When sitting at the same table as the Dragon, I had a feeling that something was going to happen, but on the other hand, I harbored a hope that it might be resolved peacefully.
There were moments of unease in between, but thanks to Alterra calming down, I began to think that it might really work out. However, when the Dragon inadvertently said something and Alterra reacted sensitively, I felt it.
It was over. When she carelessly criticized her mother, who was Alterra’s mental weakness, I had already given Akashi a heads-up through branding. To prepare to deploy a barrier at any time.
And that ominous prediction became reality when Alterra asked for the necklace. Her intention must have been to show her necklace to that Dragon and reveal her mother’s innocence.
But the Dragon, after carefully examining the gemstone, exclaimed in shock that there was an indescribably terrible curse on the necklace and told her to throw it away immediately.
Saying that if she continued to wear the necklace, her body would be taken over by the entity inside it.
What happened next was predetermined. Alterra attacked in anger, and the Dragon retaliated. The only difference from my prediction was that this Dragon had completely toyed with Alterra.
When it came to firing its Breath, I seriously considered whether I should intervene. But the Dragon easily subdued Alterra, and it seemed like the situation was coming to an end.
Then, what is this now? A part of the crystal mass that was pinning Alterra fell off and transformed into the shape of a human woman.
The Dragon quietly muttered something and hung the blood-stained necklace onto the crystal mass. Then the crystal started moving, making grinding noises, and suddenly spoke.
“…What is this? This isn’t my daughter’s body…? What’s happening…”
The moment those words were spoken by the crystal mass, I instinctively knew something was wrong. A soul-stealing spell. The soul-imbued necklace. Alterra, who cherished that necklace so much. The strange personality that surfaced when she lost control. A statement made by the Sword Witch.
It was as if the gears that had been spinning aimlessly finally meshed together. According to Alterra’s story, her mother was nothing short of an angel.
…She was a witch though. I should have noticed something was amiss. When the Sword Witch mentioned her as a friend and said she left behind something for Alterra.
This thing, this entity trapped within the crystal, was none other than the mother whom Alterra cherished so deeply in the necklace.
But…
Does it truly cherish Alterra? I’m still not sure about that. Placing a body-stealing spell doesn’t sound like cherishing. Still, I held onto a bit of hope.
Perhaps it considers her family to some extent.
“…Daughter? What are you doing there…?”
“Mo…ther…!”
The Dragon, while pinned under the crystal mass, looked at Alterra desperately searching for her mother and made a look that was both disdainful and pitiful, then cleared away the crystal mass.
I watched silently as Alterra, limping on her newly-transformed bloody legs, approached. Would this crystal mass react?
The crystal mass pushed Alterra over as she approached. Alterra let out a “Huh—” and fell on her bottom.
“…Ah, sorry about that. I panicked, daughter. So, what’s going on here? Why am I trapped in this crystal instead of your body…? Hmm…? Tell me. Come on, be a good girl…?”
The utterly natural gestures. A silence that seemed perfectly normal rather than wrong. And a belated change in attitude realizing the mistake afterward.
It wasn’t the image of a saint-like figure from Alterra’s stories. If she were truly kind and good, regardless of her state, she would have embraced her daughter asking to be held.
“…Daughter…? Why are you like this…?”
So, either Alterra embellished the times she spent alone with her mother, or her mother definitely tampered with Alterra’s memories.
Especially since the Dragon hinted at something during the fight. Either way, it was undoubtedly the worst outcome for Alterra.
Given the situation, our purpose for embarking on this adventure together is wavering. While we need to judge based on her condition, looking at her now, I can’t be sure.
How do we clean up this mess, and how do we take care of the psychological impact Alterra has suffered? As I was contemplating this, something entirely unexpected happened.
“Don’t come… don’t come…!”
Altera screamed suddenly as the crystal approached and retreated. There was despair in her voice, even more intense than before the attack by the fungus.
At least back then, there was a bit of determination mixed in. It wasn’t like now where she’d given up on everything. Acting on the intuition that if I didn’t stop her now, I’d regret it, I rushed forward to grab her.
“…Alterra, Alterra! Just wait a moment, calm down! Alterra!!”
But I couldn’t catch her as she ran away recklessly. Even though she was weakened, chasing after her with the body of a dragon moving at full speed was impossible.
She disappeared into the ground mid-run, making it impossible to track her. All I could do was helplessly look in the direction she disappeared.
