Chapter 53

"Rosaly Reign."

"Cyril Arrows, this is my companion, Jeanne."

The female dragon knight who had dismounted the dragon introduced herself, and they shook hands.

"Cyril Arrows!? Could it be, the Dragon First?"

"You know me?"

"Of course! You're from the most popular guild right now. I never thought I'd be saved by Cyril Arrows of Dragon First. I'm moved..."

"O-oh."

I was overwhelmed by Rosaly's enthusiasm.

Right after being saved, she didn't seem particularly moved, but her attitude changed instantly when I introduced myself.

It was as if she was a fan of mine.

Seeing this, Jeanne seemed unusually pleased and had a satisfied expression.

Seeing Jeanne, Rosaly was even more impressed.

"Dragon First lives up to its reputation as a wonderful guild. Even the horse is special."

"Horse?"

I looked at Jeanne.

What's so special about the horse she's riding?

"Yes, not many horses are unafraid of dragons. It must have a very skilled trainer."

"Ah..."

I nodded in understanding.

Rosaly is right.

Not many horses are unafraid of dragons.

This horse belongs to Jeanne—Princess—and she brought it to act as Dragon First.

Since it's the princess's horse, it's bound to be extraordinary.

"Indeed."

"More importantly—"

I felt a bit uncomfortable, so I changed the topic.

"Classical style is rare these days."

"Huh? Ah, I've always been this style. That's why I'm a solo guild."

"Ah, I see."

I nodded slightly, understanding.

Classical style refers to the "dragon knight" style of riding a dragon.

In the original sense, it is a dragon knight, but in today's world where dragon knight guilds can do a variety of things, the things classical style can do are extremely limited.

Things like leading the charge in battle or delivering letters and light cargo.

That's about it.

I could easily imagine how difficult it must be.

"I took a job that was supposed to be easy, but I was accidentally caught by a golem. Really, thank you for saving me, I'm very grateful."

Rosaly thanked me again.

Helping someone and being thanked.

It was a small but pleasant event, even if it wasn't part of my mission.

☆

After parting ways with Rosaly, we started walking towards our destination again.

"That was a fine dragon knight. The way he rode the dragon was truly one with the dragon, I'd hire him for the palace."

"Hmm, I'm not sure about that."

"Is something bothering you?"

"Rosaly is indeed fine, but the dragon is even better."

"The dragon?"

"Yes..."

I frowned and smiled wryly.

"Even while we were talking, that dragon kept saying, 'Haa... Haa... Rosaly, get back on my back quickly.'"

"Pervert, isn't he?"

"Well, there are a lot of those. I also—"

'Ah, I'm not like that!'

"Eh?"

'Eh?'

Colette and I were both taken aback.

Why did she suddenly say that?

"No, I wasn't talking about Colette, but about a wyvern I rented before."

'—!?'

Colette was speechless, her expression changed, and her skin turned red.

"Why did you think it was about you—"

'It's a misunderstanding!'

"No—"

'Mis·un·der·stand·ing'

"O-oh, I see?"

I was overwhelmed by Colette's assertiveness.

Well, it's fine.

☆

After walking for a few hours, we arrived at the lakeside.

The lake was pink.

Not only that, but there were rainbow crystals all around the lake.

"Is this the place?"

"Yes, Lake Gared."

"I see... So, those are the crystals?"

"Yes, those are Lark en Ciel. They gradually crystallize due to the components in the lake as the water level changes."

"I see."

I nodded.

With this much, I thought.

'Then, I'll go collect them.'

"Do you need help—"

'No, I do this regularly.'

Colette said this and walked towards the crystals.

Indeed, for someone who regularly mines, this is an easy task.

"Then, I'll hunt something to test my skills."

"That's a good idea—ah, over there."

"Mu—A wild boar."

"Maybe it's just right."

"Ah."

I nodded and started walking.

The wild boar backed away.

I extended my hand and shot a fireball.

It headed towards the wild boar's back.

The ground behind the wild boar caught fire, forming a wall of flames.

The wild boar's path of retreat was blocked by the wall of flames.

Then—charging forward with a scream.

"Sir Cyril!"

"—Huff!"

I grabbed the charging wild boar by the neck and, using its momentum, snapped it.

The wild boar convulsed for a moment and then stopped moving.

"Alright, now to butcher it—"

"Amazing!"

"Eh?"

I looked at Jeanne.

For some reason, her eyes were shining.

"Why suddenly?"

"Amazing, Sir Cyril! Sir Cyril, aren't you getting stronger even without transforming into a dragon person?"

"Eh? ...Ah."

I looked at my palm and then at the wild boar I had taken down with my bare hands.

"Maybe."

I didn't really feel it, and it was a rather unimpressive way to take it down.

Maybe I was influenced by the dragon transformation.

I realized that even in my normal state, my physical abilities had improved significantly.