"This is awful..." I muttered.
On our way back down to the ground, I could see the state Dracul was
left in. It was pretty bad.
The stream that was near Naden's cave had become swollen and
muddied, and rivers everywhere overflowed, flooding the plains.
Dracul's climate had always been controlled by Madam Tiamat, and it
looked like she never considered drainage. Given how strong the dragons
were, it was doubtful that any of them had died due to the flooding, but the
brown, muddied rivers had ruined the once-beautiful scenery.
"Do you think Liscia and the others are all right?" I asked.
"I'm worried, but if anything comes up, I'm sure Ruby will fly back up
here," Naden said.
"I'm sure the dragons can fly now, after all," Aisha agreed. "No news
is good news."
With Naden and Aisha saying that to cheer me up, we headed for
Crystal Castle where Liscia and the others were waiting. Though the level
of the lake surrounding Crystal Castle had risen, and it covered a wider
area, there was no sign of any change to the castle itself. It might have
been designed like a floating island.
We set down on the ground while I was still feeling relieved to see that,
and Liscia and the others rushed over to us immediately.
"Souma!" Liscia immediately hugged me. "Thank goodness... you're
all right..."
"I'm glad to see you're okay, too." I returned Liscia's embrace, and
stroked the hair on the back of her head. I was really glad to see her all
right.
Once we had held each other for a while, Liscia let go and, with a
slightly angry look on her face, said, "Geez, you had me worried, you
know? There were flashes up in the clouds, and then explosions. If Halbert
and Ruby hadn't gone up there, I was about ready to put a propeller on the
gondola and head up there myself, okay?"
Launching the gondola?! That would have been way too reckless.
"I-I'm sorry to make you worry," I said. "So please, don't do anything
so dangerous."
"Look who's talking!" Liscia pulled on my cheek.
She... kind of had a point.
Still, she'd have come after me herself... huh. I thought Liscia had been
acting more like the soon-to-be first primary queen, but you could still see
bits of her tomboyish side at times like this. Well, that was who Liscia
was, and I loved her for it.
Then Liscia abandoned me, and turned to Aisha and Naden. "I'm glad
you two are safe, too."
"Of course we are! I got Souma there unharmed, just like I was
supposed to," Naden bragged, puffing up her not-so-ample bosom with
pride.
Aisha, who was much better endowed, let hers fall with a sigh of relief.
"All I did was cut down bombs, but it's good to see things turned out all
right."
While watching the three of them, I turned to Carla, who had walked
over, and asked her a question. "Was there any damage down here on the
surface?"
"No. Thanks to Sir Halbert warning us of the danger, the dragons were
able to intercept the falling objects, so there was no notable damage.
Liscia, Madam Kaede, and I were using magic enchanted bows to intercept
the things, too. But..." Carla averted her eyes. It looked there was
something she was having trouble telling me.
"Did something happen?"
"No... But something is about to, I'm sure." When she said that, she
glanced behind her.
Following her line of sight, I found Kaede with her arms crossed and an
imposing smile, and Hal kneeling in front of her. Ruby was behind him
acting flustered.
Huh? What? It looked like he was in trouble.
"Hal, do you understand what you did?" Kaede said, looking down at
Hal without dropping her smile. "You rode on the back of an unmarried
dragon, you know? You know what that means, right?"
"No, um... I-I had no idea! Not that they only let those they were going
to take as their husbands on their backs, or that not letting other men ride
them was a mark of chastity!" Hal desperately explained himself, sweating
bullets.
Ooh, now that he mentioned it, Naden said something like that. Could
Hal have ridden Ruby without knowing anything? That was like stealing a
kiss from an unmarried woman, or something along those lines. I wasn't
wrong when I thought he was in trouble.
"For reference, what happens if he rode her without knowing in
advance?" I asked Naden, who had a troubled look on her face and
scratched her cheek.
"Hm... If he forms a contract with her, there's no problem, but if she
tries to form a contract with someone else while he's still alive, she'll be
seen as "easy" or a tramp. If she can't form a contract with Halbert, Ruby
might not be able to form a contract for another eighty years."
Even if all they were doing was letting people ride on their backs, the
dragons apparently had a very strict sense of chastity.
Kaede shrugged in disbelief. "Even if you didn't know about it before,
if you listened to His Majesty and Madam Naden when they were talking,
you would have known this, you know?"
