Oh, Master—My Master (3)
My master Cardia was the type who only said what she wanted and only heard what she wanted to hear.
She wasn't the best sort for friends, colleagues, or acquaintances. But once you somehow broke through her walls and got close, she treated you well.
Even when we first met, she wouldn't listen to a word I said.
—You'll be my disciple!
—Uh... what if I say no?
—Then you'll have to stay here forever as my chatting buddy!
—Couldn't someone else come instead of me...?
—No one's come in 274 years! You're the first!!
I'd come seeking to become her disciple after seeing the angle in a prophecy... but I never imagined she'd hug me tight and threaten that I couldn't leave unless I agreed.
The only way for someone who'd entered this space by gripping the sword hilt with her permission was one: Cardia, the trapped owner, deciding to send them back on a whim.
In other words, the moment you stepped in, your life was in her hands.
For the record, back then I'd pretended to give in reluctantly, acting like I had no intention of becoming her disciple but was doing her a special favor. I wonder if she remembers that.
And so, I became her disciple. It marked another turning point in my life—periodically visiting this place to learn the Dragon Extermination Style from her.
By now, our master-disciple bond was rock-solid. She listened to me properly and answered my questions. She even took a liking to Gia, whom I'd brought along, responding patiently without skipping a beat.
That said, there were times when she spoke with uncharacteristic seriousness, without a hint of playfulness. Like when the topic turned to Terminus—my grandmaster and her own master.
"So, you're saying that old story Grandmaster told mentioned these Dragon Fang Soldiers?"
I'd never met Terminus in person. Word was he was still alive, living quietly in some remote corner of the continent in seclusion. He probably knew where his student was sealed, but even after she ended up in this sword, he never came looking.
It must have hurt her feelings, but it came down to the gulf between dragons and humans. She didn't seem too bothered, though.
"That's right! So... Dragon Fang Soldiers are like pseudo-souls created by magic and infused into fangs..."
When she got into long explanations, my master would furrow her brow, tilt her head, and speak slowly, deep in thought. It was adorable watching her brain churn.
"You said the Dragon Fang Soldier magic was high-tier? What was it again... something on the level of life-creation dragon magic... uh..."
"Master. Take a moment to organize your thoughts before speaking."
"You can sort it out after listening—you're smarter than me and know all that stuff anyway!"
She snapped in frustration. I shrugged, stroked Gia's head beside me, and kept listening.
About twenty minutes of perceived time later, I summarized her rambling explanation.
"So, to sum up: even when a Dragon Fang Soldier dies, part of its soul can linger, and if those remnants gather in another one for whatever reason, it can create a stronger entity. Right?"
"Yes! Exactly!"
"Not that hard to grasp... Master, you really don't think things through~"
"You little—!"
Crunch!
As I teased her with a smirk, she lunged and bit my left arm.
"Ow! Calm down, Lady Cardia!"
Gia, who'd been nuzzling against me, jumped in surprise. I waved it off reassuringly.
"Back in the day, blood would gush out, but it barely hurts now. No need to worry."
"Grrr... you were all scrawny before, and now you're tough!"
"Ah, that doesn't mean you should use Dragon Blood Gong to bite harder—gyaaah!"
Determined to make it hurt, she amped up her bite force with the Dragon Extermination Style's internal technique. I stood, dangled the master hanging off my arm like a playful pup, then slammed her onto the ground.
Blood trickling from my arm, I sat back down.
"Are you two okay? Director, you're bleeding, and Lady Cardia got thrown pretty hard..."
"Haha, no need to fret, little one! This isn't reality, so don't worry about that."
"It's just your mind copied here in perfect condition, body left behind. Ideal for training techniques. Master them here, and you can replicate them in the real world."
Plus, like that one manga's training room, time flowed differently. A week here was a day outside. No wonder her mind had frayed after 286 years—over two thousand perceived years trapped.
"But Master, a single Dragon Fang Soldier's combat power is like a strong D-rank at best, right?"
"Yep. About on par with an orc that's survived long enough to hone some skills."
D-rank was tough for your average armed soldier, but trivial for anyone who'd crossed the threshold with internal aura techniques or enhancement magic—even against groups.
The mercenary who'd tried kidnapping Gia was barely C-rank, so individual Dragon Fang Soldiers couldn't be that strong.
"I've slain two dragons and over five thousand Dragon Fang Soldiers along the way. Never seen an enhanced one. Do they really exist?"
"Necrosis the Corpse Dragon, Pabbrnir the Evil Dragon? They weren't even around for the Human-Dragon War."
True. The Corpse Dragon was an undead revival from before the war, and the Evil Dragon—one of the Demon King's Five Evils—had retreated to the demon realm by then.
