But at the same time, I didn’t think anyone blamed Frol and Julia, so I didn’t think they had to feel so awful about it. Bla tried to cheer them up by giving them a glitter star ladybug wing. They were shocked at first, but it brightened them up and made them smile. Apparently glitter star ladybug wings are a good luck charm, and something good happens to people who carry them.
I sure hope lots of really good things happen!
■ The Battle with the Dragon, June ╳╳
Ugh. The closer we got to the dragon, the more I got this creepy feeling crawling all over me. Everybody else felt it too, and it made some people sick. Some knights who touched it with their search magic even collapsed. That’s how creepy the dragon was. But also it was totally massive.
And we have to fight it?
I was a bit worried, but everyone was really cool. It made me think that maybe they’d never even needed to show their full potential until now. The battle was that amazing.
Zack, Alec, and Clemens—they all looked like warring gods out of a picture book. Nadia even went toe to toe in a magical battle with the dragon. Shiori did as she always does, and supported everyone with her housekeeping magic. When she scrubbed the dragon’s wing clean with her laundry magic, all the familiars trembled with fright.
“Behold, the infamous merciless witch! She treats even dragons as mere items of laundry!”
Hmm...
Just how far is that rumor going to travel—I mean, really?
But what’s really amazing about Shiori is that she’s helpful all over the place and she doesn’t even know it. I mean, Nils and Ellen both used search magic to locate the dragon’s weak points, and the medics all made makeshift beds for patients just like Shiori had. They were even ready to make more if it was necessary. Then you have to remember the stampedes, which were cleaned up and handled before they grew out of hand because of Shiori’s magic.
I heard someone say that even though her work doesn’t always seem groundbreaking, making everybody’s job easier and more effective isn’t nearly as easy as it looks. And you know what? I think that’s exactly what Shiori’s power is. I’m so proud of her.
The battle raged on, but right when I thought we had the dragon on the ropes...Clemens was struck by a poison arrow. He threw himself in front of Alec to save him from some Imperial guy. Clemens said he would be fine, but even he knew it looked pretty bad. He was in lots of pain. Shiori, Alec, and Nadia all went pale, and Linus looked madder than I’d ever seen him as he shot the Imperial with his bow. Frol ran over and hit the man too; he was so mad.
Thanks to Ellen and all her hard work, Clemens was saved. I heard later that Ellen had seen how hard Shiori worked, and it inspired her to study further. If she’d never done that, then maybe she wouldn’t have been able to save Clemens like she did. Shiori’s always inspiring people and we just never know it!
And at the very end of the battle, when it was all over, Shiori and Alec saved the dragon too. They couldn’t save its life, but they totally saved its heart. It had been lost and all alone since it was born, and they gave it all the warmth it had ever wanted. It told them before it left for the afterlife that if it was ever born again, it hoped it would be to people just like Shiori and Alec.
Everyone prayed that the dragon would find happiness in its next life, and some offered it flowers. Shiori and Alec even got the dragon’s scale, which according to Eir—who is very knowledgeable about things—means some promised thing is supposed to happen.
I wonder what that means?
■ June ╳╳
After all the dragon-slaying business, lots of good things really did happen, and everyone was really happy.
Clemens was in a bad spot, but he’s set to make a complete recovery. Yay! Everybody thought he was maybe going to die, so they all cried with joy. Clemens and Nadia are going to become mates when he gets better. He even has the dress ready!
“When that guy makes up his mind, he’s full steam ahead, every time,” said Zack with a chuckle.
It turns out that Marena has a baby in her belly, and that shocked everybody. We were all glad just to hear that she was safe after the battle. It was a whole ordeal, though. I heard that Ludger was so surprised that he collapsed, but actually he was so loud that Eir had to put him to sleep.
I mean. That’s pretty shocking.
Everyone started calling Alec and Shiori “the hero and the holy woman.” And they were both promoted! Alec is S-rank now, and Shiori is A-rank. It’s almost impossible to make it to S-rank, and it’s super rare for support classes to ever make it as high as A-rank. Naturally, everybody is super happy for them.
Shiori and Alec don’t really like standing out, but apparently they might need special ranks because they’ve both got special circumstances to navigate. Sometimes ranks like the ones they have now actually protect them in some ways. I mean, some people might try to take advantage of their positions, but Shiori and Alec can handle that much.
I thought that maybe it was time I raised my game, but Shiori told me to stay just the way I was. So I’m just going to wobble like always and keep a close eye on things!
■ June ╳╳
I received a long-distance message from Bla, who went with Zack to talk with the knight corps. Bla melted the pants off some knight called Appelberg. He was one of the knight commanders who wanted Shiori in his unit. The guy tried to get up to some mischief with a girl who’d taken a liking to Bla, so Bla made sure he wouldn’t do it again. Or ever. I was worried that maybe Bla went too far, but actually Appelberg was trying to do stuff that you’re only supposed to do when you actually mate with your mate, so I guess it’s a case of just deserts.
Even Kris was all like, “He brought it on himself. Let it go.”
Kris and the other knights said that they’d handle the rest. Which is good to hear.
So don’t any of you go trying any more funny business, you hear?
■ June ╳╳
Today was the summer solstice festival, and it was so much fun! Human festivals are full of delicious food, song and dance, and all sorts of fun stuff. People had gone through some tough times and some sad times too, but everybody had a great time at the festival. All the bad times were over, and so it was time to let the good times roll. Or wobble.
Frol and Julia decided to help build a new village to live in, and they looked like they were having a great time talking to their soon-to-be fellow villagers.
Shiori and Alec were all smiles, and were both glad to bump into Yae and Shonosuke after such a long time. Violid was happy too—he got to talk to lots and lots of new people and magical beasts. He’s having a great time in his new life, and every day is full of new, refreshing experiences.
Gosh, I’m having a great time. I’m just so happy.
I really hope this kind of thing can just go on forever.
And you know, when those thoughts crossed my mind, I felt like the dragon scale pendants around Shiori’s and Alec’s necks glimmered. That made me think that the dragon was having a good time with all the rest of us.
And that made me happy too.