novelraw Chapter 107 : Chapter 107
Chapter 107 : Chapter 107
Chapter 107
Calua, having opened his eyes from sleep, stretched his body to shake off the drowsiness and scattered mana.
- He didn't come today either!
The demon didn't return today either.
Because the demon was always busy taking care of weak humans.
- Humans don't need help.
The demon was clearly being deceived by wicked humans. Or perhaps, just like he saved him, helping others was his hobby.
- Hmph!
After stomping his feet a few times to express his dissatisfaction with his drooping body, Calua stretched out long and pushed the door open majestically.
"Ah. Lord Calua, are you awake?"
As had been the case for the past few days, the red-haired human called Reina greeted him with a pretty smile.
- Hello, human! Good morning! The demon didn't come today either!
When he raised his front paw to praise Reina for her hard work every morning, she naturally picked him up.
- Human! I've told you many times, a dragon is not a dog!
However, she stroked Calua with the same smile as always and cleaned the demon's room.
"Will the Young Master come today?"
- I don't know either! Won't he come today?
The human liked talking to Calua.
And Calua also liked talking to the human who liked the demon.
"You can't speak, but I wish the Young Master would rest sometimes."
- Correct! The demon is too busy!
"This is a secret, and I shouldn't feel this way, but watching the Young Master push himself too hard is really difficult. You don't know how upset I was when he collapsed while practicing with the sword; I even cried secretly."
At Reina's sad voice, Calua nodded vigorously.
- A great dragon keeps secrets! The demon was in the wrong this time!
Before he knew it, she sat on the edge of the bed, hugging him, and continued speaking.
"Right? It was hard for you to watch too, Lord Calua? Really, he tries to do everything alone every time. I tried hard too, but..."
Surprised to see tears welling up in Reina's eyes, Calua raised his short front paw to comfort her.
- Human, trust only me! I will help the demon...!
"It's really strange. I really, really tried to get even a little closer..."
- Don't cry! Because Calua gets sad too!
"Hehe... But I guess I have to try harder to stay by the Young Master's side, right? Next time, I'll pull myself together and help him!"
Calua moved his head following Reina, who was pumping herself up with both hands.
- Yeah, go for it!
The embrace squeezing his body was quite suffocating, but Calua, the great dragon, endured it for the sake of the human.
"Ah, look at me being absent-minded. Where will you go today?"
- Food! I eat food first!
"You have to eat first as expected, right?"
Calua wanted to walk proudly to the dining hall, but escaping from Reina's arms was a very slightly difficult task even for a great dragon.
- Human, it tickles! Stop petting me! Stop!
The young dragon's day was just beginning.
* * *
"Welcome, Lord Calua, Lady Reina."
"Good morning, Secretary-general."
Every morning, when he enters the dining hall, the old human welcomes him.
- Human, good morning! The demon isn't here today either!
"Hmm... Your wings lack luster today. Did something happen this morning?"
- ……?! N, no?
The old human was sharper than he thought.
Is that the wisdom of age and experience the old dragons spoke of?!
"Ah, because the Young Lord is away..."
- ……?
Before Calua could correct the misunderstanding, the Secretary-general spoke with a determined face.
"First, please come this way. I will prepare a special meal today."
- Special meal? Is it not Orc today! I am actually a bit tired of Orcs!
The demon would have hit him on the bridge of the nose if he were here, but he was really tired of Orcs.
Because since meeting the demon, he had never eaten anything other than Orc meat.
"Thank you for waiting. Today, I have prepared a steak made from Minotaur meat."
The steak the old human put down was three times the size of Calua.
- ……!
Calua, who was looking at the steak with trembling eyes as if he couldn't believe it, carefully added a stamp on the old human's clothes.
- Human, really? Can I eat this?
The demon would have hit the bridge of his nose, saying those who don't work don't deserve to eat.
Sniffling, Calua carefully took a bite of the Minotaur meat.
- Wow...
At the feast of flavors he was experiencing for the first time, Calua urgently called Reina.
- Human! Try this! This is really delicious!
* * *
After eating, Calua would take a walk around the fortress with Reina or watch the soldiers' training.
- Let's do today's investigation at the training ground!
The young dragon always claimed it was an investigation, but it looked more like a walk no matter how you looked at it.
- Humans are indeed scary! To swing swords like that every day!
Having only met the humans of the fortress, Calua naturally believed that all humans were masters of weaponry.
Because even the kindest human he knew wielded a menacing flail.
- You know, human. Somewhere here there is a human similar to me! A human who uses magic instead of weapons!
Calua, who was flapping his wings in excitement, suddenly let his body droop.
- Actually, I can't use magic yet. If I could use magic, the demon would have taken me with him this time.
The fortress was richer in mana than other places on the continent, but it was insufficient to fill the empty Dragon Heart.
It wasn't that he couldn't use magic at all, but using it by scraping the depleted Dragon Heart came with great pain.
- I'm really fine, but the demon said no. Is it because he's a demon? Because he can work me to the bone only when the Dragon Heart is filled...
Reina smiled brightly and stroked him carefully.
