Lucunoca the Winter - 1

Everyone knew the name Igania Ice Lake. However, though knowledge of it was widespread, accounts of people actually stepping out onto the frozen surface were few indeed.

At the very least, currently, there were two. The footprints of their iron- cleated boots left behind two lines, straight and true, stretching out across the endless ocean of ice.

"Fwah-ha-ha-ha! Man, it's cold! Really, really cold! So much colder than I thought it'd be!"

Always walking out in front, he was a giant of a man, muscular and strong, with his upper body bare in the air.

Despite shouldering a massive sword nearly as tall as himself and carrying both men's belongings, his energy showed practically no sign of fading.

"But I can't give up! This sort of winter march wouldn't be enough to make Rosclay give up! In that case, I've got to be even better! Isn't that right, Master General?"

"Whaat…?"

The other man walked along feebly, gasping for air.

Only saddled with less than a quarter of the other man's load, and wrapped head to toe in cold-weather gear, he still was out of breath.

"Like hell… I would know! More than that, though, comparing the Second General and myself like that… You should be more considerate! You're making fun of me, aren't you?!"

"Considerate, huh? But, Master General, your inferiority to Rosclay's just a fact! Why, everyone and his mother knows something like that!"

"Haah, haaah… That's what I mean…by being inconsiderate!" The giant man's name was Lagrex the Butchering Landslide.

As his exaggerated second name suggested, he was a young swordsman bubbling over with enormous ambition and initiative.

Meanwhile, there was no question that the man following behind him was also being propelled forward by his enormous ambition.

He was Aureatia's Sixth General, Harghent the Still.

"Though, look! Beasts, beasts! Even in cold land like this! I'm amazed they can survive. Not only that, but they're even bigger than the beasts of the desert! Did you see that silver bear just now?!"

"…Hm. You see, Lagrex, that's all related to body surface area. To put it another way, small mice and such animals quickly freeze in low-temperature environments, so—"

"Okay, okay, stop right there. Explaining it to me won't do a lick of good!

The main point's that she's got plenty of food around her!"

Everyone knew the name Igania Ice Lake. Though the exact meaning behind that statement was slightly different.

It was more accurate to say that everyone knew the name of the divine dragon that lived at Igania Ice Lake.

"You really intend to challenge Lucunoca the Winter, then?"

"Of course! If there's a single opponent out there who can stand up against Rosclay…then it can't possibly be anyone else besides Lucunoca the Winter! And, if I were actually Rosclay—"

"If I were Rosclay…" was a turn of phrase that Lagrex repeated time and time again.

"…there's no way I'd lose. He's the only minia who's ever killed a dragon by himself."

"…Well."

To those who knew the truth, it was easy to declare Lagrex's goal as absolutely ludicrous.

However, no matter how eccentric…and to go one step further, how terribly his personality clashed with Harghent's own, there was no one other than Lagrex he could rely on to guide him through the unforgiving snowscape.

If Harghent hadn't lost his own troops, he could've advanced through the region with a flawless tundra march.

This was the case no longer. Without Lagrex's masterful sword skills with him, it was impossible to guess how many times Harghent would have been killed by the giant beasts of the ice lake.

To go even further, among the world's adventurers who dreamed about challenging Lucunoca the Winter, it was extremely rare to see someone like Lagrex, who worked so tirelessly to hone his abilities.

"What sort of general is Rosclay anyway?! Have you ever crossed swords with him?!"

"H-Hmm? Well…"

"He must've hit really hard, right?! At the very least, he has to be able to shatter his opponent's sword, and slice through their whole torso in a single slash. Not only that, but with speed, too, like a flash of lightning!"

"Hrm… I haven't a clue, but how can you talk so confidently about Rosclay's skills when you've never even seen him fight before…?"

Harghent heard that he was a native of the Hakeena Microregion, on the southern frontier, far away from Aureatia.

