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Seikoku no Ryuu Kishi (Light Novel) - Volume 1, Chapter 1 - Eco the Dragon Girl Part 7-9
Volume 1, Chapter 1 - Eco the Dragon Girl Part 7-9
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Part 7
After leaving the city district, he journeyed north on the main road, arriving at Fianna Forest.
The forest was also a part of the competition’s course. The skills required here now, were vastly different from the ones needed to navigate through the city roads.
After just entering the forest, a strange thing happened.
“……… Brigid?”
Brigid, who had been tailing Lancelot the whole journey, suddenly slowed down.
Silvia, obviously, took advantage of this opportunity. In a nick of time, she had disappeared.
“What’s wrong ………?”
Brigid, finally, stopped walking.
He was breathing heavily and his expression was one of great pain.
Ash, now, had finally realised the mistake he had made.
“I was too careless.”
While Ash had been preoccupied with following Silvia, he hadn’t noticed that Brigid had run out of stamina.
From the start, Brigid had always maintained the same speed as Lancelot, in spite of the difference of stamina between a Maestro and an Asia. Generally, in order to successfully finish the competition, the pace to complete it at, should have been determined from the stamina of the dragon.
“………Sorry, Brigid.”
After he had apologised, Brigid let out a soft snort, as if he was ashamed of his physical strength.
Now, groups of competitors, bit by bit, had caught up. One by one, they raced past Ash’s side.
The sound of thunderous rumbling shook the earth, as the air filled with dust.
The sight of a group of Asias running in the forest was spectacular to behold. Ash could sense the ground incessantly rocking. For a very long time, it didn’t subside.
Ash’s competition, at his point of time, had concluded.
Between him and Silvia, a winner had been determined. His goal to force Silvia to take back her words, in the end, wasn’t achieved.
If this was described as unfortunate, it would be a lie. Ash had really wanted to complete the competition. For the entire time, he had made a bee line for the finish line.
However, oddly enough, Ash’s mood was rather carefree.
“It turns out that competing with the princess is quite interesting.”
No matter how reluctant, he couldn’t deny this fact.
Then, at that moment------
A rustling noise, without warning, came from behind.
“------!”
Ash instinctively looked back, staring at the forest behind him.
“………Who is it?”
For safety reasons, Ansarivan’s security guards would patrol the forest during a race.
In the forest, to sense another person’s presence, wasn’t something to make a big fuss out of.
However, whoever it was, hadn’t replied. If it was really a security guard, he should have already appeared directly before Ash, who had been eliminated.
Ash heightened his awareness and cautiously surveyed the surroundings.
Although he hadn’t discovered any suspicious figures, he felt as though someone was watching him. He could feel a sense of foreboding growing within himself.
“Wait for me here.”
After leaving Brigid there, Ash walked into the depths of the forest.
Part 8
Fianna Forest, bordered on the west by Rubina Lake, was located northwest of the city Ansarivan. It’s one of the largest forests within the borders of Lautreamont Knight Country.
As Ash ran in the forest, so as to not trip over the tree roots that crawled over the earth like a web of intricate blood vessels, he constantly looked down at his feet.
Then, once again, he sensed the presence of someone else.
“Found you!”
Trusting his own intuition, Ash threw a stone at the bushes in front of him.
The bushes rocked left and right, making a rustling sound.
“Your intuition is quite keen. It really is one of your talents”
Stated a voice that possessed both the vitality of youth and the staid of seniority.
“You are ………?”
From the bushes, a tall thin man emerged. In his left hand, he held the very stone that Ash had just thrown.
Though he was dressed in a traveller’s garb, which wasn’t out of the ordinary, Ash was shocked into silence.
This was because that man was wearing a silver coloured mask on his face, which covered everything except for his nose and mouth.
In addition to this, his gleaming sliver hair was streaked through with strands of crimson hair, which brought to mind an image of silver silk slowly shedding blood, as well as the blood used to write cursed scripts.
In his right hand, he held a black object that emitted light.
“A mechanical weapon from ……… the Empire[1]?”
Ash, dumbfounded, stood on the spot, unable to move.
It’s not like he didn’t know about it.
On the other side of the steep mountain range, lacking the blessing of dragons, the Empire, nevertheless, had a highly developed civilisation based on machinery.
The weapon that the masked man held in his hand probably was the product of mechanical engineering. If he remembered correctly, it was a ‘short machine gun’, a gun that combined the portability of a pistol and the rapid fire of a machine gun. Ash didn’t dare to act rashly. He knew that man could easily, at a moment’s notice, riddle him with so many bullet holes that he would look like a honeycomb.
