The next day, at noon.
On the mountain road encircling the White Dragon Nation.
*DONG!*
With one hand pressing the head of a two-legged winged dragon against the mountain wall and then crushing it with a kick, Naoki swept his gaze over the cratered battlefield. With a casual snap of his fingers, he instantly leveled the surrounding area again.
"That should do it. These dragon calamities really come wave after wave."
"This is already the sixth wave this morning alone. Hopefully, there's no trouble at the base." Artoria said with a slightly worried expression.
Naoki smiled. "There are three Knights of the Round Table there. These minor dragon calamities shouldn't be able to overpower them. If anything… our situation here is the one that's a bit bigger."
*BOOM!*
As soon as he spoke, a rumbling sound came from not far ahead. Blazing flames spread and erupted from within the mountain.
"Here they come again."
Sighing helplessly, Naoki pulled Artoria along and immediately used Displacement Magecraft to teleport to the source of the sound. Seeing the figure standing in a sea of flames, Naoki sighed again. "Can't you keep it a bit quieter… Aren't you afraid of causing a landslide and getting buried to death, Jeanne Alter?"
"Huh?"
Jeanne Alter standing in the sea of flames, turned around, sneering at Naoki. "Either way, a guy like you wouldn't just stand by and watch, right? Or are you a cold-blooded jerk who'd let this kid get crushed to death?"
"I've told you…"
Taking three steps in two, Naoki raised his hand and swiftly chopped Jeanne Alter's head. She immediately clutched her head and crouched in pain.
"What was that for!"
"Just a little lesson. You said you wanted to come out for some fresh air, and since you were itching for a fight after seeing us, I let Gray bring you out. Don't act recklessly the moment you're out. Are you some elementary school kid overly excited on a spring field trip? No, even elementary schoolers are more obedient than you."
"Huh?!"
Hearing that she wasn't even better than an elementary schooler, Jeanne Alter's face soured. "Who're you calling—Ugh~~~ Fine, fine, I get it, I'll calm down."
She only got halfway through her sentence. Hearing an unclear threat from Gray within her, Jeanne Alter, not wanting to be sent back like this, could only swallow the rest of her words and stow her weapon with an unhappy expression.
Scratching his head helplessly, Naoki said, "If you're itching for a fight, there'll be plenty of chances to go all out later. For now, hold it in—here, have some ice cream to cool off."
"You're really treating me like a kid who needs to be placated?" Jeanne Alter sneered, but her hands honestly took the ice cream. "Where'd you pull this thing from?"
"Imaginary Manifestation—Lia, want some? Or would you rather have a drink? We've been walking for about an hour; you must be thirsty, right?"
Seeing the drinks appearing one by one beside Naoki, Artoria gave a wry smile. "Just give me a bottle of mineral water—Master's ability is as versatile as ever."
"Not really."
Tossing a bottle of mineral water to Artoria while simultaneously repairing the terrain damaged by Jeanne Alter's power, Naoki looked ahead—the White Dragon Nation was close, just past the plain at the mountain's base.
It had been an hour since they set out. Though Naoki had initially suggested using Displacement Magecraft to get there directly, Artoria, considering that the dragon calamity might attack the base, proposed walking instead, clearing out the dragon calamities along the way.
If the dragon calamities were eradicated, they wouldn't reappear in the same area for a short while—about half a day. This was also to reduce the pressure on the base.
After finishing the ice cream and its cone, Jeanne Alter licked the crumbs from the corner of her mouth. "How much longer until we get there? At this distance, we could just fly, right?"
"If you don't mind me holding your waist, I've got no problem with it—there's a bit left on the corner of your mouth." Naoki said, reaching out to wipe some ice cream from Jeanne Alter's mouth and licking it himself.
(This guy really doesn't care at all!)
The overly direct action made Jeanne Alter's cheeks flush slightly again. She had little resistance to such straightforward gestures, and within her, Gray also showed signs of embarrassment.
Perhaps the flushed face was partly influenced by Gray.
"Hmph~~~ I'm surprised you care about physical contact like this. Doesn't the Knight King mind?"
"Oh, I don't mind. I've experienced it a few times before." Artoria said without blushing or her heart racing. "And being held by the waist is nothing compared to fusing with Master."
Fusion?
What kind of fusion?
"You two can fuse? That's… uh, like robots combining?" Jeanne Alter racked her brain to express the little knowledge she had through Gray.
Robots?
Thinking of the armor designed specifically for Vortigern in the real world and the Holy Sword armor in the consciousness world, Artoria nodded. "Yes, you could say that."
"Sounds super cool (very softly)."
"Huh? What'd you say?"
"I didn't say anything!"
Seeing Jeanne Alter hurriedly deny it, Naoki, who had heard her whisper, actually wanted to say that if Jeanne Alter didn't mind, he could fuse with her too—it was just a matter of Summoning Magecraft.
But considering that Gray, who shared her heart and body, might scold him, he ultimately held back.
And at that moment—
"Roar!!"
The sound of a dragon's roar echoed in the sky once more, and in one corner of their view, several dragons swooped down at high speed from the other side of the mountain.
The seventh wave.
These dragon calamities were truly relentless. Hadn't Jeanne Alter just burned this place clean? Why were they appearing again so quickly?
"Jeanne Alter, does your skill have no effect on them?"
"Huh? You mean Dragon Witch?" Jeanne Alter shook her head. "Not at all. These things aren't even considered dragons. They just have the shape of dragons. How could I control them?"
"What a pity. I thought I could become a dragon knight."
Sighing regretfully, Naoki raised his hand, Mana gathering at his fingertips. But before he could fire a Gandr to shoot down the dragons, a figure suddenly darted out from the mountain road ahead… No, leaped out! Jumping straight onto the backs of the dragons!
The sword in their hand gleamed with a light like a lake under the moon.
(That's—)
Naoki and Artoria's eyes trembled slightly.
*SWOOSH!*
The lake-like light slashed through, instantly annihilating all the dragons. Using the sliced dragon bodies as a springboard, the figure swiftly returned to the mountain road, turning to face the three.
"Are you three alright? I may have startled you, I truly… No, it seems I was overthinking."
As her gaze swept over Artoria, the gallant female knight who was about to say "my apologies" immediately changed her tone. "Since it's the King of this world, she surely wouldn't be startled by this."
"Sir Lancelot from the other world…"