Volume 3 Chapter 2 Dragon Found On The First Try
It's been 6 days since I started chasing the dragon.
I'm walking through the forest right now. I'm pushing through the dense beech summer trees and going deeper and deeper into the forest. The ground is increasingly covered with poisonous purple soil, and the green beech leaves are turning into purple leaves of the devil tree. This is a sign that the concentration of magic in the area is increasing, and it means that I've entered a dangerous area.
But I can't stop.
The Compass Eye (Ra Shingan) is still pointing forward.
"...Will I find it today?"
The time limit for the Compass Eye (Ra Shingan) is tomorrow morning.
If I don't find the cursed equipment by then, I'll die at the Cost. There's no time to waste.
'Well, it's easy. I know it's in this forest.'
Juju says yawnily, using my hood as a hammock.
It's irresponsible or whatever, but she's quite carefree considering the wearer's life is at stake. She's been gulping down her juice and shouting, "This is what I'm alive for!" ever since. She's too relaxed in this situation.
But then again, she's right to say that there's no need to rush.
It's not like I haven't made any progress in the past 6 days.
I've gotten some solid information about the dragon. Apparently, a dragon appeared in the Religious City of Sunpool. According to eyewitness accounts, it was a pure white dragon just like the one I saw in Geats town, and it abducted the Sampul saintess and flew off towards this forest.
It seems like it has a nest in this forest.
I can't be sure if it's the same dragon I'm chasing, but it's probably right. It's hard to imagine that there would be multiple dragons of the same appearance in an area where dragons don't normally live.
So, if I enter that dragon's nest, I should be able to find the cursed equipment.
"Show me 'monsters with a rank of C rank or higher within a radius of 30 meters.'"
To ensure my safety during my forest walk, I gave additional instructions to the Compass Eye (Ra Shingan). A new needle appeared in my left eye's field of vision and started spinning around. Since the needle isn't pointing to anything, it seems there are no dangerous monsters nearby for now.
While using the Compass Eye (Ra Shingan) carries risks, I still don't have enough HP or Defense, so I need to avoid any surprise attacks from monsters at all costs.
Especially since there's supposed to be a dragon in this forest right now.
Although I'm here for the dragon's treasure, fighting a dragon is still too risky. Even if I land a hit, it can one-shot me too. Plus, I can't guarantee I'll hit a dragon with its evenly high stats. I should be careful here.
If possible, I'd like to sneak into its lair and just get the cursed equipment.
I just have to avoid encountering the dragon somehow...
As I was walking with my guard up, I suddenly...
"Huh?"
I found the dragon already.
Talk about jinxing it.
The sight of the dragon took my breath away. It was a beautiful, pure white dragon. Its white scales reflected the sunlight, shimmering brightly even in the dim forest. Its massive size, capable of swallowing a human whole, exuded an aura of authority. It was a dragon that commanded awe just by looking at it.
And then, the dragon...
"Gyaaa!" "Gyahee!" "Gyahaa!"
'Ow! It hurts! Stop it!'
...was being bullied by goblins.
The goblins were hitting the dragon, who was huddled over with its head in its hands, with wooden sticks.
'Please have mercy! I'll do anything!'
Um... what is this?
This is too surreal.
Why is a dragon being bullied by goblins? And why is a dragon talking? I'm so confused, I can't even think straight.
But it could be a trap, so I need to be careful. Monsters that can imitate human voices are often man-eaters. There's no other point in mimicking human voices unless it's to lure people in and eat them.
I'd better not get too involved with that dragon.
Either way, now's mu chance. Let's head to the nest and get that cursed equipment while I can.
With that in mind, I try to sneak away from the dragon.
'Uuh... sniffle... why... why does this happen to me...'
Finally, the dragon starts to whimper and cry.
I stop in my tracks, about to leave.
"H-hey, should we help it?"
'The goblin?'
"No, the dragon. What are you doing, trying to get on the winning side?"
'But don't you at least want to try dragon meat once? I heard it tastes like chicken. Is that true?'
"Is all you think about is food?"
Let's just deal with the dragon for now. It's hard to leave a crying dragon alone. It doesn't seem like a bad dragon, so maybe we can negotiate.
The problem is, how do we get rid of the goblin...?
"Maybe I can try 'that'..."
I take a deep breath and swiftly draw the Bloodsucker Blade. I feel the blade as it leaves the sheath and is exposed to the air. I can feel the pulse through the handle.
But it doesn't go berserk.
My mind is still calm.
So, this must be the experiment's 'loophole.' It was so simple that I overlooked it, but once I started thinking with the premise that 'cursed equipment has loopholes,' it was easy to find.
Well, there are some restrictions on using the Bloodsucker Blade, but it's fine if it just sends out shockwaves.
I point the tip of the sword down and lightly stab the ground.
Boom, the forest shakes. I can hear the sound of birds and monsters frantically running away.
"...Phew..."
I take a breath and put the Bloodsucker Blade back in its sheath.
Before I knew it, the ground around me had sunk in.
The goblins seemed to have run away, as they were no longer around. Well, goblins are just mischievous creatures, and they're not really harmful monsters. It should be enough to just chase them away.
Now, about the dragon...
'Eek... what's going on... what happened...'
