Encounter

I was still, well, traumatized, but none of my family here sees me differently.

Ria still wanted to pet me just as much as usual.

My mood has been completely destroyed but it's not too late to give Ria her present.

A simple rope will have to do for now...

It was hard to look at her without thinking about what almost happened, but I just tried to focus on how joyful she will be when she gets to fly.

"Ria..." I pull myself together to call down to her.

"Yes, Lava?" She squeaks, clearly expectant of me.

"Do you like flying?"

Of course she screams yes over and over. Her being cute made me feel better than I thought I could.

I droop onto the ground and lure her on my back.

Having the rope around my body for her to hold onto is good enough for now.

I jump into the air and decide to fly around the village at an easy pace.

Just this is already enough to have her screaming in joy until I land and let her calm down.

"Again! I want to go again!" She yells.

"I have to set a limit somewhere, I can't have you falling off." I decline.

"Again! Or I'll... I'll tickle you!" She threatens.

"You can try." I dismiss that. She probably can't even tickle me through my scales anyway.

But it doesn't stop her from trying.

She attacks my belly and tries to go all the way up my neck but I don't feel much of it.

"See? You can't do it." I snort and walk away.

She gets mad and goes to recruit the villagers.

She charmed them or did something to make them go along with what she wanted and all of them surrounded me.

"Now!" She yelled and all of them collaborated with her tickle ambush.

I can't move at all and I can't ignore it anymore.

"I did it! Yay!" Ria celebrates.

"You didn't do anything. I'm not feeling anything." I denied adamantly.

"Yes I did! I made your tail wiggle! That means I'm winning!" She gloats.

It's impossible to keep a poker face.

Stupid tail! Why won't you stay still!

...

Ria tired me out so quickly, making her happy is so hard because it never ends.

But she made sure I didn't miss a single detail about how she was going to become the best mage ever.

I almost forget why I was so depressed because she was so demanding of my attention.

They better not make her do anything too dangerous or I'm going to come at them as an angry big sister. And they won't like angering a big sister that's bigger than their house.

It was peaceful when Ria went back to whatever this Mage Association was.

They probably had her keeping furnaces warm or something where she wouldn't burn the city down in the process.

The downside to being a calm cuddly dragon was how much of the village dares to try to tickle me.

If this was a few years ago they wouldn't even think about getting close.

My tiny siblings tried to copy them and I blocked them with my wings before they even got close.

They just push harder and complain but I don't budge. They aren't getting under me.

It takes a few minutes but they eventually get bored and leave me alone.

I'm sure I'll find some of them under my wings after taking a nap. I always do.

Lucky for them I'm not a fitful sleeper because just rolling over would squish them.

After the night passed, I thought my life was finally returning to normal.

But I was waking up to news of Yeste being attacked by a whole army of strong monsters.

There was no way it could be a coincidence, and it normally wouldn't be any of my business, however Ria is in the city.

I can't risk them losing and putting Ria in danger.

I'm out of the village before they even finish talking about it.

And I'm FLYING at max speed.

Once I'm in view of the city, I witness some very weird looking monsters attacking the walls.

There were some adventurers that overestimated themselves too and barely fled back to the city walls.

I swoop down and strafe them with my fire breath and that takes out many of the smaller monsters.

Their Mana feels strange to me, almost like it's corrupted.

The most troublesome ones are undoubtedly the giant wolf and the giant snake.

Since I dealt with all the small fries, they both have to focus on me.

And the snake immediately tried to bite me.

Nope, you're not envenoming me that easily.

I slap the snake away and use <Mana Prison> to trap it in a cage of magic.

The wolf tries to catch my neck, but all it did was make its own easy to grab. It was easy to finish it and the trapped snake off after that.

None of them seemed to have gotten over the wall thanks to my quick arrival.

I snake my head over the wall to check if everyone up there was fine, but they didn't have any time to get hurt.

They're alright enough to be cowering back from me, so I don't have to worry.

I would have been done right then, but I noticed there was a crowd behind the walls.

Avoiding transformation, I used a spell to sneak in and spy on them.

"Did you hear about the Mage Association?" One of them says.

"Yeah, they were attacked by some guy in a hood, I think. But they said everyone was fine except for the girl they took." Another answers.

Took? Are these same guys that intruded my home courting death?

I don't even have to question if it was Ria that was taken, I had a feeling it was.

"Ria, <Tracking >!"

I couldn't think of a way to make a good incantation for a tracking spell, so I just tried this.

It did work, but it only gave me a really vague direction.

Good enough for now, but I should at least get Raine to come with me since I know nothing about what's far to the east.

After picking up Raine, I sped towards the east.

"We're coming up on the magic kingdom. Lava, slow down. It would be advisable for you to go through the border process." She slowed me.

"Why? Ria is more important than what they think of me. It's going to be a hassle trying to show them I'm not dangerous and whatever else they would do." I respond hurriedly.

