MISTERLP
"Ahaha... It's all so silly. To think, they mock me by calling me a
worm here, but in your country I'd become a god. So this is what you
meant by a difference in values, huh."
Once she had a good, hearty laugh, Naden put on a blank expression
and said in a mumble, "Would they be okay... with a dragon that can't
fly?"
...Huh? She couldn't fly?
"Huh? You can't fly, Naden?" I asked.
"How could I? I don't have any wings."
"No, no, it's perfectly natural that a ryuu wouldn't have wings."
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
We looked at one another. What? There was something not meshing in
our conversation...
"No, no, I have no wings, so it's obvious I can't fly."
"Is there some connection between a ryuu having no wings and one not
being able to fly?" I asked.
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
There was something weird. Like there was some inconsistency in our
understanding.
"Kazuma, just what are you—"
Naden was in the middle of saying something when it happened. With
a great gust of wind, three dragons, red, blue, and green, descended from
the skies to land in front of us.
◇ ◇ ◇
The three dragons that landed in front of us were red, blue, and green.
They were Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerada.
Honestly... Why did I have to run into them now, of all times?
Once the three of them had taken human form, they came to stare me
down at close range.
"I heard you'd picked up a human, so I came to see... Is this him?"
Ruby asked.
I said nothing.
Ruby's glance shifted to Kazuma. "Weird clothes. You're not from
Nothung?"
"...Yeah. I'm Kazuma Souya, here from Friedonia."
Kazuma, who was a bit nonplussed at the hostile atmosphere between
us, gave a cursory self-introduction.
I clicked my tongue a little. "You don't need to give these people your
name."
"I can hear you, Naden," Ruby snapped.
"I said it for you to hear, you nasty piece of work."
"Who are you calling nasty? You're just a measly worm."
It was a touch-and-go situation. Fire spewed from her mouth and
electricity sparked from my hair. Kazuma, who still didn't understand the
situation, was standing there and scratching his head.
"Uh... Do you two not get along, maybe?"
"If you thought this looks like we get along, I'd have to doubt your
eyesight. The red one's Ruby, the blue is Sapphire, and the green is
Emerada. They like to call me a 'flightless failure' and a 'worm,' among
other things, and they're always picking fights with me."
"Flightless... huh." Kazuma crossed his arms and seemed to be thinking
deeply about something.
...What had he been getting at before?
Whatever it was, I turned back to Ruby and her flunkies to tell them,
"You came to see Kazuma, right? Well, how about you go home now?"
"I don't think I appreciate your condescending tone," Ruby sneered.
"My business isn't with you."
With that, Ruby walked right past me to stand in front of Kazuma.
"I've heard... that you were invited here by Lady Tiamat, were you?"
"Hm? Yeah." Kazuma, who appeared to be deep in thought, responded
as if he'd just noticed her.
"That means you will be participating in the Contract Ceremony, yes?"
"...Well, apparently it does mean that. Not that I think I'm worthy to."
"If Lady Tiamat saw fit to invite you, it means you're worthy."
I gulped. Ruby, who mocked me as a worm, was recognizing Kazuma.
Could it be that Ruby was about to make a pass at Kazuma?
If Lady Tiamat had called him here, even if he didn't look like much,
he still might be a person worthy of respect. During the Contract
Ceremony, it was usually the knight who proposed. However, if a dragon
took a fancy to one of the knights, they could also introduce themselves to
encourage the knight to choose them.
At the Contract Ceremony... would Kazuma end up dancing with one
of the dragons?
...I don't think I'd like that.
What I imagined brought a pain to my modest chest. When I thought
that the person who'd told me I was a ryuu might go on to form a contract
with a dragon, my heart ached. Even though I had no intention of
participating in the ceremony myself.
While I was in agony thinking about that, Ruby was closing in on
Kazuma. "Hey, come stay with me at my house."
My head shot up in shock. When I looked, Ruby had extended her hand
to Kazuma.
"You fascinate me. I would love to learn more about you."
"About me?" Kazuma repeated.
"Yes. You must be special for Lady Tiamat to have recognized you. If
you live up to my expectations, I might even deign to form a contract with
you."
A dragon knight's riding contract... Ruby couldn't have fallen in love
with Kazuma at first sight, could she?
With a glance to me, Ruby added, "I am a far superior dragon than that
shut-in. Unlike Naden, I can fly, and I can breathe fire, too. I could show
you every corner of the Star Dragon Mountain Range from up in the sky."
"Urgh..." It frustrated me to no end that I couldn't refute what Ruby
was saying.
True enough, Ruby was a red dragon, the kind that was popular with
the knights. It was said that red would intimidate the enemy, so it was
easier for the rider to earn military accolades. On top of that, she had the
big wings I lacked, and she could breathe fire, as would be expected of any
dragon. When I looked to see how Kazuma was reacting to her being so
forward with him... he had a bit of a troubled smile on his face.
"Yeah, well, I'm glad you have such a high opinion of me and all..."
I gasped. Kazuma's words sent electricity coursing through my body,
and my hair stood on end.
Hearing him give a positive response to Ruby, my chest filled with
rage... and sadness. I didn't want to hear those words from the person who
told me I was a ryuu. It made me want to cry so badly. Maybe I would let
loose an electric strike on Ruby and the others, then go on a real rampage.
"But..." Kazuma shook his head and said, "Is being able to fly and
breathe fire all that valuable?"
...Huh?
"Huh? What are you saying?" Ruby demanded.