"No, I do think I messed up here! But, Kaede, back then... you never
stopped me from riding her!"
"Because it was a crisis," she snapped. "Knowing you, I had my doubts
that you were aware of what you were doing, but given the situation, I
decided to accept it, you know. Yes, even though we just got engaged the
other day."
"Ulp..."
Oh, Hal and Kaede were engaged, huh? Congratulations. Well, they
were childhood friends, after all, and I expected it to happen eventually, so
I wasn't surprised, but... if that was the case, this couldn't have happened
at a worse time.
Kaede sighed, and her shoulders slumped. "And what? You didn't
know? What about Ruby, who you took for a ride? She can't attend the
Contract Ceremony anymore. If you don't take responsibility, she'll be
alone for as long as you're alive, you know! Are you planning to waste
decades of a girl's life?"
"U-Um... Kaede," Ruby ventured. "I was ready to accept that when I..."
"You shut up, Ruby!"
"Y-Yes, ma'am..." Ruby hastily stepped aside.
"To think she could shut down Ruby with one shout..." Naden chose a
weird thing to be impressed by.
Normally Kaede was the hesitant type, but when it was time to stand
her ground, nothing could frighten her. Like when Hal tried to go join
Georg. That it usually involved Hal was a sign of how deep her love for
him was.
At this point, Carla whispered in my ear, "Um, Master, is it okay for us
not to stop them?"
"Do you think anything I say is going to be persuasive?" I murmured
back. "Even if there were circumstances involved, I'm trying to form a
contract with Naden when I already have four fiancées."
"...I suppose you have a point there." Carla scooted away from me.
Yeah... that was about the reaction I should have expected.
Raising a finger next to her temple, Kaede declared, "It looks like I
have no choice, you know. Please, do right by her."
"You're okay with that, Kaede?" Halbert asked weakly.
"I'll let it slide this time. I need to think about what's best for the
House of Magna from here on. If all I'm considering is how to grow the
House of Magna, forming a contract with a dragon like Ruby isn't a bad
thing. If you're a dragon knight, you'll be viewed with deference by
enemy and ally alike, and that should be helpful to you when you go to
war. I can accept it as a benefit to my house."
"Kaede..."
"But this is the last time I want to see you picking up other wives
because you went with the flow!"
"Uh, right... I'll take that to heart."
"Th-Thank you so much, Kaede." Ruby bowed her head to Kaede in
relief.
Hal seemed like he couldn't raise his head out of deference to her. It
looked like Kaede managed to show her forbearance as the head wife,
while placing herself above Hal and Ruby. Now Hal would never be able
to talk back to her about domestic affairs. Just like me.
Now that I thought of it, Grandpa once said, "The secret to a happy
household is to be clever about how you end up under your wife's thumb."
Even my grandma, who was always smiling, had given my grandpa hell
when he misbehaved when they were younger.
Were Liscia and the others going to get like that eventually...? I felt like
I'd seen signs of it.
"You're thinking something rude, aren't you?" Liscia asked, giving me
a cold look. She was apparently on to me.
"Oh, no... I was just thinking we should ask Madam Tiamat to sort out
the matter with Ruby... or something like that," I said hastily. "Yeah."
"Hm..." Liscia looked at me with her usual dubiousness.
Uh, time to change the topic.
"Oh, right. Where'd the other dragons go? Carla was saying they were
intercepting things from the ground."
"Hm? Oh, that's right. The dragon priestesses left a message for you."
Liscia clapped her hands as if she just remembered.
"A message?"
"'Please, come to the great hall,' they said. It sounds like Madam
Tiamat is waiting for you there."
"I see... Well, shall we go then?"
Madam Tiamat was waiting... huh. I had a mountain of questions, but
how many of them would she answer?
We entered Crystal Castle and headed for the great hall.
"Huh?!"
En route, when we entered the corridor to the great hall, there were
dragons in human form lined up along both sides of the corridor. When we
approached, the dragons all took a knee and bowed their heads. They were
like peasants welcoming a daimyo's procession.
"Wh-What?! What's going on?!" Naden exclaimed.
"All the dragons have gathered to bow to someone..." Ruby whispered.
When they saw that scene, Naden and Ruby voiced their surprise and
awe. It was a familiar scene for Liscia, Aisha, and me, since we lived in a
castle, but it was a bizarre sight for the rest of the group. I was scared to
realize I'd gotten used to this at some point.
