Monster no Goshujin-sama - Volume 9 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Leaving the Dragons’ Settlement

North of Aker—one of the Five Northern Kingdoms—inside the Dark Woods serving as the border with the southern Empire, we approached the boundary of the Mist Barrier. The barrier covered Draconia like a giant dome, so our surroundings were shrouded in a thin veil of fog. As we made our way to leave the settlement, the fog grew thicker. It would eventually plunge everything into whiteness.

Lobivia came to a stop and turned around, her vivid red hair swaying behind her. Her eyes were fixed on the lake. Mysterious pillars of water stretched from the water’s surface, continuously supplying the mist for the barrier covering the settlement. We could see houses dotting the shore. Lobivia’s eyes were fixed on the island in the middle of the lake, though.

A sullen expression clung to her strong-willed features. Since we were connected by the mental path, I knew that she wasn’t displeased. Instead, she didn’t know what kind of expression to make.

“Let’s go,” she said with a big frown, her chestnut eyes now looking my way.

“That enough?” I asked.

Lobivia nodded. “Mhm.”

We were leaving Draconia today. Since it was a hidden settlement, we couldn’t stay here without a reason to. For Lobivia, however, this was her hometown, and she didn’t know if she could ever come back to it. They were her family. Even if this place was only filled with bad memories for her, she surely had mixed feelings about it deep down inside.

Still, Lobivia was only reluctant to part with it for a few scant seconds. Even if she was mostly acting tough, the fact that she could endure it meant she was strong. I plopped my hand on the praiseworthy girl’s head. She slapped it off immediately, just like usual.

“I’m glad to see you so energetic,” I said, laughing.

Lobivia pouted and averted her eyes. “Takahiro...”

“Hm?”

“You said that I might be able to meet everyone from the settlement again one day, yeah?” she said quietly, almost snarling in the process. “So I ain’t gonna act all depressed.”

Her chestnut eyes turned once more to the island in the middle of the lake. There was a small, rugged mountain at its center. The mountain got up and looked our way.

“Malvina...”

The mountain was actually a dragon somewhere around fifty meters tall. She was the mother of all the dragons in the settlement, the carapace wyrm Malvina. Her enormous body could easily be discerned at this distance. I wondered whether she could see us from there, half-covered in mist as we were. I didn’t know for sure, but since she’d gotten up with such good timing, I figured she could. Her parting with Lobivia had been a bit turbulent, but they were still mother and daughter. Lobivia looked at her mother, perhaps thinking of the day when they could reconcile.

Two women with the same red hair as Lobivia then approached us. They were Lobivia’s older sisters, Kath and Ella. The two of them had come to see us off as representatives of the clan.

“Lobivia. This is from everyone,” Kath said, placing a necklace around Lobivia’s neck.

“It’s a charm from our father’s homeland,” Ella added. “We pray that your future is blessed with good fortune.”

The necklace was decorated with a wood carving identical to the one the two older sisters wore. Even if it was their elder’s decision, I’d heard that some among the clan were still opposed to Lobivia’s leaving the settlement. In truth, Ella was one of them. Nevertheless, now that Lobivia’s departure had been decided, she couldn’t help but pray for her little sister’s safety.

“Kath, Ella...” Lobivia said, pausing for a moment before huffing to the side. “Take care...”

It took her everything she had to say that. Her face flushed, and her red hair trailed behind her as she turned around and quickly walked off. Lily signaled me with a glance to leave it to her, then followed Lobivia. I smiled slightly at her awkwardness, then turned back to the two dragons of Draconia.

“Thank you for your hospitality and care,” I said.

“Don’t worry about it,” Ella replied. “I pray that your journey goes safely, contractor of the Misty Lodge.”

“Lord Takahiro, please take care of Lobivia,” Kath added.

We were bidding farewell to them here. Kath had acted as our guide coming into Draconia, but Thaddeus would be the only one accompanying us to Diospyro.

“Also, if you ever feel like you’ve reached your limit in the human world, please do come back here at any time,” Ella said, lowering her voice a little. “We’ll welcome you with open arms. The elder told me to pass you this message.”

“Thank you,” I said, nodding.

I was grateful for Malvina’s kindness. Because she’d provided us with a place to run to if necessary, we didn’t need to be as careful. We could act and even take risks with less fear.

I turned on my heel, then came to a sudden stop. A huge, rocklike man over two meters tall walked our way through the thin veil of mist.

“Rex...?” I muttered.

It was one of Lobivia’s older brothers, the man most prejudiced against humans among all the dragons. His scowl was an unmistakable display of hostility. He was the same man who’d tried to forcefully drive us away from the settlement when we’d arrived. The others of my group who were still here subtly went on guard.

“Do you need something?” I asked, signaling everyone else to stand down.

“I have something to say, human.”

He’d forced his voice out with no attempt to hide his revulsion. There was such a dangerous air to his glare that I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d suddenly transformed into a dragon and snapped at me. Tension built up around him as he prepared to speak.

“As the guardian of this settlement, I cannot possibly leave these lands.” After a moment of silence, he added, “Take care of Patricia.”

His expression was so sour that it seemed suitable to ask how many bitter bugs had flown into his mouth. Incidentally, Patricia was Lobivia’s original name.

Silence fell over everyone, but a woman laughing broke it.

“Pffft. What was that, Rex?” Ella asked.

Rex’s older sister was merciless. Even Thaddeus and Kath, who were close to him in age, smiled. I couldn’t possibly laugh with them, but the gap between Rex’s expression and his words was definitely comical.

Rex’s rough face turned slightly red. Nevertheless, his strong gaze remained fixed on me, and his expression remained serious. I had to respond appropriately. I corrected my posture and looked him right in the eyes.

“Lobivia is precious to me too. I’ll protect her to the very limits of my strength.”

After Rex spent several seconds ascertaining my very being, he replied bluntly, “Her name is Patricia. Don’t refer to her by that weird name.”

I unintentionally smirked. Even now, he never referred to her as Lobivia. He really was a helpless, obstinate blockhead. However, it was certain that he also thought dearly of his little sister.

Just then, a tremendous force hit Rex’s head with a thud. A knapsack had flown into the side of his rocklike face with terrifying speed.

“Rex! You dumbass!” Lobivia roared from afar. “The hell’re you saying?! I keep telling you my name is Lobivia, dammit!”

We hadn’t been talking quietly, so she must have overheard us. Lobivia stomped on the ground, her face completely red. Rex maintained his sour look and picked up the knapsack. After wiping off the dirt, he held it out to me.

“Take care of her.”

“Sure thing.”

I accepted the bag, and his request, and left Draconia.