Suddenly, I felt like I had been dropped into a storybook. Those two were just such unusual characters. But then I realized they were still staring at each other silently, and I remembered I needed to introduce them.
“Sir Aiskoletta, this is Doc, our magic healer at the Fore Elf village. He’s a High Elf.”
“A magic…healer?”
“That’s right.”
Magic healers conducted medical treatment using spells—an art lost to time. It wouldn’t surprise me if Doc was the only magic healer left in the whole world.
“My name is Ciel Aiskoletta, and I am currently assisting with house chores.” Sir Aiskoletta was probably the only great hero employed in the line of housework.
The two men shook hands.
“Um, Doc is here because there’s something he’d like to ask you.”
“Is that so? I’ve baked cookies, so let us partake as we discuss.”
Sir Aiskoletta seemed sort of fidgety. Perhaps he was just that eager to share the cookies he had worked so hard on.
We let Doc inside the house, took seats around Sir Aiskoletta’s cookies and tea, and began the discussion.
“…and so I’ve come to request your help in exterminating this Dark Dragon.”
“Very well.” It took less than five minutes of conversation before Sir Aiskoletta accepted the challenge. “You must be tired from all the talking. Here, enjoy a cookie, please.”
“Thank you.”
The stuffy atmosphere instantly cleared up. Doc gobbled up Sir Aiskoletta’s cookies and gave them high praise. I decided to try one too.
“Ah, these are delicious!”
“They truly are, aren’t they?!”
He told me he’d practiced in secret with Zara the other day and that today’s batch were the best cookies he’d baked so far.
“Such accomplishment I feel, getting the opportunity to treat an unexpected guest to my cookies!”
We’d brought Doc home to discuss a dragon extermination, but it seemed he wasn’t an unwelcome visitor to Sir Aiskoletta. The great hero was never one to be underestimated.
“All right, Wise High Elf. When shall we set out to defeat this Dark Dragon?”
“Yes, we ought to get to it as soon as possible. Will you join us, Mell?”
“M-Me?!”
Won’t a tiny Fore Elf like me just get in the way? The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became.
“The Dark Dragon won’t swallow me in one bite, will it?”
“You’ll be fine, Mell. Dark Dragon gullets are too small to swallow people whole. They have to chew them up first—”
“Doc! That doesn’t sound fine at all!”
“Wouldn’t you rather be chewed up in an instant than be dissolved slowly in its stomach acid?”
“No, not at all!”
I’d nearly forgotten. As a High Elf, Doc’s sensibilities were much different compared to those of an average person like me. This was far from the first time we had been on opposing sides like this. I cradled my head in despair.
But Sir Aiskoletta was the one to offer encouragement.
“Fear not, Miss Mell. No dragon shall swallow you on my watch.”
“Sir Aiskoletta…!”
His lovely assertion wasn’t nearly as impactful as it would have been without the frilly apron. Sir Aiskoletta could be somewhat disappointing for a great hero at times.
“If Miss Mell is joining us, then we ought to request the assistance of the Second Expeditionary Squadron as well.”
“I agree.”
I would need to explain the situation to Captain Ludtink first.
“Um, now what? Should we start tomorrow?”
“No, the sooner the better. What do you say, Wise High Elf?”
“I agree.”
With that, we used another spell to teleport back to the barracks.
Lance toppled out of his chair when a full suit of armor in a frilly apron suddenly appeared in front of him.
“Wh-What the hell is that?! Is that a monster?!”
Indeed, a monstrous suit of armor wearing a frilly apron would be horrifying. But I couldn’t let the thought distract me.
“We found him, Captain Ludtink,” I announced. “This is Doc, the magic healer who’s done a lot for me throughout my life.”
Captain Ludtink gave a proper, polite greeting. I nearly mistook him for a nobleman…well, no, he actually was a nobleman.
“Now, Doc and Sir Aiskoletta have something they’d like to discuss with you.”
“Fine then.”
We asked Vice Captain Velrey to join us for the very serious conversation. Everyone sat on the sofas and listened as Doc spoke.
“…and that’s how I came to ask the great hero for help. I’d like the Second Expeditionary Squadron to join us as well.”
This was a Fore Elf problem. We couldn’t place the responsibility solely on a great hero from a foreign country. Sir Aiskoletta requested that, if I was to join their party, it would be best to have my entire unit alongside me.
We wouldn’t demand their cooperation, of course. Fighting a Dark Dragon was an incredibly dangerous feat.
“What do you think, Risurisu?”
I would have been sacrificed to the dragon if Doc had never sealed my magical energy. From the dragon’s perspective, it was summoned without any say in the matter and then sealed before being offered the full compensation. But it wasn’t a creature I could pity.
“The young Fore Elf man selfishly brought this dragon into the world…and I want to be there to see its downfall.”
Perhaps it was strange to turn myself into a Fore Elf representative, but I doubted anyone was willing to take my place. I was going to take responsibility and watch the selfish deed of the Fore Elves be resolved for good.
“You wanna be there, huh? Understood.”
Captain Ludtink was going to report to his higher-ups and come back to us with their decision. But, for now, there was nothing left to be done on our side.
Lance really didn’t want to go to the captain’s house, so Captain Ludtink grabbed him by the scruff of his neck.