Chapter 240

Gulp. The wolf swallowed its saliva. Without realizing it, it slowly began to back away. It was terrified by the sight of that large, dark creature grinning at it.

“Can we… call it a draw?”

A nonsensical remark, the meaning of which even it didn’t understand, slipped out. The massive, majestic creature—something so enormous that seeing it in the middle of the night would make your pants wet—stretched its mouth wide open and laughed.

[Of course not. That’s absolutely out of the question. Even if it were a draw, you’d still have to pay for insulting me.]

As the dragon extended its hand, large enough to engulf Kisea entirely, her mind raced. Her thoughts were extremely rational and sensible.

‘Stay calm. Stay calm, Kisea! Think. Don’t panic. That big guy must be slow because of his size.’

‘On the other hand, I’m confident in my speed among masters. With the pride of a beast, there’s no way I’ll get caught.’

Even if she didn’t know her top speed, her acceleration was far superior. She believed that without a doubt. Glancing around, she noticed the wide, empty plain and gulped. She didn’t know why the dragon had returned to its original form, but one thing was certain.

If that enraged dragon caught her, it wouldn’t end well.

“Kisea, what’s going on? Why is there so much noise?”

“Mom, mom! Save me! Protect me!”

The sense of impending crisis was so intense that she screamed at the top of her lungs the moment she heard the voice asking if she was okay. A woman with hair so white she could be mistaken for a white wolf, despite being from the gray wolf clan, peeked out slightly from the door.

“Ah-ha!”

She smiled slightly and then closed the door again.

“Have fun playing. I’ll go in first. Don’t forget to take a bath when you’re done.”

[Well, now even your mother has abandoned you.]

The dragon opened its large mouth and gnashed its teeth. It was so terrifying that her tail stood on end. Considering that each of those teeth was a dragon fang, the core material of the Dragon’s Sword, if she got bitten even once, she wouldn’t survive, master or not.

Not all the teeth were fangs or canines, but since they were all dragon teeth, their strength was likely similar. Even in this situation, a part of her wondered how much she could profit if she pulled out all those teeth and made them into weapons.

“Why are you doing this to me! What crime did I commit?!”

As the dragon’s hand reached close to her, Kisea, who had been slumped as if she would obediently be caught, suddenly stomped the ground. Being a master, she began to flee at full speed, quickly leaving her home and disappearing beyond the horizon.

However, the dragon, despite being thwarted, didn’t seem particularly flustered or surprised. It simply muttered indifferently.

[What crime did I commit, you ask? Don’t worry. I’m not some savage beast that would brew alcohol from sentient beings.]

Thinking you can escape from a magical transcendent like me…

People these days really don’t understand dragons.

*****

“Huff. Huff. Whew, he shouldn’t be able to catch up now, right?”

After running far, really far, to the point where even a master with near-infinite stamina would be exhausted, Kisea finally let out a sigh of relief and plopped down. Despite her successful escape, for some reason, she couldn’t help but giggle.

“See? Something that big and slow can’t possibly catch up to me.”

She even lay down on the ground, spreading her arms, and fully enjoyed the sense of liberation. She closed her eyes for a moment, savoring the joy of escape and the brief freedom she had.

As she felt the breeze brushing her nose, Kisea opened her eyes slightly and nearly fainted. She quickly closed her eyes again, pretending she hadn’t seen anything. She didn’t dare open them again, trembling in fear. That “big and slow” thing was right in front of her.

[Finished running? You didn’t get very far, did you?]

“Wait, how did you catch up?!”

Startled, Kisea tried to get up but found herself stuck, unable to move. She realized her shadow was clinging to her like sticky glue, binding her to the ground.

“What, what is this?! What are you doing, huh?”

[Still nothing else to say, I see.]

Gracefully and elegantly, the dragon extended its hand, using just two fingers to pinch Kisea’s tail. Just as the wolf had once done to it when it was in the form of a lizard, it lifted her into the air by her tail. The dangling wolf flailed and resisted.

“Let go! Let go right now! Or you’ll regret it! I am the great and renowned Queen Kisea! You think you can handle me? I’m just letting you off easy for now!”

Despite her loud protests, she didn’t even think of drawing her famous sword, Ascalon. For now, things were still within the bounds of a joke.

