Chapter 41

After discussing the land reform with Patrick, I dove back into my lazy time. He was sitting in a chair reading a book after I had kicked him out of bed. My bed, my sanctuary, must be defended.

Patrick suddenly looked up from his book and said, "If you're free, why don't we go out somewhere?"

"The weather is nice, too."

I got up and moved to the window. Above the capital, a sky without a single cloud stretched out. A single black shadow appeared in the blue sky. The shadow, which had flown out from this mansion, was quickly getting smaller.

"Oh, Ryu is going out too."

Maybe I'm too permissive, but I don't know where Ryu usually goes. Even when we were at the academy, he would fly off somewhere alone during class.

Lately, I haven't paid much attention to Ryu, so I'm really worried about where my beloved child is going. I opened the window and leaned out.

"I'm going to follow Ryu. I'll be back later."

"That's why I told you not to enter and exit through the window... Come back by night!"

"Got it!"

While listening to Patrick's voice, I put my foot on the window frame and jumped onto the roof. Ryu was flying leisurely but was already quite far away. If I went down to the ground and chased him along the road, I might lose sight of him.

I guess I have to fly too.

I backed up to the top of the roof, took a running start, and jumped to the roof of the neighboring house.

I landed on the roof of the neighboring house, ran, and jumped to the next mansion.

I chased after Ryu's back, jumping from roof to roof.

"Oh, this is fun."

So, I should have been flying on the roofs all along. Why didn't I realize this before?

I don't have wings. I can only use magic to change my posture or momentum in the air, but I can't take off from the ground.

This is something I can only do in a place with many buildings, so it might be the only good thing about the capital.

I chased after Ryu while jumping over the roofs of the capital.

However, I had to avoid fragile buildings, so I couldn't chase him in a straight line. After making several detours, I lost sight of the flying black shadow.

"Well, I know the general direction."

It's not that I couldn't see him anymore. Ryu must have landed somewhere inside the capital, or near the walls if he went outside.

I headed for the outer part of the capital, estimating the general area.

I found Ryu outside the wall that encircled the capital. There were guards at the four gates, but they only checked the cargo of carriages, and people could enter and leave freely.

In other words, the wall had no meaning except in emergencies, and people's movements were not controlled unless they had large items... What I'm trying to say is, it's okay to jump over the wall, right?

After jumping over the roofs of the houses, I landed on the wall. Good, I'm alive. The ground was lava, so I would have died if I fell. If I had fallen, I might have been saved by the curb or the white line.

"That's... Fil?"

Fil is the boy I met in the capital before. I found him being bullied because of his dark brown hair.

On the grass just outside the wall, there were several other boys besides him.

They were swinging wooden sticks and playing noisily. It was a pretend game, and they looked cute and childlike.

What kind of game are they playing? Ryu must be the enemy, right? He's very cute, but he's a dragon. My child was watching the boys' interactions with interest.

"Grr, the power of darkness in my right hand..."

"Stay strong, don't be consumed!"

... They are not even ten years old. The onset of the disease is too early. Thinking about how these boys will spend their lives until they grow up, I can't just ignore it.

I made up my mind and jumped down from the wall to approach them.

Ryu noticed me first, then Fil. He said with a surprised look,

"Ah! Yumiera-san!"

"Who is this girl?"

One of the three boys, including Fil, said rudely. Fil quickly covered his mouth.

It's okay, I don't care what children say and I don't get angry. Hmph, that's the calmness of an adult.

"Ah, she's a noble, so if you say something like that—"

"It's fine, it's okay to speak normally."

"Then? What did you come here for, girl?"

The blond boy looked at me with a wary gaze. Am I that suspicious or scary... I have too many reasons. I've lived my life based on such misunderstandings.

While thinking about how to gain their trust, he added,

"Ryu is our friend! You nobles can't take him away!"

