The Ancient Dragon Tongue
The ancient dragon tongue left Breeder utterly bewildered. No dessert could possibly be that good. Yet most of the students had lost consciousness and collapsed right where they stood. Thinking back, the first-years’ reactions yesterday had been strange too. “I just assumed first-years were simply excitable children…”
Breeder muttered to himself with a dumbfounded expression and let out a small sigh. “B-Breeder? What on earth happened here?!” Sofia cried, recoiling at the sight of the lounge, which now resembled a den of indulgence. Derke, who had followed her in, merely tilted her head in confusion.
“Well… the young ladies tasted the dessert I made and suddenly this happened. It wasn’t nearly this bad yesterday…” Breeder scratched the back of his head, equally flustered. He had expected everyone to return to normal after some time, just like the first-years. But the fourth-years showed no signs of recovering. They seemed completely intoxicated by sugar, unable to regain their senses.
“Yesterday as well?”
“Ah, I actually let the first-year ladies try it first. I wanted some feedback, and I thought it might help Derke improve her relationships with her classmates.”
“Improve her relationships? Is that true?” Sofia asked again, her expression noticeably calmer. The mention of making dessert for Derke’s sake had piqued her interest.
“It’s true, desu-yong! Breeder-oppa is the kindest human in the whole world, desu-yong!”
“Derke…?”
Derke stepped forward as a witness, wrapping her arms around Breeder’s waist and defending him with her entire body. “Even so… didn’t you ask me to look after Derke yesterday? Was it really necessary to go this far?”
“I wanted to trust you and wait, Sofia. But when I saw Derke crying, I simply couldn’t stand by.”
“I see…”
“So I felt I had to do something. I never imagined it would turn out like this…”
Breeder surveyed the chaotic lounge with a troubled look. The fourth-year ladies were still lost in a sugar-induced haze, most of them slumped over tables and snoring softly.
“Pfft. You really are far too kind for a human.”
Even in this dire situation, Sofia smiled warmly at him. Her reaction was completely different from when she had first opened the door.
—Ding!
[The favorability of the conditional empathy target has increased.]
[This will be reflected upon successful conditional empathy.]
[Conversely, failure will nullify the effect and turn the target hostile.]
A system message suddenly rang out, displaying exactly those words. Sofia had felt genuine goodwill toward Breeder’s considerate actions. As expected of the Light attribute, the conditions for raising favorability were rather unique.
‘What? Even in this mess, her favorability went up?’
Breeder was merely puzzled. But that was all. He had no interest in favorability points right now; they wouldn’t help with the current crisis. What worried him far more was the girls’ condition. He feared they might end up roasted if things went wrong.
“Don’t worry too much. Leave everything to me and set aside those dark anxieties.”
Sofia extended a helping hand, her smile gentle and reassuring, perfectly fitting her saintly image. “Sofia…?”
“It’s all right. I don’t believe you caused this on purpose. Leave the rest to me, heir of the Dawn Dragon.”
—Click, click…!
Sofia walked toward the tables, her heels tapping lightly. She placed her hand on the forehead of one of the collapsed fourth-years.
—Vwoooom…!
A bright light radiated from her palm—the pure white radiance reminiscent of the primordial sun. Its gentle glow grew steadily brighter. Sofia had activated her power: the light that could heal and purify all things.
“O ancestors of the beginning, please shine your brilliant light upon us foolish ones…”
She continued her chant in the ancient dragon tongue, the words resembling a prayer. The moment she finished, light burst forth from her hand.
—Fwoooooooosh!
The radiance flooded the entire lounge in an instant, bright enough to blind. It was as though lightning had struck in broad daylight. The intense light filled the room and then vanished just as suddenly.
“M-My eyes…”
“Whoa, what an incredible aura, desu-yong…!!”
Breeder and Derke stumbled backward. Derke clung to his back, squeezing her eyes shut. The compatibility between the Death Dragon and Sofia’s light was poor, after all.
—Thud!