While I was thinking about that, a dragon priestess appeared from
between the kneeling dragons. She bowed before us.
"Lady Tiamat awaits you in the great hall. Would King Souma,
Princess Liscia, and their vassals please follow me?"
With that said, the dragon priestess walked down the corridor lined
with kneeling dragons. Following her lead, we reached the great hall
where, just as when I first arrived in the Star Dragon Mountain Range, the
mountainous silver dragon that was Madam Tiamat was waiting.
The members of the group who were seeing her for the first time
gulped in unison.
"Whoa, she's huge... Ow!" Halbert yelped.
"You have to be quiet, you know, Hal," Kaede hissed as she stepped on
Hal's foot.
Then Madam Tiamat lowered her long thick neck.
When they saw that, Naden and Ruby's eyes bugged out.
"No way, Lady Tiamat is bowing!" Naden yelped.
"Wh-What a great honor!" Ruby cried.
Oh, so that was her bowing her head. She was so big that I couldn't tell.
If Madam Tiamat, who the dragons of the Star Dragon Mountain Range
looked up to as a mother, and the practitioners of Mother Dragon worship
saw as a god, was bowing her head in our direction, yeah, I could see why
they'd be shocked. Madam Tiamat slowly lifted her head and began
speaking in a quiet tone.
"First, King Souma of the United Kingdom of Elfrieden and Amidonia,
as representative of those who live in the Star Dragon Mountain Range,
and as the mother of all dragons, let me give you my greatest thanks for
your efforts to resolve the crisis facing Dracul." Madam Tiamat bowed her
head again. "Furthermore, allow me to also thank those who accompanied
you for their efforts. Naden, Ruby, you did well, too."
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
"You're too kind!"
Naden and Ruby had taken a knee and were bowing their heads.
I took a step forward, and spoke as a representative of the group.
"Please, raise your head. I can't imagine this was a problem that affected
your country alone. Once the thing in that cloud causing the storm finished
destroying Dracul, there was no telling where it would head next. It might
have harmed my own country, too. It was only natural that I should
cooperate."
Then, after pausing to take a breath, I cut to the heart of the matter.
"I'd say that's enough for our pleasantries as the heads of two states,
Madam Tiamat. I have a lot I want to ask you."
Tiamat, who raised her head, nodded as if in agreement. "I know.
However, there is not much I am able to say."
"That's fine. You only have to tell me what you can, so please
explain."
"...Okay."
With that, Madam Tiamat was engulfed in light, and she took the form
of a woman wearing a silver robe, just like last time. I closed my eyes due
to the brightness, and when I opened them, a large round table and enough
chairs for everyone present had appeared.
Madam Tiamat put a hand on one of the chairs, and encouraged the rest
of us to take a seat. "It must be hard to talk while looking up. Please, be
seated."
"You have a point," I nodded.
Once I saw that everyone sat down, I asked Madam Tiamat, "Let me
cut straight to the point. What was that thing in the cloud that caused the
storm?"
"That is... not something I have authorization to answer."
I knew it: the authority issue was going to get in the way. But I couldn't
just back down.
"You can just tell me what you're able to, and if this... authorization
makes it hard for you to say something, you can be vague, but give us as
much information as you can."
"Let's see... It is, like me, one of the Old Ones."
O-Old Ones? Old... Were they like gods, maybe?
"Each of the Old Ones has a duty," said Tiamat. "Mine is 'to watch
over,' its is 'to create.' Normally, the Old Ones are not supposed to
interact, and the Old Ones are to do their utmost to avoid influencing the
New Ones. However, that thing broke free of its bonds, and tried to bring
harm to my children. While this is unforgivable, it also shows how badly
that thing wanted to..."
"W-Wait, hold on a second." I stopped Madam Tiamat, who was
quickly going through her story.
Fair enough; I asked for as much information as she could give, and I
said she could be vague where she had to, but if she was just going to keep
going without us really understanding, we would only be left with no clue
as to what she said. Maybe I needed to question her about the details.
Also, it would probably be best to have one of the Factory Arms I left
my consciousness in back in the castle take notes so I could go over them
later. I wanted to consult with Hakuya, too.
"What are the 'Old Ones'?" I asked.
"Those with a different origin than the New Ones who live on this
continent."
"You're one of these Old Ones, Madam Tiamat? What about the other
dragons?"