"It wasn't that level. You'd need at least ten thousand Dragon Fang Soldiers dying, their souls piling into one, for maybe a chance."
"Sounds like even Grandmaster's story was just 'something like that might exist'?"
She started grinding her sharp teeth again. I edged away to avoid another bite, and she continued as if it had just clicked.
"Right, there was one in the early Human-Dragon War!"
"Early phase... when you were still a kid, Master."
What followed was pretty chilling.
Early in the Human-Dragon War, there was a massive battle—one of the war's top three by scale. Ten dragons fell, thousands of elite humans died, and tens of thousands of Dragon Fang Soldiers crumbled.
Sometime after it ended, an anomalous Dragon Fang Soldier appeared. It boasted combat power surpassing an adult dragon, rampaging wildly until its own bones shattered.
"So they do exist. Then the one in this dungeon...?"
"Most likely! Especially in these mountains—not exactly peaceful territory!"
Dungeons in this game world sometimes recreated the past of their location. A Dragon Fang Soldier in the Dragon's Ridge Mountains? Yeah, that fit, especially with Master's input.
Hah, tough bastard.
"Come to think of it, Master."
"Hm?"
"The reason you're sealed here in these mountains... dragons launched a full assault to catch the one human slaughtering them?"
"Yup!"
"You must've killed a ton of Dragon Fang Soldiers too, then?"
"Right!"
She thumped her chest proudly.
"Over two hundred dragons in my life!"
I'd known it, but damn, that's a lot. Dragons aren't weaklings.
"Dragons aside, how many Dragon Fang Soldiers?"
"Didn't count the grunts exactly..."
She tapped her chin thoughtfully, then spread three fingers.
"Around thirty thousand? Maybe more!"
"...In your lifetime?"
"Nah? Just on the day I got sealed here?"
I blinked.
"Wait, so it's your fault!"
"Eek!"
I closed in and bonked her on the head.
"You should've led with that, you idiot!"
She rolled on the floor clutching her crown. It wasn't entirely her fault, but I had to vent a bit.
If true, that Dragon Fang Soldier—way stronger than imagined—was definitely my problem now.
What could I do? Cleaning up after your master was a disciple's duty. And stamping out the spark before it torched whole mountains? That was the fate of anyone who learned the truth.
"...So, did you achieve your goal this time?"
"Got the info I wanted. But one more thing."
She stopped rolling, sat up, and pouted at our impending departure.
I scooped up the silently listening Gia and set her in front of Master, poking her back twice with my index finger.
Your turn.
"Uh... um..."
"Oh? Little one's turn! Speak up if you have something to say!"
Maybe sensing the childlike girl was no ordinary person, Gia mumbled timidly.
"C-Can I... get strong too?"
"Aha?"
"Not as much as you or Director... just wondering if I have talent..."
"Aha!"
Giggling, she approached Gia.
"That's all? I was wondering what it was!"
She placed gentle hands on Gia's shoulders, staring intensely close—uncomfortably so.
"Stay still. Look me in the eyes."
"Y-Yes!"
Reptilian slit pupils met demon-flat ones up close.
A few seconds later...
"—Whoa."
Master's jaw dropped as she recoiled.
"No wonder my disciple struggled to bring her—this is shocking!"
Huh, unexpected reaction. She'd have flat-out said no talent if none. Specified the degree if some.
But gaping like that...
"Disciple!"
"Yes?"
"As orphanage director, you teach the kids, right?"
"We have Teacher Branche, so I don't teach much directly, but yeah."
"As your master, I command: you're her master now! Guess I'm a grandmaster too!"
"Pardon?"
She patted Gia's shoulder approvingly.
"Her talent might surpass even yours and mine. Teach her steadily from now, and she'll achieve greatness!"
"...Me? More than Director or Lady Cardia...?"
Gia gawked blankly. So did I.
"Yes! When I first saw you, disciple, I thought, 'What kind of monster is this?' World sure is vast!"
"...Master, you're sure? Not mistaking it for magic or necromancy talent...?"
"Haha, as if!"
She laughed, clearly delighted by the situation.
"She's a masterless famed sword, unpolished. She doesn't even know it herself. Hone her a bit, and she'll soar."
Good lord.
Gia whipped her head to me, hands fidgeting at the unimaginable praise. Honestly, I felt the same.
No way—this kid's not a magic powerhouse but a martial one?
In the original game, Gia as Shapina was the strongest Demon King ever. Matched only by the protagonist, history's greatest hero. She'd claimed that throne with necromancy alone—bones and corpses.
But if even that was just one facet of her talent?
If I poured everything into qi cultivation and swordsmanship on top of that verified gift?
What would become of this child's future?