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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“…So who are you?”
Abel tilted her head.
She could sense an unusual flow of magical power, enough to know that the uninvited guest was one of her own kind.
However, dragons fundamentally didn’t form strong bonds with others, even their own kind.
While they shared a sense of kinship as one of the few dozen dragons left in the world, and generally yielded to each other if they happened to clash during their amusements, that was about the extent of it.
Moreover, since they reproduced asexually, they didn’t even have the concept of family.
So even if they met one of their rare kindred, they typically didn’t feel particularly glad about it.
Abel was no exception to this.
Had the intruder not been a fellow dragon, she would have immediately attacked with magic beyond what even human archmages could muster for daring to invade her lair.
But because it was a fellow dragon, she refrained.
“If you don’t cancel that plan, things will escalate this much,” Sylphia warned.
“Well, you’d have to show your face first for me to know who you are,” Abel replied, repeatedly tilting her head without giving a proper answer to Sylphia’s warning.
She could only guess that the intruder was from the Red Dragon clan based on the red hair flowing from under the pointed hat, but she couldn’t yet identify Sylphia.
Finally, as Sylphia lifted her head, revealing her face beneath the hat, Abel clapped her hands.
“Ah, if it isn’t Sylphia? It must have been well over eight hundred years since we last met.”
Abel and Sylphia’s last encounter was indeed over eight hundred years ago.
Though eight hundred years wasn’t a particularly long interval for dragons who lived lives close to eternity.
The two dragons, famous for never taking rest periods or falling into long slumbers and constantly enjoying their amusements, had encountered each other several times during their pastimes.
“What brings you here? Shall I offer you some tea?” Abel asked.
“I’ll pass on the tea. I’m simply here to give you a warning,” Sylphia replied.
“…A warning?”
Abel, who had been welcoming until then, hesitated and asked in a chilling voice.
“Yes, a warning.”
Sylphia confirmed, nodding her head without seeming to care.
Fundamentally, interfering in another’s life or amusement was considered highly rude.
Among dragons, who treated each other as equals once they were past the hatchling stage and had virtually no concept of seniority, there was hardly a greater rudeness.
“…Sylphia, did I mishear you just now?”
“No, you heard correctly. I said you should abandon that ridiculous plan you were muttering about earlier, about becoming the leader of the barbarians and establishing some nomadic empire,” Sylphia clarified.
“I don’t think I said anything about establishing a nomadic empire… Anyway, let’s hear your reason first.”
Abel responded, taking a step back with a puzzled expression, seemingly thrown off by Sylphia’s cynical attitude.
If Sylphia was already enjoying her amusement in the empire, it would naturally be right to abandon the current amusement plan that would inevitably have a profound impact across the entire empire.
However, Abel had no recollection of hearing that Sylphia had been enjoying an amusement in human form in the empire recently, so she asked with a tilted head.
“Would you mind telling me what this is about?”
“It’s about that human mage you just flippantly said you might ‘just get rid of’.”
Sylphia’s voice was as cold as the eternal snow of the Nord Mountains.
There was already no room for compromise.
Abel had crossed a line that couldn’t be uncrossed the moment she uttered, “I’m in a bad mood suddenly. Should I kill him?”
This was the reason for Sylphia’s cold attitude.
From the moment Abel casually mentioned killing Rudrick, Sylphia had already resolved to fight Abel to the death if necessary.
“The moment you touch even a hair on Rudrick’s head, one of us will die.”
Abel was taken aback by Sylphia’s unexpectedly stern stance, which was beyond what was typical even among dragons.
It was extremely rare for two dragons to speak of fighting to the death.
As far as Abel knew, there hadn’t been such a case in the past ten thousand years.
“Um, if I’ve interfered with your amusement, I apologize. But is that mage really so precious to you?”
“He’s a little more precious than my own life, so don’t even think about touching him if you don’t want to die.”
This response left Abel even more confused.
Sylphia’s stance was too extreme and her words too intense to be simply due to anger over interference with her amusement.
Abel briefly recast her synchronization magic with her dragon’s eye to observe Rudrick again, then dispelled it and hesitated.
A speculation flashed through her mind.
Rationally, it seemed absurd, but given Sylphia’s current behavior, it was the only explanation that made sense.
Despite knowing it was ridiculous, Abel cautiously asked,
“…Sylphia, do you perhaps like that human mage?”
Sylphia didn’t answer, but her silence was as good as confirmation.
Faced with this gesture that could only be interpreted as affirmation, Abel burst into laughter, momentarily forgetting the serious atmosphere.
“Pf, pfft! Kyahahahaha!”