"I am the only Old One in the Star Dragon Mountain Range."
It seemed Madam Tiamat really was a being on a different level from
the rest of the dragon race.
"Are there any Old Ones other than you and the cube?" I asked.
"There were, at one time. However, that thing and I are the only ones
left. The other Old Ones vanished with time, leaving their names behind as
godbeasts, and other such things."
"Did you say godbeasts?!" Aisha yelled out in surprise. "In my
homeland, the God-Protected Forest, there is a legend that says a godbeast
is protecting the forest."
"That would be the forest of the dark elves in Friedonia. It's true, there
was once an Old One who took the form of a serow in that forest."
The "once" in what Madam Tiamat said made Aisha grasp her head.
"What... am I supposed to think about this?" she burst out. "Should I be
happy that it once existed? Or should I be sad that it no longer does?"
"W-Well, isn't that what faith is like?" I asked.
"Oh... Should I tell my people the truth about this?" she asked
hesitantly.
"...Let's talk with Wodan before we decide that."
It was a being no one claimed to have seen for a very long time, so
even if it didn't exist now, that wasn't going to raise any problems for it as
an object of worship. After all, gods were always a thing where you never
knew if they were real or not, but it would be nice if they were.
But, still... Old Ones and New Ones, huh? Was it time that separated
the new from the old? The flow of time in this world? If so... what did that
make me, who had come from outside that time?
"No. You are neither," Madam Tiamat said, as if to answer my doubts
before I could ask.
Oh, right, Madam Tiamat could read my mind, couldn't she?
"I thought I was human, like Liscia and the others," I said.
"Yes. Your race is most certainly human. However, you cannot be
categorized as a New One like the rest of the human race."
"Is that because I was summoned from another world?"
"...I can find no way to answer that."
"The cube called me a familiar one," I said. "And you yourself once
called me 'You who have a familiar smell.'"
In that dream where our consciousnesses were synchronized, Madam
Tiamat brought her nose close to my chest, and called me, "You who have
a familiar smell."
At first, I thought it was because she was comparing me to the first
King of Elfrieden, who I heard had also been a hero summoned from
another world, and who had formed a contract with a dragon from the Star
Dragon Mountain Range. However, that cube in the cloud also called me a
"familiar one."
That cube had no connection to the first hero.
Furthermore, Madam Tiamat and the cube, who both called me
"familiar," were also both Old Ones. I was human, but didn't fall into the
category of New One, and the Old Ones called me familiar. That meant...
"Could it be I'm an "Even Older One," or something like that?" I put
forth.
"What do you mean?" Liscia asked, so I decided to explain my
hypothesis.
"I think maybe this world and the world I came from are on the same
temporal axis. Basically, that would mean this isn't a different world for
me."
"Souma's... not a hero from another world?" Liscia mumbled with a
look of shock on her face.
Everyone seemed confused by my statement, but I was more
bewildered than any of them. The inside of my head was utter chaos. But it
added up in a lot of ways.
"If I think back, there are a lot of connections to the world I was in
before. It's most obvious with names. Tomoe and Kaede come from my
former country's language, Japanese."
"Th-They do?" Kaede's eyes went wide.
I nodded and said, "Yeah. Kaede was the name of a plant that turned
red in autumn. The red leaves looked pretty in the setting sun, and girls
were often named after it."
"I knew it was a common name among families with ties to the NineHeaded Dragon Archipelago Union, but... I never knew it came from a
plant."
They were using it without knowing that? I looked at Madam Tiamat.
"Also... the one that caught my attention the most, Madam Tiamat, was
your name."
Tiamat was silent.
"I only know this from games and such, but Tiamat was the name of a
dragon that appeared in old legends in my world. And, what do you know,
the Mother Dragon who rules over the dragons in this world is also called
Tiamat. If the name is so fitting, I'm not about to write it off as
happenstance. Weren't you given the name Tiamat because you were the
Mother Dragon?"
Madam Tiamat neither confirmed nor denied. She must not have had
the authority to. If that was the case, then wasn't it because my thinking
was on the mark?
Take the overscience relics from the dungeons that Genia was studying,
for instance. The jewels used in the Jewel Voice Broadcast were total
overtechnology from the point of view of a society whose technological
level approximated the end of the middle ages, and they still were by the
standards of the world I'd come from. But if this was the world of the
future, there was at least some explanation for it.
