CHAPTER FOUR The Legend Descends Gram saw the Black Dragon, Sihlwald. It was not the giant dragon in his memories but a little girl with tan skin and long black hair. Adorned with horns on her head, a small pair of wings on her back, and a tail coming out of her waist. The black-dragon girl was unclothed, her arms held by chains, and a red seal adorning her chest. As he came back to his senses, he noticed Aoba sobbing silently beside him. “Aoba…? Are you crying?” “Huh?! Wh-what?! That’s…a good question. I don’t…” Aoba wiped her tears right away. “That’s Sihlwald? Veltol’s…sister?” “She doesn’t look like a dragon, though,” Takahashi said. Veltol nodded. “Just as once they studied the magic of Dragon Shift to turn into one, this is its opposite. She liked resembling a human. And finally seeing her alive gives me relief, even though I already knew she was… She seems to be doing all right.” The sealed girl in the middle of the freezing cold chamber didn’t look anything but dead, but as far as Veltol was concerned, she apparently appeared to be in good health. “The aether’s even denser than I thought,” Gram grumbled, almost choking. “As dense as it was in the Immortal Furnace in Shinjuku… Although it is not gluey, as it was there. Not to mention…” Veltol scooped a handful of water at his feet. “Liquid aether… No, simply water with aether.” Liquid aether and water with aether were greatly different. The former was a phase change of the aether itself, while the latter was just as it sounded. Water with high contents of aether had a dramatically lower freezing point. The logic was similar to why it rained in Outer Shinjuku, where the effects of the cryotolerance barrier were low: because the rain had high aether content. The aether inside the remote shrine was dense, and its air temperature was below the freezing point, and yet the water remained unfrozen, due to the aether. “This much aether in the water explains the density…” “Yeah, yeah, but hey, we can’t go over there like this. What now?” Takahashi said. “That’s no problem,” Gram replied. He initialized magic and began chanting the spell. “Water, my step, you shall not impede.” Three incantations, activating “Water Walking.” A layer of mana covered his body, making him able to walk on water. Gram used the spell on himself, Takahashi, and then on Aoba. “Gram, hold on,” Veltol said as he watched. “Hmm?” “Are you not forgetting something?” “Huh? What?” Gram looked genuinely confused. “Use it on me, too.” “Whaa…?” His face contorted in disgust. “You can do that yourself.” “It works best when someone else does it. Be quick.” What a pain, Gram thought as he cast Water Walking on Veltol as well. “I see. There is room for improvement in construction and handling…but this shall work. Keep practicing.” “You cheeky little…!” They bickered while walking toward sealed Sihlwald in the middle of the chamber. Her eyes were closed, her skin was frozen, and her arms chained to the void. “…” Veltol looked at her fondly. “Sister.” The Demon Lord knelt before the Black Dragon. “I’ve come for you.” The chains binding the Black Dragon, Sihlwald, were a type of seal arts. They were difficult to cut off for the shackled one, but easy for a third party. “The seal binding her should be undone once we slice these chains off.” Veltol stood up and summoned the Dark Sword Vernal to swing it against the chains. With one flash, the shackles collapsed and vanished in the air. Sihlwald fell frontward as she was let loose, and Veltol softly held her up. “Mm…m…,” the freed dragon mumbled. Her empty golden eyes reflected Veltol’s face. “Vel…tol…?” The voice slowly coming out of her mouth was unlike the image of a dragon—cute, soft, and delicate, like first snow. “It has been a long while, Sister.” “Veltol…?!” Sihlwald launched herself at him. “Awwww! I wanted to see you so bad!!! After you were defeated, I…I…I heard you returned, but I couldn’t believe it up until now!” The naked girl clung to Veltol’s armor and kissed his face with a smile again and again. Veltol, meanwhile, acted as though a pet was licking him. Then, nude Sihlwald set her lips upon Veltol’s. “Whoa!” “Oooh…” “Goodness…!” Gram, Takahashi, and Aoba all exclaimed. Sihlwald pulled herself from Veltol’s face, and a ripping sound followed. “Whoa?!” “Whaa?!” “Goodness!!” Blood dripped from Sihlwald’s mouth. She had bitten off part of Veltol’s lip. “Yes… There is nothing more luscious than my brother’s lips. I feel energized now,” said a satisfied Sihlwald. Veltol caressed his lips; the wound had already closed. “…I am glad to see you wake up with such vigor. I daresay you should cover your body.” “Mmm… You’re right.” Sihlwald shook her arm, her ritual motion materializing her soul armament resembling black scales, and her long black hair tying up into a ponytail. It was too revealing to be called armor. “You didn’t need to do this to recover, either… Not to mention immortal flesh won’t do good to your stomach.” “Yes, I know. I’ve been back for five seconds and you’re already nagging… That aside, who are these people?” Sihlwald languidly pointed her gaze at them. She’s…not what I