Perhaps it was because he had perceived Ash’s wariness, the corners of the man’s mouth twitched faintly upwards.
“Young man, you are very bright.”
“You are ……… a soldier of the Empire?”
“Do I look like one?”
Ash didn’t know what to decide.
That object in the man’s hand was a weapon manufactured by the Empire.
However, that man didn’t have an Empire accent. Instead, he had a strong Chevron Kingdom accent. Aside from that, the way he spoke was highly refined. To be more precise, he was speaking so-called ‘King’s Chevrish’.
Ash realised that he was in a precarious situation.
If the masked man was from the Empire, why would he be lurking around the outskirts of Ansarivan for?
Maybe, he was an Empire spy.
The Chevron Kingdom and the Zepharos Empire, the two great powers of this continent, had been in a Cold War which had, already, lasted five decades.
Sandwiched between those two countries, was the Lautreamont Knight Country, the Chevron Kingdom’s child country.
Initially, the Knight Country was part of the Kingdom[2], therefore, the relationship between these two countries would, naturally, be much closer than any of their allies.
Currently, should armed personal from the Empire appear within boarders of Knight Country, this country could, and would, interpret this as a military operation of the Empire.
However, Ash’s strength was finite. He was definitely incapable of opposing the man before his eyes.
“Young man, how old are you?”
The masked man’s unexpected question distracted him for a moment.
“……… Sixteen. Is there something wrong with that?”
“That’s strange. Why do you still have larva within you?”
Ash, astounded, subconsciously retreated a few steps.
“H-How do you know?”
“The curse on your body allowed me to clearly perceive that.”
“Curse ………?”
Ash frowned. He never would ever have expected to hear, from the mouth of a person from the Empire, words so unscientific.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to ask what those words truly meant.
“Get away from Milgauss-sama”
A tender, yet commanding voice resonated in his ears.
Reflexively, he looked back and saw a petite figure moving towards him. Then, immediately after pulling an object from its left bracer, the shrill sound of air being sliced sounded by his ear.
“Argh!”
Moving his body quickly, Ash awkwardly dodged the surprise attack. A pitch-black serpent passed through the space where his head had been. Actually, upon closer inspection, the pitch-black snake was actually a long whip, the preferred weapon of the Tantalos Tribe.
Those who master this weapon are said to have an unpredictable attack. Even soldiers armed with swords, guns, or cannons aren’t a match.
Ash dived onto the ground and began to roll, attempting to distance himself.
Although his attacker was also wearing a mask, from their exposed eyes, he determined that it was most likely a young teenage girl.
Her beautiful jet-black hair was fixed at the back of her head and, despite her petite stature, her eyes were filled with murderous intent.
Ash, improvising on the spot, got up from the ground, grabbed a handful of dirt, threw it at the girl, turned and ran.
“Argh ………!”
The girl flinched and, for a brief moment, shielded her eyes. Then she began to pursue Ash.
Ash, sprinting, plunged into a nearby thicket.
“Damn ……… why am I so unfortunate!”
Upon rushing out of the forest, his field of vision immediately widened.
Above him, a dazzling blue sky stretched as far as the eye could see, forcing him to narrow his eyes.
Barren rocks, big and small, littered the ground.
Ash swallowed. This situation wasn’t good. Ahead of him there was a ravine. Its edge was around ten steps away. Ash looked around but couldn’t find a bridge.
“Obediently accept your fate!”
The girl appeared from within the forest.
Ash, with his back to the cliff, confronted her.
“When did I ever wrong you?”
“Meeting us. This was your greatest misfortune.”
The girls tone was flat, lacking any rise or drop in pitch, making her sound emotionless.
“That’s absurd!”
“War needs no reason.”
“Isn’t there an armistice?”
“Armistice? That nothing more than something we pretend to adhere to. In reality the war between the Empire and the Kingdom hasn’t ended!”
The girl kicked the ground, and, brandishing the whip in her hand, slowly forced Ash towards the edge of ravine behind him.
Though Ash scored quite well in the class of fighting techniques, this girl’s movements were too fast. He could only, step by step, retreat backwards.
In a few more steps, he would fall into the ravine.
“Hmph ……… I wonder how long you can continue to struggle for!”
She sounded irritated. In fact, she was most likely an impetuous person.
------ Now!
Ash grabbed the end of the whip, which had missed him, and then, with a great pull, broke her balance.
“Uooo!”
He grabbed her by her collar and, using her own momentum[3], hurled her away. Her body traced a parabola in the air. Ash was surprised, as he hadn’t expected her body to be so light.
“Kawaa!”
Falling heavily, the girl gave a painful cry and her right hand involuntarily released the whip.