Everyone's eyes focused on Kazuma. Kazuma scratched at his head as
he replied, "Uh, well... I'm from a country without much contact with
dragons, so forgive me for my ignorance here. Like you were saying
before, is being able to fly and breathe fire what makes a dragon
valuable?"
"Of course it is," Ruby shot back. "While a dragon is their knight's
partner, they're also their comrade in arms. What is sought after, more
than anything, are wings that will carry them high and fast across the
battlefield, and flames with which to incinerate their foes."
"I see. Appearance doesn't come into it, then. Well, it seems that there
are a lot of beautiful people among the dragon race, after all." Kazuma
nodded at Ruby's answer. "And you girls can all fly and breathe fire,
right?"
"That's right. Except for that worm over there, that is."
"...I see." Then, with a serious look on his face, Kazuma looked Ruby
in the eye and asked her, "Then, tell me, what is it that makes you,
personally, valuable?"
Ruby and the others' value? Wasn't it their ability to breathe fire and
fly?
"Huh? What are you saying?" Ruby asked. She didn't seem satisfied
with that answer.
Kazuma shook his head. "It's a given that dragons can breathe fire and
that they can fly, isn't it? Well, in that case, it's nothing special that you
can. It's an ability that every dragon comes equipped with, and that means
it's not a special reason why I ought to choose you, right?"
When he said it that way, Ruby and the others' jaws dropped, and they
stared blankly at him. I probably had a similar look on my own face.
Kazuma continued on, paying no heed to any of us. "If other dragons
can do it, too, then it doesn't serve as a reason why I should go to the
trouble of picking you, specifically. It's valuable having something
universal like that, but it's nothing special. If you all start on the same
basis, won't the stronger or the more beautiful dragons win? Being the
same as everyone else isn't even a point in your favor."
I couldn't believe it. "Kazuma... You..."
Kazuma's criticism was so on point that I started to doubt if he really
had no familiarity with this country's traditions. The fact of the matter
was, the Contract Ceremony was an intense competition between the
dragons. Since whether or not they were chosen by someone there would
more or less determine the rest of their lives, that was only natural.
While we were busy reacting with surprise, Kazuma let out a sigh. "A
standardized basis of evaluation, the rejection of those with individuality...
I thought I'd experienced this atmosphere somewhere before, but it's
basically the same as the exam wars. Man, I had a tough time two years
ago..." Kazuma murmured with a far off look in his eyes.
...Eggzam Wars? What were those? Was it a series of wars that had
happened in some other country? But why was he talking about them now?
"W-Well, it's better than not being chosen at all!" Ruby, who had come
back to her senses, said with her face twitching. "Who would choose
Naden, who can't do the things that everyone else can?!"
She pointed accusingly at me.
Kazuma instantly responded, "It's true, as a dragon, Naden lacks
universality. But what she does have is individuality."
"I-Individuality?"
"Something that makes her different from others. When evaluating the
value of things, the simplest standard is 'a thing there's only one of in the
whole world.' If there's only one of something, even if it's just a child's
toy, or the lid to a jar, it only makes sense it would hold value, right?
That's equally true of people. I... No, the king of my country goes out of
his way to collect those sorts of people with specific strengths."
The king of his country... Did he mean Friedonia's hero king?
"And you're saying... Naden has that value?" Ruby asked, looking
stunned.
"Here in the Star Dragon Mountain Range, is there any dragon other
than Naden who can create lightning? She can do a thing that no one else
can. That, in and of itself, is valuable. But, really, do you actually
understand what's happening here?"
"Wh-What...?"
"The reason you're always picking fights with Naden," Kazuma said.
"It's because you envy her for her individuality, isn't it?"
"Wha..." Ruby seemed dumbstruck by what Kazuma had pointed out.
Huh? W-Was that really it?
With the truth being shoved in our faces, I didn't know how to react,
and neither did Sapphire or Emerada, who were standing back.
While Ruby's mouth kept flapping open and closed, Kazuma continued
to speak.
"I'd say the other dragons who hold ill will toward Naden probably do
so for the same basic reason. From the perspective of those dragons, who
are struggling inside a standardized system of evaluation, the existence of
someone like Naden, who flouts that standard entirely to go her own way,
is an object of resentment and jealousy, and thus they just can't accept her,
right? During the exam wars, if there's one student in the preparatory class
who says, 'I'm gonna take over the family business'... well, yeah, they're
gonna stick out. Obviously, they'll have troubles in their lives that those
around them don't, but for those who have been placed in a competitive
situation, they don't have the composure to stop and consider that."
Kazuma seemed to be the only one satisfied with his explanation. I'd
lost him somewhere along the way, too, and he was making no sense, but
the one thing I did get was that he was saying I was special.
I stared at Kazuma's back. Maybe it was because we'd been born in
different countries, but in these past few days, I'd been forced quite a
number of times to realize that Kazuma and I saw things differently.
However, Kazuma was offering me a new set of values, most
especially one where I wasn't worthless. My chest grew hot, and I felt like
I might cry for a different reason than before.
"Eventually, one who knows your value will appear."
Lady Tiamat's prophecy had been true. That person was in front of me
now.
"Hmph, that doesn't change the fact that a flightless dragon is of no
use!" Ruby declared, seeming to have regained her footing.
A flightless dragon; those words would have greatly disturbed me
before. However... strangely enough, they didn't bother me in the least
now. That was because Kazuma had told me I was a ryuu, that I had
individuality.