Artoria sought to mend the rift between the baby dragon and humans.
But first, she needed to clarify something.
"Why do you dislike humans so much?"
"Is it because they took the fish you raised?"
Artoria glanced at the girl standing in the corner, then tugged Alaric's wing, asking in a hushed tone.
She controlled her voice expertly... just loud enough for the girl behind them to overhear.
She was trying to help both sides understand their conflict, paving the way for resolution.
The young Red Dragon King proved her emotional intelligence, her words and actions not flawless but certainly thoughtful... far from the "ignorant of human hearts" Some might claim.
Alaric shot Artoria a glance.
He saw through her intentions but couldn't resist her attempt at mediation.
"Hmph... "
"Fine, I wasn't going to say anything… but since it's you, I have no choice."
The baby dragon let out a series of roars, but both Artoria, standing beside him, and Winna, lingering behind, had bonded with dragonkind and could understand the ancient, mystical language.
"I never said I hated humans."
"I just don't care about them."
Alaric snorted, revealing his true feelings.
Though he was once human, he was now a true dragon... albeit a young one... with a worldview shaped by his draconic nature.
To him, humans were like stray dogs wandering a village. Hate them? Not at all. He might even toss them some scraps or meat out of pity.
That was why Alaric had saved those dying humans.
As a former human, finding a group of near-dead strays at his doorstep, wouldn't anyone help?
As for anger over the eaten fish… that was nonsense. Those fish were meant as a late-night snack for Artoria. If anyone should be upset, it was her.
"What? You're not mad? You don't hate humans?"
"Then why treat her like that?"
"I heard she prayed in that temple for seven days, and you never showed yourself."
Artoria blinked, her delicate face full of confusion.
... But she never expected the baby dragon's answer:
"I don't hate humans."
"I just hate her."
Alaric replied matter-of-factly.
The unmasked disdain in his words made the eavesdropping girl shiver.
Artoria's expression shifted from confusion to bewilderment.
"What??"
…
Alaric despised this girl.
Despised the one he'd saved, who thanked him daily with devout prayers.
Hard to understand?
Not really... it just required a shift in perspective.
Not a human's view, but a dragon's.
"You've spent too much time with humans."
"You've forgotten the posture we should hold."
The baby dragon flapped his wings, circling the sky.
He told Artoria that only gods needed worshippers' prayers, and only humans pinned their fleeting hopes on false deities.
"We are not gods."
"We are dragons."
"And she is dragonkin."
Prayer... in a dragon's eyes, the word was nearly synonymous with "cowardice."
Would an enemy spare you for praying?
Would prey become meat because you wished it?
No, impossible. Such things didn't exist.
Even a dragon couldn't make enemies surrender or turn into prey with a mere glare.
Even a rabbit, facing death, would fight back with desperate kicks!
All power and authority came through trials of blood and fire. The throne of a king was built on bones... this was a truth Alaric grasped in his first battle, one Artoria still hadn't understood.
"Blame that magus."
"He taught her too well."
First, crafting a monster with forbidden magecraft, then stuffing it into a human shell, and finally chaining it with the shackles of [Chivalry].
"Look, what a perfect king!"
... A magus blind to his grave mistake, with Clairvoyance no better than useless.
…
Alaric circled the sky.
Artoria looked up, watching the freely soaring dragon, lost in thought.
Winna, standing nearby, kept her head bowed, silent, grappling with her own thoughts.
The open valley fell into an eerie quiet.
But the silence didn't last long...
"Here, it's here."
From the narrow mountain path came hurried footsteps and voices brimming with anticipation.
Winna snapped her head up, staring in panicked disbelief at the rocky pass only one could cross... her eyes filled with pleading.
"Don't come, don't come, don't come…"
She prayed fervently in her heart, hoping her kin would hear her silent cries.
But, naturally, without mastery of "transmission magecraft." How could her inner voice reach them?
"And that's why I hate her."
"She knows what will happen but does nothing. Just stands there praying, pinning all hope on so-called gods."
Alaric swooped down, landing on Artoria's shoulder. With a claw, he plucked the sword she always carried on her back.
Clang...
It wasn't just the sound of the sword hitting the ground.
It was the sound of a girl's heart breaking.
"You have two choices."
"First, take this sword and kill every human you see to prove your loyalty... I'll accept you as my vassal."
"Second, take this sword and attack me to prove your valor... I'll honor you with a glorious death."
"But whatever you do, you can't just stand there doing nothing."
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