But if she drew her sword and started swinging, things would get serious. What started as a playful prank by the dragon could turn into a bloodbath.

Even if she swung her sword filled with destructive energy, she wasn’t sure she could cut off even one of the dragon’s fingers. And if she did, it would be an even bigger problem. Once a finger was cut off, this would no longer be a joke, and if the dragon truly got angry, today would be Kisea’s last.

Realizing this, Kisea glanced at the dragon’s expression. As Azahadaka held her tail and shook her around, she screamed as much as she could.

Her tactful attitude and hospitality seemed to gradually ease the dragon’s mood, as the corners of its mouth slowly rose. Sensing the right moment, Kisea subtly changed her attitude.

“I’m really sorry. I committed a grave sin back then. Please forgive me just this once.”

[Hmm, have you reflected a bit now?]

“Of course! I’ve reflected deeply! I won’t do something like that again.”

Though it was humiliating for a master to beg with her hands instead of drawing her sword, it was effective. The dragon’s displeasure noticeably lessened.

The dragon, still holding her tail, took off into the air. The dangling wolf, now flying alongside, wore a bewildered expression at the absurd situation.

[I’ve heard that masters can continuously recover their magical power. So, it shouldn’t be a problem if I take a bit of it. Consider it an honor. The new gate I’m making will use about 30% of your magical power.]

“Huh?!”

[I’ll be the one making it, but I’ll name it the Kisea Gate. I’ll allow it. Everyone will remember your name.]

“Wait, what?!”

Kisea, dropping her act, shouted. She vehemently argued against the nonsense. Regardless, the dragon was determined to use Kisea to fulfill the task Kyle had entrusted to it.

Masters possess a vast amount of magical power and the ability to continuously draw more from the world. They are better sources of magical energy than even the highest-grade magic stones, making them useful for creating gates.

[The remaining 70% can be drawn from the Dragon Vein.]

“Let go! Put me down! Who do you think you’re treating like a magic stone now? Are you kidding me?!”

Having lived a life as a mercenary, Kisea had heard of other uses for magic stones. Usually, they are bought from the Magic Tower and used to create magical artifacts or as fuel to keep magic circles running.

However, mercenaries sometimes use magic stones to recover magical power during battles. Since magic stones are minerals formed from highly concentrated magical energy, using them to recover magical power isn’t particularly impossible.

But usually, only low-level mercenaries or those in desperate situations resort to such methods. The amount of magical power gained from a single magic stone is so minimal that it’s negligible for experts.

Moreover, magic stones are incredibly expensive. They are one of the most lucrative items for the Magic Tower, the wealthiest group on the continent. You’d need to pay a premium to buy one. Using such an item to recover magical power is, in short, not cost-effective.

High-level warriors possess an enormous amount of magical power within them. Even an expert’s internal magical power is equivalent to thousands or tens of thousands of magic stones.

Masters are on a completely different level from experts, making them the best choice if you can extract their magical power. They are like perpetual motion machines, endlessly producing magical power as long as they are fed.

[Now, stand straight on that magic circle.]

This is common knowledge for anyone who uses magical power. Yet, no one on the continent had ever thought to use a master in such a way.

First, there was no reliable method to bypass a master’s control and extract their magical power. Second, and more importantly, treating a master like this would have severe consequences.

Even someone like Xerox, a master loyal to the empire, wouldn’t accept being treated as a magical power source. He wouldn’t draw his sword against the empire, but he would be deeply disappointed and might retire in seclusion.

Such loyalty is rare among masters, who usually reside in a country because of the favorable conditions it offers. Even if another country offered better terms, treating them like magical power generators?

Not just anyone can insult their dignity and use them like parts.

Only if the masters themselves allow it can such a proposal be considered.

Of course, dragons are an exception. Kisea weighed her pride against her life and made a decision.

“…Just asking, but it won’t hurt, right? No needles or bleeding or anything like that?”

She had a bright future ahead, was still young, and held a title.

She had too much to lose to die here by provoking the dragon. Of course, even if she refused, Azahadaka wouldn’t kill her.

He’d just turn her into a half-wit and place her on the magic circle.

Since the outcome would be the same, it was better to comply obediently.