This Is How You Kidnap (1)
This Is How You Kidnap (1)
[Er, Olivia.]
"What."
[Did you not call it a kidnapping?]
"Yeah."
[...]
Glacia couldn't hide her astonishment.
'She's really going to do it out in the open?'
Even a dragon ignorant of the ways of the world knew how a kidnapping should be conducted.
Wasn't it supposed to be done secretly, furtively?
Whatever else, she was certain it wasn't the sort of thing someone riding a dragon in broad daylight should do.
But instead of asking further, Glacia shut her mouth. It was the result of learning through her whole body(?) that Olivia was a human to whom common sense didn't apply.
'She looks like some sort of noble, but her personality is worse than a red dragon.'
Honestly, even by draconic standards, Olivia's appearance was quite decent. Her silver hair and proud eyes naturally gave off an air of cold beauty.
Even the mana she exuded was so pure it was hard to believe she was human.
But if you said that hidden beneath it was a psycho who'd make even a demon shake its head, who would believe it?
'She's a total witch, a witch.'
Glacia swallowed her words in her heart. Calling a mage a witch was an outrageous insult—like calling a dragon a lizard.
As Glacia consoled herself with silent backtalk, Olivia's irritated voice reached her ears.
"Can't you fly a little smoother?"
[...I shall do my best.]
"Tch. Should I get a saddle or something?"
[...]
Glacia's eyes trembled.
Even so, a saddle was out of the question. It wasn't as if she was going to go around bragging to the world, 'A human broke me in.'
[U-Um, might I ask what you find uncomfortable?]
"Your scales are too hard. Mind if I cut off a few? They'll grow back anyway."
[...]
"If you don't like it, we'll fit the saddle."
A bastard worse than a demon.
In the end, she had no choice but to make a decision.
[Gently... please.]
Glacia squeezed her eyes shut.
'Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it! I shouldn't have left the nest! I should've listened to Mom!'
The moment a dragon became independent from its parent's lair, it was classified as a separate individual. Carsian had also said, 'I've raised you to adulthood, now go live well on your own,' and sent Glacia out.
That had felt nice at the time.
Because she could break free from her parent's shadow and enjoy the life she wanted.
If she had known she'd meet a demon like this, she'd have postponed her independence by a hundred years.
'I'm sorry, Mom. This lifetime is a failure.'
Glacia squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the pain she felt on her back.
Snap!
It was miserable.
Drip.
These weren't tears shed because of the pain. They were tears shed because her situation was so miserable.
[Huuuurgh.]
"Stop crying. Your scales are so big I only removed four."
Olivia gathered up the scales she had removed with magic and stowed them away.
"Now it's a little softer."
At those words, Glacia's body trembled with what could only be called deep emotion.
This bastard was a mage?
This thing?
Clearly, the definition of a mage must have changed in the past few years.
"Wake me when we're near the tower."
Olivia lay down on the soft, bare flesh. Then she closed her eyes and sank into thought.
Magic Tower.
A treasure house of knowledge where like-minded mages gathered to pursue scholarship.
The Red Tower researched fire, the Blue Tower water, the Green Tower wind, the Black Tower earth, and the Gold Tower space-time.
Thus the Five Great Magic Towers came into being.
But as time passed, it became clear that five towers were woefully insufficient to handle all the elements.
Light, ice, lightning, darkness...
And so a few more towers came into being.
Among them, the White Tower researched light.
Light, commonly known as white magic.
When you think of light in fantasy, what usually comes to mind?
A noble priest who believes in a god, an archmage who illuminates the darkness, hope...
Not inaccurate.
In fact, most mages belonging to the White Tower were devout followers of the light or simply good-natured people.
So, in short, they were soft to a fault.
You could gauge their character by the fact they had built their tower on a ridiculously high peak to prevent the magic beasts living on the Great Snow Mountains from descending into villages.
Yeah, that's right.
I gave them high marks for character.
If I was going to kidnap someone anyway, wasn't it better to kidnap someone who'd stay polite even in front of someone they didn't like?
I'd already neatly compiled a list of who to kidnap.
Honestly, I hadn't planned on going as far as kidnapping at first. Since I needed to stay hidden for at least ten or twenty years, revealing my location was the dumbest possible move.
'But if not now, there won't be another chance.'
If I'd woken up in the starting city, that'd be one thing, but since I woke up on the northern Great Snow Mountains, things had gone incredibly wrong right from the start.
'The princess would have noticed something off. She might even suspect that I've regressed too.'
After all, the person who should have been in the starting city was gone.
Not keeping in mind the possibility that the other party had regressed versus keeping it in mind—the difference in vigilance couldn't even be compared.
She'd no doubt block all contact with those who would become key figures in the future, and even circulate a sketch among her confidants, warning them repeatedly that I was a person of interest.
Some might think that's a bit much, but she was the princess.
'So you started this, princess. I didn't intend to go as far as kidnapping either.'
If I couldn't exert influence over the future main characters, it was only natural to turn the arrow toward the supporting cast.
Having justified the kidnapping to herself, Olivia felt something strange and straightened up.
"Have we arrived?"
[Yes.]
"Keep hovering in place. I need to check something."
