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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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As promised, Elena returned two days later with a Blue Dragon.
It was about 20 meters long, three times the size of a saltwater crocodile.
“I was lucky. I found a hatchling Blue Dragon.”
Despite its impressive size, it was still just a hatchling.
An adult would have easily filled the entire training ground.
“So, how do you plan to study this thing? Are you prepared?”
“Of course. I wasn’t slacking off while you were working hard, Master.”
As promised, I had made preparations for the Blue Dragon research, including creating restraints.
“First, we need to secure it. I’ll need your help with that, Master.”
The restraints I’d created were made of solid steel, weighing dozens of tons.
I couldn’t move them myself; I needed Elena’s telekinesis.
“Alright. What do I need to do?”
“See this blueprint? Assemble and secure the restraints as shown.”
I showed her the blueprint. Elena gave me a curious look, studied the blueprint, then nodded.
“This looks straightforward.”
*Flash!*
Elena used her telekinesis and easily lifted the massive steel components.
The pieces encased the Blue Dragon, then assembled themselves, completely immobilizing it.
As the tons of steel locked into place—
“Grrrr!!!”
The Blue Dragon, feeling the restraints, roared and thrashed, awakened by the sudden confinement.
*Whoosh!*
Elena flicked her wrist, and a concussive force slammed into the dragon’s jaw, knocking it unconscious.
“It’s secured. What’s next?”
“We anesthetize it. Make sure it doesn’t wake up again.”
“Anesthetize?”
“Yes. I’ve prepared an anesthetic gas.”
I pointed to a container filled with a mixture of hallucinogenic mushrooms, tarantula venom, sleep moth secretions, and finely ground mana stones, all simmered together.
It was one of the few crafting recipes I remembered from the game, so its effectiveness was guaranteed.
“This container holds the anesthetic gas. We’ll place a respirator over the dragon’s snout and connect it to the container.”
“···Can you even anesthetize a dragon?”
“Yes.”
“······”
Elena looked at me with a surprised expression.
This early in the game’s timeline, my anesthetic concoction was still unknown.
“You have a talent for pharmaceuticals as well as engineering… Ed, you never cease to amaze me.” [T/N : hehe boi]
Elena’s interest was piqued by the novel anesthetic.
Her eyes glinted with a predatory gleam, recognizing this as another facet of my talent.
“Ahem.”
I cleared my throat, steering the conversation back on track.
Now wasn’t the time to entertain Elena’s… interests(?).
“Shall we proceed to the next step? We have a lot to do.”
I asked her to help me place the respirator and connect it to the container.
Elena nodded, following my instructions. The initial setup was complete.
“Now the real work begins.”
With the preparations complete, it was time for the actual research.
I brought out the surgical tools I’d prepared.
Pointing to a large scalpel on a cart, I said,
“First, we need to cut it open.”
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During the two days Elena was gone, I’d been incredibly busy preparing for the research, focusing primarily on surgical procedures.
I’d practiced on hatchling-type monsters I’d managed to acquire, dissecting them to learn about their internal organs and vascular structures.
‘Engineering Thought’ had greatly accelerated my learning process.
“So, you want me to cut its side open with this giant knife?”
“Yes.”
“Why? This Blue Dragon will die. We went through a lot of trouble to capture it alive.”
“That’s why you need to control your strength. Just enough to cut the skin.”
“Hmm…”
Elena narrowed her eyes, trying to understand my intentions.
Surgical procedures were unheard of in this world, so she didn’t grasp the concept of cutting open a creature to examine its insides.
“It’s a necessary step for the research. I’ll explain later.”
I reassured her and asked her to proceed with the incision.
Elena nodded and used her telekinesis to lift the scalpel and began cutting the dragon’s side.
*Scrape! Scritch! Scrape!*
The Blue Dragon’s scales were tough, resistant to ordinary blades and magic.
“This is annoying.”
But Elena von Iliad Rosario was no ordinary mage.
