Chapter 1085: 72. Acting Cute Is Shameless
Within a haze of chaotic, misty colors, it was impossible to distinguish the boundary between sky and earth.
Wherever one looked, there were only distorted, blurred points of light, making it feel as though one had stepped into a dream.
Pitch-black lightning tore through the void. Terrifying astral winds shredded everything in their path. Standing in this strange place, Muen felt for the first time just how weak the body he had trained until now truly was.
It seemed as if a single spark would be enough to reduce him to ashes.
“Hold on tightly.”
The cold voice rang out.
Amid the constant buzzing premonition of death, that voice somehow sounded extraordinarily gentle.
Muen’s heart warmed.
Sure enough, even in such a bizarre and fantastical world, there would always be a little kindness somewhere.
Come on then, Miss Hamreign. Even if you did interrupt my wedding, I don't really mind temporarily becoming a dragon rider soaring through the heavens—
Smack.
A dragon claw emerged from the lightning and astral winds and grabbed Muen in its palm.
“...”
I take that back.
There is no kindness here.
At least not for a yellow-haired man who had just been abducted like a princess.
“So that's what you meant by hold on tight—”
His drawn-out scream was quickly swallowed by the endless void.
Before Muen could even react, a dizzying sensation that felt capable of tearing his soul apart crashed over him. The scenery around him instantly blurred, like a black-and-white film playing at a hundred times normal speed.
Time lost all meaning.
Space lost all meaning.
Muen felt like a Barbie doll in the hands of some muscle-bound demon, being gripped tightly while spun around like a windmill and dragged in a mad sprint across a beach bathed in sunset light.
The sunset.
The waves.
The beach.
And the happy smile of the muscle demon.
Ah, what a youthful scene.
What a strangely familiar scene.
That utterly nonexistent sense of reality could not help but make one sigh...
Because if this kept up, he was genuinely about to go back and experience his youth a second time.
Help!
...
...
“We've arrived.”
The lightning vanished.
The astral winds disappeared.
The misty chaos faded away completely.
The world returned to its proper colors.
A giant dragon claw casually grabbed Muen by the collar and tossed him.
Like a cat being thrown aside, he crashed onto the ground.
Unfortunately, with stars still spinning around his head, he lacked a cat's natural balance and landed face-first in the dirt.
Yet despite the embarrassing fall, the solid ground beneath him and the clear scent of soil filled him with a strange sense of happiness, as though fallen leaves had finally returned to their roots.
Humans...
Really were meant to keep their feet on the ground.
Dragon riders and the like ultimately belonged to ancient legends.
Far too distant from his current self.
He would save those dreams for later.
“Hiss... ow, ow, ow...”
After lying there recovering for quite some time, Muen finally struggled upright while clutching his aching lower back.
The experience he had just endured had not merely tormented him mentally.
He had genuinely felt his own weakness and insignificance.
After everything that had happened in Saint Blancfazesiya, he had thought he had improved enormously.
No matter what, he should have qualified as one of the world's "strong" individuals by now.
But now it seemed he was still nothing more than a bird in a cage.
A frog at the bottom of a well.
Still unable to touch the world's most terrifying and authentic truths.
“So that's a Calamity...”
Muen muttered softly.
Whether it was effortlessly forcing back Celicia despite her wielding the authority of the Empire...
Or the incomprehensible method of travel they had just used...
Everything made him understand the true weight behind the title:
Dragon of Death and Doom, Hamreign.
This was the pinnacle of the world.
Perhaps even the strongest existence—
“Do not call me Hamreign.”
A massive golden vertical pupil suddenly appeared.
Its blazing brilliance rivaled the sun itself, nearly forcing Muen to close his eyes.
Ah.
He had almost forgotten the owner of that name was still standing beside him.
Wait.
How did she know what he was thinking?
Could she also possess some kind of mind-reading ability like that old loli?
“And do not compare me to that one. I've always disdained such little tricks that merely read another's surface thoughts.”
As if reminded by Muen's baffled expression, Hamreign's enormous dragon body suddenly became shrouded in misty black fog.
Soon, the fog dispersed.
The tall red-haired girl in the black dress appeared before him once again.
She remained as dazzling as ever.
The moment she appeared, it felt as though she stole all the world's radiance.
The surrounding forest.
The sun overhead.
Everything seemed reduced to mere background scenery for her existence.
