CH 181.2

Chapter 181 Escort ②

Part 2

Even if you say Dragon, in a nutshell, their ability can vary. Some, like the Onsen Dragon and the Chilldra, can be defeated by a Level 4 hunter on their own, while others are undefeatable even if 《Strange Grief (Nageki no Borei)》  does everything in their power to defeat them.

In this case, the Green Dragon and the Dragons that had appeared so far weren’t that big of a deal. At least to 《Strange Grief (Nageki no Borei)》, they were species that could be killed with a touch of a finger.

The effective time expired and the 『Hailstorm』 disappeared. All that was left was the frozen earth and the corpse of the Dragon.

“What do we do about the materials?” (Lucia)

“Leave it. It is a waste, but it is not like we can carry it around.” (Sytry)

“I’m fine with it as I’m enjoying this, but I can’t really appreciate it when so many Dragons show up. If they’re going to come, they should come all at once, not one at a time.” (Luke)

“Umu.” (Anthem)

A Dragon’s entire body is a valuable material, but our goal this time isn’t to make money. We can’t afford to carry it around. As we don’t even know what kind of powerful Monsters or Dragons will appear in the future.

However, it was such a waste. As Sytry looked at the dragon carcass with a bit of a backward glance, Liz called out to her from above her shoulder.

“Syttt there’s a bunch of Monsters coming from over there, but what do we do?” (Liz)

“A group of Monsters? Are they Dragons?” (Sytry)

Liz squinted her eyes to look at the group that appeared far away. The group was a mixture of various Monsters. Subhuman Monsters and Beast Monsters were running away as if they were being washed away.

“Hmmmm…… I think it’s a Land Dragon? As for the group of Monsters, there are Orcs, Goblins and…… All sorts of them!” (Liz)

Land Dragon is an unusual Dragon that can’t fly. Their wings had deteriorated, but instead, their body was larger and the weight of each of their blows was heavier.

The Monsters that were being chased are probably from around here. Dragons and Monsters do not share a symbiotic relationship, and the Dragons, who often stand at the top of the ecosystem, are natural predators to non-humans as well. If a Dragon that never leaves its territory were to suddenly venture outside of it, the area would be falling into chaos. Even normally docile Monsters can become a major disaster if they run amok.

It is also the first phenomenon that is suspected when Monsters are running amok.

“Yaaaaaaas, this time my sword will reach. I’ll…… Slay ittt!” (Luke)

Luke rolled up his sleeve while holding the wooden sword Lucia had newly created for him. The swarm of Monsters didn’t stop and headed straight toward Luke and the others――To be more precise, towards the Emperor and his group who were behind them.

At that moment, Sytry, who had a thoughtful expression, *pan* clapped her hands and said. 

“Luke-san, please only slay the Dragon. Do it in a way where you won’t slay the Monsters.” (Sytry)

“Hmm? Aaaah? Why not?” (Luke)

“Cry-san told me that he doesn’t want 『Any more』 Dragons, but he hasn’t told me that he doesn’t want any more Monsters.” (Sytry)

He went out of his way to give me a message saying that he didn’t need any more Dragons. He probably wanted everything else but Dragons.

Sytry, who has known him for a long time, understands how he thinks.

Luke’s eyes widened at what Sytry said while smiling, and nodded his head in agreement.

“………… I see… Alright. OK. So I just have to cut them apart, right? I’ll only slay the Dragon. Alright. It’s fine… only the Dragon. I’ll only slay the Dragon…… Un, it’s gonna be a good training, my arms itching.” (Luke)

§　§　§

Strange…… The curse should be activated, but no Dragons are coming.

The escort’s journey was peace itself. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and not a speck of a Dragon in sight.

The events of yesterday had been unexpected for the man, but this was the first time he had experienced a Dragon not attacking.

The effect of the Dragon calling curse is to attract Dragons living in the vicinity. In some cases, there is a time lag before the Dragon attacks, but this time it was far too late.

He can’t show that he was restless. The Emperor’s group was now nervous because of yesterday’s incident. They are probably thinking about the possibility of a traitor among their ranks. In the first place, there was no way to be sure of the result of the curse.

That man――《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 wasn’t around. He advocated himself to be the rear guard and kept his distance from the carriage where the Emperor was riding on.

The man had no idea what he was thinking. If he was an escort, it would have been only natural that he would stand close to the Emperor. There are knights guarding his perimeter, so it is not like he can get too close, but the man doesn’t understand why he would want to move behind.

Right now, the Emperor was defenseless. Those incompetent knights around the Emperor weren’t even aware that the man was their enemy.

The man can fight even without the Dragon Calling Curse. He wouldn’t take such an impulsive action, but it would not be impossible for him to assassinate the Emperor if he put his life at stake. Of all the escorts, the only ones that the man was sure to be no match against in terms of pure combat strength were 《Still Water (Shisui)》 and 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》.

The only thing the man was concerned about was the actions of the 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 who was also known as being an unparalleled strategist. Depending on the situation, he may need to change his plans.

At that moment, a loud voice suddenly came from the front.

“Monstersss! Swarms of Monsters are coming! There’s a lot of them, all members, be on guard! Protect the carriage!” (Knight)

!? What…… Did you say!?

It can’t be, the curse is only supposed to attract Dragons. This wasn’t due to what the man did.

He quickly checked behind him. There was no sign of the man who was supposed to be in the rearguard.