But before I could cleverly manipulate them into giving me the information I needed, the doctor’s loose lips moved once more. “It’s been a while since the school’s had a Blade Saint in it. Usually, after they’re discovered, they’re whisked away somewhere,” the doctor said.
“Where to?” I asked.
The doctor shrugged. “No clue. There’s been generations after generations of Blade Saints, but nobody really has any clue what happens to them. They’re probably thrown into some battlefield somewhere so that they can kill—”
“Ahem,” the human interrupted, clearing her throat.
“Oh, sorry. Top secret stuff here. Very hush-hush,” the doctor said unapologetically.
Her words stuck in my head. Though I was curious about what she’d wanted to say, pressing any further would risk raising suspicions about my motives. I’d simply need to once again find a chance to manipulate the conversation to get information later. For now, I decided to focus on the other part of the information she provided, which seemed to be something they could talk more loosely about. If there are multiple generations of Blade Saints, does that mean...?
“When a Saint dies, a new one takes their place. Who’s the current one?” I asked.
“Well, that’s top secret, very hush-hush. But also, you came to the right person.” The doctor grinned. “Karen knows all about the current Blade Saint, don’t you, Karen?”
“Sh-Shut up. We’re friends. That’s all!” Immediately after these words left her mouth, she covered it, realizing she’d said something she shouldn’t have.
I had to stop myself from curling my lips into a smile, which might have accidentally given away my true intention of killing him. Well, well, it seems that the hourglass has indeed sent me to the right destination.
Unperturbed, the doctor continued talking. “I can tell you’re really curious, so I’ll spill the beans. He’s actually a student at this school—”
“Not another word,” the human growled. “His existence here is supposed to be a secret until he’s fully matured as a Saint. Is there any particular reason why you’re babbling about something that you’ve been strictly instructed to keep to yourself?”
“Aw, don’t be like that. It’s all good! See, I figured: She’s an elder dragon, and he’s a Blade Saint—they can keep each other’s secrets! Anyway, listen to this! Do you know why she’s so familiar with him? It’s because Karen really likes—”
“Anyway,” the human cried, interrupting the doctor, “I have some more questions if that’s okay with you. Let’s start with ‘What is your purpose here?’”
I needed a reason to stay. I needed to be here until my strength recovered and I could annihilate the Blade Saint. If I stayed here, I could get more information, perhaps even learn his weaknesses. I needed this school to take me in, and for that to happen, I needed a convincing lie. But first, it was necessary for me to lower their defenses so that they were more susceptible to whatever story I’d feed them.
“First, allow me to say it was not my intention to engage in battle with you. I acknowledge that you must have been terrified, being forced to face such a formidable opponent as myself. You must have feared that you might not be able to see the light of day after how dangerously close to death I have put you.”
The human stared at me blankly, seemingly confused. “O-Oh. Yeah. It was a very close battle. I barely escaped with my life,” she said, nervously scratching her cheek.
Good. Now I’ve set the record straight. I’ll absolutely not let it be known that an elder dragon fell to a mere human without so much as landing a single blow.
“You see,” I continued my explanation, “I’d just gotten out of a battle that had left me in an incredibly weakened state. Then, I suddenly found myself here. I was unfamiliar with my surroundings and had no clue who I could trust or if I was even safe. I hope you understand that the only choice left to me was to attack.”
The human nodded. “I get that. So...you don’t know how you got into this realm?”
I shook my head. “One second, I was fighting for my life, and in the next, I was enveloped in a bright red light. Then I appeared before you.” I’m not about to let her know that I’m from the future.
“I see,” said the human. “Can I ask exactly what has happened for you to be left so beaten and tattered? I don’t know much about elder dragons, but I’m at least sure that it’s not easy for anyone to back your kind into a corner—unless it was another elder dragon or something.”
I could tell what kind of information she was trying to pry from me. I wasn’t keen on making assumptions without sufficient evidence, but I was almost certain that the condition for me to stay here hinged on me being a victim; painting myself as some kind of refugee would surely help my cause. But that was a hard case to make for an elder dragon. How was I supposed to paint a supreme being as a victim? Though, something she’d said had given me an idea: I simply needed to make sure that my sob story was convincing enough.