…No, that’s not all. There was still something I could do. Very close by. Turning my head, I met eyes with the crystal mass. The crystal mass looked at me without any emotion.
“…Well. I was expecting a touching reunion between mother and daughter, but this is an unexpected turn of events. Hey kid, are you really Alterra’s companion?”
The Dragon looked back and forth between the crystal mass and me, incredulous, and asked if I was really Alterra’s companion.
“…That’s correct. She’s my irreplaceable girlfriend. And excuse me. Would you hand over the crystal containing that witch to me? There are many things I need to uncover.”
“Hooh. Girlfriend, huh. Do you dare, being merely human, to covet a dragon—even a half one?”
The Dragon glared at me with flashing eyes, clearly displeased by my claim of her being my girlfriend. But I had no intention of backing down. If I had hesitated with such resolve, I wouldn’t have stepped onto this path in the first place.
“Yes. And I must uncover what this witch has done to Alterra!”
Altera had initially looked at the witch with joy and excitement, but after being pushed away, her eyes filled with fear and despair.
“Fools attract each other, they say. But… fine. That audacity pleases me. Do as you wish. After all, a disgusting human like you who cannot even create a proper masterpiece—do as you please.”
The Dragon sneered disdainfully and gave me free rein. Without hesitation, I took a brush in one hand and a sword in the other and approached the crystal witch.
“You’re Myungho, aren’t you? I saw you through my daughter’s eyes and memories. Give up. If you touch me with that brush, you’ll faint due to the power gap. And, and shouldn’t you protect the mother of the one you love…?”
Realizing things were getting strange, the crystal witch tried to retreat step by step and attempted to coax me, but I wasn’t listening. Short on magic power? There’s plenty stored in the sword.
“…Beautiful Demon, I offer you the souls you desire. In return, grant me the power, the strength to uncover the truth!”
-It shall be done.
Lifting the sword high, I offered the souls trapped within to the demon. The tattoo on my hand turned crimson, and an overwhelming surge of power flowed into my body.
“Dark Magic…?! That wasn’t in the daughter’s memories!! What kind of hero consorts with demons?! Back off… this demon…!”
As the crystal, which had been trying to escape like Alterra, suddenly froze in place. It twitched as if trying to move, but its feet had fused with the ground, preventing it.
Golden mana swirled in the Dragon’s eyes.
“Tch, this is quite the drama. The mother trying to steal her daughter’s body, a hero teaming up with a demon, and the troublesome girl’s family affairs too! My curiosity is killing me!”
It was the Dragon’s doing. The witch, who had been resisting by twisting her upper body, soon couldn’t move anything except her head. Now, what should I write?
Suppressing my boiling rage, I pressed the brush against the witch. Immediately, I could feel the vast amount of power draining away.
…Much more than when I inscribed Alterra.
Gripping my trembling hands tightly, I wrote that she must confess everything she did to Alterra, holding nothing back.
Then the witch, who had earlier worn an urgent expression, calmly recited everything she had done to her.
Injecting toxic liquids, dissection, blood extraction, inserting foreign objects into the body, biological research, sampling skin and nails, venting frustration, testing endurance.
“And… I interfered with her soul, transferring its power to myself. Anyway, her body was eventually going to be mine, and most importantly, her soul’s strength was weakening, so I needed to replenish it. The day after conducting that experiment, she started behaving strangely, as if she had forgotten everything. Since I had extracted enough information, I decided to play the role of a kind mother to reduce her resistance.”
Even after hearing the whole story, I couldn’t believe it. Akashi also stared at the witch, Alteena, in shock. Not to mention Yuna and me.
It was hard to believe that someone like this, who was a parent, was even human.
“…I enjoy tragedies, but this… this can’t even be scripted. Wow.”
I didn’t even feel anger. I just had no idea how to handle something like this. Repentance? No way. Cutting her down with the sword would make her rejoice since she could exist forever.
Even destroying her with the brush felt unsettling.
How could something like this exist in the world?
I drew again with the brush to cut off her consciousness.
This… let me think about it later. Right now, Alterra comes first. This isn’t something I should decide, it belongs to her.
Since Alterra is the victim, it should be left to her.
“O great Dragon. I have but one question. By any chance, do you know where Alterra is?”
“…Eh? Oh, of course. I know this Crystal Gorge workshop inside out. Go about 990 meters in that direction, and you’ll find a pit. She’s in there. Hurry. World, how pitiable. She didn’t even get treated as a child.”
“Thank you!”
I ran off immediately.
Altera must be safe.