“Do not call me Hamreign.”
She repeated herself.
“Then... what should I call you?”
The authority within those golden eyes prevented Muen from meeting her gaze directly.
But when his eyes lowered...
They instinctively drifted toward the jade-like feet peeking out beneath the black skirt.
Wow.
Those are really ni—
No, no.
Don't look.
This was not someone who could be casually offended.
If she slapped him to death, there wouldn't even be a place left to cry about it.
Muen quickly looked away and pretended to admire the scenery instead.
Huh?
That grass looks strange.
I've never seen it before.
“Call me...”
Hamreign seemed ready to speak a name.
Yet suddenly, something crossed her mind.
The brilliance within her golden eyes dimmed slightly.
“Forget it. Just call me that name.”
“Hm?”
“It was created by humans anyway. Who uses it and which name they use makes no difference to me.”
Hamreign turned around and slowly walked down a narrow path covered in vines and weeds.
Her jade feet stepped lightly across weathered stone slabs.
Her skirt swayed.
Her crimson hair drifted behind her.
That fiery red color seemed capable of setting the world ablaze.
Watching her back, Muen felt somewhat confused.
Why tell him not to use it, only to tell him to use it again?
Did she dislike it?
But Hamreign was such a cool name!
“In that case... I'll call you Miss Dragon.”
Seeing Hamreign about to disappear into the dense vegetation, Muen hurried after her.
“It's better not to hear names you dislike too often. They affect your mood. Take me, for example. I absolutely hate being called a yellow-haired villain. I'm clearly a pure-love champion who remains loyal to one person!”
“...”
Hamreign suddenly stopped and glanced back at him.
“W-What?”
Muen's forced smile froze.
Surely his taste wasn't so terrible that the title Miss Dragon had somehow offended her too?
Well, she was a dragon.
Perhaps she preferred something more majestic and imposing.
Or perhaps—
“Acceptable.”
Hamreign did not become furious as he had imagined.
Instead, she gave a slight nod and continued walking.
At some point, the smooth stone path beneath her feet had become a moss-covered staircase.
The sway of her skirt changed from side-to-side movement into a gentle rise and fall.
From Muen's angle...
That pair of jade feet became even easier to—
He was not looking!
“...Whew.”
Muen wiped the sweat from his forehead.
As expected of a Calamity.
That single glance just now had nearly made him start planning where he wanted to be buried.
Still, thinking about it carefully, things were not entirely bad.
Miss Dragon—no, Hamreign—had gone through all the trouble of coming here from so far away and even abducting him in front of everyone.
That meant she definitely would not casually harm him.
He had to possess some sort of value to her.
The problem was that Miss Dragon seemed extremely taciturn.
He would have to figure things out himself.
He couldn't remain ignorant of her intentions forever.
“Um... may I ask a few questions?”
Muen hurried up several steps.
He followed behind Hamreign but did not dare get too close, remaining at just the right distance to see her feet.
Close enough to talk.
Not close enough to be disrespectful.
“Being suddenly brought here by Miss Dragon... I mean, invited here... has left me a little confused.”
“Ask.”
As always, her answer was concise.
“Where... exactly is this?”
Muen cautiously asked his first question.
At the same time, he quickly examined the surroundings.
Fortunately, aside from the unusual plants—most of which he had never seen before—there was nothing especially strange.
No towers.
No caves.
No dragon lairs.
Otherwise he really would have become a poor yellow-haired princess abducted by a dragon.
“Tars.”
Hamreign answered.
“Tars...”
Muen immediately began searching through everything he had learned about the world.
Good.
Excellent.
It seemed all that studying had not been wasted.
Because he could now confidently declare...
He had never heard that name before in his life.
“May I boldly ask for a more detailed explanation? Compared to Miss Dragon, my knowledge is terribly lacking.”
Muen laughed awkwardly.
“There's nothing worth explaining. It is merely a forgotten land buried completely in the corner of history.”
“A forgotten land?”
Muen was about to continue asking questions when Hamreign suddenly stopped walking.
Muen immediately halted as well and secretly peeked past her shoulder in the direction she was facing.
Then he froze.
A gentle breeze drifted by.
Birdsong filled the air.
The pressure of being around the Dragon of Death and Doom had been so overwhelming that Muen had neglected the beauty of his surroundings.
