Chapter: 167
I was dreaming.
A dream where Mom left me behind.
“Mom’s going to earn money, so you need to wait patiently, okay?”
A total lie.
“I’ll earn loads of money and make my daughter live like a princess. I promise I’ll come back to get you…”
What a liar.
“So, you have to listen to the priest and stay healthy, alright?”
The dream of the day Mom left. Leaving me, a little kid, in the mountain village, Mom was off.
Ten years. Not exactly a short time. During that period, Mom didn’t even send a single letter.
Maybe she just forgot about me.
Watching Mom’s retreating figure, I cried.
I had a gut feeling we’d never meet again.
I couldn’t handle it—my only family was leaving. I cried like a little kid.
Well, that’s because I was just a kid.
Once Mom disappeared completely from view, I turned around and opened the temple door.
As a small child who couldn’t survive on my own, the only person I could rely on was the priest at the temple.
When I opened the temple door, the first thing that caught my eye was…
[Grrrrrr…]
A gigantic silver dragon. Its head.
My feet were glued to the ground like they’d turned to stone when faced with this massive creature.
Not even a squeak came out from my throat.
Paralyzed with fear like a mouse in front of a big, scary cat.
The silver dragon slowly opened its eyes and looked at me with golden irises.
A gaze that felt like it could see right through my soul. A look that seemed to read my weak self, stuck in this little village I loathed.
The dragon, looking down on me as if I were nothing but a speck of dust, opened its mouth slowly.
Then, everything around me—the trees, the temple, the sky, and the ground—started getting sucked into the dragon’s pitch-black mouth.
And I got dragged in with it.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
[Hmm? Oh, you’re awake now.]
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the giant dragon.
“D-D-D-Dragon…!”
[Yep, a dragon. It’s been a while since I was in my true form, so you might have forgotten what I look like.]
The dragon let out some random sounds I couldn’t understand. I tried to scramble away from it.
But then…
[Don’t you dare run away! I waited for you to wake up, and now you want to take off?]
“Eek?!”
In a flash, silver chains, like shackles, wrapped around my hands and feet, making me completely immobile.
“Are you going to eat me?”
[Eat you?]
The dragon stared at my face.
[Hehe, what a funny thing to say. A little creature like you wouldn’t even fill my stomach.]
“But… the dragons in stories…”
[I don’t know what stories you’ve been reading, but I won’t eat you.]
The dragon kept staring at me.
Is it really okay? But dragons in stories were fierce creatures, smashing villages with their massive bodies and killing people with their deadly poison.
Yet this gigantic dragon in front of me… isn’t trying to gobble me up and is actually talking to me.
Can I trust it?
“So… dragons don’t eat people?”
[Don’t worry, I won’t eat you. I can live just fine with magic, so eating is just a little hobby for me.]
Is that really true? Should I trust this? What if the dragon’s just pretending and plans to swallow me whole?
No, no, if that was the plan, it would’ve already done it!
In front of this enormous dragon, I’m just a tiny beastman.
[By the way, how did you even get in here? I clearly sealed the entrance so tightly that nothing could get in.]
“The entrance? Um, there was a cave, and there was a tiny crack, so I squeezed through… that’s about all I know.”
[Hmm… a cave, hmm? Was it created by an earthquake?]
Earthquake?
“Now that you mention it, there was a big earthquake a few weeks ago. Thankfully, no one got hurt, but…”
The hunter uncle complained that his hut in the woods had collapsed.
[Hmm, I see. Now, let’s see… how much time has passed…]
The dragon reached out its front paw, and suddenly, a huge something appeared on its empty paw.
Is this… magic?
Come to think of it, the dragon did say that it could use some special magic to breathe fire!
Wow… to actually witness magic like this…
[Hmm, about 300 years have gone by. We haven’t hit the planned 500 years yet, but… it’s about time to wake up.]
After saying that, the dragon made whatever it was on its paw disappear and unwrapped its tail, getting up on all fours.
And then it spread its enormous wings.
Just the act of spreading its wings sent a strong gust of wind that knocked me off my feet!
