Chapter 45
The village and the village girl
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Thus the journey with these members began. However, so that me and the Dragons don’t get tired while we fly during the day, we don’t make any conversation on the march. I feel somewhat lonely.
When the day approached sunset and we finally reached the place where we would rest, the Fire Drakes seemed tired and laid down their big bodies and began crying out again and again.
[TirED]
[Huff huff]
Although your appearance is somewhat ferocious when you say stuff like ‘huff huff,’ you’re too cute, Lance’s Fire Drake. I feel like its name was definitely Tino. When I say to them, ‘you’ve worked hard today,’ they happily came to snuggle up to me. However, since Stefanos’ Fire Drake was clinging all over me that one time I put my guard up, yet it seems like it noticed because it is looking up at me in a depressed manner. Youu, you are so cute! I press my chin to his head and rub it to my heart’s content, and he narrows his eyes while purring.
“Stop flirting with my Brad.”
[How rude. They are just like children, you know.]
I had a maternal instinct too, I’m surprised.
Even so, it’s eerie inside the forest where the trees grow thick; I don’t want to stay here if possible. The Captain is looking at the depths of the forest while shifting his line of sight up and down, as if he wants to confirm something, but he hasn’t moved one step. It seemed that he wanted to confirm something, but he just moves his face alone without advancing one step. What in the world is he doing? As I was inclining my neck, Lance replied to me instead.
“It seems that some animal species are getting active recently.Especially the Nidhogg1, which is said not to appear in front of people, is coming down to the villages, and it even may be dangerous over here.”
Is it the Dragon that is said to eat animal corpses? You just blurted out something dreadful.
Since it’s a little scary I decided to sleep as a Dragon while we are camping. Besides look, since my body temperature is higher than humans,’ you can warm up if you stick close to me; I totally think that a Dragon is a useful existence.
We also spent the second day flying all the while, but due to the sudden heavy rain and thunder we decided to land. While I was looking for somewhere to surmount the rain, my body became heavy with the rain’s momentum, and due to a bad move I came falling down and almost crashed in my descent. Moreover, we also deviated from Lance and the others. The place where I fell was a forest, and even as the trees kept getting in my way I somehow managed to stand on the ground. However, due to the shock of the impact, the Captain was ejected from my back, although it seems that he didn’t get injured because of performing something like an ukemi2 upon falling. Only, since the incessant rain was strong enough to pierce the ground, I adjusted my position and spread my large wings above him in order to shelter him from the rain.
“Vito, return to your human form.”
[I’m fine.]
My thick scales don’t feel even a particle of the vigorous rain.
“No, you will grow cold.”
Although being told with a strong tone, I was a bit reluctant, but I gave in in the end and became human, and so the two of us hurriedly took shelter shelter under a big tree.
“It will not stop raining, will it?”
Apparently our luggage and the like seem to have been dropped somewhere with the impact from earlier. Our clothes are soaking wet, so it looks like we will really catch a cold. I even ended up crashing due to the rain’s weight, so even if I tried to blow some fire to start a campfire to get warmth, there’s nothing to burn in the surroundings. Saying that ‘rainy days are inefficient’ is a perfectly fitting phrase.
We ended up separating, but is everyone else OK, I wonder?
“Captain?”
When the captain closed his eyes, he stopped moving for a few minutes. I worried about his condition becoming bad, but as I was thinking that he suddenly opened his eyes.
“Further ahead, there is a sign of human beings. Let’s go.”
He said that and tried to grab my hand, but I stopped him in a hurry.
“Wai-, wait a moment, how do you know that?”
I truly don’t know what’s going on. The Captain hesitated, but told me in the end.
“… I hadn’t told you this, Vito, but it seems that, since then, I’ve been drifting further away from being human.”
‘My sense of sight, sense of hearing, sense of touch, sense of taste and sense of smell; the five senses along with an instinctive sixth sense, while they don’t cause me any problems in my daily life, sometimes they become sharply keen, far beyond a regular human’s.’ When he said that, my eyes went wide.
What did you say.
“Why, why did not you tell me!”
“Because you will feel beholden to me again.”
‘Just like this,’ he adds. I wonder how do I look like, in his black eyes that peek out from between the wet hair stuck to his forehead because of the rain? Do I look sad? Do I look regretful? Or do I look about to cry? Surely it’s all of them.
Because of me. He stopped being an ordinary human being. Because of me. Because of me. …But.
I purse my lips firmly and endure it. It’s wrong to be so pessimistic. It’s good to criticize myself, but as a result these thoughts have reached the Captain. That’s why this is wrong.3
Let’s calm down a little.
“… Yeah, well. Even if I feel remorseful now things won’t return to how they were, so it’s no use, right?”
Let’s calm down, and breath. The rainy moist air enters my lungs.
“I will not regret it anymore, so please, properly inform me of such important things.”
The Captain’s expression softens at my words.
“All right.”
I don’t want to regret having made the contract, rather I would like to be glad of having formed it. Even if it ruins the Captain’s life, I want it to be something meaningful.
We were running while avoiding the rain, and after some time something like houses came into view in between the trees. Approaching them, it seems to be a small village. It looks like its structure is several times smaller than Tiennu Village, with few people living there, as it’s suggested by its run-down state.
Knocking the door of the nearest house, wondering if somehow they would at least let us take some cover, a lady of brown hair where gray locks could be seen here and there came out. I am surprised, because before we say anything she is staring fixedly at me. I thought this was odd, and it made me wonder that although it was sudden, should some travelers’ visit be so surprising, when suddenly both of my shoulders were grabbed with a firm strength.
“Y-, you … …Maybe, are you Anna!?”
“…Huh?”
My heart skips a beat.
My cold body suddenly froze over.
— No way.
“Dear! Dear! Come ‘ere for a bit!! Anna came back!!”
When the lady called for someone who was inside the house, a stubbled old man came over, looking troubled. But when he saw my appearance he also made surprised round eyes like the lady.
“Anna!? I-, is this not a dream, is it!?”
— No way.
“Uhm, you have the wrong person…”
My heartbeat won’t calm down within my chest. An unknown, uneasy feeling is coming unto me and I can feel my blood being drained.
— No way. No way, No way.
“There’s no doubt! Your appearance, it’s the same as when we last saw Anna!”
For a moment, the inside of my head turned completely white.
— No way, Anna, it refers to this “village girl”?
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