“Uguu ………”
Still conscious, tears of misery appeared in her eyes. Aside from that, she was constantly squirming, as if in great pain. She probably wouldn’t be able to stand for a quite a while.
Steading his breathing, Ash slowly extended his right hand towards the mask on her face. He wanted to see what she looked like. Then, just at this moment.
------ Bishi!
A peculiar noise, similar to that of an object fracturing, could be heard.
“Eh ………?”
Ash could hardly believe his eyes.
The outcrop [4] supporting their weight, unexpectedly, had begun to collapse.
This was most likely due to a geological fault in the rock. This fight should never have been performed in this kind of location. Then he noticed it, a warning sign labelled “Beware of Collapse”.
“Ku ………!”
Ash had no time to ponder. He lifted the girl and threw her forwards.
She landed safely on a stable piece of outcrop.
However, in doing so, he didn’t have enough time to escape. Instead, he fell along with the rocky debris into the ravine.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The immense drag of the wind almost tore his skin.
Ash was scared of falling into a bottomless ravine. Then, at this moment, he felt his left wrist heat up.
“Eh ………?”
A flash of light burst through his clothing. The «Seikoku», which extended from his elbow to his wrist, suddenly began to emit heat and scarlet light.
The shrill sound of the wind was silenced.
In fact, all sound was silenced.
“Ugh ………!”
Ash felt an excruciating pain within his chest, as if it was being torn in half, as though something was trying to break out of his body.
The pain almost caused him to lose consciousness.
While bearing the pain, he looked down at his chest and found that it was exuding a dazzling radiance.
“Guaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
Ash gave a great scream as his consciousness gradually began to fade.
However, within his hazy vision, he saw something clearly.
A girl was floating in mid-air.
Completely naked.
With her eyes tightly closed and her arms open, she floated next to him.
Subconsciously, Ash reached out with both his hands towards her petite body.
She slid with no resistance into his arms.
Around them, a blinding light had, unbeknownst to them, enveloped their bodies.
Not only that, but their descent had slowed down.
Hugging the girl, Ash slowly floated down, like one would within a child’s fairy tale.
Before long, they landed on a rock beside a creek.
The ball of light, which had protected them, instantly turned into countless particles and disappeared without a trace.
“Am I safe now ………?”
Ash mumbled to himself, as he looked down at the girl in his arms.
The breathing of the girl, whose eyes were still closed, sounded rather peaceful.
“Uwaa!”
Ash felt a little ardent as he realised that the girl was naked.
Her dainty figure, along with her slightly bulging chest, and her smooth and delicate white skin was definitely something that was hardly ever seen within this world. In fact, it gave rise to the illusion of an angel descending into the world of mortals.
Her age was probably around fourteen or fifteen.
Gently laying her on the ground, Ash swiftly took off the coat of his Dragsuit.
Just with this coat, he was able to sufficiently cover her petite body.
“Fuu ………”
With this done, Ash feeling relieved, sat on the ground.
Yet again, he looked at the face of the girl.
“Could she be ……… Navi?”
Within his mind, an image of the girl who had, since the start of this week, been teasing him within his dreams, surfaced.
“No, you are similar for sure ……… but still a little different.”
To draw an analogy, Navi would be a succubus from a Gothic novel, possessing a face that retained the innocence of childhood and also the charm of a mature woman.
On the other hand, the girl before his eyes was just a girl. Ash couldn’t feel any mature charm from her.
“……… eh?”
Ash frowned. Something small, circular and ivory coloured, protruded from top left and right of sides her head.
“What is this?”
With his fingertips, Ash gently probed the mysterious protrusions.
It was soft and a little flexible and seemed to be made of some kind of cartilage.
The mysterious protrusions had a peculiar feel to it, making him want to touch it again after touching it. However, Ash resisted the urges to touch it again, as it would be impolite.
Looks like those mysterious protrusions weren’t accessories but part of her body.
“Could it be ……… horns?”
The little protrusions on top of her head, indeed, seemed to be identical to the horns of a young dragon.
Ash couldn’t help but recall the details of the events, that had happen prior to now, in his mind.
The girl had emerged out of his body and she had two horns growing from top left and right sides of her head.
As a result, there could only be one conclusion.
“……… is this young girl my pal?”
Ash was dumbfounded.
He had always wished to rouse his pal from sleep, however, why was his pal a girl when everyone else’s were dragons?
“Uuu ………nnn ………”
The girl’s long eyelashes quivered a little.
“Huwaaa ………”
The girl, in contrast to her beautiful appearance, gave a great yawn.
One of her double eyelids slowly began to open.
Ash, subconsciously, leaned forwards and looked at her face.
