Reincarnated as a dragon’s egg ～Lets aim to be the strongest～ - Chapter 528

528 – Deal with the Devil
The zombie fenrir that Aruane is riding on dashes away from me, knocking down trees in its path. Aruane glances back at me, an evil smile on her face.

…I see, that’s quite an impressive speed. But it’s still not enough to compete with me.

I easily close the distance and overtake the zombie fenrir, cutting in front of it. As I pass, I carve through the its chest with [Dimension Claw]. It collapses, and Aruane jumps off its back to land on the ground.

『Aro, treant, hold on tight!』

I spread my wings and twist through the air, landing right in front of Aruane. I point a claw at her head.

Aruane is certainly strong. For a human, her strength is frankly abnormal. But, while she is strong, she doesn’t have a lot of skills that are effective against me, and she isn’t as much of a danger as Lilixira even without [Spirit Servants]. I was able to pull ahead in a fight against Lilixira, Eldia, and Beelzebub at the same time. I’m certain that I can quickly kill Aruane by herself. More importantly, there’s something I need her to tell me.

『You’re Aruane, right? Where’s the atlach-nacha?』

“……”

I direct a [Telepathy] at Aruane. She stares back at me with an unreadable smile. A chill runs through my body. It’s an awful feeling, as through my heart is being peered into.

But, I soon feel the sensation being pushed out. That must have been her [Demon Eye of Reading]… Fortunately, thanks our difference in magical strength, it doesn’t seem like she was able to glean very much.

『Do you understand the situation you’re in? If you don’t answer right away, I could tear you apart in an instant.』

I press her to answer. But, she keeps her creepy smile. We glare at each other for a few more seconds, and then I put strength into my foreleg to threaten her.

Aruane licks her lips. Drool hangs down from her chin, and she doesn’t wipe it away.

“What should Aruane do… Even though dragon-san is a monster, not a human, he looks so tasty. Dragon-san is so big too… Even Aruane could eat until she’s full.”

Does this mean she really doesn’t understand her situation? From looking at her status, it seems that she has a mixture of vampire and elf blood. As a result, her appearance doesn’t reflect her age. Her level is high, so she’s probably much older than she looks. However… Her mental age seems to be even lower than her appearance would suggest.

What she said is indeed repulsive, but… She probably said it so that I would lose myself in impatience. But I don’t feel any fear or creepiness, just plain irritation.

I release a [Dimension Claw], gouging open the chest of the barely-moving zombie fenrir and splattering dark red blood and organs.

『The next time you mess around, that’ll be you. I’ll tear off your limbs and get my answers from your head and torso.』

Aruane’s expression doesn’t change, and she tilts her head to the side as though troubled.

“…Hey, if Aruane answers obediently, what will dragon-san do? Hey? Will you let Aruane go free? Hey? Or will you also kill her once she answers?”

…Of course, I have no intention of letting her go free. She’s on Lilixira’s side, and she’s a human-eating cannibal. She’s not a threat on her own, but if she attacks at the same time as Lilixira and her [Spirit Servant], she could be troublesome. Her [Blood Doll] skill is also worrisome.

『I’m the one asking the questions. Where is the atlach-nacha? Can I take this to mean you don’t plan on answering?』

Aruane’s eyes shut tight, then she opens them wide and smiles again with that strange smile.

“Okay, Aruane will tell you. Aruane you see, she isn’t committed to helping out Saint-sama. Thinking about the future, Aruane wanted to try hard to get praised by Saint-sama, but… If you’ll give her freedom, then Demon Lord-sama’s side is fine too. You see?”

…Is she not helping Lilixira out of a sense of loyalty or a shared cause? No, from her status and what she’s said so far, it’s only natural that she wouldn’t have such a proper motive. Perhaps Lilixira saved her from somewhere she was trapped, or rescued her from the verge of death.

“If you let Aruane go after killing Saint-sama, and take Aruane off this island, she’ll take you to the spider girl, okay? It’s okay if you use Aruane as a spy, too. If Aruane’s going to switch sides, then it’s a problem if dragon-san doesn’t win.”

『…Are you serious?』

“Yep, Aruane is serious. After all, she has no reason to do what Saint-sama says. Besides… Saint-sama looks so delicious.”

Lilixira has always appeared cautious, but it seems she brought along an incredible bomb. Both Aruane’s status and her words, there’s not a single decent thing about her. I guess Lilixira didn’t have a lot of options for personnel that could be used to fight me.

『She’s still alive, right?』

I know that the atlach-nacha is still alive, thanks to the [Doppel Cocoon] still sticking to me. But, to double-check, and to probe at Aruane, I ask her.

“Yeah, she’s alive. But, is it okay if Aruane leaves the spider girl where she is for now? Once it’s all over, if Aruane is still alive, she’ll give the spider girl back to you. Okay?”

『I’ll get on board with your proposal. But if you don’t want to die, you’ll need lead me to her right away.』

“…Uuu, uu. Okay, it’s okay. At this point, Aruane has no choice but to obey.”

Aruane’s shoulders slump down and she makes an expression of sadness, but her smile soon returns.

“Then, dragon-san, it’s a promise right? You’ll take Aruane away? Will you pinky promise? Pinky promise.”

Aruane innocently holds out an arm towards me.

『Hurry up. Do you plan on wasting my time?』

She shrugs her shoulders and lowers her arm.

…I have no intention of keeping a promise with Aruane. I can’t trust her. Even if it was true that she wants to be my ally, she’s still too much of a liability. I also absolutely can’t allow her to run free through human lands. That much I know for certain.