Not a Sheep, But a Dragon
The sensation of flying through the sky was always extraordinary. The pure thrill of soaring as I ripped through the clouds. It was a privilege those insignificant creatures crawling across the ground could never comprehend, even if they died and woke up a hundred times over.
I glanced back once at the forest shrinking behind me. The elves were waving. A few of them looked like they were crying.
“Hmph. Is it really so sad to watch This body leave?”
Still, leaving the forest had been the right choice—a hundred times over, a thousand times over. I had nearly turned into a lazy shut-in dragon who did nothing but lounge around receiving Dragon Aesthetic treatments for the rest of my life. Of course, those fingers scratching my neck, those honey apples they kept popping into my mouth, that ultimate full-course care that scraped away thousand-year-old grime between my scales… I might have felt the tiniest sliver of regret. A speck no bigger than dirt under a claw. Half relief, half regret.
“…No!”
Nine parts relief, one part regret. I quickly recalibrated the ratio.
“This body is a cruel tyrant dragon without blood or tears. Tyrants do not dwell on the past.”
Anyway, massages were not what mattered right now. There was a dragon in the eastern sea. Another dragon besides This body.
“Grrrr…”
The corner of my mouth twitched. I had believed I was the one and only dragon in the entire world, yet I had kin? Well, it did dampen the mood a little. Like a tiny scratch on my unique premium status. But if I reframed it, this was actually fantastic news.
“Of course, I’ll have to establish the hierarchy properly first.”
Slave → Servant → Subordinate → Vassal / Retainer
Humans and elves all began at slave. They were lower lifeforms, so that was only natural. But a dragon was a different story. After all, they were a member of the ultimate species.
“For a fellow dragon, I could grant subordinate rank from the start.”
Depending on loyalty and performance, even vassal status would be worth considering.
“Excellent. Dragon of the East, This body shall specially recruit you as the lowest rung of the Yumitas family.”
Surely they would prostrate themselves before This body’s generosity and weep tears of glory, right?
“Kroaaaaar!!”
I roared and accelerated.
An endless eastern sea stretched beneath me. When I looked down, coastal cliffs and sandy beaches came into view, along with a village huddled together on the shore.
“There it is.”
The atmosphere was completely different from human or elf settlements. Animal bones and skulls hung from every roof like decorations. Monster hides fluttered at the village entrance like laundry left out to dry. And above all else, every single person walking the streets had beast ears and tails.
“Beastmen?”
If I descended on them in my dragon form, these frail little creatures would probably slam their heads to the ground in worship again. How tiresome.
“Polymorph.”
I transformed into the form of a small, harmless young girl. With a soft pop, a delicate human girl landed gently on the shore.
“Hehe. Perfect.”
As expected, This body truly is a genius undercover dragon. I have never once failed at infiltration.
Wearing a haughty expression, I strolled into the village. Before long, an unpleasant scene caught my eye.
“Hey! Move it properly, you slugs!”
“S-sorry! We’ll move it right away!”
Carnivorous beastmen—lions, wolves, and the like—stood arrogantly in the middle of the road.
“This is all the harvest you brought? Do you want to become meat yourself?”
“Eek! Please spare me! I’ll bring double tomorrow!”
Meanwhile, the herbivorous beastmen—rabbits, deer, and others—carried heavy loads and could only watch nervously. The eaters and the eaten. At a glance, this was a place ruled by the logic of power.
“How pathetic.”
Tsk tsk. Whether they had fangs or not, they were all equally slaves of a dragon. To squabble over who ranked higher among fellow slaves…
“This is exactly why lower lifeforms are hopeless.”
It was then.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
“Hey, you. Little girl.”
Someone blocked my path. I looked up. Black mane. Broad shoulders. It was a black lion beastman. Wolves and leopards crowded behind him, snickering. He appeared to be the boss of this area.
“Never seen your face before. Which pack did you wander away from?”
“Get out of my way, black cat. This body is searching for the dragon said to live in the eastern sea.”
“Ha! What a cheeky brat.”
The black lion grinned, showing yellow fangs.
“Let’s see… Those horns make you look like a herbivore. Deer? Or maybe a sheep?”
“…Excuse me?”
“Or perhaps a little goat girl.”
Deer? Sheep? Goat? What was this stupid ball of fur babbling about while staring at my horns? Perfectly symmetrical, smooth curves, noble cream-colored horns that glowed softly under sunlight—the very symbol of a great dragon. And he was comparing them to the horns of grass-munching herbivores?
“Ha…”
It was so absurd I let out a hollow laugh.
“For now, come with me. We happen to be short one sacrifice this time—”
The black lion reached toward me.
“This body is neither a goat nor a sheep.”
“Huh?”
I lightly drew my right foot back.
“I’m a dragon!!”
My toes slammed into the black lion’s flank.
THWACK!!
“Urk…!”
The black lion’s massive body shot into the air. He flew straight across the village square and—
CRASH!
After soaring dozens of meters, he finally stopped after smashing into a distant log pillar.
“It’s a monster!”
“Unyaang…!”
“Whimper, whimper…”
The jaws of the cackling tiger beastmen hit the floor. The leopard beastman’s ears, which had been proudly perked, flattened completely. The wolf beastman’s tail tucked between his legs.
“To dare insult the symbol of Chaos Dragon Yumitas. Are you a cat? Do you think you have nine lives?”
I brushed off my skirt and lifted my chin high.
