Chapter 56

"What is this Dragon Gem...?"

As she asked, she glanced around at the other dragons except Chris. Everyone looked puzzled or troubled, which meant they didn’t know either.

"I'm sorry, Master."

"I've never heard of it..."

Louise and Emma said apologetically.

"What is this Dragon Gem?"

Unlike Louise and Emma, Colette, though she didn’t know, directed her question at Chris.

"Yes, it's something that's better shown than explained. It would be easier to see it in action."

"Indeed."

"The question is, who will do it... anyone but Colette—"

"Why not me?!"

Colette instantly boiled over and bit Chris.

"Hahaha, I'm afraid this talk won't help my heart friend."

"Why not?!"

"Who among us eats the least?"

Chris asked Louise and the others. Colette, who had been protesting with veins popping, lost her momentum.

"Least eater?"

"Yes."

"Is that a requirement?"

"For now."

"...Hmph!"

Colette, looking uninterested, moved away from Chris. Being a least eater was the farthest thing from a Mushufushu, and Colette was actually the biggest eater among them.

Despite being a small dragon, she could eat more than the medium-sized Chris. Of course, Chris was a Phoenix, so he didn’t need to eat, but in terms of a medium-sized dragon, Colette was the biggest eater.

"Probably Rea, then."

"Did you call Dad?"

"It's fine."

He patted Rea's head, who, being a newborn, didn’t understand much.

While patting Rea's head, he turned to the other Chris.

"So, does this involve eating something?"

"That's right."

"I see... then it should be Louise."

"Agreed."

"I'm sorry, Cyril...,"

Emma said apologetically, looking down. In terms of size, Emma was smaller than Louise, but in terms of the amount of food, Emma ate more.

"Emma can't help it; fighting requires a lot of energy."

"Yes..."

"Can you do it, Louise?"

"Leave it to me."

Louise nodded, and he turned to Chris.

"Should I prepare something to eat?"

"Yes, eat until you're full."

"Got it."

He nodded and prepared a meal for Louise. He took out some extra meat he had prepared for the test and fed it to Louise.

"Is it okay without the Lark and Sky?"

"Ah, dragon food shouldn't have human seasonings—right?"

He said, looking at Emma and Colette.

"I can eat it whole, no problem."

"Well, I can eat it, but my mouth tingles a bit after a little."

"See?"

He relayed Emma's answer to Jeanne.

"I see."

"That's why, even if you think you're doing them a favor by seasoning their food or feeding them the same as humans, it's not good."

"I see... I learned something!"

"Also, raw is better than cooked."

"Yes, raw tastes better."

Emma nodded clearly. Though she didn’t understand the words, her simple body language conveyed the message to Jeanne.

"They're completely different from humans."

"Indeed."

While they were talking, Louise had finished the meat he had given her. He had a good grasp of the amount of food they ate since he had been taking care of them for a while. The amount he gave should have been just right.

"How was it, Louise?"

"Yes, I'm full."

"Good. Chris?"

"Yes. I will now teach you the ritual. Accept me."

With these ominous words, a light was emitted from between Chris's eyebrows. The light didn’t travel in a straight line but swam through the air like a thick rope, heading towards Louise.

Perhaps because it was the first time she saw it, Louise tensed for a moment but then relaxed, remembering Chris's words to "accept."

The light rope reached Louise's forehead, connecting the two foreheads with a light rope.

"...Ah."

"Hahaha, it seems you understand."

"Y-Yes..."

"Yes."

Chris nodded and pulled the light rope out of Louise's forehead, as if pulling it out. The light rope didn’t return to Chris but dissolved in the air.

"Can I do it, Master?"

"Yes."

"Then I'll do it."

Louise asked for permission, closed her eyes, and muttered something. The next moment, light was emitted from her feet, forming a magic circle that enveloped her in more light.

The magic circle enveloped Louise, and a different light overflowed from her body. This light concentrated at one point, condensed, and eventually turned into a translucent crystal.

The crystal, the size of a pea, fell to the ground as the magic circle disappeared. He picked it up and examined it closely.

"It looks like a pearl."

Jeanne, who had come closer, commented.

"Yes, it's more transparent than a pearl."

"This is the Dragon Gem."

"So, what do I do with it?"

"Eat it. You can chew it, but swallowing it whole will put less strain on your body at first."

"...Got it."

He followed the instructions and put the translucent stone—the Dragon Gem—into his mouth. Suppressing his curiosity about what would happen if he chewed it, he swallowed it whole.

The Dragon Gem slid smoothly down his throat.

"...Hmm?"

"It's starting."

"This is... my stomach—woah!"

"What's wrong, Cyril?!"

"My stomach—feels like dried seaweed suddenly rehydrating in my stomach."

He pressed his stomach. The Dragon Gem was dissolving in his stomach, making him feel full.

"Hahaha, if you had chewed it, it would have happened even faster."

"...I'm glad I didn't."

He was relieved. If he had chewed it and it had hit him all at once, his stomach would have swollen and he would have been in pain.

"...Ah, energy."

He felt his stomach swell first, but then he understood. This was—energy replenishment.

"That's right. It's a way to give concentrated dragon energy."

"I see... it's quite a lot."

"Dragons convert energy more efficiently than humans."

"I see. So, everyone can eat for me, and when my energy runs out, I can replenish it with the Dragon Gem."

"Exactly. The more dragons, the more efficient the storage."

"Indeed."

Until now, he had been the only one eating, but if everyone's food could be converted this way, the speed of consumption would increase by the number of people. That was a significant improvement.

"But... this..."

"What's wrong, Louise? You look troubled."

"Dragon Gems can only be made one at a time—right?"

Louise looked at Chris for confirmation.

"Yes."

"Since they can't be stored, Master's energy won't increase much..."

"Hmm. Well, that can't be helped—"

"Hahaha, don't worry about it."

He tilted his head and looked at Chris.

"Dragons will continue to gather around you. The more dragons, the more Dragon Gems. There's no problem."

"...Ah!"

"I see."

Louise's eyes widened in realization, and he nodded in agreement.

"That's right! Cyril is amazing, so more dragons will gather."

He smiled at the enthusiastic Emma and whispered, "Transformation," changing into a dragon person.

The efficient consumption of dragon food and the Dragon Gem allowed the dragon person transformation to last for 5 seconds.

It was inefficient for him to do it, but he could store it indefinitely. Through dragons, it was efficient, but limited to 5 seconds per person.

He needed to use them appropriately, but this opened up many possibilities.

"Thanks, Chris."

"Hahaha, no problem at all."

Chris laughed heartily.