Chapter 27
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Dragon Lair
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“W-Well... the floor was so hard and cold, I was worried it might hurt the back of your head... N-No, it was just to keep your body temperature up...!”
Roselia stammered through her excuses, at a complete loss for words.
Her hands flailed in the air, her ears turning bright red as she fanned herself frantically.
For some reason, watching her like that made me want to tease her even more, but I held back from any more mischievous jokes.
No matter what, it wasn't polite to be too harsh on the benefactor who had healed me.
Besides, even if it was just a contractual engagement, she was still my fiancée—she had every right to act like this.
“Understood. That was a joke. Thanks to you, I slept comfortably. Truly.”
I expressed my sincere gratitude with a serious expression as I sat up.
My left arm still throbbed faintly, but it was a bearable pain.
If not for Roselia's emergency treatment, I would've died from blood loss or lost the arm entirely, so this much was nothing.
We sorted out the awkward atmosphere for a moment and turned our gaze to the center of the altar, where the scars of battle were still fresh.
There knelt the massive dragon warrior, clutching its greatsword that had been cleaved in two.
Like a knight swearing eternal loyalty to its master until the very end.
...Impressive fellow.
“Your Grace.”
Roselia asked cautiously.
“Are you... going to take that too? It's broken, but every part of the dragon warrior is an incredibly valuable magical material. You could melt down the armor or frame to craft weapons...”
“...”
She had a point.
According to ancient texts, the dragon warrior itself was a walking treasure trove.
You could melt its dragon-tooth armor to forge new defensive gear.
Or use it as components for Kaltstein territory's defensive magic tools, boosting our forces exponentially.
With the princess's sudden engagement and Leonier's visit to the north, relations between Loen and Kaltstein were at their worst. Normally, we'd take it without question.
But.
I stared into the warrior's lifeless eyes for a moment, then shook my head.
“No. Let's leave it here.”
“Pardon? Why? It's so valuable...”
“It is valuable. But...”
I let my eyes sweep over the sword marks from Kaltstein blades etched across its body.
“This one didn't just blindly follow its dead master's orders to block me. In the final moments, it crossed blades with me as a true warrior. Even as a magically crafted golem, it gave me the finest fight of my life... Dismantling such an opponent for parts feels like an insult.”
Chivalry. Or warrior's honor.
Others might scoff at it as the whining of a full belly, but it was important to me.
Besides, it had breathed new life into my dull swordsmanship career, filled with boredom.
It deserved this much respect.
Roselia stared at me blankly for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle.
“Really... so like you, Your Grace. Alright, then. Let's let this brave warrior rest in peace here.”
“Thank you for your understanding.”
We offered a brief moment of silence to the dragon warrior, then moved on.
Our destination was the tunnel that resembled the mine entrance we'd spotted earlier.
“Now, shall we go claim the real treasure?”
“We need to descend carefully. There might be more guardians.”
“Nah, no way. Anything stronger than the dragon warrior would be cheating.”
We traded light banter as we cautiously descended the passage.
Fortunately, there were no additional traps or monsters.
After trudging down the endless spiral staircase for what felt like ages, our view suddenly opened up to reveal a breathtaking sight.
“Wow...”
I'd thought it was amazing even from above... but this was on another level entirely.
To start, straight ahead loomed a mountain made entirely of gold and jewels.
Every step crunched gold coins underfoot, and the walls were studded with fist-sized diamonds.
“Eeeeek! Look at this, Your Grace! It's all real!”
Roselia forgot all about decorum and flung herself onto the pile of coins.
“So squishy! I love the smell of money!”
She scattered coins into the air like a gleeful child.
I couldn't help but marvel at the surroundings either.
Kaltstein territory's taxes for a hundred years... no, dozens of times the empire's entire treasury?
Wealth so vast it would outlast a lifetime, with plenty left for grandchildren—and still not spent.
Even I, who had no greed for money, felt a momentary temptation.
But what truly caught my eye was deeper inside, beyond the gold and gems.
The dragon's remains, crouched like a colossal mountain, surrounded by scattered azure scales.
I approached it slowly.
Up close, its size was even more overwhelming.
One claw dwarfed my height, and its wings seemed broad enough to blanket the dome ceiling.
Its condition... is way too good.
I carefully picked up one of the scales scattered on the floor and felt it.
Cold yet incredibly texture.
No signs of decay even after centuries.
The bones, hide, and even some muscles were perfectly preserved.
At this state... it's less a dragon skeleton and more a dragon mummy.
As I fiddled with the remains lost in such idle thoughts...
I fell into deep contemplation once more.
How the hell do I carry this out?
Obviously, my current subspatial pouch couldn't hold these bones.
The pouch I'd brought had an opening just big enough for coins or large gems.
If I insisted on taking every bone, I'd have to hack the dragon bones—harder than sword auras—into tiny pieces.
That would take ages and leave nasty aftereffects on my unhealed left arm.
...Simple enough.
After running the calculations in my head, I called out to Roselia.
“Your Highness, stop swimming over there and come here a moment.”
“Coming~!”
Roselia stuffed a few coins into her pouch and scampered over.
“The problem now is how to carry this. Even with subspatial pouches, there's a limit...”
