“Is she a demon? I’ve never seen one like this before,” I thought out loud as I inspected her body. “Besides, demons don’t have the authority to pop up like this, not since the pre-Saint da—”
The girl’s sharp golden eyes flung open, and her body became engulfed in flames, interrupting my thoughts. I reflexively fell backward, crawling away before jumping to my feet just in time to watch in disbelief as she slowly got to her feet.
How in the... With those wounds?!
“‘Demon’?! Do you mock me, human?”
Oh no, was I rude? Guardian training warns that first impressions are absolutely crucial for diplomacy with beings of other realms. Get your head in the game, Karen!
“I-I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to insult you or anything. I just don’t know where you’re from and was thinking out loud. But more importantly, are you okay? I-I can heal you, I—”
“My physical condition is of no concern to you. Kneel before Mitaelshuroxa, daughter of the great Roxakoramora,” she spat, spraying bright embers in front of her.
“Kn-Kneel?” I asked, confused. “Are you some kind of royalty or something?”
“I am of elder blood. My people are the backbone of the very world you sully with your presence.”
“Elder blood, scales, and fire...” I could feel the color draining from my face as the realization of this girl’s identity dawned on me.
Suddenly, her anger made sense. She was no demon—not even close. She was an elder dragon, a race of creatures who were the undisputed strongest in all the realms.
But this is weird. There shouldn’t be any elder dragons in this realm. Due to an agreement with the Guardians, they were forbidden from leaving their realm. Although, even without that agreement, the elder dragons refused to go anywhere else in the first place. An elder dragon appearing like this was not only unprecedented but perplexing.
Theory after theory ran through my head as I tried to glean some insight into this elder dragon’s motive in doing something that her kind had never done. But ultimately, all I could do was gulp. Theorizing isn’t gonna get me anywhere. As scary as this is, the fastest solution is to ask her directly.
“Um, Me-tail-sa-ruk-xa—” I asked shakily.
“Mitaelshuroxa!” the girl roared, the flames around her surging in size.
“Yes, sorry. My apologies...ma’am.” I’m not gonna risk messing up her name right now. “Could I ask why you chose to come to this realm?”
“I need not explain my reasons for traveling through my own realm,” she hissed.
Your realm? “Um...” I said very nervously, “there might be a high...but definitely a hundred percent chance that this isn’t your realm.”
“Do not try to fool me, human. I see through your lies.”
“I’m not lying. I’m the Guardian of this land and I cannot permit you to be here without a valid reason.” Guardian in training, that is.
“Heh heh... Ha ha ha ha!” she laughed maniacally. “You think you, a mere human, can stop me?!” Her eyes turned to slits, the flames around her burning even more intensely.
Despite that, I kept a level head and didn’t judge the situation by its cover. Ana Sier. I cast an analysis spell, and I could tell that she was significantly weakened. I wasn’t sure exactly what’d happened before she’d arrived, but right now, producing the flames around her was probably the best she could do. She was just posturing.
In fact, it was hard to believe she was even still conscious considering the extent of the wounds that’d been inflicted on her, especially those on her neck. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that something had almost cleanly sliced through half of it.
I gulped and began to speak once more. “Y-You’re not going any further in this realm, especially not with those wounds. State your purpose, or you’ll leave me no choice but to use force to make you return to your realm.”
“You think you can best me in combat?!” she chuckled, bemused.
“I think you’re bluffing. You can’t even change into your dragon form, can you?”
“I have no need to. A sneeze would suffice to snuff out your feeble life. To an elder dragon, dealing with humans is no more a challenge than it is to shed a scale,” she snarled, her flames beginning to flicker more intensely.
I drew my wand from the holster on my thigh and pointed it at the dragon. The two of us locked eyes, carefully observing the other’s subtle movements. I know she’s weakened, but I’ve never fought an elder dragon before. Besides, I’m not sure how weak “weak” is for them. Let’s test the waters a little. I’ll use a simple stun spell and see how she reacts.
“Kazan Kesta!” I shouted.
The tip of my wand glowed blue, and in the next moment, a short burst of energy flew toward her.
All right, dragon, how will you react?
Time slowed down. My heart was in my throat as I nervously watched my attack draw closer and closer to a member of the most powerful race in existence.