While conducting such a detailed investigation on humans, Calua realized that there were many faces he was seeing for the first time.
- Huh? Over there is a new human!
"Ah, they must have come from the Northern Noble families."
The newly appeared humans were not much different from the humans of the fortress.
Most humans wrapped their bodies in iron, wore iron on their waists, and drew and swung iron whenever they fought.
Among them, the especially scary humans used mana when walking, running, and swinging iron.
- ...Humans are scary and like iron.
Although there was no one who could cut his smooth scales, Calua did not forget the teachings of the old dragons.
- They said the continent is full of humans...
When Calua was trembling at the imagination of hundreds of thousands of humans rushing in with weapons, a small commotion occurred at the training ground.
* * *
"No matter how much you look down on us, isn't this too much!"
"No, who are you saying looked down on whom?!"
The soldiers of the fortress, who were clearly flustered, took a step back, but the soldiers belonging to the Allied force, who thought they had been insulted, did not bend their argument.
"We only asked for teachings on training, but you threw a stone and told us to play with it! No matter how great the Moner family is, you cannot treat us like children!"
For a moment, the soldiers of the fortress looked at each other with troubled faces.
The mana stone training method had become a natural training method in the fortress before they knew it, but it was a mistake that outsiders could sufficiently misunderstand.
"Hahaha... Everyone, please calm down..."
Even though they tried to persuade them somehow, it didn't work at all on the Allied force soldiers who were clearly deeply misunderstood.
- What do we do?
- What do you mean what! They said if we fight this time, they'll lock us in the underground prison!
- They said it's fine if we win...
The soldiers, exchanging glances with troubled faces, tried to talk once again.
"There seems to be a slight misunderstanding. I will show you the training method..."
"Misunderstanding, my foot! If you want to clear the misunderstanding, solve it with a duel!"
The soldiers sighed and looked at each other again.
- Can we win gently?
- They look like they'll break if we just tap them...
In the eyes of the fortress soldiers, the Allied forces were too...
Looked frail.
To the extent that it was unbelievable they were soldiers receiving a salary.
"Then... let's do this. In our Moner, there is a special forces unit that not just anyone can enter. And that mana stone is a training mainly done by the special forces members."
The Allied forces showed interest at the word special forces unit.
If it's training mainly done by the fortress's special forces, there must be a reason for it.
"In fact, we also applied and failed, but it is a very simple test. Anyone can pass as long as they have good physical strength."
At those words, the soldiers' eyes gleamed with interest.
"Let's see, do we have any bows left... Here, this is it. How about we decide the winner by who can pull this more times?"
What the soldiers brought was a Knight Slayer used for training because its string was damaged.
"Isn't that a Knight Slayer?"
"If pulling the Knight Slayer is the test, where is the pulley?"
The fortress soldiers nodded with satisfied faces at the expected reaction.
- As expected, that's the normal reaction.
- Thinking about how we weren't even treated as humans because we couldn't pull this ten times...
The soldier, who found the best way to gently show off his strength, smiled and pulled the string all the way back.
"Gasp!"
"Is it not a Knight Slayer? Is it just a bow that looks the same..."
"I will try it too!"
A soldier who was relatively confident in his strength took the bow and pulled the string with all his might, but the string did not move even a fingernail's breadth.
"What on earth is this...!"
"Now, I will tell you why mana stone training is necessary..."
Just as he was about to naturally move on to the training.
The mascot of the Special Mission Unit, who approached toddling, went towards the Knight Slayer.
"Uh? No, it's dangerous!"
If the mascot, who receives all the love of the Secretary-general, gets hurt, it won't end with just the underground prison.
The flustered soldier quickly threw his body, but the mascot pulling the bow with one foot was faster.
Moreover, the mascot, who pulled the bow a few times as if it were nothing, looked over the soldiers as if they were pathetic, then raised his head and walked away proudly.
"Hiiiiiik!"
"What kind of animal is that on earth?!"
"That... is the pet of the Special Forces Captain mentioned earlier, but we don't really know what animal it is either..."
"P-Pet..."
The soldiers, who suddenly lost to an animal, swallowed their tears and accepted the mana stones.
* * *
- Human! You saw that!
"You are really amazing."
When Calua sat majestically and raised his head, Reina bent her knees slightly and patted his head.
- Humans are boring!
To think that gathering in a circle and chatting loudly is just to pull a string.
The desolate humans' games were really boring.
Of course, Calua, the great dragon, performed perfectly even in a game he played for the first time.
When Calua, who boasted by lifting his head several times, raised his two paws, Reina naturally picked him up.
- Human, I definitely didn't ask to be hugged.
"Ah, you must be sleepy already. I'll take you to your room."
- Hmm... I'm not sleepy. I have something to think about from today's investigation...
Calua, who was nodding off while contemplating a serious and grave matter, quietly began to snore.
"Oh? You must have been very tired today."
- …….
"Is it because the Young Master isn't here? Do you miss the Young Master a lot too, Lord Calua?"
- No...
Even while wandering in a light dream, Calua shook his head firmly.
Because missing the demon was an absolute secret.