Lagrex had simply focused on training with his own self-taught sword style and was here now because he believed that would be enough against Lucunoca the Winter. Feeling the harshness of the Igania Ice Lake, Harghent felt that the man's challenge appeared incorrigibly reckless.

In the middle of their march, a bare rock pierced through the ice, requiring them to scale it with ropes and hooks.

Lagrex, ever in high spirits, grabbed the rugged rock surface with his bare hands, of all things, and raced up it like a monkey. Harghent could only look up at him in utter amazement.

Praying that his fingers, numbed with cold, stayed true, he used a rope Lagrex dropped down to climb up.

"…Hngh… Wait… This is nothing…! Gwaaugh…compared to…my exploits…during the sixth wyvern sweep…the eighth wyvern sweep…and the twenty-second sweep… Nothing at all…!"

"Nothing but wyverns with you, huh?" "Don't say it!"

"I'd go one step further and say you're weak, Master General!"

He wanted to shout that he was growing old, but realizing hearing them would only make himself more miserable, Harghent held back his words— On top of everything else, now he had lost all of his troops, too. A majority of his elite soldiers were lost in the expedition to put down Vikeon the Smoldering.

Disgracing himself with a miserable defeat, the only reason there hadn't been a reshuffling of the Twenty-Nine Officials was entirely because with the upcoming royal games ahead, there was simply no time to hold a meeting to elect a new Sixth General.

Harghent the Still was incompetent.

A bit-player devoted to maintaining his authority and power, he asserted his merits out of habit by reiterating his wyvern hunts, to the extent that he received the mocking nickname of Wing-Plucker. Naturally, even during the war with the New Principality of Lithia—ostensibly burned to the ground in a fire—his reckless charge attack had not been regarded highly.

Therefore, this was his final chance.

A play that is guaranteed to win— Lucunoca the Winter, as a Hero candidate.

The strongest race in the land. The one among such dragons, each one wielding calamitous power, who was strongest of them all. There was little doubt that when they heard about the competition among the world's strongest fighters, every single one of the Twenty-Nine Officials searching for candidates had thought the same themselves.

—If they sponsored Lucunoca the Winter, victory was almost guaranteed. In reality, it wasn't so simple.

None of them had made the long trip out to visit Igania Ice Lake, far, far away from Aureatia.

None of them acted foolish enough to abandon all their main governmental duties to bet everything they had on the royal games.

None of them had thought that the form-unknown dragon could be negotiated with…or if they could pay the dragon's asking price.

And not a single one among them had located a reckless man like Lagrex.

As he walked, Harghent sung quietly to himself. "… Rain, rain, rain is falling,

Up above the tall mountains of Onuma, White wings smoothly caress,

After that falls thorns, thorns, thorns—"

"What's that, Master General? A nursery rhyme?"

"…Indeed. Enoz Heem's Thousand Songs and Verses. The song's called 'Frozen Plains, Frozen Fields.' The 'thorns' refer to snow. Back then, Igania was a tropical region… No one had ever even touched snow before."

"..."

"It's been sung for three hundred years."

Lagrex seemed to gather the deeper meaning behind Harghent's words.

Lucunoca the Winter didn't attack any human settlements, simply wandering about the vast ice lake and preying on the giant beasts to survive. Thus, no country had launched an expedition to take her down. Unlike normal dragons, she didn't hoard treasure either. On top of being respected as the strongest being in the whole world, there was no treasure to obtain from defeating her.

"…Young Lagrex. Assuming you do indeed face off with Lucunoca. How will you survive her claws?"

"C'mon now. I've already hypothesized what defensive skills she'll use against my far superior swordsmanship. When it's time to take on a dragon… Well, obviously, it's not about strength. I have this technique, where I sort of angle my sword to parry and ward off attacks. The vital part's pushing the attack off to the side."

"In that case, what will you do if she takes to the sky? That sword of yours won't be able to reach."

