Chapter 79

『Gyooooo!』

The knights covered their ears with their hands over the earplugs, as the monster's sharp roar seemed to tear their eardrums. Perhaps using magic, the cutting wind pressure made the surrounding trees bend violently, and branches that could not withstand it snapped and flew off with a crack.

『Are you okay?!』

『My ears are ringing, but I’ll manage.』

『...I almost got blown away.』

Thanks to the defensive barrier cast in a split second, it seemed that all the knights were unharmed. The owner of the terrifying cry, a snake-like creature with a long body, leaped into the sky.

"Indeed, even though it's a snake, it's still a monster... how detestable."

This sound only hurts the ears of humans. It seems to have no effect on its own kind; perhaps, like snakes, they cannot hear it.

『Gishaaaaa!』

A smaller snake, undisturbed, opened its large mouth and lunged at the snake in the sky. Without dodging, I thrust my gauntleted hand into the snake's mouth. The sound of metal clashing with sharp teeth echoed as I shouted.

"Wind, rage forth!"

"Guah?!"

The magic I immediately activated sliced through the snake's belly to its tail. Without controlling the power, the wind magic unleashed with full force turned into a red whirlwind.

『Sir, using such flashy magic again...』

"Don’t complain, Myulan! Modern magic can’t be finely adjusted."

『Yeah... isn’t your ancient magic similar?』

Ignoring Myulan, who seemed to have more to say, I threw the corpse that was splattering blood and looked up at the sky. The giant snake, with its throat pouch swollen, was thrashing its tail in anger.

"Everyone, take cover! Another big one is coming!"

I transmitted the message through the resonant stone, and the knights took a distance and cast another defensive barrier. To counter the shockwave from the roar, I quickly chanted a spell and prepared the magic.

(Wa So Shiermo Ya Kise Ya Hoso O Dona Gardakurashi Rue Ritt...)

The one staring down at us from the sky was the queen of the Gresshield Dragon Mimic, a winged black snake about fifteen furlongs long, which can release a shockwave with its roar by inflating its large throat pouch. Normally, a group is formed with one female and about ten males, but the larger the throat pouch, the more attractive the female, and this group had about thirty members.

『Gugugugug...』

The queen's throat, swollen in a creepy manner, made a sound. Another annoying roar was about to be released. While it would be possible to retreat from the queen's territory, I have a reason not to back down. The group of Gresshield Dragon Mimics that started nesting near Fort Azaro has harmed those I must protect. That alone is worthy of death.

The males guarding the entrance to the nest have been almost completely eliminated by the knights led by Myulan. Only the queen and a few of her consorts remain. Those consorts will soon meet their end as well. Naturally, the queen, who reigns over the nest, has gone mad with anger and started attacking mercilessly.

The queen's throat, swollen to the limit, glowed red, and her red eyes locked onto me.

『Sir, please retreat!』

Myulan's anxious voice came from the resonant stone, but I extended my left hand toward the queen, who had targeted me.

『Gyooo...』

『Duna Duna Da Iis La Parseev!』

The moment the queen opened her mouth to release the shockwave, I released the magic I had prepared with my left hand. She probably didn’t expect to be hit by the shockwave herself.

『Kiiiiiiii!』

The queen of the Gresshield Dragon Mimic, emitting a high-pitched cry different from the shockwave, twisted her massive body in the air. Her scales were torn, and blood spurted from various places. However, none of the males responded to the queen's call, which was a wave of sound to summon them. Looking around, the knights, led by Myulan, were scattering the remaining males and finishing off the last one.

"The males who worship you are already meat. But you have burst the eardrums of my knights and ravaged the livestock. Since we cannot coexist, I, as your lord, will take your life."

To deliver the final blow, I put the whistle in my mouth and blew it toward the resonant stone.

『Gyaaaaa!』

The queen of the Gresshield Dragon Mimic seemed to have lost all sense of self. Blood dripped from her mouth, and she looked at me with疯狂的眼睛。我不知道怪物是否有悲伤这种情感，但她的叫声听起来异常悲凉。然而，手下留情的话，我的命就保不住了。这是一场生死之战。

我握住了背上的投掷用长矛的柄，用左手握住。然后，为了挑衅女王，我在右手点燃了魔法火焰。

“来吧，我会亲自送你上路。”

『咔咔咔咔咔！』

正如我所料，她从喉咙发出威胁声，向我冲了过来。就在这时——

『咕噜啊啊啊啊啊啊啊啊啊啊啊！』

比 Gresshield Dragon Mimic 的咆哮更加威严的真正咆哮声震动了森林。我的皮肤、戴了耳塞的鼓膜都颤抖着，冷汗从背上流下。

“你真是毫不留情啊！”

我用龙笛召唤的骑龙从高空中直线俯冲下来，咬住了女王的喉管。在 Galbreath 公爵领地，最强的龙种 Gresshield Dragon 面前，Mimic 根本不堪一击。

