Fafnir was quietly lost in thought as he watched Kaito and his group
walk off towards the Special Monster Race's racetrack.
(…That White Dragon's magic power has dramatically increased
compared to before… The speed of the increase is much faster than I had
expected. She must have been eating food with a very high density of
magic power.)
Thinking about the fact that Lindwurm's magic power was greater than
the last they had met, Fafnir remembered the words he had once
exchanged with that White Dragon.
At the aviary of the Flying Dragon Flight, Mary, the Flying Dragon
Services' President, was carrying a lot of food. With her connection with
Kaito, she had made a contract with the Dragon King Maganwell, and
many Dragons had gathered in his place.
Many of these Dragons were already recognized as Demons, and
honestly, many of them had higher positions than Mary. That's why she
arranged for the refurbishment of her aviary, and even the food she
served to them was switched to high quality, ensuring that there would
be no disrespect.
The expenses she had now became considerably higher, but as the
rumor of her Flying Dragon Services, where one can ride a Baron-level,
high-ranking Demon, had quickly spread around the world, the
reservations for her services were already full. After calculating her
expenses, it can be said that she's profiting enough.
[…Mary-dono, please allow me to help with carrying that.]
[N- No! There's no way I can bother Fafnir-sama with things like this…]
[You don't have to be that stiff, I have been asked by Magnawell-sama to
support you as well as organize the Dragons. I'm sure it's tough being
surrounded by so many High-ranking Dragons, so please feel free to rely
on me.]
[T- Thank you.]
After saying this in a calm and polite tone, Fafnir used Humanization
Magic to change into a humanoid form. He then took the luggage that
Mary was carrying and began to help her.
Fafnir, who has taken the form of a black-haired man, looked so
charmingly beautiful and masculine that even Mary, who is married,
unconsciously blushed.
Thereupon, they heard what seemed to be a flustered squeal.
[Kyuuu!? Kyukuaahhh!? Kyukkuii, kyuiii!]
[…Lindwurm?]
[Hoohhh… So you're the White Dragon Miyama-dono talked about
huh…]
Mary tilted her head as she saw the White Dragon directly flying
towards Fafnir with her small wings. Hearing her cries, Fafnir looked
like he was thinking for a bit.
Then, looking at Lindwurm who had come near her, Fafnir spoke with a
slow, majestic tone.
[And so, White Dragon? What exactly do you mean by "that"?]
Fafnir spoke politely to Mary, a human, but when the other party was a
Dragon, it was a different story. After all, if a lower-ranked Dragon were
to underestimate him, it would bring down Magnawell's reputation.
This is why Fafnir treats below with majesty befitting of the "Dragon's
2nd strongest".
[Kyukyuuiii, kyuiii, kyukyuiii!]
[…Humanization Magic huh? You want to learn how to do this?]
[Kyuii!]
[Well, it's impossible.]
[Kyuuaah!?]
As a Human, Mary doesn't understand what Lindwurm is saying, but
Fafnir, who is a fellow Dragon, understands exactly what she's saying.
Hearing Lindwurm telling him that she wanted to learn Humanization
Magic, Fafnir brushed off her request.
[Humanization Magic is an extremely advanced form of magic. You, who
is still classified as a monster instead of a Demon, wouldn't be able to
use it.]
[Kyuu… Kyuii, kyukuruu.]
[…I don't know. Why do you even want to Humanize so badly? Having
this form is just convenient for diplomacy. This isn't as powerful as our
original form, and there isn't much advantage in it.]
[Kyukyukuiii, kyuikkyuaaa, kyukkuiikuiii!]
[…Fumu.]
The only Dragons that can be called Demons are those with a certain
level of wisdom and magic power. However, Lindwurm's race, the White
Dragons, is classified as a Monster, not a Demon.
However, Lindwurm is not convinced and starts telling something to
Fafnir, as if she is appealing for something.
[…Your mate is a Human… and so, you want to become one with him…
What an unusual child you are.]
From Fafnir's point of view, Lindwurm was a very strange fellow. In the
first place, Dragons and Humans have very different appearances, and
Humans basically aren't supposed to be considered as love interests for
a Dragon. Fafnir also couldn't evaluate Humans in terms of their looks,
not seeing how a Human could be pretty or ugly.
Dragons like them could only recognize Humans as a species different
from themselves.
However, Lindwurm recognized Kaito as her mate, clearly looking at him
as a love interest. Moreover, she even said that she wanted to become
Human in order to become one with the Human, Kaito.
[…Interesting. Should I say that this is also Miyama-dono's strength?…
Even Magnawell-sama likes him. If it's related to Miyama-dono, I guess I
can lend you some help.]
[Kyuii?]
[…What I'm saying is that I'm going to teach you Humanization Magic.]
[Kyuaahh!!!]
[However, it's impossible for the current you. To begin with, you don't
have the magic power to use it. Rather, to be able to use Humanization
Magic, you need to have magic power enough for you to be called a
Demon.]
[…Kyuu… Kyuaaa…]
Fafnir's words made Lindwurm look happy for a moment, but hearing
the latter half of his words, she sullenly slumped down.
[Don't be so discouraged. It's not like I'm saying there was no way for
you to achieve this.]
[Kyuu?]
[Listen carefully, White Dragon. For a few years from now, you'll be in
your "magic power growth period". During this time, you should eat as
much "food with magic power" as possible. It should be as densely
packed with as much magic power as possible. That way, your magic
power will greatly increase.]
[Kyuuu, kyukuuiiii!]
[I know that It wouldn't be easy but… if you can raise your magic power
to a level where you can call yourself a Demon… I'll teach you
Humanization Magic.]
[Kyuii! Kyukkyukkyuiii!!!]
[…I see, then exert effort as hard as you can.]
A few days after that conversation, Lindwurm was taken in by Kaito and
left the Flying Dragon Service's aviary.
And Lindwurm, who had remembered Fafnir-san's advice well… It
wasn't until some time later that she set her eyes on the Fruits of the
World Tree and began to extort Kaito of them at every opportunity she
saw.
Slightly smiling after remembering the past, Fafnir started walking away.
(…Even though I said that, I thought it would take her 5 years. That
child's inability to persevere is troubling, but from the looks of it, it
seems like she's doing her best.)
He smiled again, remembering Lindwurm who asked him to teach her
Humanization Magic when they had just met again. It's true that her
magic power is growing faster than Fafnir could have imagined, but it's
still about the same as an adult dragon… Not enough for her to learn
Humanization Magic.
(Well, I guess I don't have to worry about that. Miyama-dono must really
care about that White Dragon. For him to feed her something that
managed to increase her magic power that much… There's no way that it
would be cheap. Fufufu, interesting… For a Dragon and Human to have
feelings for each other and become family…)
To Fafnir, Kaito was just someone that Magnawell was friends with, and
he had a strong sense of respect for him.
However, after that incident with Lindwurm back in the aviary, he
himself had become curious about Kaito.
(…Even so, umu… A love story between a human and a dragon huh… I
guess I've lived long enough for me to see something like this. For now,
I'll just wait and see… Until that time when you can be called a Demon,
Lindwurm…)
The sight of a Human and a Dragon walking hand in hand, just like
husband and wife. Imagining such a future, a gentle smile appeared on
Fafnir's lips.