The first thing that entered his sight was a vast lake.
Its blue waters resembled a flawless gemstone.
The wind rippled across the surface, and the sparkling reflections looked like exquisite patterns carved into the jewel.
A thin mist floated over the lake.
Despite the bright sunlight, it refused to disperse.
Of course, a beautiful lake alone would not have been enough to shock him.
What truly captured his attention was what stood beyond the lake.
Upon towering cliffs on the opposite shore...
A city.
A terraced city built into the mountainside.
It was ancient.
Muen knew that immediately.
With his current eyesight, he could clearly distinguish architectural styles completely unlike those of the present era, along with weathered stone statues and ancient ruins.
It was also silent.
Vines and dense vegetation climbed across the buildings.
Across the statues.
Across the entire cliff face.
No figures could be seen anywhere.
The gray-white stone city had been swallowed whole by a sea of lifeless green.
This was an abandoned city.
“I see. An ancient ruin?”
Muen suddenly understood.
The reason he had never heard of Tars was not because his knowledge was lacking.
As Miss Dragon had said, this place had long been buried in history's forgotten corners.
“Though... calling it a ruin might not be entirely accurate. It feels more like a wasteland.”
Muen rubbed his chin.
“Places considered ruins usually contain valuable treasures. Ariel is always treasure-hunting in places like that. But this city... doesn't seem to have anything particularly special.”
Separated from it only by a lake, Muen could see most of the city clearly.
Aside from its unusual architectural style, it did not give him any especially mystical feeling.
So why had Miss Dragon brought him here?
Surely she hadn't abducted him just to go sightseeing...
“Miss Dragon—”
Splash.
The sudden sound of water interrupted him.
Muen's eyes widened.
Because Miss Dragon had simply walked directly into the lake.
Wait.
Are we already at the bathing scene?
I haven't mentally prepared myself yet!
Muen hurriedly covered his eyes—
Covered them for a moment—
Then secretly opened a gap between his fingers.
“Ah...”
A disappointed sigh escaped him.
Because although Miss Dragon had entered the water...
Her dress remained firmly on her body.
Nothing had been removed.
Wait.
Why am I disappointed?
Muen immediately straightened his face.
I am a gentleman.
A gentleman should be happy that he failed to offend someone.
That's right.
Happy.
So Muen's thoughts quickly wandered elsewhere.
When Miss Dragon was in dragon form, she obviously wasn't wearing clothes.
So what exactly counted as clothing when she transformed into a human?
Was that black dress something she created temporarily?
Or was it actually—
“You brat. Your death wish truly knows no limits.”
A certain irritating voice suddenly sounded.
With a leisurely sigh, it continued:
“To actually entertain improper thoughts about that ill-tempered female dragon. If she found out, she'd personally teach you how the words Death and Doom got their meaning.”
“Mind your own business!”
“Oh my, oh my. It's only been a short while, and your attitude has become quite bold. You dare talk to me like that now?”
“Stop bothering me. I haven't finished thinking through the answer to—wait.”
Muen froze.
That voice sounded awfully familiar.
Slowly, he turned around.
Sure enough.
Amid the mist floating over the lake, he met a pair of ruby-red eyes.
A certain white-haired loli was floating leisurely atop a pink swim ring.
She wore a skin-tight swimsuit resembling a school swimsuit, decorated with strawberry patterns.
One small foot occasionally dipped beneath the water.
Then emerged again, kicking playfully through the air.
Like a mischievous little water bird.
Ridiculously cute.
“Teacher Mela?”
Muen stared blankly.
“What are you doing here?”
“Hm? What am I doing here?”
The white-haired loli tilted her head in confusion while casually sipping fruit juice beside her.
“Is that such a difficult question? Since I temporarily sold you to that smelly dragon, I naturally had to come handle some of the follow-up paperwork. Otherwise, if she filed a complaint about poor service quality, wouldn't that be troublesome?”
“Oh, so it's just paperwork. For a moment I thought—wait.”
Muen's expression froze.
He stared straight at the white-haired loli floating on the lake.
“You said... paperwork? Service? You temporarily sold me... which means the reason I was dragged here from my wedding is because... you?”
“Oh? Didn't I tell you?”
The thousand-year-old loli slapped her forehead.
Then, with absolutely shameless cuteness, she declared:
“Oopsie. I forgot~”