Sorry the update was late. I went to catch the breeze at Niagara for a bit... (Updating while traveling.)
Chapter 436: O Dragon, O Dragon! Part Thirteen
The lesser dragons’ decision-making AI apparently wasn’t governed simply by how high or low someone’s kill score was.
From what several of the people I’d saved told me, the going theory was that “the more aggro you draw from Bryleinyego itself, the more lesser dragons gather around you.”
In other words, the person who had nearly been mobbed by lesser dragons back there must have been someone who “stood out” in the eyes of the white dragon Bryleinyego, and my jumping in to help from the side had apparently been enough to draw its aggro as well.
Of course it had. After all...
Fione: “Hey! Are you listening?!”
Sunraku: “I am, I am. I’m all ears—rabbit ears, even.”
Fione: “I see! Then good! ...No, that isn’t the point! That sword! I’m talking about that sword!!”
The person who had drawn Bryleinyego’s aggro—its burning, hate-filled glare—was now following me around.
Fione: “You... could that possibly be Areadbhair?!”
Sunraku: “Come on, Areadbhair’s a spear, right? This is a sword.”
Fione: “Hm? Ah, yes, that’s true... But there is a tale that shows the quick thinking of the hero Dul Dauna. Once, when he was surrounded so tightly that there wasn’t even room to wield a spear, he broke the shaft himself and turned it into a sword...”
Two seconds of silence.
As though refusing to let that opening pass, several lesser dragons charged in. I cut down the two human-sized ones, while the woman who had been following me sliced through the giant-sized one.
Fione: “No, it is a sword!”
Sunraku: “Sure is!!”
What was with this giant woman? The sword she was using was clearly something special, so I had figured she was a high-ranking NPC among the giants, like Vash or Ceecrue. Was she also top-tier in how damn easy she was to mess with?
Fione: “Why do you have it?!”
Sunraku: “Why do you think I have it?”
Fione: “Huh? Um...”
Oh, a three-man cell. Sorry, but unless you’re using Shield-Platform-Jump-style Divine Punishment, you’re not catching me off guard. What kind of Divine Punishment is that? Exactly what the name says.
Fione: “There can be no mistake. That brilliant blade of hellfire that destroys dragons... I know! You picked it up, didn’t you?!”
Sunraku: “Correct! Amazing! How did you figure that out? By the way, what’s your name?”
Fione: “Hm? Ah... I am Fione of the Peerless Twin Blades Mora-Beagalltach...!”
She was around three meters tall, so naturally she looked impressive when she fought.
Sunraku: “Mora-Beagalltach?”
Fione: “What, you’ve never heard of them? The paired blades wielded by our forefather Odinu... This is one half of them, the Passion Blade Beagalltach!”
Sunraku: “Wow!”
The two swords swung at the same time and sent the lesser dragons flying. I see. One half of a matched pair of swords... Judging from the name Mora-Beagalltach, the other one was probably Moralltach.
Fione: “Heh-heh! Beagalltach acknowledged me from the moment I was born, and together with my sister, who bears Moralltach, I am to slay dragons... No, that isn’t the point!!”
Sunraku: “Oh, hold on. I need to change.”
It felt like almost eight minutes had passed. I was relying on my internal clock, so I couldn’t know the exact time, but with things like this, you had to act as soon as you sensed danger.
I took out a jet-black crystal and swung Areadbhair one-handed, taking down one enemy.
Then I drove a knee into another and followed it with a jumping back kick.
I stomped on it after it crashed to the ground, then drove Areadbhair into it as though pinning it there...
Sunraku: “Transform!”
Oh, crap. I said “transform” without even thinking. Maybe I was still riding the excitement from using the Glittergrit, Crystal Sword of Heroic Radiance.
The Empress’s Supreme Treasure Gear, Tsaritsa Series, burst away. For one instant I was half naked... No, both my headgear and waist gear had burst off too, so was I basically naked...? The female version of me, still wearing the default underlayer for a fully unequipped state, was exposed.
But there was no need to worry. This was a magical-girl-style transformation, so the important parts were hidden.
The crimson gemstones that had burst away, now shattered into pieces, sparkled as they floated through the air... Then their light suddenly turned dark.
