Nell and Lyuu, who were on the observation deck at the helm so that they could check on Yuki's movements at any time, looked nervous at first… but now they were already relaxed.
"Hmm, from the looks of it, it seems like it's all right now, Lyuu."
"Fuuh, I was surprised, but I guess that Dragon was of the same race as Lefi. In the past, the dragon race was nothing but a symbol of awe and fear… but from the way Husband interacted with her, all I could think about is that maybe the dragon race are like really good-natured beings, after interacting with Lefi for a while."
"Yeah… I'm certain that they're just simple creatures like us, but they were simply born to be too powerful."
From what they could see, Yuki was carrying Enne (Sword) on his shoulder. In other words, he had completely released his combat stance and was chatting happily with that dragon.
As they watched, it seemed that Enne (Sword form) was also speaking with that dragon as their gazes moved their focus to Enne's main body.
Yuki's ability to adapt in such situations was outstanding. Moreover, he never let his guard down when he was with his family, and especially with the little girls.
For their part, they would like Yuki to have that alertness even when he was alone, but they couldn't help but accept that it was just the way he was.
Yuki's guards, who had been standing nearby intending to guard the girls, were extremely nervous and asked suspiciously as they saw the two girls begin to relax in an easily understood manner.
"Oh, um…madams, is everything all right?"
"Yes, Onii-san – our husband seems to have let his guard down, so it seems that the dragon is not the enemy. So, I don't think it's necessary to be on guard anymore."
"…If that is true, then we can relax…"
Unlike the girls, guards did not know much about the dragon race and Yuki, so they could not believe those words and responded with a twitchy look on their faces.
Nell and Lyuu looked at each other and thought, "Well, that's just things go." as they look at the reaction of the guards.
However, all of a sudden, a bombardment was fired at the dragon from the airship…
***
[Heeeeh…I see…a construct in the air, I never thought about that. Have humans made that much progress already?]
"Ah, well, something like that."
It would be complicated to discuss my previous life, so I answered in a subtle and deceptive way.
…And it was certainly knowledge that humans have discovered!
I told her about my knowledge of airships and, slightly sidetracked, about as much science and technology as I knew, which seemed to satisfy the Ancient Dragon Cicerius.
After making a gesture as if ruminating on the story, she responded.
[Yes… interesting, I heard a good story. The world outside is interesting, after all.]
"Haha, yes. I think so, too."
[Okay, I'm sorry. I'm the only one asking. Do you have any questions you'd like to ask? I'll tell you everything I know. I can teach you about the greatest magic that can smash mountains, or the forbidden art that turns everything into sand.]
"Nah, it's okay."
…As expected of the Dragon race, huh?
I let out a wry smile and continued speaking.
"Wait, there is one thing… have you ever heard of Dominus?"
[Dominus? Yeah, I know that name. It's the name of the primordial god, isn't it?]
So she knew.
I guess it's commonly known in the Dragon Tribe.
"I'm out there right now, trying to find out about it. Do you know anything about it?"
[Well, I only know a little… Those creatures called Gods… simply existed before everything was created.]
"Creatures?"
She nodded head.
[In the past, so far back that even the dragon tribe had difficulty tracing it, more than a dozen of those who were called gods certainly lived in this world. Apparently, they have already disappeared.]
"…The Gods disappeared?"
[I'm only guessing from descriptions that have been left behind. Yes, they disappeared. That's why I called them living creatures. If someone cannot escape the absolute law of death, even if they have a higher power than us, then they would still be considered as "Creatures or Living Beings". In other words, living organisms, right?]
…I see.
It was a bit academic, but God was a creature named God… and they certainly existed.
To assert it so clearly, there must be something, some evidence to confirm this.
[And Dominus is the object of worship by those gods… I mean was. When talking about the primordial gods, the goddess Gaia is sometimes mentioned at the same time, but it seems that even Gaia also worshiped Dominus.]
…It was fortunate that I met her here.
It was an unexpected opportunity to hear a good story.
I was about to ask her more questions, but my crisis-sensing skills suddenly activated!
It was not from the dragon in front of me.
It was from the airship behind me.
"Ahh!"
My body moved before I was aware of it.
Turning my whole body around, I captured the air with my wings and swung Enne, still in its scabbard, with all my might.
Enne herself adjusted the blade in precise timing, and without even looking at the object approaching me, I crushed it.
The momentum of the attacking object was killed by force, and what fell down while spinning around and around was a huge metallic arrow.
I was certain that this was the armament of the airship.
There must have been several ballistas similar to those used to deal with demons.
Just as I was thinking this, several metal arrows were shot at me again.
This time, I had more time to spare, so I used primordial magic to create a storm barrier and repelled them all.
[I was so excited that I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. Was that an attack on me? Or was that an attack on you?]
The Ancient Dragon Cicerius, seemingly not feeling the least bit threatened, said curiously.
"…From the angle, it's probably not me. I asked her not to do anything… sigh"
[Oh, I'm sorry. Did I scare them?]
She apologized.
…were you fine with being targeted like that?
Did they unintentionally take preemptive action because of the extreme nervousness, even though I told them explicitly what I was going to do?
…
"Sorry, I'm worried about what's going on over there. I really wanted to talk to you more…"
[Ahh, don't worry about it. I'll be waiting for you here.]
I flew back to the airship as quickly as I could.