Once Sofia removed her hand, the sugar-intoxicated fourth-years slipped into peaceful slumber. No one was begging for more treats or swaying dizzily anymore. Calm had finally returned to the once-noisy lounge.
“From what I can tell, there’s nothing dangerous about their condition.”
“Then why did they react like that?”
“That’s what I’d like to know. It’s hard to believe, but they seem genuinely impressed by your skill. I can’t think of any other explanation.”
“Huh?”
“After examining them closely with my power, I couldn’t find any other cause.”
Sofia approached Breeder again, staring at him intently with curious eyes. “Um, Sofia? By the way, what exactly did you just do? Are the ladies all right now?”
Breeder quickly changed the subject, noticing her suspicious gaze. Derke merely muttered, “S-Such an amazing ability, desu-yong…!” while glancing around.
“I purified everyone with the power of light. After a little rest, they’ll be perfectly fine.”
Unlike the flustered pair, Sofia smiled calmly. She seemed relieved that the situation wasn’t as serious as it had first appeared.
“Thank you so much, Sofia…!”
Breeder dropped to one knee in genuine gratitude. This wasn’t an act to divert her attention—he truly meant it.
“Not at all. I simply did what needed to be done. Please stand up.”
“Haa… I sincerely thank you for your merciful kindness, Sofia.”
Breeder exhaled in relief. He had truly been saved by her. Without Sofia’s power, he would have remained helpless, and he didn’t even want to imagine what might have happened next.
‘If the ingredients in the biscuits and misu powder weren’t the cause, then what was?’
Breeder pressed his temples, deep in thought, but no answer came to him. In truth, the reason the fourth-years had lost themselves so completely was something else entirely—Derke’s special trait, Dragon’s Touch. Because she had participated in making the biscuits, its effect had activated. Combined with the already exceptional taste, the synergy had produced an exaggerated result, as though they had inhaled some kind of drug.
“Breeder-oppa? Does your head hurt, desu-yong?”
Derke approached the still-kneeling Breeder and gently stroked his hair. “Hm? Derke? What are you doing?”
“My mom always did this for me when I had a headache, desu-yong! Derke’s hands are healing hands, so you’ll feel better right away, desu-yong!”
With sympathetic emerald eyes, Derke softly patted his head. “Isn’t that usually for stomachaches?”
Breeder smiled despite himself. Derke’s adorable reaction was enough to make him grin, and thanks to her, the throbbing in his head really did seem to ease.
“A-Ah?! Now that you mention it, maybe it was… desu-yong!”
“Pfft, you’re so silly. Still, thank you.”
“Hehe♪ It’s nothing, desu-yong!”
With the crisis resolved, Breeder and Derke finally regained their smiles and composure. But Sofia, who had been watching their exchange, wore a grave expression.
“B-Breeder?! Did you just converse with her in the ancient dragon tongue?”
“Huh? The ancient dragon tongue?”
Breeder realized his mistake too late. The same thing had happened when he first met Derke—Erdin had reacted identically. “Yes…! And Derke? Where did you learn that tongue? It sounds like an extremely ancient form of dragon speech.”
Sofia’s surprise wasn’t only due to Breeder. Derke’s peculiar way of speaking had also caught her attention from the very beginning.
“Huh? I learned it from my mom, desu-yong!”
“From your mother? Then… could you try speaking in the common continental tongue? I’ve been wondering why your speech pattern is so unusual…”
“C-Common tongue, desu-yong…?”
Sofia stepped closer to Derke, her golden eyes filled with suspicion. “Or… don’t tell me you can only speak in the ancient dragon tongue?”
“……”
Derke seemed frightened by Sofia’s serious demeanor and couldn’t bring herself to answer. “Don’t be scared. I’m not trying to scold you.”
Sofia softened her expression and asked again in a gentler voice. Then—
“…N-No, it’s not like that. It’s just… speaking in the dragon tongue feels more natural to me…”
“D-Derke…? You can speak normally?!”