It was lying flat on the ground, even more terrified than before, trembling as it repeated, "Mercy... mercy..." It didn't seem to realize that it had been saved yet.
I thought about leaving quietly, but I couldn't bear to see it like that.
"It's okay now."
I said to the dragon.
'...'
The dragon slowly lifted its head and looked at me curiously.
"I chased away the goblins."
'Oh...'
It seemed to finally realize that the goblins were gone.
After a moment of being dumbfounded, it burst into tears again, tears streaming down its swollen eyes.
'Oh, thank you so much! You are my savior!'
"Don't be so dramatic."
'And by the way, who are you...?'
"Me? I'm Noroa. I'm an adventurer."
'Sir Noroa...'
For some reason, the dragon's face turned red.
But when it saw Juju crawling out of the hood, its face immediately turned pale.
'And I'm Juju! My favorite sandwich filling is ham!'
'Eek! A strange creature is talking!'
'Who's the strange creature! I'm a super beautiful girl, no matter how you look at it!'
'It's talking again!'
'I'll make you into sandwich filling!'
'Oh, mercy...'
The dragon seemed to be completely terrified, hugging its head and trembling.
Poor thing, being bullied by a strange creature. Or rather, it's kind of surreal to see a giant dragon being scared by a tiny doll.
'Hmph, fine. I'll let you go if you give me all the treasure you're hoarding.'
'Treasure...? I don't have any...'
'"Huh?"'
Hmm, that's strange. I thought this dragon was the type to hoard treasure. Or rather, if it had a cursed weapon, it should be the type to collect treasure.
Could I have been mistaken about the dragon?
Speaking of which, I heard that only male dragons have the habit of collecting treasure. Some male dragons gather 'beautiful things' - meaning 'treasure' - from all over the place to decorate their nests and court females. It makes sense that the dragon would have taken the saint and the cursed weapon because it found them beautiful. So, if this dragon is a female, there's a high chance that it's a different individual from the one we're after.
Anyway, let's check just to be sure.
"Excuse me for a moment."
'Huh?'
I walked around to the back of the dragon and lifted its tail slightly.
"I see, a female."
'...~~!? W-W-W-What are you doing?! That's indecent!'
"Why!?"
I got sent flying with a full swing of its tail.
...I thought I was going to die. This is no way to treat someone just for checking a dragon's gender.
'Phew!'
The dragon opened its eyes wide and growled at me. It may sound cute in words like 'phew!', but looking at its face, it's more like 'Human, I'm going to kill you!'. It's really scary.
Maybe I touched its reverse scale or something.
Anyway, this dragon was a female.
So, does that mean it's the wrong dragon after all...?
"Hmm?"
Then, I suddenly realized that the direction of the Compass Eye (Ra Shingan) needle had changed from before. The needle should have been almost stationary before I went around to the back of the dragon.
Could the location of the cursed weapon have moved significantly in such a short time?
No way. So, does that mean... could it be...?
I tried moving a little, and the needle changed direction again, almost as if it was being drawn to the dragon in front of me.
"Hey, you."
'...What is it?'
The dragon glared at me with teary eyes. I might have put it on guard a little. Oh well."
"Hey, you... do you happen to have any cursed equipment on you right now?"
I asked bluntly, and the dragon flinched.
It was like a child caught in a prank. Easy to read.
'Uh... no, I don't.'
"Really?"
I grabbed Juju and held it close to the dragon's face.
"Come on, come on."
'Eek, don't bring that thing closer to me! I'll tell you anything!'
'Hey! What are you treating me like this!?'
Juju started to flail around like it was protesting.
The dragon seemed even more scared of Juju's antics and opened its mouth in resignation.
'...Actually, I do have cursed equipment. Here it is.'
The dragon pointed to its head with its forepaw. There, half-hidden by its horn, was a small white rose hair ornament.
When I looked closely, I could immediately tell that it was cursed equipment.
It was too cute to be normal equipment. It was incredibly cute. Just looking at it, my heart felt drawn to it. It was pure and chaste, delicately wrapped in an air of elegance. This equipment, embodying the ideal of the equipment that a man would want to marry, is the kind that would make any man want to put a wedding dress on it and have a ceremony in a chapel. It was the number one equipment that I, as a man, would want to protect.
"...I found it."
As I muttered that, the needle in my left eye disappeared, as if to confirm that I was right.
It seemed like I had found the cursed equipment I was looking for.
This meant that Compass Eye (Ra Shingan)'s cost would be covered. Case closed.
Now, all I had to do was negotiate with this dragon and somehow get it to give me the cursed equipment...
"Speaking of which, why is a dragon wearing cursed equipment?"
I suddenly asked. It's not uncommon for monsters to wear equipment, but there are still equipment restrictions. For example, monsters without hair can't wear hair ornaments. So, of course, there's no way a dragon could wear a human hair ornament.
'That's...'
The dragon hesitated for a moment, but then spoke up with determination.
'Actually...I used to be human.'
"...you had a dream about being human?"
'No! I was really human! Really, really human!'
The dragon clenched its forepaws and shook them vigorously.
It was a very human-like gesture. There was no malice in it, so it didn't seem like the dragon was lying.
So, could it be...?
As if sensing the doubt in my mind, the dragon nodded.
'Yes...I seem to have become a dragon――'
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