我的骑龙咬着女王着陆。周围的树木被进一步折断，但它用粗壮的尾巴扫除了碍事的树木，仿佛这些都不重要。

女王一度用尾巴缠住 Gresshield Dragon 抗拒，但动作逐渐变小，最终完全停止了活动。我发出了可以了的信号，但骑龙眨了眨它那圆圆的金色眼睛，像在撒娇一样上下摇晃着头。

『咕噜噜』

“怎么了，你想吃吗？”

『咕噜，咕噜！』

“……好吧。既然你给了它最后一击，你可以吃了它。”

发出撒娇的声音的骑龙，叼着死去的 Mimic 女王，高兴地展开翅膀。这家伙比其他 Gresshield Dragon 身体更大，食量也更大。

就这样，我们摧毁了 Gresshield Dragon Mimic 的巢穴，将相对干净的尸体解体，取下可以卖的材料，剩下的喂给了骑龙。Myulan 们也用龙笛召唤了自己的骑龙，一边清理一边让它们尽情享用。

“……它们吃得真香啊。”

看着一只接一只被吃掉的骑龙，Myulan 深深地感叹道。

“怎么了，你也想吃吗？”

由于怪物拥有魔力，吃了之后或多或少会拉肚子或发烧。虽然比饿肚子好，但人类不像怪物那样结实。

“我觉得稍微吃一点的话，我已经有了抵抗力。”

“你不是因为吃了 Skrimwood 的果实而结果很惨吗？”

“那只是吃多了！但是……如果能吃掉讨伐的怪物，就不用费力保护和饲养家畜了。”

我理解 Myulan 的意思。在 Galbreath 领地饲养家畜是一项相当辛苦的工作。人类能吃的是没有魔力的东西，但饲养过程中会成为怪物的食物。我也曾想过，如果每天讨伐的怪物能成为食材就好了。但事实并非如此简单。

“据说上古时代的精灵给了人类牛、猪、羊、山羊等没有魔力的动物和蔬菜，但这一点并不确定，至少我完全不相信……但如果这是真的，我会恨那些精灵。”

“我连精灵都没见过，所以根本不相信。不过，阁下。您又弄得满身是血，被清洁队训斥可别怪我。”

Myulan 们身上只是骑士服上沾了一些飞溅的血迹，而我从头到脚都沾满了血。刚才，我在 Gresshield Dragon Mimic 的嘴里释放魔法时，被飞溅的血淋了一身，这可以说是不可抗力。

“没问题，反正衣服是黑色的。”

“即使是黑色的，吸了这么多血也会很明显。”

“我、我自己洗！”

我以为脱下骑士服的上衣就没事了，但事实并非如此。

黎明时分，我们回到 Midleague，迎接我们的是我的副官 Chaos。Chaos 走近我们，一开口就抱怨我的惨状。

“阁下，您这是早归，真是胆大。而且，我总是提醒您，要确保没有受伤。”

Chaos 的眉间有两条皱纹，这表示他相当生气（顺便说一下，三条皱纹表示他非常生气）。感受到 Chaos 的怒气，Myulan 们说“阁下，您辛苦了！”然后匆匆去收拾残局。真是无情。

“我没有受伤。而且，这不是我故意弄脏的。是它们自己爆炸四散，这不能怪我。”

我将脱下的防具和上衣塞进木桶，按照宣言自己去清洗场清洗。Chaos 跟在后面，单方面地开始说话。

“您的头发也被血弄得硬邦邦的。即使有药汤，再这样伤害头皮，头发会掉的。本来头发颜色就褪了。如果秃了，可别怪我。”

“烦死了！我的家族中没有头皮脆弱的人！”

“阁下也没有像您这样忽视头皮的。不过，话说回来，明天就是秋季游园会，您不会忘记了吧？您现在这副样子会被陛下训斥。把衣服和防具交给清洁队，马上去洗澡吧！”

Chaos 口若悬河地开始教训我。关于国王陛下主办的秋季游园会，我确实差点忘了，所以无话可说。

（每年都在 Parivavan 森林公园举行，真不知道为什么。那片森林深处是 Dinguare 和 Backhorn 的栖息地。他们是不是特别想被袭击？）

虽然这么想，但万一陛下出事就麻烦了，所以我每年都会参加这个游园会。

“还有，阁下。今年您要像个公爵的样子，好好参加社交活动。”

听到 Chaos 的话，我停下脚步，回头看着他。

“我出席只是为了保护陛下。穿平时的骑士服就好。嗯……如果是新的，也许不失礼。”

“但是，今年也许会有命运的邂逅。”

“我不需要妻子。嗯，如果比我还强的话，可以考虑。”

“您总是这么说。”

“你才是。为了延续 Laforgue 家，要努力。这是命令。”

正当我开这种玩笑时，命运的邂逅真的降临了。

“失礼了。我是 Marshall Raid 伯爵的女儿，Melphiera。感谢您这次的救助，Galbreath 公爵大人。”

她穿着被 Backhorn 的血染得一塌糊涂的礼服，笔直地站着，优雅地行礼。她的笑容非常美丽，令人无法直视，耀眼无比。