However, it only raised more questions.
If I were to assume the two worlds were connected on the same
timeline, what on Earth could have turned that scientific world into a
world of sword and sorcery? Besides, there were more than just humans in
this world. There were a variety of races: beastmen, elves, dragonewts, and
more.
How were all of them born?
What exactly were this world, magic, overscience, other races,
monsters, and demons...?
I didn't have one clear answer to any of it. This was no good. The
matter had gotten too big to resolve inside my one, tiny little head.
"The answer to your questions may become clear in time." Madam
Tiamat's quiet voice came to me as I was holding my head in confusion. "I
cannot tell you everything, but if you wish to learn of this world, I am sure
you will eventually find the truth."
"Is that... a prophecy?" I asked.
"No. This is a wish."
"A wish?" I asked, but Tiamat simply gave me a soft, lonely smile.
"Eventually, you will arrive at the truth, and then go north, to where
that child awaits you."
Ultimately, all I'd learned from my conversation with Tiamat was that
this world might be on the same timeline as my own. Even when I'd asked
for more, Madam Tiamat hadn't answered.
Obviously, looking at the shape of the continent, I wasn't going to have
an "It was Earth all along!" moment, but... while, when it came to that
cube and how this world came about, I had to imagine the world I came
from was involved in some way, I was left frustrated, unable to come up
with a clear explanation.
Even after being led from the great hall to what seemed to be a waiting
room, I was going over our conversation in my head while sitting on the
comfy couch.
"Eventually, you will arrive at the truth, and then go north, to where
that child awaits you."
Augh, what did she mean "the truth"? I couldn't help but let it bother
me. If I didn't have a country resting on my shoulders, I'd have started
flying around everywhere, looking for traces of the past world.
"Are you letting what Madam Tiamat said bother you?" Liscia asked,
resting her head on my shoulder.
"...Well, yeah. It involves my origin, so I can't very well not."
"That's true. But, Souma, you're you... and you're also the king."
Liscia put her hand on top of mine. "As king, you have the ability to move
people. The people's literacy rate is on the rise, and you've gathered so
many intelligent people to work for you. So... don't try to carry the burden
all by yourself. No matter who you are, where you're from, or what
happened to your world, I will accept you."
"Liscia..."
"Though, I'm also saying that selfishly, because I want you to stay as
king." Liscia gave me a mischievous smile as she said that.
Aisha, who was sitting on the opposite side of Liscia, leaned in close
enough that our shoulders were touching. "Indeed! No matter who you are,
sire, we're with you!"
"Aisha... Thanks. Both of you."
With their encouragement, I felt like I could finally relax my shoulders
a bit.
Meanwhile, Hal was sitting on the couch across from us, with a look on
his face that was half exasperation and half admiration. "I'm amazed you
can get such a syrupy sweet mood going with two partners, Souma."
Kaede was sitting next to him, clinging to him closely, and, for lack of
other spots, Carla was sitting on the same couch, feeling a little awkward.
Halbert sighed, then started scratching his head. "For me... it still
doesn't feel real that I'm taking Ruby as my bride. I mean, sure, political
marriages are normal in the noble and knightly classes, but I already have
Kaede. We were childhood friends, and... well... I wanted to make her my
wife, eventually."
Is he going to brag about her? I thought, but I stayed quiet and
listened.
"But now I've gone and decided on a second wife."
"Oh... I'm happy for you, Hal," I said. "I'm glad Madam Tiamat
accepted the situation with you and Ruby."
At the very end of the earlier conference, I apologized to Madam
Tiamat for the fact that Hal rode on an unwed dragon like Ruby. Even
though it ultimately was to Dracul's advantage, it was something my
subordinate had done without sufficient thought, so I gave a proper
apology to prevent a diplomatic incident.
Madam Tiamat smiled at Hal and Ruby. "I am sure this bond was also
fate." Then she lowered her head for Hal, too. "Sir Halbert. I leave Ruby in
your care, until the day you die."
When the being worshiped as Mother Dragon bowed her head to him,
Hal reflexively stood up from his chair and responded, "Y-Yes, ma'am!"
with a tense look on his face.
Thinking back to that moment, I put on a wry smile and said, "The
Tiamat bowed her head to you. You'd better make Ruby happy."