"Unlike Prazia, Elemanto doesn't have such a mixed reception of dragons, they value magic proficiency more than anything else, if anything they would revere you. Showing the identification you got from the adventurer's guild is more than enough for them to accept you." Raine answers.

Reluctantly, I pause my rush to go through the border normally.

"Ah! Welcome, great dragon!" They cry, almost bowing to me.

It was unique to be greeted like this instead of fear, just how different is this country's experience with dragons?

Just like Raine said, the adventurer's card works wonders. I thought I would have to find some way to hide the fact that it straight up reveals that I'm a dragon.

Does this mean I don't even have to transform in this country? That feels like a blessing!

However, the environmental Mana was so much stronger here.

The tracking spell was useless in this interference.

That's when I felt a wave of Mana hit me.

It was way too distinct to be natural.

I suddenly remembered all the way back when I gave Ria that scale she still carries around everywhere, I told her to use <Mana Beacon> if she was in trouble.

If this isn't the effect of that spell, I don't know what is.

The source led to the entrance of an underground complex in a remote area.

It was well hidden behind foliage, but now that I've found it, I run in there without a second thought.

Speeding to the room I'm getting the feeling from, I see a large circle of magic runes arranged in a more complicated fashion than I've seen on anything else before.

Ria is tied up in the middle and there's a big chunk of Orichalcum- wait a minute, that's MY big chunk of Orichalcum.

I mean, yeah, I didn't really have any use for it, and I didn't even notice it was missing... But it was still mine!

"Foolish dragon! You should have minded your own business!" The tall man in the room yells, before cutting himself and sending red spikes flying towards me.

No chant?!

It was so fast my senses barely had time to make me dodge.

I didn't even have time to chant before he was in my space.

Damn, I'm too big to fight against this insane guy that doesn't even need to chant. I have to transform.

I was lucky that I didn't get hit there, because I know from experience that injuries I get in dragon form might get much worse if I transform.

"<Sword Materialization>!" I chant, unsure if it would work, but it does, and I'm now holding a beautifully glowing sword of Mana, however after I saw him do the same thing without a chant I had an idea.

I do the same spell, but this time I imagine a pair of hook swords like Chrome's guardian once used against me.

I know from experience just how annoying they are to face off against, though I'm not as good as he was.

He lunges at me with his sword, seemingly covered with black flames.

Just in time, I step to the side and hook the sword ready to counterattack.

He barely dodges out of the way by letting go of his sword and materializing a new one.

If he can materialize them as well I don't understand why he doesn't make two. I get dual wielding is difficult but I'm not exactly a pro at this either, I'm just cheating with what is basically precognition.

"Damn dragon. Getting in my way is unforgivable! Unforgivable! Die!"

Yep, he's losing it.

He comes in predictably again and I move to block out of reflex but his sword doesn't even enter range.

Instead he moves it away and reaches with his open hand.

"Fry! <Lightning >!" He yells in extreme anger.

I could redirect this, but that might be dangerous.

"<Absorb >!" I reply.

An explosion of thunder erupts through the room as the lightning is channeled into my sword, which begins crackling with electricity.

That was way stronger than I thought, did it seriously consider his pissed off rambling as an incantation?

He has at least part of a brain, however, as he immediately uses a spell to dispel what I just absorbed so I couldn't unleash it on him.

"Go, Lava! You're the best dragon!" Ria cheers excitedly, like this isn't a serious situation she is in. Does she not even think she's in danger because she knew I was coming? No, there's no way she can be that dumb.

"<Fireball >!" I attack with a fireball, which he obviously easily blocks.

"Did you think a little ball of fire will destroy me? Think again, stupid dragon!" He boasts, but the fireball was just to block his vision.

I connected my hook swords together by their hooked tips and swung them with one arm. The same trick that almost got me, once.

He doesn't see it because the fire and smoke blocked his vision, and by the time that clears, the sharp hand guard of my sword sliced into his chest.

I didn't relent for a moment and unhooked my remaining sword to slash him completely.

He drops motionless on the ground in response to my victory.

Raine was able to handle the other guys, they didn't seem to be that strong.

But unfortunately, in the time that fight took, the Orichalcum was completely drained.

Ria was unaffected, but distortions started to appear throughout the room.

"Hahaha! Even without the sacrifice, it's working! You're all doomed once our master returns to the world! Doomed!" The annoying cult trash still has his last breaths to spout nonsense with.

What just happened definitely just sent an easy to sense doomsday signal across the world.

This was probably my fault for not speeding things up...

Just when I was about to take Ria and get out of there, another tall, but muscular man with short horns jumps out of one of the distortions.

"Ah! I made it! Enemies already? It wont be long before my lord arrives in this world. For his convenience, the strong ones have to die here!" The man rambles.

I don't think I need it explained to me to understand this guy must be part of the demonic god's forces...

"I won't let you or your evil god step foot in this world." I interrupt.

"Well, I'm not giving you a choice. I'll make it for you." He replies, "Using the authority of Azgaroth, I invoke <Anti-Magic Field>!"

Slowly, he unsheathes a curved saber and holds it in an overhead guard.