“It’s...hard to talk about,” I said, grimacing. “I know you need answers, but...” I trailed off.
The human gave me a sympathetic look and put her hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. You don’t have to worry about anyone hurting you. We’re on your side.”
The doctor nodded in agreement, encouraging me to speak.
“There was a little human girl who wandered into our settlement on the verge of death. Raiders killed her family—her entire village—and I couldn’t let that stand.”
“You killed the raiders?” the human asked.
I nodded solemnly. “I still remember how warm those droplets were as she cried into my chest when I finished. After that, I took her to a different human settlement so she could restart her life, and I thought everything would be okay. But...” I clutched my body and frowned. “I never thought to consider I’d maybe only made things worse for her. It was not only a taboo to allow her in our settlement to begin with, but I’d also involved myself in human affairs and had even revealed myself to a whole village of humans. By breaking so many elder dragon taboos, I’d only served to paint a bigger target on her back. I went to visit her a day later but found the village burned to ashes—that girl with it.”
I glanced at the human and the succubus. Both of their expressions made it more than clear that they were entranced by my story. All that was left was to bring this home.
“My people confronted me on the spot and accused me of straying from the path of elder dragons,” I continued. “They determined that I’d turned my back on them, disgracing them with my actions. They couldn’t allow me to live anymore and decided to use me to set an example. The next thing I knew, I was in a life-or-death battle with my own people—even my own father. I’m sure you can make an educated guess as to which direction that battle headed.” I chuckled self-loathingly. “But just as I’d accepted my fate for protecting a human, there was a bright red glow, and I found myself on that grassy field. My only guess is that, somehow, I inadvertently used the remainder of my mana to transport myself as far as possible from there. I’m finding out now that I ended up being transported to a different realm entirely. However, regardless of the reason, now that I’ve traversed realms, I’d feel safer if I could remain here. If I go back, I am sure to be killed.”
I tried my best to sell my sorrow and fear, but I’ve seldom ever experienced those feelings, so I could hardly tell if I was doing a good job. Though it seemed as if I was successful; both the human’s and the doctor’s eyes shifted to those of pity.
“I understand. I’ll talk with the headmaster and my master to see if we can give you asylum here,” the human said.
“Rest up. We’ll take care of everything else,” the doctor said, gently laying me down.
“You have my thanks,” I forced myself to say with gratitude as my back contacted the soft bedding beneath me.
Too easy. I internally smirked at their gullibility.
“I’ll leave you with Doctor Paunsasoy for now—” the human started before noticing my wary look over to the doctor, who was eyeing me as a hungry predator would its prey. Seemingly sensing what I was thinking, the human deeply sighed. “On second thought, Doctor Paunsasoy, perhaps you should come with me.”
“Why?! I want to dissect her while she’s asleep!”
“That’s why you’re coming with me!”
“Aw, come on! Oh, I know!” the doctor said, clapping her hands together. “You’ve been wanting a dog for a while, right? How about I get you one and you’ll let me dissect her?”
“Huh? No!”
“But disclaimer: It won’t be a normal dog. Yeah, it might bark and stuff and walk on four legs, but the thing is, I don’t really know any dog breeders in the area.”
“I really, really hesitate to ask, but what exactly are you talking about then, if not a dog?”
“A chimera! It just so happens that one of my scientist friends made one out of a deer, an ocelot, and a giraffe!”
“What part of that would make it even close to a dog?”
“If you take the first letter of each species’ name, it spells DOG, duh.”
The human gave her a stare of loathing before grabbing her by the arm and pulling her toward the door.
“Come on. Let’s give her some space to sleep.”
Despite the doctor’s pleas, the human dragged her out of the room. Now, left alone, I felt a sense of peace. Everything was finally falling into place. I needed but to bide my time, recover my strength, gather information, and then accomplish my goal. If I could do that, then...then what? I honestly had no idea what I’d do after accomplishing my goal. Could I return to the future? Or would I have to live the rest of my years in this time? As these thoughts filled my head, I could feel a wave of fatigue washing over my body.
I’ll think about all this when I wake up. Just one quick nap, and I’ll figure everything out. I shut my eyes once more and drifted off to sleep.