"Bwah-ha-ha! You're absolutely right! But dragons can't stay flying up in the air forever! She'll get exhausted eventually, and I can just cut her down while she's resting her wings! I'll have you know, I've been stringent with my basic stamina training, too!"

"You can't forget about the dragon's breath, either. Have you thought of a way to deal with it?"

"For that? Well…"

Advancing through the ice ahead of Harghent, he saw Lagrex's back stop moving for a brief moment.

Too brief, of course, for Harghent to catch up to his companion. "Fighting spirit."

"…Fighting spirit…?"

"That's right. As long as I put my fighting spirit into it, it'll work out! I'm sure that's how Rosclay would handle it, Master General! Minia can beat dragons! I'm absolutely positive, given that fact. Without a doubt, there's a chance for victory! That's for certain!"

His way of thinking was utterly beyond comprehension to Harghent. The fact he believed the story that a minia could claim victory over a dragon was idiotic to begin with.

Lagrex was indeed strong. He had seen him to cut the giant beasts,

looming far taller than Harghent, in two with a single, instantaneous flash of his sword. He had confidence if nothing else.

Still, he's going to die.

These thoughts came to Harghent's mind, hazy and vague from the biting cold seeping into his skin.

To him, Lagrex was only necessary on the first half of the trip to establish relations with the dragon.

This reckless man would brashly challenge the strongest of the ancient dragons and have his life end meaninglessly.

After that, Harghent would then… How would things play out after that?

…Perhaps I'm trying something just as reckless as this young man.

Negotiate with a legendary dragon no one had ever seen before, and make them agree to appear in the royal games… Moreover, did he really expect to be protected on his journey home?

No one among the Twenty-Nine Officials had tried anything so foolish. Perhaps his crushing defeat to Vikeon the Smoldering, and watching

Curte of the Fair Skies' final moments, had turned him desperate.

The cold was dulling his thoughts. The sun's glimmer was reflected back off the snow, glaringly bright.

His legs were only getting more and more exhausted, and from time to time, Lagrex out in front would need to stop and wait for him.

The vast ice lake. A land of death, spreading out as far as the eye could see.

No one had ever laid eyes on her. Everyone knew the name of the Igania Ice Lake, but no one had ever stepped foot within it.

Lucunoca the Winter. A legend that had stopped concerning herself with minia long, long ago.

Did something like that truly, actually, exist…? "—neral! Master General!"

"…! What's wrong, young Lagrex?"

"I should be the one asking that! You can't collapse now. I need you to live, and bear witness to my battle."

"O-oh, is that so…? I…collapsed, did I?"

It was too pitiful to bear. Before them was yet another bluff.

His mind was heavy. Did he have any stamina left to climb it? He felt the numbing cold seeping in through his many layers of clothes. Even if they continued on, they would need to traverse the same distance on the way back…

"…Lagrex. This is, well, a bit difficult to say, but…" "What is it?"

"Lucunoca the Winter, well… Hrm." "Yes…?"

"I think that she doesn't actually exist."

The giant man cocked his head to the side at the words and laughed. "Bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Well, if she doesn't exist, that's just fine, too! Of

course, you'll need to testify that I was indeed stronger than this nonexistent dragon. We'll still need a thorough search to prove it! The sun's still high, and the day's still long!"

"Wait… Hold on… Don't pull the rope. I-I'm at my limit!"

In front of the bluff, the fruitless verbal tug-of-war continued for some time.

In this terrifying and merciless land, Lagrex, full of tireless confidence and vigor, was wholly beyond his comprehension.

"You should just resign, Master General! Are you not one of the Twenty- Nine Officials, just like Rosclay?!"

"Stop! Enough of that…! Do not compare me…with the Second General!"

A natural end result left Harghent outmatched. At this rate, he might need to be suspended by his chest, and pulled up the bluff. Considering how overbearing Lagrex was, he seemed able to make a horrible nightmare like that into reality.

It was then, thinking about such a future, he looked up to the top of the bluff.

He couldn't see the sun.

