CH 94

Episode 94: The Emperor’s Return

“Alright, now the horns are in good shape!”

After stopping the playfulness between Mofumofu and the Golden Dragon, I was trimming and shaping the horns and scales of the Golden Dragon.

“Grrrr…”

The overgrown and unruly horns and scales were now neat and tidy, and the Golden Dragon itself seemed refreshed.

“That cry sounds kind of sad…”

Huh? I don’t think so. Even in my past life, when the dragon knights took care of the horns and scales, they made similar sounds.

“Kyuuu”

Looking closer, Mofumofu was happily patting the front paws of the Golden Dragon, as if it had become refreshed.

“The glow of the Golden Dragon is caused by luminescent substances contained in its horns and scales reacting with its own magic power. So by taking care of them like this, the glow can be suppressed.”

It was really dazzling before. But now, after taking care of it, the Golden Dragon’s body has a moderate glow. Taking care of it is important after all. It’s like taking care of scales instead of fur.

“Normally, the parents would teach the Golden Dragon how to take care of its body. But this Golden Dragon’s horns and scales were overgrown, and it seems like it was never taught how to take care of them by its parents.”

“So does that mean this Golden Dragon doesn’t have any parents?”

“It probably got into an accident or lost in a territorial dispute with other monsters. I’m not sure of the exact reason, but that’s what I think.”

“I see…”

Liliera and the others seemed relieved for some reason.

“But in a way, we were lucky. The materials from the Golden Dragon are quite valuable, so not taking care of them allowed us to obtain a considerable amount of scales.”

In my past life, killing material dragons was prohibited in some regions. Instead, after defeating them without killing, they would trim the materials. I heard that adventurers would come to hunt, but they would only find well-trimmed material dragons, which was a waste of effort.

Thanks to that, the adventurers at the time worked hard to improve their trimming skills while trying to obtain as many scales as possible to maintain a clean appearance.

Thinking about it, it seems like the dragon population has recovered in modern times, making hunting easier.

“Even though it’s a dragon from mythology, it’s treated as a convenient material.”

It was actually called a material dragon.

“That’s Rex for you. And the scales we trimmed are sparkling and very beautiful. Like nuggets of gold.”

For Meguri, the scales of the Golden Dragon are more like gems than materials.

“Actually, the scales of the Golden Dragon are made of gold.”

“Go-o-o-ld!?”

When they heard gold, everyone’s eyes widened.

“Strictly speaking, it’s not just gold, but a magical gold that acts as a catalyst, similar to mithril.”

“So it’s amazing gold!”

“Ahaha, something like that.”

After defeating the Golden Dragon, the other dragons stopped attacking us, so we focused on putting the dragons we had defeated into the magic bags.

“This is the last one, right?”

By the time we put the last dragon carcass into the magic bag, the sun had already set quite a bit.

“Well, it’s getting dark, so let’s head back.”

“Yes, we’ve fought dragons for a lifetime.”

Liliera let out a sigh, completely exhausted.

“Ah, we really became dragon slayers…”

In response to Liliera’s words, Gyro excitedly muttered, still full of excitement.

“And on top of that, my brother made the legendary Golden Dragon his underling. He’s really amazing!”

No, no, it’s not that big of a deal. After all, it’s just a child of the Golden Dragon.

“But we did gather an unbelievable amount of dragon materials.”

While looking at the magic bags with a bewildered expression, Mina muttered such things.

“We have so much treasure! It’s definitely going to be worth a fortune!”

Indeed, as Meguri said, even the materials from the Green Dragon are traded for thousands of gold coins in this era. Thanks to that, I’ve become quite wealthy and can even buy a house.

It’s probably because the hunting restrictions on dragons that were planned in my previous life were actually implemented. Maybe people saying that dragons are dangerous is just a convenient way for the country to spread the hunting restrictions.

“Well then, let’s go back.”

“Gruuuu…”

Just as we were about to leave, the Golden Dragon let out a growl. Then it came in front of me and gently placed its head on the ground.

“Gwoh…”

“Could it be that you’re going to take us to the town?”

“Gruu.”

It seems so. Maybe it’s a thank you for taking care of its scales.

“Well, I’m not really tired, but since everyone seems exhausted, it would be a waste not to take advantage of it and ride.”

“Wha-what!?”

“No, no, no, Rex! That’s not a good idea!”

“Yeah, Rex! It’s dangerous to ride a dragon!”

“It’s okay, everyone. It’s like a carriage.”

“No, no, it’s not like a carriage. It’s completely different in terms of danger…”

Meguri, who seems to be uncomfortable with carriages, shakes her head while sweating. Ah, maybe she means that since the dragon is flying, it would be dangerous if it fell?

“It’s okay, Meguri. We can all use flight magic if necessary.”

“N-no, that’s not what I meant…”

“Wow! Making the legendary Golden Dragon a substitute for a carriage! You’re amazing, big brother!”

“You, shut up, idiot!”

“Oboh!?”

Oh, Gyro, who raised his voice in excitement, received a sharp elbow strike from Mina. Even though she’s a magician, she moves well. Maybe Mina could even do well in hand-to-hand combat.

“So, um… Dragons! If a dragon comes to the town, everyone will panic!”

“Y-yes. Just the other day, a dragon attacked the town, so if the boss dragon, the Golden Dragon, were to come… um, you know, children might get scared and get hurt!”

I see, Norbu is really something. Even if the child of the Golden Dragon isn’t a big deal, small children wouldn’t understand that. If a large creature suddenly appeared in front of them, they might panic and try to run away, tripping and getting hurt. It’s a consideration to prevent small children from getting injured, truly befitting of a priest who became an adventurer to help as many people as possible!