She’s...not moving? Is she holding her ground? Is this level of attack not enough to phase her even with how hurt she is?! I frantically scrambled to come up with new patterns of attack in order to escape here with my life. Should I beg for my life? No, it’s way too late for that. Aaah, I’m freaking out! What should I do?! I shouldn’t have escalated things! Why did I fire that spell?! I’m so stupid! I should’ve stayed diplomatic!
And then, after what felt like an eternity, the shot connected with her forehead. Aaah, it’s all over!
“Oof!”
The spell knocked her head backward, and she made what could only be described as a cute grunt of pain. Despite that, she didn’t fall; she just stood there with her head flung back.
She really took it head-on?! Oh no, what’s the next spell I should use? Uh...uh...a destruction spell? No, I need something to immobilize, not to kill. Maybe a daze spell or something? Wait, no. Should I be running?!
But as I desperately racked my brain, thinking about my next move, the flames around her dispersed, and the proud elder dragon simply fell to the ground.
I blinked as if I was in a daze. “Uh...huh?” I couldn’t believe my eyes. “Did I win?” This has to be a trap, right?
But soon, I came back to sense. “Hey...are you okay?” I cautiously called out to her. I approached her little by little, scared that she might’ve been pretending to be unconscious as a last resort to compensate for her weakened state so that she could draw me closer to her and easily finish me off.
But to my great relief, when I got close enough, I saw that my spell had worked. Her eyes were comically spinning from being knocked unconscious. Just in case though, I poked her body with my wand, but there was no response.
I exhaled, glad to see she wasn’t dead. Her wounds are healing slowly, but I should probably take her to the infirmary to be safe. But just in case...
“Tenza Ture,” I whispered, pointing my wand at her, and in the next moment, a green healing light enveloped her body.
But I tilted my head, noticing something strange. “It’s not working?” I tried again, but still, nothing happened beyond the green glow. It was as if the magic wasn’t even penetrating her skin. “Do elder dragons have magic resistance or something?” Huh? But then why did my stun spell work?
As much as I wanted to try and make sense of the situation, I was aware that this wasn’t the time. Her natural regenerative abilities were slowed for some reason. They seemed to be enough to sustain her for now, but I needed to get her to the infirmary sooner rather than later, especially if I couldn’t use healing magic on her.
I took off my cloak and wrapped it around her naked body. “How am I supposed to get her to the infirmary if I can’t use magic on her?” I mumbled pensively.
My heart sank as I glanced back at the school and saw how far away it was. I’m going to have to carry her back myself, aren’t I? I sighed at the prospect of carrying someone who’d been threatening to kill me not too long ago. Maybe I should try calling Master. I’m sure he’d like to know that an elder dragon has randomly appeared in front of me.
“But wait... Could this be an opportunity?”
He stuck me here because he thought I needed more experience. What better experience was there than doing a Guardian-like thing: taking in a trespassing being and watching over them? Suddenly, I felt I was filled with excitement. This could work.
I’m gonna take good care of you. Don’t worry. I’ll prove to Master that I’m ready to be a Guardian. I bent down to pick her up, but my strength didn’t match my enthusiasm. I grunted as I tried to lift her. Why do you weigh like a bag of bricks?!
I sighed and once again looked backward, resenting the distance between me and the school. If only I had a potion of fortification to increase my own strength. Then again, why would I have brought one? It wasn’t like I’d planned to carry an unconscious elder dragon back to the school tonight. I’ll have to use a charm on myself. It doesn’t last as long, but it should do the trick.
I pointed my wand toward my chest. “Light as a leaf on the river surface, bestow upon me mightful purpose.” In response, the tip of my wand glowed pink, and before I knew it, I felt strong as an ox and light as a feather.
“Okay, let’s get you to the infirmary.” But as I went to pick her up, something dawned on me. “Oh wait.” Suddenly, I remembered something from my training in regard to unexpected visitors in the realm. Come on, get it together, Karen. This is the first thing you should’ve done... “I need to place a limiter on her first, but I don’t have anything on me right now,” I mumbled as I rummaged through my bag.
Then I froze as my eyes fell on a certain object that I’d been keeping on my person on the off chance that I’d finally be able to fulfill a lifelong dream of mine. I felt ashamed for coming up with this idea, but I really didn’t have a choice in this situation.
“Oh, she’s really not going to like this...”