Harghent realized a dark shadow had descended on the area. "…L-Lagrex."

"Bwah-ha-ha-ha! Move first, whine later, Master General!" "No. Up there…"

They were the only words Harghent could get out of his mouth. The sight was enough to make him forget to breathe.

On top of the bluff.

It simply looked down over them with cold eyes, without a hint of violent power or desire to kill.

Sparkling dragon scales, white and smooth, different enough from Vikeon the Smoldering to believe they were of a different species entirely.

Outstretched, symmetrical wings. An elegantly curved neck.

More beautiful than even the most detailed divine idol, she was the strongest of the ancient dragons.

Lucunoca the Winter. She did exist. "You must—"

Shockingly, Lagrex readied his sword, not stunned to silence for a single moment.

Harghent was seeing for the first time, looking beside the man, Lagrex's expression filled with bloodlust, focusing everything on his enemy.

"—be Lucunoca the Winter, then. My name is Lagrex the Butchering Landslide. I've come here on this day to take your head and become a champion!"

Lucunoca the Winter was silent.

Thinking her breath attack could come at any moment, Harghent, without any regard for how it may have looked, crawled under the bluff and hid. The size of the shadow cast over the ground shifted, signaling that she had taken flight and landed down below.

He saw from up close the legendary dragon no one had laid eyes on before.

The small-time man, only ever focused on maintaining his authority, was before the world's strongest dragon.

"Answer me!"

Lagrex vigilantly kept his sword raised.

Was there any meaning to the action? If she swiped at him with those claws, what sort of resistance could a minia's sword even manage to offer?

The strongest of all dragons spoke.

"My, my, my. Well now. It must have been quite the hard journey indeed to come out all this way."

"..."

In her clear blue eyes, there was none of the coldness Harghent had glimpsed during his first sight of her.

The snowy ancient dragon cocked her head to the side, her gentleness wholly out of place with their surroundings.

"Indeed, as you said, I am Lucunoca the Winter. Allow me to welcome you…though, in a barren land such as this, I'm afraid I can't offer much hospitality, uhoo, hoo, hoo!"

"A-are you…toying with me?"

"Not at all. Is there something strange about welcoming in guests from afar? Did your parents not teach you to do the same?"

"..."

"I have not seen minia in truly quite some time. Would you be kind enough to tell me about the outside world? Though I am afraid I may not understand the language of the day, uhoo, hoo, hoo!"

Getting killed instantly by a single swipe of her claws might have been an easier outcome for Lagrex to accept. Harghent agreed.

This dragon didn't even consider the two minia as enemies. "W-wait!"

Harghent jumped out from his hiding spot without a second thought. His feet stumbled on the ice, and he once again clumsily tumbled to the ground.

"Lucunoca… Lucunoca the Winter! Will you not fight this man?! You don't…mean to tell me…"

The next words he spoke demanded a great deal of courage.

He wondered why he was summoning so much unnecessary courage for the sake of someone he so thoroughly did not get along with, for such an overbearing, reckless, and foolish man.

"…You are afraid of a mere minia! Is this how you protected your unbeatable reputation for a hundred years, Lucunoca?! Right now you are both warriors, mutually connected across races with Word Arts! Or else your refusal of your opponent today shall brand you the loser for all eternity! What say you?!"

The white dragon glanced at the pitiful intruder to her lands. She then let out a chortling sigh.

"Why, yes, I don't have a problem with that at all." "What did you say…?"

The world's strongest dragon did exist here, right before their eyes.

She avoided people. No one had ever encountered Lucunoca the Winter. "If the reputation of a doting old crone like mine is what pleases you, go

ahead and boast to your heart's desire, then." "L-Lucunoca the Winter… How dare…!"

The strongest race in the land. The strongest individual among them.

If he was able to back her as the hero, his victory would be decided on the spot.

"Yes, yes. Let us acknowledge it. Victory is yours, Lagrex, Butchering Landslide."

…However. "Congratulations."