A huge barrier surrounded the Magic Tower. Olivia reached out and touched it. The next instant, a current of electricity flashed and pushed her hand back.
'Stings.'
Olivia clicked her tongue and stepped back. It wasn't a strong barrier. Without needing top-tier magic, she could handle it with the level of the Blizzard she'd once used on Glacia.
But that didn't mean she could just use Blizzard.
If destroying the barrier was all there was to it, that'd be one thing, but if anyone inside died, it would be a disaster.
"Keep circling around."
[Excuse me?]
"I said keep circling around until they open up."
Glacia turned her gaze downward. The mages of the tower were running around in confusion and panic.
Well, that was a normal human reaction to facing a dragon.
But thinking that she'd ended up like this because she'd gotten mixed up with a human who looked at a dragon like a bug brought tears to her eyes.
[Will they open up obediently?]
"They can't see me. Only you're visible to them."
Here was a dragon that had been quietly living on the Great Snow Mountains suddenly appearing at the tower.
But think about it: she was making no attack, just quietly beating her wings outside the barrier over and over.
Surely a being as great as a dragon wasn't just doing that because she couldn't break the barrier.
Any sensible person would first lower the barrier and let Glacia in.
A moment later, the barrier vanished and a path inside opened.
"Land gently. You know what happens if you make my butt sore, right?"
Glacia didn't bother adding that this was the best she could do.
There was nothing to gain from saying it.
Lightly.
'...Was that good?'
Glacia waited anxiously for Olivia's assessment. She'd never understood why the dwarves trembled with anxiety whenever they came to present tribute at the lair, but now that she was in a similar situation, she understood perfectly.
'So this is how it feels.'
Being on the receiving end was an awful thing. Just thinking that the other held the power of life and death over her made cold sweat run down her whole body.
When Olivia let it pass without comment, Glacia breathed a sigh of relief.
[What should I do now?]
"Wait. Until the Tower Lord comes out."
*****
An emergency was declared in the White Tower. Even the usually quiet elder mages were forced to lift their heavy backsides before the dragon.
"Why a dragon...?"
If the elder mages were like that, the state of the ordinary mages hardly needed describing.
"Kyaaaah!"
"E-everyone's going to die!"
"Please spare us! Please spare us!"
Some hid under desks and trembled; others, seemingly out of their minds, chattered their teeth.
The sight of those who supposedly pursued the truth trembling in fear was not a pretty one.
But it couldn't be helped.
Dragons possessed a power that could paralyze the thinking of lower beings.
"Still, this is excessive."
Chief Mage Aramis looked at them with a face full of scorn.
"Don't be so harsh, Aramis. They aren't doing it because they want to. You seem to have the composure, so go tend to the wounded."
"...Yes, Elder."
Even now, years after joining the White Tower, he still couldn't comprehend the teaching to help the weak.
"Th-thank you, Aramis."
"You're in the way. Stay back."
What on earth did he gain by helping people like them?
And these were mages, no less. How could those who should never retreat an inch in the pursuit of truth be so utterly helpless before a single dragon?
He couldn't understand the Tower Lord's policy of embracing even such people.
Just then, the room grew noisy. It was a different sort of commotion from when the dragon appeared.
"I-It's the Tower Lord."
Aramis's gaze naturally turned. An old man with a kindly face was walking through the crowd toward the outside.
Pure white robes symbolizing light. A face filled with wisdom.
But Aramis read the faint anger hidden beneath that kindly face.
In truth, the White Tower Lord was angry.
"Third Elder. Have you identified that dragon?"
"Yes. According to the records, she is a white dragon called Glacia."
"Hoh... I believe she is a young dragon not yet a thousand years old."
"Correct."
"Hohoho..."
A dragon appeared in a manifested state for only two reasons.
When it was enraged at humans, and when it wanted to fill its lair with treasure.
The White Tower's mages couldn't possibly have disobeyed his orders and done anything to incur a dragon's wrath.
He had already restricted access to the mountain range where her lair lay—how could they have angered her?
Then the answer was one.
She had come to extort treasure.
The wrinkles etched into the White Tower Lord's face quivered.
"What shall we do?"
"What shall we do? If the great being desires treasure, we must offer it."
"But...!"
"As long as it's only treasure."
The elders, understanding his meaning, shut their mouths.
Dragons didn't fill their lairs with gold alone. They collected precious metals, artworks, relics with special histories—anything and everything.
It was better to hand over such treasures and let the matter pass peacefully than to fight a dragon.
But sometimes, they demanded something other than treasure.
Dwarves and mages.
Dwarves had it relatively better. They had to craft works for the dragon until they died, but at least they suffered no direct harm.
But mages were different. Mages dragged to a lair were used as test subjects until both mind and body were ruined, then died.
It was called experimentation, but in reality it was little different from play.
The White Tower Lord looked around.
They were young mages. They were those who had come all the way to this remote White Tower to study with nothing but a passion for learning.
What should he do if the dragon demanded these juniors be handed over?
'Absolutely not.'
No matter how great a dragon was, there were lines that had to be drawn.
The White Tower Lord spoke with a resolute face.
"Open the gates."