“Understood.”

“You understand…”

“Then let’s have them drop us off near the town.”

“You don’t understand at all!”

“Come on, everyone, get on quickly. Mofumofu is already on board,” I said as I saw Mofumofu already on top of the Golden Dragon’s head, ready to go.

“Well, you see, we can use flight magic…”

“No, it’s not good. None of you have experience flying in the night sky.”

That’s right, flying in the night sky is dangerous.

“The night sky is dark, so there’s a danger of colliding with flying creatures, tall trees, and mountain peaks, among other things.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. That’s why night flights are dangerous unless you have specialized training and are accustomed to it. Moreover, the dark night sky makes it difficult to distinguish between the ground and the sky, so if you get carried away and speed up, there’s a risk of crashing into the ground.”

It was because of that that in my previous life, there was a group called the “Sky Crashers” who often crashed into the ground and had to be taken to the doctor.

“Walking back to the town from here would be tough, bro.”

Gyro looked at the town in the distance and muttered with a displeased expression.

“Indeed, it might be tough to walk back after a series of battles with dragons…”

Meguri, who seemed reluctant to ride the dragon, groaned as she looked at the way back.

“That’s why it would be better to have the Golden Dragon take us closer to the town.”

“You still don’t get it…”

Liliera and Mina groaned with furrowed brows.

“Um, everyone, how about a compromise? We can have them drop us off at a place that’s a certain distance away from the town.”

Norbu suggested a compromise.

“Well, if that’s the case…”

“If it’s a distance where it won’t be obvious that we were riding on it…”

Liliera and Mina reluctantly agreed, and finally, we decided to ride the Golden Dragon back.

The shining Golden Dragon raced through the now dark night sky.

“Wow! It’s amazing! It’s so fast!”

“Kyukyuu!”

Gyro shouted in excitement, and Mofumofu, who was on top of the Golden Dragon’s head, also made cheerful noises.

“Gruooo!”

The Golden Dragon, pleased with the praise for its wings, let out a cheerful roar. Then it flapped its wings vigorously, increasing its speed even more.

“Whoa! It’s still getting faster!”,The increase in speed surprises Gyro-kun, who exclaims in astonishment.

“Kyukyuu!?”

“Gururu”

Mofumofu exclaims in surprise, and the golden dragon smirks and increases its speed even more.

“Hey, is it really safe to go this fast? Isn’t it dangerous to fly at night?”

“Oh, it’s fine. The golden dragon emits its own light and illuminates its surroundings, so it’s convenient for flying in the night sky.”

The golden dragon, who doesn’t need a light.

“Even if it’s called a legendary dragon like a torch…”

Well, in reality, dragons like the Red Dragon, who can create their own light, were highly valued as means of transportation at night.

“By the way, we’re getting close to the town, so maybe we should get off around here?”

Liliera-san expresses her concern, so I give the golden dragon instructions to land.

“Can you drop us off around here?”

“Gruooo!”

The golden dragon understands and lets out a triumphant roar in response. Its body approaches the ground. As its four legs make contact with the ground, the golden dragon’s body continues to slide forward without stopping, scraping the ground.

“Wait, is this okay!? It feels like we’re sliding!”

Yeah, it’s because we got carried away and went too fast.

“Wait, we’re going to crash into the town!”

Mina-san points ahead in a panic. Indeed, if we continue like this, we’ll crash into the protective wall of the town.

“It’s okay, Chain Aerial Cushion!”

I create multiple large air cushions vertically in front of us and guide the golden dragon into them. By diving into the air cushions, the golden dragon’s speed decreases significantly. However, it doesn’t have enough power to stop its massive body, so it quickly breaks through the air cushions. But its body immediately collides with the next cushion. In this way, continuously colliding with air cushions that provide moderate resistance, the golden dragon gradually slows down without us being thrown off its back. Finally, the golden dragon successfully stops its massive body just before the entrance of the town.

“Yeah, it stopped at the perfect spot.”

The golden dragon lowers its body, assuming a position that makes it easier for us to get off.

“Thank you for the ride.”

I pat its head and the golden dragon happily lets out a purring sound.

“Gruoou”

“Shall we go back to the inn then?”

We separate from the golden dragon, who seems reluctant, and turn towards the town. And within the view from the gate, the people in the town are frozen as if time has stopped.

“Huh? What’s wrong, everyone?”

Not only the townspeople, but even the guards outside the gate are frozen. What’s going on? They’re frozen as if they’ve been petrified by the gaze of a basilisk.

“Um, what’s going on, guards?”

“…”

However, the guards completely ignore our question. Could it be that they were really attacked by someone!? Something terrible might have happened while we were away from the town!

“Go…”

Huh? Did I just hear a voice?

“Go, go, go, go…”

Ah, the old man standing at the back of the gate spoke.

Phew, it seems like they haven’t been attacked and immobilized. But if that’s the case, why aren’t the people in the town moving?

“Go…lden… Golden… It’s the golden dragon!!”

“Uwaaah!!”

Following the old man’s words, the people in the town scream in unison.

“Ah, so this is what happened.”

“This is going to be a difficult excuse to make.”

For some reason, Liliera-san and the others behind me are murmuring with a sense of resignation.

“Are they all excited because a valuable material dragon has arrived?”

Having one material dragon is a fortune, after all.

“No, that’s not it!”

Huh? It’s not?

“It’s… It’s the Dragon Emperor! The Dragon Emperor has finally been resurrected!”

“Huh? What’s that?”

In response to the sudden words from the old man, we unintentionally speak in unison. Um, what? What does this mean? Why is the name of the Dragon Emperor being mentioned?