"About that..." Hal held his head in his hands. "I never thought it would
come to this, so I have no clue how to interact with them. Should I accept
it as a political marriage? Should I love them equally? Once I start
thinking, 'Isn't that unfair to Kaede?' or 'Isn't that unfair to Ruby?' there's
no end to it."
"Do you hate the idea of marrying Ruby?" I asked.
"If I hated it, it wouldn't be bothering me so badly!"
Hal was, at his core, a simple and devoted guy, so he must have found
it hard to come to terms with the idea of loving two women. It made me,
the guy with five fiancées, feel pretty bad about myself.
When I looked at Kaede, wondering how she felt about how Hal, she
had a hand to her mouth and was shaking. It looked like she was stifling a
laugh. It was funny that Hal was wracking his nonexistent brains and
worrying over something Kaede had already come to terms with.
I'd feel bad for Ruby if he kept that depressed look on his face, so I
decided to try blowing things up a bit.
"Hal, do you know you're a meathead?"
"Huh? Yeah, I'm aware, but when you say it that bluntly, it pisses me
off." Sure enough, he looked angry.
I sighed and told him, "Poor thought is akin to no thought. With your
brains, you're not going to come up with anything decent, so don't waste
your time thinking. Also, one thing is clear: While you're being indecisive
about what to do, you aren't making either Kaede or Ruby any happier."
"Urkh..."
"Besides, you're more of a doer than a thinker, right? If you have time
to worry about if you're being insincere, use it to show the two of them
some sincerity."
"Don't worry and show them with my attitude, huh... You're right."
With that, Hal stood up, scooping Kaede up in his arms.
"Eek!"
"It's not like me to waste time mulling things over," he said. "I may not
have really come to terms with it all yet, but I'm gonna do everything I can
to make both Kaede and Ruby happy."
That was the simplemi... er, sincere Hal for you. Once he decided not to
think too much, he found his resolve. It was pretty cool that he could scoop
her up in his arms and then say a passionate line like that while sober.
Kaede's face was bright red, too.
"Okay... then. Please, do your best, you know, Hal..."
With how embarrassed she was, it seemed that was all Kaede could
force out.
Haha, looks like Hal got back at her, I thought and was smiling, but
then...
"Since you said it, you do your best, too, Souma." Liscia grinned.
"Oh! Oh! Sire! The princess and I would like to be carried, too!" Aisha
added.
Getting that from both sides, I shrunk into myself.
Then...
A dragon priestess suddenly appeared and told us, "Sir Souma, Sir
Halbert, the preparations are complete."
"Souma, this is her big day, so keep your act together, okay?" Liscia
said.
"Go for it, sire!" Aisha cried, sending me off.
"You, too, Hal," Kaede added. "Don't disgrace the House of Magna."
"What, no kind words for me?!"
Kaede sent Hal off, too. She was like a wife in the Edo Period, sending
off her husband by striking a firestone so that the sparks fell on his back.
Now, then... it was time to go. Naden and Ruby were waiting.
There were two reasons why I came to the Star Dragon Mountain
Range.
The first was Madam Tiamat's request to help deal with the storm
bearing down on the Star Dragon Mountain Range. The other was to form
a dragon knight contract, binding Naden, the one who could fly in that
storm, and me together. For that reason, I had been asked to participate in
the Contract Ceremony which was held between the dragon knights of the
Nothung Dragon Knight Kingdom and the dragons of the Star Dragon
Mountain Range.
However, because events developed so quickly, the order of events had
gotten all mixed up, and with the earlier storm having caused damage in
Dracul, due to flooding, among other things, the Contract Ceremony that
the Nothung Dragon Knight Kingdom would have been invited to was
canceled. Even so, Naden and I, and Ruby and Halbert, had already
essentially formed contracts. That was why it was decided that a Contract
Ceremony would be held today with just us two couples.
When Hal and I were transported to the great hall, Madam Tiamat was
already there in dragon form, and we were surrounded by dragons in
human form. Naden's friend Pai and Ruby's former flunkies Sapphire and
Emerada were there, too.
While we were still nervous, having been cast into the center of
attention, Naden and Ruby appeared wearing a black and a red dress,
respectively.
Ruby was a beautiful girl to begin with, but Naden was given a
makeover by Liscia, so she shone just as brightly. The dresses looked like
they'd been interwoven with metallic fiber, and the contrast between
Naden's black and Ruby's red was stunning.
