The Grand Duke's Resolve
The scream tore through the blizzard like a blade.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!!”
The instant the massive maw snapped shut, Dino let out a piercing shriek. A violent flap of wings sent a gust ripping through the air, scattering blood droplets alongside the swirling snow.
“Dino!!!!”
Rina screamed her son’s name and thrust her hand forward. Black orbs materialized in the empty air, instantly launching enormous chain-spears toward the sub-dragon that had attacked him. But the creature dodged with terrifying agility and vanished beyond the white curtain of snow.
“Dino! Are you all right?!”
“F-Father… ugh…!”
Belato scooped up his fallen son and recoiled in horror. The boy’s right arm had been completely torn off at the shoulder.
“That damned mongrel… my son…!”
Rina ground her teeth so hard they creaked, desperately trying to sense the creature’s presence hidden somewhere in the blizzard.
This isn’t an ordinary sub-dragon…!
No matter how young, Dino was a Grand Elf carrying the blood of House Tanalif. Even if he had let his guard down, there was no way a normal sub-dragon could have done this to him. Nor should any ordinary sub-dragon have been able to evade Rina’s attack so easily.
As if to confirm her suspicion, the beast spread its wings and emerged from the storm.
Sub-dragons born from repeated inbreeding and mutation—an individual that had beaten impossible odds. A creature in which the dragon traits of its ancestors had concentrated, granting it power comparable to the original dragonkin.
“A vile wyvern…!”
The house-sized reptilian monster soared upward, its two wings fused to its forelimbs blotting out the sky.
Grrrrrr…!
It opened its jaws, and a frost breath like an avalanche roared from its throat.
“Tch…!”
Rina reached toward the sky. A black vortex appeared and began devouring the frost breath. The attack’s momentum gradually weakened. Just as she started to feel a flicker of relief that she might be able to hold it back—
Grrrrrrrr!
Another shadow hidden within the blizzard revealed itself. Its hideous jaws were already lunging straight toward Belato and Dino.
Time seemed to freeze. Rina’s breath caught in her throat.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
Something hurtled in like a storm and slammed directly into the vile wyvern’s jaw. The massive creature tumbled across the snowfield, gouging the ground with its bulk.
After confirming that Belato and Dino were still alive, Rina barely managed to draw breath again. Before her stood a lone figure.
“Defense Commander. Why have you come so far from the barrier? Shouldn’t you be guarding it?”
“Ah, no, I… that is…”
The Grand Duke addressed her without even calling her “sister,” coldly pressing for answers. Rina felt a chill of pure terror.
She had abandoned her post to hunt sub-dragons in a distant region—all to pad her son’s military achievements. She had planned to lend a hand when he grew tired and claim some of the credit for herself.
“I-I didn’t expect vile wyverns to appear! There’s no reason for them to be driven out of their territory, and certainly no reason for two of them to come all the way here—”
“Your excuses seem like they’ll take quite a while, so I’ll hear them another time. Return to the barrier immediately.”
“What? S-Surely, Lua, you’re not planning to stay here alone?”
“The barrier requires at least one Grand Elf. I can buy far more time by remaining than you could.”
“But…”
“If even one vile wyvern reaches the barrier while the Defense Commander is absent, the defensive line will collapse. The Grand Duchy will suffer irreversible damage.”
“Ugh…”
“Deputy Commander. Hand Dino over to the commander and gather the scattered troops for retreat.”
“Understood.”
Belato carefully placed the still-bleeding Dino into Rina’s arms. She summoned a black orb, stepped inside with her son, and vanished. The orb itself soon disappeared as well.
Belato began calling back the troops scattered across the area and ordered a retreat.
Grrrr…
Grrrrrr…
“Haa…”
Lua let out a long sigh as she stared at the two vile wyverns. One remained on the ground while the other hovered in the air, keeping her pinned down. Her earlier strike had apparently taught them that she was not an opponent to be taken lightly.
“It would be nice if we could part without spilling any more blood, but I suppose that’s not an option?”
Grrrrrr…!
Grrrrrrr!
Lua had not been talking to herself. Vile wyverns possessed enough intelligence to understand language. She slowly adjusted her grip on her sword.
One alone might have been manageable, but two? Even she could not guarantee her survival. And these were clearly fully grown adults at maximum size, rich with battle experience. Anyone watching her calmly assess the situation might think she still held onto her reason.
But that was far from the truth.
She had gone four full days without relieving her sexual frustration.
Fuck. Dying here would be too pathetic—I haven’t even held the opening ceremony for my brother’s cum-dump hole yet. I wanted to pierce that virgin membrane with this massive cock, then irresponsibly flood his womb with a thick creampie!
“Ha… haha…”
Now that death stood before her, she regretted everything. Why had she struggled so hard to hold back, inventing every excuse not to cross that line? How foolish. She should never have cared about her honor as lord, her family’s prestige, or the eyes of those around her.
The only thing that still gave her pause was her brother’s feelings. He would surely say that line must never be crossed…
But forcing him down while he thrashed and cried no, no♡ would feel so much better.