expected, thought Gram. Takahashi and Aoba were of the same opinion. “Hmm?” Sihlwald grunted. “You…” “Y-yes…?” said Aoba. Sihlwald stared at her. “No, nothing. I’m not functioning well, from the cold and from having just woken up. Now, where are the rest of the Six Dark Peers? Dead? No, you can’t kill those guys! They’re immortal!” “About that, Sister…” Veltol cast a translation spell on Sihlwald and explained what happened. About how five hundred years had passed since Veltol was defeated. About how Machina wasn’t there because of the abruptness of the situation. About himself. About his friends. About Shinjuku and Akihabara. About how he was there to rescue her. About how he was teaming up with the Hero Gram. And about Yokohama’s current state. He put it all concisely, without hiding anything. “I…see,” Sihlwald muttered with a tinge of desolation. “I got the idea. I fell to my slumber not long after you were defeated. I am not very unlike you. I didn’t have much interest in the earthly world, anyways. However, Veltol.” “Yes?” “So that girl is native to this place, fine, but Gram… You mean the Hero Gram?! Why’s he here?!” “I just explained it, Sister.” “Oh, you did? This pretty boy really beat you…? He doesn’t look that strong… Veltol, this man… Where’s that thing? That so-called Holy Sword? Does he have it?” “Ah… Hello, Sihlwald. It’s an honor to meet the legendary Black Dragon. The Holy Sword is not in my hands at the moment, due to extenuating circumstances.” “Oh… That’s boring…” Stop derailing the conversation, Gram thought. “Anyway, you, woman. The one with the black hair with a dash of hot poppy.” Sihlwald pointed her chin at Takahashi. “Huh? Me?” Sihlwald didn’t even nod. “Veltol, what were you thinking making an ally out of her and bringing her here? She doesn’t look immortal, or strong. You should’ve brought Machina instead. I wish to meet her soon, too.” “Wha?! What did you just—?! I can’t show my skills at the moment, but—!” “Ha. So you are aware of your frailty.” Gram tried to talk back to Sihlwald, but someone else objected first. “Sister, has your slumber dulled your senses?” “Mm? What, Veltol? You mean to say this little girl is useful?” Veltol nodded, as if the answer was obvious. “Yes. Takahashi has a rare, extraordinary talent. She’s saved me countless times. Her talent just so happens to be different from the strength that we know of. It’s a gift that gets to shine in this modern era.” “Agghh… Hearing you shower her with praise really gets under my scales. You little girl! I am neeeeeever going to give you my blessing! Got it? My scales will fall off before that ever happens!” “You tiny little dragon! Stop yapping!” “Tiny?! Argh! You’ll pay for this disgrace! Jerk!” Sihlwald looked the other way. “Don’t mind her, Takahashi. My sister is jealous because she values muscle over anything else. There is no malice in what she says…probably. Forgive her.” “I mean, it’s true that I haven’t been useful so far…” Takahashi forced a smile. Veltol said nothing more; this was his own way to prove he trusted her. “Now, Sister, why were you sealed in here?” “…Does it matter?” Sihlwald replied haltingly. “Very well. We have no further reason to be here, so let us go. We still have things to do, and I would like your help, Sister.” To that, Sihlwald… “No.” …refused. What a pain!! Gram resisted the urge to shout this thought. Clearly, their common sense wouldn’t work with a dragon—and not just any dragon, but the legend who built the age of the dragons. “Sister…?” “I’m happy to be reunited, even more so that you personally came here for me. However, I cannot…I will not leave.” “But…” Veltol’s tone changed—from a brother speaking to his sister, to the Demon Lord talking to one of his Six Dark Peers. “Even if I command you to do so?” “Yes. And if you won’t accept, then I’ll give you my third and last request. If you want to take me out of here, then fight me and win, Veltol. That is my request. I shall obey your command if you defeat me.” Force her obedience by defeating her. Her last request from the vow Demon Lord and Black Dragon forged. Veltol sighed. “Fine.” No objection. He didn’t ask why, either. There was no point, since it was part of the deal. “May I prepare myself first?” “Of course. Take your time.” “I’ll be back. Let’s go, Gram.” Veltol’s cape twirled as he grabbed Gram’s shoulder. “Wait, me?” “Naturally. We are allies. Keeping up with my sister’s games is too heavy a burden for me alone to carry.” “That’s oddly sheepish of you.” “If I were to put it in a simple strength ratio, it would be eight to two.” “Eight? Then you’re okay, right?” “Fool.” Veltol spoke with utmost seriousness. “She is the eight.” Gram was shocked. Both at himself for naturally believing Veltol had the upper hand, and at how sincerely he admitted to his disadvantage. “Fine with me…but can we fight two to one?” Gram looked at Sihlwald. “I don’t mind. You’ve fought dragons before, haven’t you, Gram? I suspect you were not alone then.” “Mmm, now that you mention it…” “She accepted. Let’s go.” Veltol tapped his shoulder. Gram turned around as well. He glanced back one more time and