Meanwhile, Hal and I were in our usual military outfits. Mine was
black, and Hal's was green.
They walked over to us, took a knee, and brought their left hands to
their chests while reaching out to us with their right hands.
Ruby was the first to open her mouth.
"My knight, my partner. I wish to form a riding contract with you."
Hal inhaled sharply. "Accepted!" He took her hand, pulling her to her
feet.
I heard this from Naden later, but the order contracts were formed in
was decided by the status of the people becoming dragon knights. The
highest ranked knight was saved for last, and after that it went in order of
rank. That was why Naden went last, but with only two couples present, it
didn't really feel all that special being saved for that.
Well, that aside, next, Naden opened her mouth.
"My king, my partner. I wish to form a riding contract with you."
"I accept." I took Naden's hand, pulling her to her feet.
I was surprised when she called me her king, but she was right; I
wasn't a knight, I was the king of a nation.
Once she was standing, Naden and I clasped both our hands together.
We were in the perfect pose for high society dancing. At the same
moment, music began playing in the great hall. Quietly at first, but
gradually growing louder. The dragon priestesses in front of Madam
Tiamat had started playing musical instruments. It was a slow rhythm, a
relaxed melody.
"Huh?!" I exclaimed. "This piece..."
"What is it, Souma?" Naden asked.
"...No, nothing."
I began stepping in time to the music.
I danced with Naden, matching the melody. Hal and Ruby started
dancing, too.
As we danced, I leaned in and whispered in Naden's ear, "Do they
always use this piece for the dance at the Contract Ceremony?"
"I don't think so. I've never heard this piece before."
"I see..."
In that case, Madam Tiamat may have arranged this. The piece they
were playing was one that had come from my world. It was the main
theme from a movie where a beauty danced with a beast. Naden and I
danced to the famous piece that played during the dance scene that was the
highlight of the film.
Seeing Naden's face up close, it made me wonder: Which of us was the
beauty, and which of us was the beast? If you saw this as a human-animal
marriage tale, as a ryuu, that would make Naden the beast, but she also
deserved to be called a beauty. The girl in front of my eyes was truly a
beautiful beast.
"What a fancy dance partner I have..." I murmured.
"Hm? Did you say something?"
"No, nothing. I was just thinking how lucky I am."
While we were dancing, I looked over to see Hal and Ruby. Hal must
not have been used to this sort of thing, because his moves were a little
awkward, but Ruby was doing a good job of leading him.
"You can actually dance, Souma," Naden said to me. "I thought you'd
be bad at this sort of thing."
"I was, but I worked desperately to learn how to get better. I was being
called to a lot of social functions, after all."
"Ahaha! You've got it rough, huh."
"Yeah, kinda. For all the practice you skipped, you're doing pretty well
yourself, Naden."
"I-I only started skipping recently. I was practicing like I was supposed
to before."
I looked fondly at Naden as she made excuses, when...
"Naden." Madam Tiamat's voice suddenly came into my head.
"Lady Tiamat?" It seemed Naden could hear the voice, too.
Oh, yeah. She'd been calling Naden, so of course she could.
While we continued dancing, Madam Tiamat's gentle voice echoed in
our heads. "Naden. There's something I have to apologize to you for."
"Huh? Apologize?"
"When you were troubled by the fact you looked different from other
dragons, I was unable to tell you, 'You are a ryuu.' That you were born in
this era meant that one who knew your value would appear. I hid your
nature so as to not get in the way of that meeting, and for that I apologize."
"Don't!"
While still dancing, Naden turned just her face toward Madam Tiamat.
The music was already past the midway point, and was rising. Our
emotions rose along with the melody.
Naden shouted, with tears in her eyes, "You were always there to
encourage me, Lady Tiamat! 'Eventually, one who knows your value will
appear,' you said! When I heard it, I only half believed it... No, I hardly
believed it at all... But I really did meet Souma!"
Big teardrops rolled down Naden's face.
"So... I'm grateful. Thanks... 'Mom.'"
It felt like Madam Tiamat smiled when she heard Naden's words of
gratitude. "Take care, my beloved daughter."
The music was close to ending. I held Naden, whose face was messy
with tears, close.
"Naden, I know I'm not the most reliable guy, but let's work together
from now on."
Naden sobbed. "Yes. Yes!"
Here, today, Naden and I formed a contract as partners.