She was an Archmage.
Imbuing the scalpel with elemental magic and aura, she sliced through the scales like butter.
“Phew…”
I sighed in relief.
The minimal bleeding meant she’d avoided major arteries.
Having completed the second stage, I approached Elena with the anatomical diagrams I’d drawn based on my previous dissections of hatchlings.
“This is a projected anatomical chart of the Blue Dragon’s internal organs. The red areas are vital; avoid them at all costs. Cut open the blue areas in the order indicated.”
Elena, frowning slightly, looked back and forth between the diagram and the Blue Dragon, then nodded.
Then she looked at me with satisfied eyes and said:
“Impressive drawing. Quite accurate.”
“Well, I draw a lot of blueprints.”
“What’s this? ‘Cut section 4 and wait’?”
Cut section 4 and wait. I’d forgotten to explain that part.
“Ah. We’re going to connect reinforced glass to the dragon’s skin. That’s why it says ‘wait.'”
“···Huh?”
“So… we make a diamond-shaped ◇ incision in the Blue Dragon’s skin.”
“Yes.”
“And then, we insert a diamond-shaped piece of reinforced glass and connect it to the skin. I’ve prepared an adhesive, so it should bond securely.”
Elena, after hearing my explanation, looked at the anatomical diagram again.
Her eyes widened as she scanned the diagram.
Finally, she looked at me with a shocked expression.
“Ed, are you planning to replace the Blue Dragon’s entire hide with reinforced glass?”
Elena had grasped my intentions after thoroughly examining the diagram.
However, she was only partially correct, so I clarified.
“Not all of it. Just a section of its side, so we can observe the internal organs.”
“······.”
Elena remained stunned.
The disparity between this world’s healing magic and potion-based medicine and Earth’s modern medicine was vast.
The concept of surgery was alien to them.
“Shall we begin?”
But whether from this world or Earth, humans were driven by the same thirst for knowledge.
They were willing to break long-held conventions to satisfy their curiosity.
Science couldn’t advance without challenging established norms.
“Alright, let’s do it.”
And Elena was the most open-minded mage I knew in this world.
She, too, would journey with me into this new realm of knowledge.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Five days later, Ed and Elena had successfully replaced a section of the Blue Dragon’s side with reinforced glass, thanks to James and his fellow blacksmiths working tirelessly to supply them.
“I’ve never seen anything like this. The internal organs of a living, breathing Blue Dragon, visible through glass…”
Elena shook her head, marveling at the result.
The mighty Blue Dragon, revered as a god by some tribes, had become a living specimen.
Who would dare to modify a Blue Dragon like this?
“We’ve finally made it this far. Now it’s time to study its mana utilization mechanism.”
Ed’s words dispelled Elena’s unease.
She, too, was curious about how the Blue Dragon utilized the mana crystal within its body.
“Let’s remove the anesthetic…”
They removed the respirator from the Blue Dragon’s snout and loosened the restraints slightly.
“Grrrr…”
Thirty minutes later, the dragon began to stir.
It immediately noticed something was wrong with its side.
“Raaaaawr!!”
The dragon roared, its fury shaking the ground.
A blue aura emanated from its body, and its eyes glowed with blue light as it channeled mana, preparing to unleash its breath attack.
Ed and Elena watched, intently observing the internal changes within the dragon.
*Fwooosh!*
As a torrent of energy erupted from the dragon’s mouth, Elena raised her left arm, activating the mana dispenser she had inscribed with a formula.
A blue shield materialized in mid-air, absorbing the dragon’s breath.
The training ground trembled from the impact.
But Ed remained focused, using ‘Engineering Thought Lv.2’ to analyze the dragon’s mana mechanism.
After some time—
“Master.”
Ed’s voice was low, a triumphant smile on his face.
He had finally achieved his goal.
“I think I’ve figured out the Blue Dragon’s secret. Let’s proceed to the next stage.”
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