehow, this managed to cheer Ria up.
「You’re right! I do have the skill for that!」
「Um… wait, don’t take your clothes off!」
Who did she plan to breastfeed?
I definitely hadn’t meant that!
「But think about it, Takeru. The effects of Amrita, the divine milk, would be incredibly beneficial even in the New Continent! It could be emergency rations!」
「Okay, I’ll consider it.」
There was absolutely no way she’d be on the starting lineup. Conversations with her went on forever, so I decided to ignore her for now.
Now, who else?
Oh, right! There was also Rara-chan, the half-reptilian girl.
When we first arrived on the island, she had played with some dragon maid children who had a similar vibe to her. Now, she was curiously wandering around the ship, exploring everything.
「Rara-chan, what are you going to do?」
「I came to broaden my horizons.」
It seemed like we weren’t quite on the same wavelength.
Since Rara-chan had just come from the countryside, she didn’t really understand what I was doing.
It felt like she was here for some social studies, but as a guest, I didn’t want to involve her in any dangerous journeys.
「I think going to the New Continent might be too dangerous. Why not stay in the royal castle of the Silesie Kingdom and explore there instead?」
There were quite a few reptilian mercenaries in the Silesie Kingdom. In our royal family, we had demoness wives and children, and the Asama Church turned a blind eye to that.
The environment around the royal capital of Silesie wasn’t one where demons faced persecution anymore. It shouldn’t be too dangerous for Rara-chan to wander around.
On the other hand, traveling by sea was definitely riskier. We could always escape using a teleportation circle if things get dicey, so I wouldn’t force her to stay behind, but I had to be mindful of her safety as a guest from the Sheba tribe.
Rara-chan stared at the map of the Eura continent I had given her, deep in thought. The girl with the lizard tail then said quietly, ‘I want to see more of the ocean.’
Got it.
If that’s what she wanted, there was no reason to stop her. I was also eager to see what lay beyond the uncharted sea, despite the dangers.
「I want to see more of the ocean too!」
Ria piped up from behind, her staff glowing as she threw glances our way. But I decided to ignore her; if I engaged, the conversation would drag on forever.
With that, our stay on Rango Land Island came to an end. As we were seen off by Queen Dareda, who looked a bit reluctant at the port, we set sail toward the unknown journey to the distant New Continent.