Dark Continent (2nd)

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I rocketed into the air through the canopy of the trees.

It didn’t take long for the loligon to notice my presence.

[Wha-!?]

The loligon let out a shocked gasp.

Due to her massive size, the breath she let out sent my clothes fluttering. The force was almost enough to push me back, but this much is natural considering my entire body is smaller than one of her eyes.

“Looks like you’ve noticed me, Christina-san.”

“Wha-!? W-W-W-What are you doing here!?”

“That’s what I should be asking you. Weren’t you supposed to be with Fahren-san?”

That’s what we discussed back in Dragon City. She was supposed to transport him to the capital. I assumed she was enjoying being with him which is why she hadn’t returned.

“Well, t-that’s because….”

The loligon started to get nervous.

Is she going to tell me she ate the noble mage?

“…Christina-san?”

I lowered my voice and gave her a serious look.

“It’s not what you think! I-I didn’t do anything bad! I didn’t do anything! However, that guy…that guy is….”

The loligon began repeating herself as she desperately tried to think of something to say.

Did that guy do it? Did the noble mage finally make his move when the two of them arrived in Kalis? The loligon must have been overwhelmed by the sudden virgin fueled attack of the noble mage, so she fled to the Dark Continent.

It must’ve gone even worse than I expected.

“So where is Fahren-san?”

I asked the obvious question.

And a voice belonging to someone other than the loligon answered.

“I’m right here.”

The figure of a man emerged from the canopy of the trees using flight magic.

Does this mean they’re together?

“Fahren-san? I thought you were going back to the capital.”

At least this means the loligon didn’t kill him and their relationship hasn’t been ruined.

Then, why are they here? Maybe the loligon actually accepted his love confession and he managed to capture the heart of the loligon. They could be here to meet her parents.

Maybe I can give them a Green Sylph as a wedding present.

“I still have to ask this: what are you two doing on the Dark Continent?”

“Well, I don’t know if you remember when you asked me about this place.”

He must be talking about that lunch we had. He recommended a restaurant and we went together in the capital. That was where I asked him for information about the Dark Continent.

“I actually had a chance to speak to that elf that taught you alchemy and learned about why you were so interested in the Dark Continent. She told me you were looking for Green Sylph wings.”

“Okay, so how does that lead to you two travelling all the way here?”

“After everything we’ve been through, I feel like I owed you something.”

“And you came all the way here just for that?”

“I’m also interested in the Dark Continent itself. I had an Ancient Dragon as my personal transport and felt like this was the perfect opportunity to visit.”

“I see.”

“And this Dragon seemed keen to help you as well.”

“….”

I could see the loligon’s tail twitch a little.

Shortly after, she started yelling.

[S-Shut up! I only came because you wouldn’t shut up about it, human! I only flew all the way here to get you to shut up!]

“Ah, I’m sure that’s why.”

[Gurururu]

Christina let out a low rumble in an attempt to intimidate the noble mage.

But the noble mage was just as cool as always as he calmly stared at her. They honestly seem like they’ve grown closer since I last saw them.

It’s a little annoying to see.

“Thank you for thinking about me.”

“Don’t mention. As I mentioned, I’m also pursuing my own interests.”

[H-Hearing you thank me doesn’t make me happy at all!]

The noble mage gave me a curt reply while the loligon stuttered with her tail wagging from side to side.

“I thought the easiest solution would be to set fire to some of the surrounding forests to scatter the majority of the Green Sylphs while only killing those necessary. That was the plan but the Dragon got a little carried away.”

[….]

Her wagging tail suddenly stopped.

The loligon is so much easier to understand when she’s in dragon form.

[Why does it matter what happens to weak things like the Sylph?]

“You might not, but you care what Fahren-san thinks about you which is why you stopped.”

“Wha…gururu….”

The loligon quickly went from shock to anger.

Even if her appearance has drastically changed, she still remains the same person.

“I was able to get the wings on my own so you can stop burning the forest now. Though, I am happy that you went through all this trouble to help me, Christina-san.”

“I-I already told you I-I-I didn’t do it for you! I just came here because that human said he needed to come here. There’s n-no other meaning behind it!”

“I’m still happy about it.”

[Nu….]

The loligon’s tail started swaying slightly once more.

Is she conscious of the wagging?

No, she definitely doesn’t notice.

If she did, she would stop it immediately.

It creates a wonderful metronome.

“So, can I get you to stop spreading your flames?”

[…a-alright. If you’re going to beg like that I have no choice.]

“Thank you.”

I feel like I’m starting to get used to dealing with Christina’s sudden mood swings.