I tried to hang on, but I ended up being tossed like a leaf in the wind.
[Phew, I think I’ve rested enough, so I’ll get up now! I’m curious to see how the world has changed after 300 years!]
“I-I see…”
All I could manage was to speak as politely as I could.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
[Oops, my bad. It’s been a while since I moved around.]
Seeing me with cuts on my arms and knees from being buffeted by the wind from its wing, the dragon said, looking a bit guilty.
[Since I don’t spend much time in my true form, let me heal those wounds for you.]
Then, a soft light started glowing from the tips of the dragon’s front paws, wrapping around me as if by magic, and my wounds vanished like they’d never existed.
Is this… the same healing technique the priest used?
No, a creature like a dragon couldn’t possibly use divine healing. It must be a similar magical effect.
Still, wow… my wounds disappeared in an instant—much faster than the priest could’ve done.
[Alright, let’s start moving. Little beastman, can you find your own way back?]
“Huh? No, I can’t. I don’t know the way!”
I practically slid down, so climbing back up is totally out of the question.
No matter how light I am as a mouse beastman and how strong I might be for my size, there’s no way I’m climbing that steep slope!
[Hmm… I know!]
The dragon seemed to have a bright idea and smirked.
[I’ll take you back home.]
“Really?”
[In exchange, I’ve become curious about seeing the world from a human’s viewpoint, so I’d like you to guide me.]
Guide… the dragon? The biggest house in my village is probably smaller than its claws, and the whole village might be smaller than the dragon itself.
I thought for a moment, but I realized I had no choice.
If I didn’t get the dragon’s help, I’d be stuck here!
With the dragon’s aura lighting the area, it seemed like the only entrance I had was the one I slid down.
Even if the dragon turned the village into chaos, I had no choice but to nod.
“I can guide you to the village I live in, if that’s okay.”
[Hmm, thanks! I’ve grown tired of just looking down from above.]
This gigantic dragon must’ve flown really high in the sky.
The realm of the gods, where many deities are said to dwell, and the sky this dragon flew through—I wonder which is higher.
Ah, but even thinking about such things might bring divine wrath. No, no, I shouldn’t do that.
“But how will you get into the village with such a massive body?!”
If it enters the village in this size, there won’t BE a village!
I’ve always grumbled about my little backwater hamlet, but if it gets wiped out, I’d be in a big mess!
[Of course, there’s a way! Did you really think I’d enter the village this big?]
Yep.
I couldn’t quite say that out loud.
But hey, your wing flapping just tossed me aside! It hurt! Like, a lot!
Well, it healed me, but still!
[Before I fell asleep, I spent all my time in human form, so I’m pretty used to it.]
At the same time, a brilliant light erupted from the dragon’s body.
My eyes! My eyes!!! It’s so bright!!!
Even in the dark cave, there was barely any light, except for the faint glow from the dragon, and now this blinding light! My eyes!!! Aaah!
The light that was pouring out gradually started to dim over time.
And then…
“Hmm, this form is definitely more comfortable.”
In the spot where the dragon had been standing, there was now a silver-haired girl with horns on her head.
“Uh, could it be… Dragon-sama?”
“Yep, that’s me.”
Is this also magic the dragon can do?
Incredible! That massive body shrank down to this size!
“Well then… shall we head out?”
The dragon, now in the form of a girl, casually snapped her fingers, and suddenly the surroundings changed in an instant.
Instead of the dim cave, now we were in a familiar forest.
This is… the forest behind the mountain!
“Whoa, how did you do that?”
“I just moved through space, that’s all. So, let’s get going. By the way, what’s your name?”
Ah, I hadn’t introduced myself yet!
“I’m Maybelle Cinder! What should I call you, Dragon-sama?”
“Well… I have many names, but… you can call me Tiamat. No one else is using this name, and since I’m a dragon, it fits.”
Tiamat? What a quirky name.
“Okay, I’ll call you Tia! Now, let’s head to the village!”
And so, I set off with Tia, the dragon girl, toward the village.
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