Her ruby coloured pupils were very fascinating.
Bleary eyed, she suddenly opened her eyes wide and her facial expression became one of shock.
“Hugiyaaaaaaaa!”
“Oooof!”
Ash, receiving a slap on his cheek, fell backwards and his head became immersed in the creek.
Fortunately, the stream wasn’t deep, so aside from his sorry figure, he wasn’t hurt.
“S-Such great strength ………”
With blood trickling from his nose, Ash struggled to get up.
“To go so far as to take advantage of a sleeping lady really is too much! Don’t you know who am I?”
Blushing hard, she suddenly stood up.
The jacket that Ash had draped over her body, slid off.
Her dainty naked body was clearly visible.
However, she made no move to cover herself.
“P-Please put on your clothes first before you talk!”
Ash quickly looked away.
“Clothes? Ridiculous! Clothes are just items humans create to hide their ugliness.”
“What?”
“That’s right, a proper dragon doesn’t need clothes!”
“I don’t care whether you need clothes or not, just put them on!”
After saying that, Ash turned his back on her.
“I know that you are a dragon! Well ……… strictly speaking I’m not sure. However, even if you’re a dragon, right now, you are a girl!”
“So what?”
“That ……… naked girl standing in front of me ……… is making me lose my calm”
“Hmph! Such a useless guy. Like I said, humans are really ------”
At this moment, a strong gust of wind blew through the ravine.
Though it was now spring, it still felt chilly when a gust of wind blew on the body.
“A ……Ahchoo!”
Compared to her arrogant attitude just then, her sneeze was extremely cute.
After her sneeze, an unimaginably huge gust of wind headed towards Ash.
“Uoo!”
Immediately, Ash clung onto the rock next to him and, like this, prevented himself from getting blown away.
“A dragons’ sneeze turns out to be quite formidable ………”
After calming himself down, with his back towards the girl, Ash proceeded to defend his opinion:
“You’re right, clothes make people look better. However, apart from that, they also protect against the cold!”
“Muuu ………”
The girl pouted, as if she didn’t quite agree with Ash’s point. However, in the end, she accepted his opinion.
Before long, there was a rustling sound.
Cautiously turning his head around, Ash saw that she had obediently put on the jacket.
As her body was very petite, just the jacket was enough to cover her important parts. However, her legs were still exposed.
Her white tender thighs caused Ash to hold his breath. Wearing just a male jacket, her current appearance, compared when she was naked, caused one to fantasize even more.
After directing his gaze away from her thighs, Ash sighed a few times.
“There is something I want to confirm. You should be the dragon that was within me.”
“Strictly speaking, I was only temporarily borrowing your body.”
“Weren’t you within my body for too long? I’ve already become a first year Advanced Course student!”
“What did you say?”
The girl eyed Ash with an ominous glint in her eyes.
Her expression, as sharp as a sword, rested on Ash’s chest.
“N-Nothing ………”
Ash, a little overwhelmed by the girl’s reaction, could only reply like this.
“I am not an ordinary dragon. Do not lump me with the others.”
“Whaa?”
Clearly displeased, the girl planted both her hands on her hips and looked at Ash.
“Listen carefully, I do not think that you think that you are my master at all! Who cares about the secret agreement of Albion ………”
Ash was a little surprised when the girl mentioned that historical term.
------The secret agreement of Albion
Long ago, confronted with the crisis of extinction, the dragons stipulated a treaty with humans who wanted their magic.
“……… That being said, you and I share a common destiny. Although you can't see it, we are bound together by an invisible thread.”
What she was talking about was probably the so-called Astral Flow.
“After combining with humans, dragons are able to get a supply of the Astral. As a result, dragons obtained the strength to survive, thus overcoming the crisis of extinction.”
This knowledge was taught during the Basic Course. The Astral was something similar to “qi” and was the source of greatly-needed strength.
The history of the dragons was far longer than that of humans. With each new generation, the Astral contained within their bodies decreased.
Due to the lack of the Astral, before becoming fully grown, many young dragons died prematurely.
If young dragons were unable to mature into adult dragons, sooner or later, dragons would go down the path of extinction.
Concerned by the current situation, the dragons decided to combine with the humans who possessed the most Astral Flow, thus avoiding extinction.
“Quite so. However, even so, I don’t believe the dragons owe humans one. Instead, humans should feel honoured.”
“No, shouldn’t you at least feel a little thankful?”
Having just finished speaking, Ash’s abdomen received a blow from the girl’s elbow.
“Gah!”
“By the way …”
After glancing at Ash, who was writhing in pain, the girl, thinking about something, suddenly turned away. Her vigour, that she had displayed just then, disappeared and was replaced by bashfulness and embarrassment.