The tiny gemstone fragments changed into a black, smoke-like haze. Moving as though time had been reversed and ignoring the physics engine, it coiled around my body and pulled tight. I was standing with my feet planted wide and my hands on my hips right now, but should I react in a more girlish way? Would anyone even want that?
Before long, the haze wrapped around me took the shape of clothing. Dressed in a solid-black dress with a veil hiding my face, I pulled Areadbhair from the ground and took my stance.
Sunraku: “Second form... Right now, I’m unlimited—No Limit.”
Fione: “W-what was that?! That was so cool!”
Sunraku: “Right?”
What was this feeling...? It wasn’t the same as dealing with Emul, and it wasn’t the same as dealing with Saina either. I felt like I’d responded this way somewhere before...
Sunraku: “Oh.”
I got it. This was what it felt like to entertain a little kid in the family. Something I couldn’t put into words was whispering that answer to me.
Sunraku: “Anyway, look—the enemy’s coming. We can talk later!”
Memento Mori struck the ground with a heavy thunk. I easily pulled it free and rested it on my shoulder, taking up a dual-wielding stance with Areadbhair Rebuild. It had been the same against the Great Red Devourer, but this was pretty much the best answer for fighting dragons... Being able to swing around a combination of raw damage and bonus damage against dragons left me struggling to think of any better option.
Fione: “Are you stronger than you look...?”
Sunraku: “I’ve got high girl power.”
Fione: “...?”
As Pencilgon once put it, “Girl power equals combat power, and my girl power is over five hundred thousand.” My girl power was high right now, so I could swing Memento Mori around with ease.
Saina: “Master.”
Sunraku: “Saina?”
Saina: “With assistance from the individual designated Emul, I searched for the specified next-generation primitive humans, but have produced no results at this time.”
Emul: “They weren’t anywhere, wa~”
Hmm. I thought a robot clad in Shoro rampaging around would draw in someone like Rust, but... Were they seriously fighting a different dragon?
If so, what should I do? Going to another dragon was an option, but it felt like I’d triggered some kind of giant-race flag here... As the current owner of Areadbhair, turning my eyes away from the giants here felt like a bad idea, whether in terms of Vorpal Soul or my affection rating with Vash.
Sunraku: “Can’t be helped... Saina, let’s stand out even more. You have permission to use every weapon available to your powered armor.”
Saina: “I see... Intelligence Full Burst, then?”
Is your intelligence made of bullets or something? Still, I didn’t dislike that kind of thinking. Gunpowder was concentrated wisdom, after all.
Sunraku: “Emul! Don’t use the stuff I entrusted to you yet, okay?”
Emul: “Heh-heh! I know, wa! That’s our trump card, wa~!”
That’s right. It was every last thing I had acquired with the money withdrawn from my piggy bank, the Golden Scales, and through my connections. If we were going to use it, it had to be against the real target.
Sunraku: “Your name was Fione, right?”
Fione: “I am Fione of the Peerless Twin Blades Mora-Beagalltach. A giant’s name goes together with their weapon.”
Sunraku: “Oh, it’s one of those full-name things...”
Fione: “Indeed. I have heard that it is a custom unfamiliar to your people, but it is extremely important to us.”
Sunraku: “Hm?”
Something had just caught in my mind... Or had I imagined it?
Fione: “Bearer of Areadbhair, it’s coming!”
Bryleinyego: “Damn you! How dare you use that accursed blade against my beloved children...!!”
What, was its aggro directed at me? Fine by me. Ever since I checked its information, there was something I’d wanted to say.
Sunraku: “If you’re multiplying all by yourself, they’re not children—they’re just clones of you! Don’t drag us into your game of playing house!!”
Bryleinyego: “Wha... Wh-what...?!”
I’ll smash every last one of them to pieces, damn it!!
Sunraku: “Saina!!”
Saina: “Request acknowledged... Deploying Out-of-Spec Armament: Strike Spear Type 【Phalanx】.”
Emul: “Uh, should I get ready too, wa?”
Here. A carrot.
Emul: “Yay.”
Two blades of scorching heat and death, the Passion Blade, a huge assault lance, and a carrot... Heh.
Sunraku: “You’re sticking out way too much, Emul.”
Oops, sorry. But the enemy had already started attacking, so I couldn’t respond even if Emul pulled the most outrageous face.
All right, let’s go! Assemble!!