saw Sihlwald standing proud with both hands on her hips. She truly felt like his sister, even though they were not related by species to begin with. The four of them returned to the closed door. “We’ll have to fight. You two wait here,” Gram said. Aoba and Takahashi nodded. “Y-yes.” “Okie-dokie. We can’t fight, that’s for sure.” Gram chanted a spell: “Sanctuary.” A cone of light surrounded Takahashi and Aoba. “I know it’s small, but bear with it. Sorry. You’ll be safe here.” Gram had used a defensive barrier spell. By preventing interference from the inside, it also stopped it from the outside, and reducing the area of effect reinforced it. It had high resistance to physical and magical damage, but it could be undone easily. Gram didn’t think that was going to happen in the middle of this battle, though. “Gram, you go in the vanguard. I shall support you from behind,” Veltol said as he approached Sihlwald. “Huh? I mean, sure, but since you’re immortal and all, shouldn’t you be in the front, too?” “It is true that she has few options to completely kill me, so we could have two vanguards…but my skill in the front position falters behind yours and hers. The gap would create trouble in our coordination, and the smallest opening before her is fatal. It’s best we keep a front-and-back formation to stay in sync.” Demon Lord Veltol readily accepted he was inferior to the Hero Gram on the vanguard. Proof that he valued pinning down a strategic advantage against Sihlwald more than his own pride. “I see. She’s that strong, huh?” “Worry not. I can already see victory in our future.” “That’s good to hear. I was thinking you wanted to stay back so you could have it easier.” “Ha.” Veltol stabbed his Dark Sword at Gram’s feet with a chuckle. “That sword was forged from my soul. Think of it as me when you use it.” “So you mean I can be rough with it?” “Gram…you should watch your back.” “I’m kidding.” The Hero pulled out the Demon Lord’s sword. Gram could summon the Holy Sword Ixasorde even from afar, but as it wouldn’t teleport so much as literally, physically fly over to him, it was no use trying it underground. “Will I be all right? It’s not cursed or something? It looks super cursed…” “Part of what you need to master in the fight.” “So it is cursed…” “Why wouldn’t the Dark Sword be cursed? It’s not like your piddling Holy Sword.” There was a clear measure between these two swords: whether they presented a risk. Holy Swords chose their owner but implied no risk in their use. In contrast, anyone could use the Dark Swords, although at a price. The stronger the Holy Sword, the harder it was to claim ownership; the stronger the Dark Sword, the bigger the price. “Hopefully, you don’t let that sword kill you.” “I take it you trust I can do it?” “Fool. I need you to do it. I cannot spare my focus to controlling Vernal while facing my sister.” “But what if I can’t control it?” “Then you die.” “Of course…” Gram dropped his shoulders, staring at the ominous mana emanating from the Dark Sword. “Indeed. A high price must be paid to earn high power. The stronger the curse, the stronger the sword. Naturally, the highest price becomes life.” “But you don’t die, right?” “Indeed, for I am immortal.” “That voids the price… Is that fair?” Gram gripped Vernal tight. The mana in his hands formed a tornado so powerful, it could tear his body to shreds if he faltered even once. But he could keep it in check. “While we’re at it: Vestum.” Veltol cast a buff on Gram and himself. “You were right. It’s better to have someone else cast it.” “Also…” Veltol put his hand on Gram’s chest, and his black armor disappeared. The next moment, Gram was cloaked in casual black armor with a cape. The design was not like Veltol’s but closer to what Gram normally used. Veltol’s robe, meanwhile, had very few metal parts. “I shall lend you part of my armor. Feel honored.” The Hero looked at his black armor with a strained smile. “…Not to my taste, sadly.” “Don’t be picky.” And so the two of them returned to Sihlwald. “Nice. Go get ’em, tigers!” “G-good luck!” Takahashi and Aoba cheered for the Demon Lord and the Hero. Veltol stepped forward and gave a slight wave, while Gram turned around and flashed the pair a reassuring grin. “Ready?” Sihlwald asked from the footing at the center. “How courteous,” the Hero said to the small dragon lording over them. “Ha. You’re fighting a dragon, kid. You have the right to get fully prepared, and I have a duty to give you enough time.” “You’re right. We always secured enough prep time before taking on a dragon.” Sihlwald rotated her arm. “First time we’ve fought like this, isn’t it, Veltol?” Gram was surprised to hear that. He assumed Veltol had made her submit by defeating her in battle. “Indeed. After all, I got you on my side precisely to avoid this.” “Heh. Now I get to have you and the Hero who defeated you. This is exciting…although a bit lacking, knowing you’ve lost your power and he’s missing his Holy Sword.” “I reckon you underestimate us.” “She definitely is. In any case, what’s our winning terms?” Gram asked.
Chapter 36
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