Such dangerous thoughts flooded her mind—thoughts she would never have entertained before her brain surrendered control to her cock.
“If I make it back alive… I will definitely…”
Lua leveled her sword at the vile wyvern on the ground.
“Let’s begin.”
Grrrr…
Grr…
“You’re not coming? Very well, then.”
Lua’s body was enveloped in dark energy and vanished. It was a stealth spell, but completely hiding from a vile wyvern’s transcendent senses was impossible. They clearly sensed her moving across the ground.
The one on the ground braced for an attack while the one in the air prepared to strike in tandem. However, the place where Lua reappeared after canceling her stealth was—
Grrrr?!
—directly in front of the airborne vile wyvern’s eyes.
* * *
Upon receiving the urgent report, Mina was sprinting toward the barrier at full speed. Normally she would have matched her unit’s pace, but the situation left her no choice.
She took a short breath, preparing to accelerate even further.
“L-Lua’s in danger! We have to get there as fast as possible!”
“Eh?!”
Only then did Mina remember that Sia was clinging to her head. She had shyly suggested a piggyback ride, and Sia had accepted without hesitation, climbing straight onto her shoulders. They had been walking around the village like that when the report of the vile wyvern’s appearance arrived.
Because Sia was so light, Mina had completely forgotten she was even carrying her.
“B-Brother! It’s too dangerous for you to come! Please get down!”
“We’re already in the middle of the snowfield! There’s nowhere to leave me! Just run!”
“Uuu…”
It was true—they had already left the village streets far behind. There was no place to set Sia down and tell him to head back alone.
“W-When we arrive, you must hide somewhere safe!”
“I know!”
Perched atop Mina’s nearly two-meter-tall frame, Sia gazed at the sky with anxious eyes. Beneath the gray, cloud-filled heavens, he could see Inarinax slowly shifting its position. Originally stationed behind the barrier to prepare for swarms of smaller flying sub-dragons, the flying fortress was now advancing forward in anticipation of the vile wyvern threat.
“The White Rose Commander moved at the perfect time. That’s fortunate.”
“Ah…!”
Sia let out a despair-filled gasp. He had finally caught sight of the vile wyvern. It was flying straight toward them with its wings spread wide.
If a vile wyvern had already reached this far, then Lua—who had said she would buy time…
Sia’s breathing grew ragged. Tears welled in his eyes. Mina suddenly skidded to a halt mid-sprint.
“Why… why did you stop?”
“There’s no need to hurry anymore. That vile wyvern is already dead. It’s in the middle of falling.”
“Huh?”
“The barrier forces have noticed and aren’t firing. It appears to have been killed in midair. More importantly…”
Kuuuuuuuung!
The falling vile wyvern collided with Inarinax. The flying fortress was pushed back only slightly; it seemed largely unharmed. However, the creature’s oddly twisted trajectory cast a shadow that grew ominously larger and larger.
“That thing… looks like it’s heading straight for us.”
Mina veered sharply to the side and began running again, trying to escape the wyvern’s crash path. The massive body picked up even more speed as it plummeted. It drew so close that they could see individual scales glinting.
In that moment, Sia clearly witnessed it—silver hair fluttering atop the vile wyvern’s back.
“Lua!!!!”
Kugugugugung—!
Thanks to Mina having put enough distance between them, the wyvern’s corpse crashed far away. Lua, meanwhile, leaped off mid-fall and landed in the snowfield.
“Ugh…”
She managed a graceful landing, but exhaustion made her stagger several times before she finally dropped to one knee.
“Lua! Luaaaaa!!!!”
“Ah… Brother.”
Sia jumped down from Mina’s shoulders and ran toward Lua like an eager puppy reunited with its owner. It should have been a heartwarming sight, yet the way he waddled unsteadily through the deep snow looked utterly ridiculous.
Lua, eyes half-lidded with fatigue, let out a small chuckle at the sight.
“You really… could have taken your time, Brother.”
“Lua!”
The moment Sia reached her, he threw himself into her arms. Lua pretended she had no strength left and let herself fall backward, carrying him with her.
“Lua, Lua, Lua…!”
“Yes, Brother. I’m not going anywhere.”
Sia burst into heavy sobs, repeatedly calling her name. Lua gently stroked the back of his head.
“I was so scared… I thought I might never see you again.”
“A Grand Duke doesn’t die to mere vile wyverns.”
Overcome with joy, Sia pressed his lips to Lua’s. The very next instant he realized what he had done and tried to pull away, but Lua firmly held the back of his head in place. With their bodies buried in the snow, Mina behind them wouldn’t be able to see clearly.
“Mmph! Mmmph!♡”
“Haa…♥”
After savoring a triumphant kiss, the Grand Duke buried Sia’s face deep into her chest.
“Brother. I’m really backed up, you know. Four whole days.”
“Mm. It’s okay. I’ll drain every last drop. Even if my body breaks.”
“…That’s exactly the kind of thing the head physician would scold you for, but you truly mean it, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
Unfortunately, Sia could not see the wicked, lustful smile spreading across Lua’s face.
“I’ve made up my mind, Brother. No matter when I die, I want to enjoy myself without a single regret.”