I think I’m getting to the point where I can actually keep her from starting trouble.

However, not everything went so smoothly.

The Sylphs had all converged in the trees beneath us and were watching us closely.

“Flat yellow is with the Dragon.” “Dragon and flat yellow.” “Why, why?” “Why would flat yellow talk with the Dragon?” “Flat yellow and Dragon are friends?” “Why, why?” “Why are the Dragon and flat yellow together?” “Isn’t the flat yellow a friend of the Sylph?”

Their questions were obvious ones to ask.

It didn’t take long for their hive mind to form a consensus.

“The flat yellow one and the Dragon are friends.” “The Dragon and flat yellow are together.” “Flat yellow was friends with the Dragon before the Sylph.” “The flat yellow and the Dragon.” “It’s not just the flat yellow. There’s another human.” “A human and a dragon.” “Humans and Dragons together.”

They quickly became suspicious of my relationship with the loligon.

“The flat yellow just used the Sylph for our wings.”

As soon as this idea was brought up the rest of the Sylph went into a frenzy.

“Did the flat yellow trick the Sylph?” “Flat yellow and the Dragon came together to get the wings of the Sylph.” “The Dragon destroyed the Sylph’s homes.” “And the Dragon and human are friends.” “Did the human ask the Dragon to do it?” “The flat yellow came with the dragon.” The human, flat yellow, and Dragon are friends.”

They naturally drew conclusions from the casual way I interacted with the loligon.

“The Sylph and flat yellow were never friends.” “The Dragon and human are friends.” “Flat yellow and the Dragon were friends.” “Flat yellow is with the Dragon.” “The Dragon destroyed the Sylph’s homes.” “Dragon and human.” “Dragon and flat yellow.” “Home destroyed.” “Village destroyed.” “Flat yellow destroyed our homes.” “Burned to the ground.”

I knew it would turn out like this.

However, I’m not sure if they’ll attack straight away due to their fear of Christina. They’re still sitting in the canopy of the tree watching us with no sign of attacking.

Personally, this sort of mental attack is more damaging than a physical one.

I didn’t know about the noble mage’s plans and I had no intention of using the Dragon’s attack as a way to get their wings. I can make up any number of excuses, but I doubt they’d believe me.

“….”

What should I tell them?

[Gururu, insignificant pests should stay quiet.]

The loligon let out a dull rumble before addressing the Green Sylphs.

This silenced them almost immediately and they began to tremble. The sheer number of them in the canopy created a noticeable swaying of the tree limbs. They then erupted from the trees like a swarm of bees and fled back into the safety of the forest.

“Kya, scary!” “Run, run, run away from the Dragon!” “It’ll kill us again!” “Quickly, run!” “It’ll be bad if we don’t run!” “Dragons are scary, dragons are scary!” “Humans are scary, humans are scary!” “Goggoru is scary, Goggoru is scary!” “All of them are scary!”

The friendship that I had only just managed to form with the nude Sylphs was gone after a single glare from Christina. I didn’t even get a chance to explain myself.

They left without saying goodbye.

What a sad day this has become.

“Christina-san….”

[Eh, b-but….]

“They were just misunderstanding the situation. They didn’t do anything wrong.”

[Gununu…how am I supposed to know that if you don’t tell me the details….?]

She does have a point, but I’m just going to look past that.

“…there’s no reason left for me to stay here.”

With such a sudden and unexpected goodbye, there was an overwhelming sadness that shot through my chest. Still, it can’t be helped. Stuff like this happens everyday all over the world. Things don’t always work out how you’d wish. Given the area we’re in, it would be best if we left quickly.

The loligon floating in the air is likely to draw the attention of other monsters. The loligon could most likely make short work of anything that appeared, but it would still be best to be careful.

“Fahren-san, there’s a small settlement not far from here. We can rest there for the night.”

“All right, if that’s what you wish.”

“Thank you.”

[Gurururu]

Christina didn’t sound happy, but she didn’t try to argue.

But, we can’t return to the village with a dragon. If we return there with her beside us, there’s a 200% chance we’ll be attacked. I made a mistake at the Green Sylph’s village but I’ll definitely avoid making another.

“Christina-san, sorry, but can you change your form back to a person?”

[Ha? Why do I need to change?]

“I feel closer to you when you’re in that form. Like a close friend.”

[….]

Her tail started wagging again. 

It was going fast enough to send gusts of wind down into the forest below.

“Will you do it?”

[…fine. I’ll do what you ask.]

Alright, with this, we can return to the village peacefully.

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