“M-My name ……”
“Ehh?”
Ash, puzzled, frowned. The girl turned a shade of bright red and shouted.
“My …… name, my name! Give me a name! T-This is a, somewhat, very important thing!”
“Do you really want me to give you a name?”
“It can’t be helped! Although I don’t approve of the secret agreement of Albion, I too, can't break the rules! You must give me a name for the contract to be complete!”
“Is that so? The dragons also have so many difficult rules.”
“I-I don’t need things like your sympathy!”
Faced with the girl's extreme attitude, Ash made a bitter smile.
“If that’s how it’s going to go, relax. I have already thought of your name”
Ever since he had become a Breeder, he had always remembered this name.
“Your name is Eco”
Compared to Lancelot and Cú Chulainn, it was a little out of fashion. However, it was a rather historical name, frequently appearing in historical or religious textbooks.
------First year of A.S.B. [5]
For the first time in human history, a young maiden succeeded in rousing a larva from its slumber.
Her name was Rosa Maria.
After her death, people referred to her as a saint, as she was the primogenitor of Breeders.
At that time, her pal’s name was Eco.
“Eco ……”
The girl looked distracted and her dangerous expression eased up.
“Nnn, not bad. Eco …… congratulation for thinking up this name. Fine, for now I’ll spare you!”
“Phew, luckily you quite like this name.”
If the name chosen had been deemed unacceptable, perhaps he would have become a victim of violence. Coming to this conclusion, Ash could feel cold sweat starting to form.
“Oh, by the way, although you had just awoken, you seem to be quite knowledgeable about the secret agreement of Albion and Astral Flow.”
Although Ash didn’t say this with the intention to flatter, she, nevertheless, puffed out her chest in pride.
“This is the greatest difference between wisdom-filled dragons and the stupid, ignorant humans.”
“Seriously, humans aren’t that bad, are they?”
“------Dragweiss”
“Ehh?”
Eco suddenly began to stare off into the distance, taking Ash by surprise.
“In order to survive, the still slumbering larvae will automatically inherit relevant knowledge. As this inherited knowledge is beyond generations, there is no need for others to teach them.”
“Wow, that’s amazing …… By the way, since you are a dragon, why do you take the appearance of a human?”
“This ……”
Eco lowered her head in thought. After a while, she could only helplessly shrug her shoulders.
“It’s no good, the Dragweiss doesn’t contain records pertaining to this …… No, there should be related records, except they can't be accessed. Forget about it, I don’t know! Don’t ask about it anymore, or I’ll crush you!”
“That’s no good ……? I still want to live for a few more years!”
Thinking about Eco’s unordinary strength, Ash shuddered.
At this moment, Ash suddenly remembered something, he still hadn’t introduced himself!
Thus, he calmed his wild heartbeat, and extended his right hand towards Eco. Regardless, Eco would always remain his pal.
To obtain his own pal had been his wish for many years.
“Muu …… what are you doing?”
“I’m called Ash, from this day on, I am your master!”
“What?”
Eco not only refused to accept Ash’s goodwill, but also widened her eyes and stared at Ash.
“W-what’s the matter?”
“You seem to have misunderstood something, I think I’d better clear it up. You are not my master.”
Straightening her runway-like chest, Eco’s eyes began to emit a strange aura.
“I’m the one who is your master!”
Once again, a bone-chilling icy wind blew through the ravine.
Part 9
…… A few hours later.
Sure enough, Silvia didn’t betray people’s expectations, with a manner befitting of the Jedi in ‘Return of the Jedi’, she claimed first place and------
Security guards within the forest found Brigid, decided that the rider must have encountered a mishap, and immediately formed a rescue team, and began to search for the rider.
The rider was called Ash Blake, a first year Advanced Course student who rode his friend’s pal to compete, the Number One Problem Child of the academy.
The student council president, Rebecca, and many other students all joined the rescue team.
As Fianna Forest covered an extensive plot of land, at first, they believed that the rescue operation wouldn’t succeed; however, before long, they found Ash and Eco.
Cú Chulainn, with Rebecca riding on its head, without turning back, flew straight towards the ravine bordering the forest, as if attracted by some sort of force.
Afterwards, Rebecca commented:
“Today was the first time Cú Chulainn disobeyed my order.”
End of “The Awakening of Sleeping Beauty ~A.S.B.1365.4~”.
Notes:
1 Although the sources don't say so, this 'empire' refers to the Zepharos Empire
2 Kingdom here refers to the Chevron Kingdom
3 Do google Aikido !!!
4 Exposed bedrock
5 (After Saint's Birth)