I am now deeply moved. Oh, how beautiful, the friendship between humans and dragons. To think that someone would care so much about my child.

Ryu, on the other hand, was focused on a butterfly fluttering in front of his face. Ah, he ate it.

It would be better to ask Fil to clear up the misunderstanding rather than doing it myself. When I looked at him, he seemed to understand. He explained to the blond boy,

"Hey, this person is Ryu's... mother? So it's okay."

"Huh? That dragon tamer!?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Awesome! Is she the one with the power of darkness sealed in her right hand?"

The boy's skeptical expression changed, and he looked at me with eyes as bright as the sun. His pure gaze was too dazzling and painful.

It wasn't just my imagination. That disease might be spreading in the capital.

"Is the power really sealed? Where did you hear that story?"

"I heard it from the bard in the square. It was probably yesterday or the day before."

I met that bard two days ago. He works too fast, and I shouldn't be influenced.

The blond boy is childish, so he is easily influenced. Fil, who is more mature, is probably fine.

"Did you hear it too, Fil?"

"Yes! I recognized Yumiera-san from the song. Ryu was in it too! It's cool!"

No, boys, the story has been embellished and hardly resembles the original. We might need some information literacy education.

My last hope is the other boy. He hasn't said a word since the beginning. He might be shy or quiet. He must understand that his two friends are doing something embarrassing.

"What about you? What did you think of the story?"

"...Itch."

"Huh?"

"...My evil eye itches, the time of my destiny has come."

He was the worst. He was muttering something with his left hand over his eye. Did he get this bad in just two days? Kids grow up so fast.

For their future, I need to help them wake up. If I, one of the causes, deny it, this local trend will subside.

"I don't think I'm that cool, maybe there's something better?"

"Do you want to join us, girl?"

No.

The blond boy looked like he was saying, "What can you do?" No, that's not it.

Wait, just denying them won't do any good. I need to offer an alternative, create a new trend, and improve this situation.

Something... something for kids... like a superhero team? I don't know much about that. I'll try my best.

I jumped high, spinning like a figure skater, and landed on one foot. A quadruple axel, and I made a peace sign with my right hand in front of my face.

"Magical girl, Yumiera, here to save the day!"

...Oh, I want to die. Someone, please kill me. It's not "here to save the day," it's a disaster.

The three boys froze at my ridiculous performance. Ryu also looked at me suspiciously, as if to say, "What are you doing?"

After a hellish silence, Fil timidly spoke up.

"Did we look like Yumiera-san to others before?"

"Yeah, but in a different way."

"...I'll quit."

Both "Itai" (painful) are different kinds of pain. Discussing which is more painful would only hurt each other, so let's not.

Thus, their middle school syndrome was cured.

I watched the boys playing on Ryu's body from a distance, sitting on the ground and hugging my knees, sighing.

I felt like it was Monday morning after doing something like a Sunday morning.

"Are you okay?"

The voice that came from the side belonged to Fil. He's such a kind boy, despite being bullied for his dark brown hair, he grew up straight and true.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm glad you made friends."

"Yes!"

"When did you become friends?"

"Two days ago."

Two days ago!? They seemed like old friends... Kids become friends quickly, or they have high communication skills.

I was curious about the situation, so I asked, and he told me what happened two days ago.

"Two days ago, I heard the song about Yumiera-san in the square. After that, two boys with dark hair, who I thought were cool, approached me... So, I made friends with someone other than Ryu because of Yumiera-san."

So, it was the bard's fault. No matter how embarrassing the story, if it helps someone...

Middle school syndrome isn't all bad, I thought.

"Huh? But if that's the case, the middle school... the period when dark hair seems cool is over."

"That's..."

Fil's face clouded with worry.

Did I do something terribly unnecessary? However, my worry was quickly dispelled.

Before I knew it, the other two boys had come over to me. Both were holding onto Ryu's tail, being dragged along as they said,

"No way! Fil and I are friends now, right?"