Azura wasn't so fond of flying too high and seems to be shocked after arriving home. I'm not quite sure if she was expecting somewhere else...?
Everyone else was happy at her return as well, happy enough to forget me for a while. Being forgotten is fine, if they forget me then they can't fear me.
I just hoped this would be enough to show them I'm not some big evil monster.
Shiba seemed to already know that even though no one else has said anything yet. That's about to change since an older Lupri is approaching.
Well, one of those Ralei guys called them Lupri at least.
"I suppose it's okay to let you stay, if just for the sake of these two pups wishes. But definitely not looking like that!" The older Lupri exclaims.
"What am I supposed to do then? I can't really change how I look."
I can't use my transformation with this scar until I can heal it, and the magic in this place seems like it would interfere anyway.
"I know someone with the perfect magic for this, you'll need to have him maintain it on you while you stay here. We can't have you being so big that all the children are too scared to come out. Follow me." The old Lupri says.
"Oh. I guess that makes sense." I mumble.
I follow along until I'm brought up to a shabby hut with a lot of miniature sculptures and objects laying around.
There are also some oversized wood statues that look like they were hand carved by a giant.
"Come on out, Lansel. We need your help with something." The older Lupri calls.
"What is it? And- Why have you brought that dragon with you? Don't tell me you expect me to-?" The raggedy figure replies.
"Yes, please try to make the dragon a reasonable size."
Without much further conversation, I'm suddenly enveloped in a dark layer of magic that blocks out my vision for a few moments.
It's a little scary, but when I open my eyes again, everything is so much bigger!
Or maybe it's more accurate to say that I've gotten smaller?
When I look down I can instantly recognize that I've been shrunk down to the size of a baby dragon again. The best part is that there isn't even any kind of cramped feeling to it like there is when I'm using a transformation spell.
I bounced around happily until it suddenly hit me what the biggest drawback was going to be...
I don't even need to see my reflection to know how cute I look now, and it's already taking its toll.
"Oh! You're so cute! Is it okay to call you that? It's a good thing isn't it?" Shiba squeals like he's dying while looking at me.
"I'm not!" I complain.
With this, at least the adults aren't hiding from me anymore.
The beast-like appearances take some getting used to, but I'm starting to get a familiar feeling from this place...
Everything was finally calm, and as if it was jinxed, a small Lupri boy comes running out from one of the homes carrying a strange mushy substance.
He zooms right for me and then bounces around right in front of me, and apparently he didn't have the same idea of a dragon the rest seemed to have.
"Wow! The dragons from the book are real!" He rings obnoxiously while staring at me with blank wonder filled eyes.
I look around for someone to save me, but no one seems to care.
I start inching away and he makes sure to pull me back.
No one is helping! Someone save me!
It's useless... I can't use violence on some little boy.
"Yummy, doesn't the baby want food?" The boy keeps annoying me and trying to get my attention onto the mush he's holding.
It smells very unappetizing and I don't want it. But who the hell are you calling a baby?!
I'm trying not to even say anything-- I can't even say anything.
The instant I open my mouth he's trying to shove that slop he's carrying into it, making a mess on my face in the process.
"Stop that! I don't want it!" I scorn firmly, but he ignores it as if I said nothing and keeps going until some of it gets in.
It's so bitter and nasty, how can they really eat that?!
Am I being punished for something?!
"Look mommy! I found a baby dragon!" He runs to boast about his achievement while I sneak away with Shiba.
"Sorry about him. No one taught him what a dragon is yet, just some pictures in a book." He apologizes.
"As long as the rest don't get the wrong idea about my age..."
As we toured the village, there were many that appeared to be worn out or starving.
It was clear there wasn't even much food to go around here.
"Don't you have a way to feed yourselves? What's with the atmosphere around here?"
"There aren't many beasts weak enough for us to hunt. This is just a normal day." Shiba replies, unperturbed by the sight.
"What? That's not normal at all! I can easily handle that much!" I proclaim. I was often in charge of handling hunting back home too.
"Wait a minute! You don't even know what's out there and you want to go out in that small form?" Shiba tries to halt me, but I refuse knowing I can't let them all live such a miserable existence.
Being bullied by stronger inhabitants of this world is enough, why does starving need to be added on to it?
I've been through worse, I think if I was able to take on a demon lord I should be able to handle whatever is out there... Maybe.
Perhaps others back home would think bad of me for caring about people living in this world, considering the invaders came from here.
But it doesn't mean everyone here was involved in it.
"I'll be back soon!" I announce before I outrun him and finally get far enough away that I can't see the village anymore.
For what seemed to be a desert, there sure were a lot of strange looking 'trees'.
I pushed past some that were close together instead of going around, and with the help of my senses barely dodged a spiky branch launching out like some kind of trap.
That was close! I almost got done in by a plant after everything I've been through...
But really, my ability to sense things like that seem like they've gotten much worse, normally that shouldn't have been so close.
How long does this size magic last? I hope I don't have to go back and have it redone right away.
Everything is so scary here, I'd want to take over somewhere more pleasant too if I were born here.
So far I haven't seen anything yet, and if I'm to be honest, the reddish hue of the sky in this world makes everything so hard to see.
Trying to easily tell colors apart is out of the question, even this stream I stumbled on is hard to see the bottom of...
I stare into the water for a minute before the surface explodes into the air.
I roll out of the way just in time to witness a huge snake lunging out of the water at me.
So scary! But snakes aren't that bad, thankfully I don't have a snake phobia, as long as it's not a giant bug I'm fine!
I need to practice using this different magic anyway, since I can't just solve my problems with OP spells anymore.
Once again it charges at me in a predictable fashion, opening its mouth to try to bite me.
Clearly it's not scared of a dragon, or maybe it's mistaking me for a young one that can't fight back.
I put all my concentration on forming a wall in front of me, and the huge snake slams into it with a loud thwack.
The impact on the wall sends a mental pain through my head, reminding me that it's not free. Either way I can't let this go to waste, and I dart forward to attack.
I manage to get in range, but only manage to graze it with my claws.
How can a snake dodge so well?
I was preparing to attack again, but the snake suddenly slumped over and started slithering weakly.
Huh?! Are you playing dead?!
That little graze shouldn't have done any damage, yet it seems to be defenseless. I'm not venomous though?
I wait there suspiciously as it stops moving, expecting it to be playing dead or something. But no, it's really dead.
It escapes me how it died, though. All I did was graze it a little.
One possibility could be that since Mana is incompatible with this place it acts as poison in their body? It's not too unreasonable of an assumption considering how much my own Mana reacts with the environment. I'd need to test that out more to be sure.
Carrying the corpse all the way back is a difficult task, it tires me out to drag the long snake body for such a long distance. Wouldn't be a problem if I wanted to just get rid of this shrink effect on me, though I don't know how to do that right now and don't want to bother them to do it again.
By the time I finally get to the village, I just want to sleep all day.
I owe them for saving me, but I still have to move forward and deal with the second demon lord instead of just living here forever.
Of course, Shiba was waiting there already.
"Wow, a SeaViper! How did you manage to kill it with just this little cut?"
"I'm not sure myself." I replied, brushing off the praise.
I'm not sure about eating snakes... But if it keeps them from starving I guess they don't care what it is.
I don't really know how to cook anything, even from my last life I didn't really cook at all. So all I could really do was watch them do it.
Just watching it be roasted is making me hungry too, but being thanked for something is always nice.
Well, I should start heading for my goal tomorrow...
So much to do and I need a map to even find where I'm going.
I might as well enjoy this peaceful setting while I can, it might be the last time I can feel this level of peace again.