“Exactly. We should grab the most important stuff first, and the rest...”
We were deep in serious discussion about transport plans when...
[Hoh...]
“...?”
A low, resonant voice echoed from somewhere, soon reverberating throughout the entire cavern.
[To think a mere human defeated the dragon warrior and invaded my lair. Not bad at all.]
“...”
Roselia and I froze simultaneously.
The voice was unmistakably coming from the massive dragon remains right in front of us.
“D-Does that mean the dragon is still alive?”
Roselia whispered from behind me, her face drained of color.
Cold sweat trickled down my back as I gripped Winter Fang's hilt tightly.
A lifeless corpse speaking? A lich? Or a ghost?
Whatever it was, one thing was clear.
The voice's owner emanated an overwhelming aura that even dwarfed a Sword Master like me.
An aura incomparably denser than the dragon warrior's.
As we tensed up and took defensive stances, the voice's owner chuckled heartily.
[Relax, little humans. I have no intention of harming you.]
With those words, an azure mist rose from the remains, coalescing into the form of a massive dragon.
Semitransparent yet radiating majesty, it retained the full splendor of its living days.
[I am the master of this place, the Blue Dragon Arkaios. The original owner of those bones before you.]
“Arkaios...”
I repeated the name, trying my best not to sound intimidated or overwhelmed.
“If I may ask a question?”
[Speak.]
“Your flesh clearly perished long ago... How are you maintaining your consciousness? Your aura is far too potent for a mere lingering soul.”
[Hoho, sharp one. As you say, my flesh is on the verge of returning to dust.]
Arkaios gazed down at his remains with lonely eyes.
[But before dying, I synchronized my Dragon Heart—containing my essence, which should have returned to nature—with this lair's mana core. This space itself became my new body, a vessel anchoring my soul. That's how I've endured for centuries in this ghostly form.]
“One with the lair... I never knew such a method existed.”
[Unable to let go of life, I shackled myself. I clung on even in an unconscious state to survive as long as possible. But today, intriguing guests arrived after ages—the first in a long while. A human who crushed the dragon warrior with pure might? Enough to pique my curiosity.]
He observed me with interest, then shifted his gaze to Roselia.
She flinched at the look, but sensing no hostility, she met Arkaios's eyes steadily.
Intrigued by her composure, the dragon's lips curled into an exaggerated smile as he continued.
[Since fate brought us together... care to chat a while?]
“...Very well.”
We didn't have unlimited time, but a short talk was no big deal.
Besides, how many humans ever converse with a dragon?
Knowing this chance was rarer than reincarnation itself, we lowered our guard slightly and engaged him.
Arkaios chattered like a grandfather reuniting with his grandchildren after years apart.
How had the outside world changed? Was the empire still around? What magic did humans use these days? He peppered us with questions.
I answered each one politely, exchanging glances with Roselia.
What do we do?
Play along for now. Chatting as much as he wants might help us take the treasure.
We continued responding earnestly to his queries.
Especially Roselia's tales, blending her reincarnated knowledge with this world's lore, had him roaring with laughter.
[Kuhaha! Steel wagons that move without horses? Fascinating—truly fascinating!]
After much talk, the mood had softened considerably.
I seized the moment to get to the point.
“Arkaios. It was a delightful conversation, but we came here for a specific purpose.”
[Hmm, yes. Those shiny rocks?]
“Precisely. Would you permit us to take them? If you're here to guard this place...”
I subtly rested my hand on Winter Fang.
I didn't want to fight, but I had no intention of leaving empty-handed.
But contrary to my expectations, Arkaios snorted derisively.
[Guard it? Why would I? That's just my collection from life. Useless to me now that I'm dead. Take it or leave it—I don't care.]
“Really?”
[I said yes. Consider it payment for keeping me company after so long. Take it all.]
An unexpected windfall.
A dragon's scale was truly different.
Great figures have great actions, as they say.
But the biggest problem remained.
“Thank you, but there's one issue. There's too much—we can't fit it all in our pouches. Any ideas?”
[Simple enough.]
Arkaios pointed a claw at the ceiling.
[You saw that hut-like building near the altar, right? I'll disable the magic seal. Find the subspatial expansion pouch artifact there. Its space-warping magic can hold the entire lair with room to spare.]
“Such an artifact... Thank you truly.”
All problems solved in one go.
Now we just needed to fetch that pouch, sweep up the treasure, and head home.
I let out a sigh of relief and nodded to Roselia.
“Let's go, Your Highness.”
“Yes! Wow, this is huge. You're the best, Dragon Lord!”
As Roselia bounced excitedly toward the exit...
[Wait.]
Arkaios called us back.
His expression and tone had shifted from moments ago—now grave and sharp.
“...Is there a problem?”
As I turned tensely, Arkaios wasn't looking at me—he was staring piercingly at Roselia.
His blue eyes gleamed as if seeing straight through her.
After a long, silent scrutiny, he slowly spoke.
[You.]
“...Y-Yes?”
Roselia barely managed to respond, frozen in place.
Arkaios approached her slowly, murmuring softly.
[I wasn't sure until moments ago, but now I'm certain. You... are not a soul of this world.]
“...!!”