The tense atmosphere that seemed on the verge of conflict just moments ago was shattered by Abel’s laughter.
“W-wait… Kyahahahaha! Really? You really like that human? You’re not joking, right?”
Abel asked, wiping tears from her eyes after laughing so hard her stomach hurt.
“Is it funny?”
“Yes, it’s hilarious.”
Abel replied, still chuckling as she wiped away her tears.
“Weren’t you well past the hatchling stage long ago? Haven’t you become too immersed in your amusement? To genuinely like a human…”
“…I knew you’d react like this.”
Sylphia sighed, rubbing her forehead.
She understood to some extent the concern and worry behind Abel’s words.
Abel’s reaction wasn’t unusual.
Even if it had been another dragon instead of Abel, they would likely have either worried about Sylphia’s mental state or laughed uproariously like Abel upon hearing that she had genuinely fallen for a human.
This kind of situation sometimes occurred when mentally immature hatchlings forcibly pursued amusements against others’ advice, becoming too immersed in their roles and forgetting they were merely actors on a stage.
That was why it had become an unwritten rule among dragons not to engage in amusements during the hatchling stage, and even mature dragons were careful not to become too emotionally attached to humans during their amusements.
At best, the emotions dragons felt towards humans they met during amusements didn’t exceed the level of affection one might feel for a somewhat familiar pet.
“Then I’ll concede. I’ve been laying the groundwork for quite a while. How about a scenario where I play the barbarian leader for a while, and you gain fame by defeating me?”
Abel offered, her face still showing traces of laughter.
In truth, even though Sylphia had been enjoying her amusement first, it was a bit excessive to demand that Abel not touch anything in the entire empire.
So Abel, unusually, volunteered to play the role of both villain and sacrifice.
“No.”
“…Huh?”
“It would make Rudrick sad. If you don’t want to see things escalate this much, your only choice is to quietly back off and keep your hands off.”
Sylphia gestured dismissively as if to say Abel should just leave if she didn’t want things to get worse.
“Look, Sylphia. I think I’ve already compromised quite a bit here. Why don’t we settle for this level of compromise? I’ve been preparing for ten years, I should at least get some enjoyment out of it.”
Abel suggested carefully.
“I said no.”
“Are you really willing to fight me over just one human?”
“If necessary, there’s nothing I won’t do.”
Sylphia remained adamant.
In normal circumstances, given that Abel had already taken such a conciliatory stance, Sylphia would have accepted the compromise.
No matter how much her amusement had been interfered with, if Abel had humbled herself first, Sylphia would have likely accepted the proposal out of consideration for face.
But now Rudrick was involved.
In fact, Sylphia had been furious from the moment Abel muttered about killing Rudrick.
She wanted to tear apart the mouth that had uttered such words if she could and if she accepted this proposal and let Abel do as she pleased, it would inevitably have a significant impact on the empire.
Most likely, many people would die.
Normally, whether humans lived or died wouldn’t have mattered much to her, but Rudrick would surely be saddened by that.
“…If you’re going to be like this, I’m starting to get a little angry too. Aren’t we past the hatchling stage? Why don’t we think about this rationally?”
“I told you. If you touch Rudrick, one of us will die.”
“Are you serious?”
“Of course I’m serious.”
As soon as Sylphia finished speaking, an ominous flow of magical energy began to surge around Abel.
Not to be outdone, Sylphia also started to draw upon the infinite magical power nestled in her heart.
The situation was on the brink of conflict.
Inwardly, Abel found this absurd, but if Sylphia was so openly challenging her to a fight, she was willing to face her.
‘She’s really willing to risk her life for a human? She’s not in her right mind,’
Abel thought to herself.
She never would have imagined that the Sylphia she had known would act like this over a single human.
But then again, the world rarely goes as one expects.
Having made full preparations to fight, Abel taunted Sylphia before the battle.
“Think carefully.”
“About what?”
“If you lose here, I will definitely kill that human Rudrick.”
“…What did you say?”
“I’ll toy with him until he begs for his life, crying, and then I’ll kill him. As painfully as possible. Do you still want to fight─── Are you insane!”
Kuguguung!
Before Abel could finish speaking, an explosion of air right next to her head chilled her to the bone.
The entire wall embedded with light-emitting stones that she had been thinking of replacing earlier crumbled with a thunderous noise, swept away by the shockwave of highly compressed air exploding.
Although her lair had been damaged, Abel didn’t have the luxury to worry about that.
If her reaction had been even a little slower, it would have been her head exploding instead of the air.
As soon as this strike, which was genuinely intended to kill Abel, ended, Sylphia asked in a flat voice.
“What did you just say?”
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[Catfight of the century]
