CH 124

Chapter 124 – Party Time

On the plains of Casemaian, dismantling booths were built all over the outer rim, and an earth dragon over 20 meters in length was being dismembered for meat.

“”””Whoa…♪””””

In the middle of the plains, on a flat area the size of two soccer courts that has been cleared as a residential area, fires are being lit, and huge pieces of dragon meat are cooking, burning fat and emitting a delicious smell.

“Uhyahyahyahya…!”

The celebration of victory, the welcoming of refugees from the marquis territory of the southern nobility, the commemoration of the subjugation of the earth dragon, the commemoration of the inauguration of the Demon King, etc., the consciousness and name may differ, but the tension is the same.

I didn’t know it, but I was told that the earth dragons are “extremely” delicious.

“Wow, it’s really good!”

I was overwhelmed by the spicy and juicy juices that gushed out when I bit into the grilled earth dragon ribs. Both the winged dragon and the land runner dragon were delicious, but the earth dragon’s flavor was completely different.

The meat is the leanest of all. The fibers are coarse and a little peculiar due to their large size, but this gives depth and breadth to the flavor and deliciousness. The more you chew, the better it tastes.

“Well, the more dangerous the dragon breed is, the better it tastes. I don’t want anyone to get reckless, so I’ll keep this between you and me.”

Ah, Myrril-san. It would be impossible to keep it between us if you were talking that loudly in a guest of honor’s seat full of guests.

She must be very drunk.

“No, Your Majesty the Queen. It would be suicide to challenge the earth dragon, which is generally regarded as a natural disaster, so even if we were to be reckless, I thought it would be a smaller dragon.”

Luvia-san, a member of the winged tribe, chuckles as she lunges at Myrril. 

I hear that at the earth dragon class, not only is the meat the most delicious, but the accumulation of magical power in the body is so great that it has a great effect on improving magical power.

If you’re lucky, you can get some kind of blessing or addition, but I don’t really know what it’s all about.

“I wonder what it is; it’s not beef, pork, or sheep, but… it has a little bit of a resemblance to whale meat.”

“I don’t know about a whale, but earth dragon meat tastes like earth dragon meat; there are no other resemblances. The only other likeness is… the ancient dragon at most.”

“Have you ever eaten the ancient dragon, Myrril?”

“No way. This is my first time eating an earth dragon. I’ve never eaten a winged dragon or land running dragon before in Casemaian.”

“Then how can you tell if they taste alike?”

“Earth dragons and ancient dragons are of the same origin. The composition of their scales and internal organs are different from other dragon species. There is even a legend that a long-lived dragon species becomes an earth dragon when it is confined to the mountains and an ancient dragon when it ascends to heaven. In fact, I have heard that it is a creature that branched off in prehistoric times.”

…Huh? I heard that somewhere. Or rather, I saw it. Yes, when I was appraising the monster.

“…It’s the rain dragon.”

“Mizuchi, is it?”

“I’ve never heard that name before.”

It seems that neither Luvia-san, Owe-san, or anyone else around had heard of it.

“Oh, Yoshua told me about it before. It’s the aquatic magical beast that came into the outer moat of the Casemaian.”

Everyone was taken aback when they heard that it was a dragon species swimming in the outer moat. That’s right.

I had only heard of Mizuchi from the dwarf Heimann-jiisan, but he seemed to know a lot about it.

“I learned from my appraisal that a water-dwelling serpentine monster grows into a rain dragon after a few hundred years and then grows into a giant flying dragon after a few hundred years again.”

“Is this aquatic beast called Mizuchi also tasty?”

I don’t know if it tastes good or not, but I think it’s best to stay away from it.

They understood human languages, killed people for fun, used the art of transformation, spit poison when angry, or something like that. And first and foremost, they look creepy.

◇ ◇

Since I was not present at the preparation stage of this banquet, the ingredients were mainly hunted and gathered in the dark forest with Casemaian.

It seems that at some point, the traditional fruit wine and fire wine of dwarves and elves had also been made, which was generously provided for this banquet.

Not only hunter-gatherers but also cultivators are gradually expanding their cultivated lands, and it seems that they are thinking of becoming self-sufficient in the future.

Trading with the kingdoms and tribal unions is going to be difficult for a while.

“Hey, Myrril. I just noticed that there are a lot of people here.”

“Yes, there are. Connell, do you know what’s going on?”

“Ah, the number of people living in Casemaian is increasing day by day. Rumors are spreading, and refugees are coming in from all over.”

“Rumors?”

The bear beastman Biot, who was chomping on a chunk of meat of the earth dragon, laughed at me as I swept my eyes with a bad premonition.

“Even though it’s about you, you don’t know about it? “The invincible Demon King has descended and is building a subhuman paradise,” rings out from the northern tip of the empire to the western tip of the tribal unions and the southern tip of the kingdom, you know?”

What is that? I mean, who is that?

“If it reaches the north of the Dark Forest and the Republic of Something to the east of the Kingdom, we’ll have conquered the continent.”

“Stop it. I’ll be too embarrassed to go out.”

Anyway, the population of Casemaian is about to reach six hundred, I heard. In anticipation of the future increase, the plains are now being prepared for housing and food security.

The residents were in the process of saving food for the winter, but the arrival of the earth dragon’s meat raised the spirits of the local people.

“I see; that’s just what we needed. We still have some meat from the winged dragons and the land-running dragons, so let’s process it into preserved food.”

We should also think about purchasing preserved food and grains for emergencies.

“No, we can get through this winter with just the supplies we took from the kingdom’s army without any problems. We’ll start farming in the spring… so I don’t think we’ll have a problem next year, either, do we?”

I know what Connell meant between his slight stuttering.

If only there were no war.

The kingdom, the empire, and the tribal unions are all only 200 miles (320 km) or so away. If the Demon King appeared in a place only at that distance and rapidly expanded his power, it would be impossible not to attack.

“Hey, Myrril.”

“Yes, I see. I, too, have been a little curious.”

“…I haven’t said anything yet.”

“You have it all written on your face. That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?”

Myrril turned her gaze southward a little so that the others could not see it.

“Some idiot is presumptuous, but we must say hello to the snobs who are bothering us.”

Yes. As I thought, she understood me. Good or bad, I don’t care.

I’m going back to the royal capital once more. To return what was borrowed.