“Listen well, you primitive furballs!”
My voice rang throughout the entire village. The sheep beastmen carrying stones, the rabbit beastmen scrubbing the ground—everyone froze and stared at me with bated breath.
“Herbivore horns are nothing more than tools for survival. But This body’s horns are different!”
I pointed at the crown of my head.
“These are a crown permitted only to those who stand at the apex! Before these horns, your pathetic little claws and fangs are nothing but worthless toothpicks!”
I delivered a grand speech. How sacred horns were. How great dragons were. How vastly superior we were to mere herbivores.
Surely they were all trembling in fear by now, right?
Clap. Clap. Clap.
“…Huh?”
Careful applause reached my ears. When I turned, a white rabbit beastman girl with long white ears and sparkling red eyes was clapping enthusiastically.
“Waaaah!”
Her applause acted as the signal. The nearby sheep, deer, and cow beastmen began clapping one after another.
“The horns… the horns aren’t something to be ashamed of!”
“So the horns on our heads were actually something noble!”
“The owner of the great horns has come to save us! Wait, that’s not quite right… but still!”
I never said your horns were crowns. I only said mine were. Still, the applause felt rather pleasant.
The black lion staggered up from the broken pillar, blood dripping from his mouth. Yet his expression looked strangely refreshed.
“…Strong.”
Thud.
He dropped to one knee right there.
“The strong stand above. The weak are trampled below. That is the only law in this world.”
He lowered his head.
“By the law of survival of the fittest… from today onward, the apex of this village is you… O great dragon…”
Carnivores and herbivores alike—all the beastmen in the village knelt at once.
“Hmph. An obvious result.”
The simple, brutish logic of survival of the fittest. Surprisingly, I found it agreeable.
“From this moment on, whether you tear at meat or graze on grass, you are all equal slaves beneath my feet. Black cat, you go carry those rocks over there too.”
“Me?”
“When your owner commands, you obey.”
Even while wearing a wronged expression, the black lion glanced at my toes once before obediently trudging toward the rocks. Meanwhile, the previously oppressed rabbits and sheep stared at me in bewilderment.
“You lot, stop standing around. Bring This body clean water and fresh fruit.”
“Y-yes! Right away!”
The white rabbit girl scampered off. In this way, I raised up the exploited herbivores and dragged down the arrogant carnivores.
“Under This body, everyone is equally a slave.”
Well, it wasn’t so much equality as everyone sharing the very bottom together, but at least discrimination had vanished. That was good enough.
And so I settled into the beastman village for a while, enjoying my position at the top.
*
Several days had passed since I arrived at the beastman village. The atmosphere had completely transformed. Carnivorous and herbivorous beastmen now stood side by side pulling ropes and mending nets together. When I ordered them to work equally, they took it to an almost mechanical degree. Lions cutting grass while sheep grilled meat made for a bizarre sight, but it wasn’t my problem.
I lay sprawled on a wide wooden platform built atop a cliff with an excellent view of the sea, savoring the salty breeze.
This colonial lifestyle is rather excellent.
Everyone trembled at the sight of me and cleared the path. One command from me and they would move mountains. This was the life of a true tyrant.
“Grrrr…”
Satisfied, I purred and stuffed the fruit the slaves had offered into my mouth.
Yum yum yum. Basking in warm sunlight, enjoying the cool sea breeze, and rolling sweet fruit across my tongue… it felt like every worry in the world simply melted away.
I quite liked this platform. I should order them to enlarge the shade next time—the noon sun was a bit harsh. Oh, and those grilled clams from yesterday. I would have them again for dinner tonight.
“…Wait a moment.”
Why had This body flown all the way to this remote seaside in the first place?
“The dragon! I came here to find the eastern dragon!”
I shot upright. This was no time to be lounging.
It was then that the white rabbit girl, who had been fanning me from the side, flinched and stepped forward.
“U-um, Lady Yumitas…”
“What is it? Why are your ears drooping so miserably?”
“It is time.”
“Time? Time for what? Dinner?”
“It is time to offer the sacrifice.”
“Sacrifice? I receive tributes, not sacrifices.”
“The sacrifice for the terrifying dragon who lives in the depths of the eastern sea—the master of the ocean, Lord Leviathan.”
Dragon! So the dragon I had been searching for was that fellow!
“Why do you offer him sacrifices?”
“If we do not offer sacrifices… Lord Leviathan grows angry and summons a massive tsunami. So every year when the full moon rises, we beastmen offer living sacrifices to appease his wrath.”
“Living sacrifices… you mean beastmen?”
“Yes. We throw ourselves into the sea to become his meal. Mostly… it is those of us from the herbivore tribes who are chosen.”
The white rabbit lowered her head.
“This time, it has been decided that I will go. If my sacrifice allows the tribe to live even one more day, that is enough.”
The white rabbit smiled serenely, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
“……Haa?”
My mouth fell open in utter disbelief.
“Wait. Wait just a moment. So this Leviathan or whatever… eats his own slaves?”
“Pardon? S-slaves? We are sacrifices…”
“It’s the same thing! If he rules a territory, then every lower lifeform living there belongs to him, does it not?”
Question marks floated through my mind.
“If he wants meat, he can simply hunt beasts in the mountains. Why would he devour his own precious slaves?”
Destroying one’s own property with one’s own hands was an act only the greatest fool under the heavens would commit. A wise being such as a dragon would never do something so stupid, right?