Chapter 98

Sphere pressed her body tightly against Banning and unleashed a technique we had practiced many times.

"Here I go! 'Swift Wind Maneuver'!"

Sphere approached the dark spirit bullets that were roaring towards her from the front, enveloped in wind, rotating, and narrowly avoiding them while getting as close as possible to Irena, who was about to fall from the black dragon. Before picking her up, she cast a defensive enhancement to ensure Irena wouldn’t be crushed by Banning’s arms.

(The dark spirit bullets are gone... now!)

"---Banning, please!"

As Banning rotated, he was enveloped in flickering flames. This technique, which only a rider capable of using a protective barrier like us could perform, was truly fitting for a Flash Fire Dragon.

"I cannot afford to lose here... I am not so weak as to be defeated by a child...!"

The voice of the iron-masked knight could be heard, revealing confidence and pride in his own abilities—however.

(Sadly, our daughter is not so weak as to lose here.)

The body slam enveloped in flames was not the technique. 'Asura Residual Image Sword - Transfer Instant Blaze' was activated together with Banning, who was enveloped in flames, a profound technique that could only be performed when the dragon and rider acted as one.

---Crimson Asura - Flash Fire Instant Blaze---

"Wh...!?"

The residual image of the dragon enveloped in flames was released, and the rider of the black dragon, despite being shaken, still managed to deploy multiple layers of protective barriers with all his might—this was a technique that could be performed by someone specialized in S-rank magical combat, but to me, he did not seem to be a threat.

(I should be able to overpower him. Sphere, you understand, right? When the enemy's protective barrier disappears...)

"Uh-huh!"

"Ugh... ugh... aaaaah!"

A protective barrier, when mastered, functions as an all-purpose defense. However, there is a common trap that mages fall into—once an attack is blocked by the barrier, one cannot escape until the attack is completely defended or the magic power is exhausted. Unless, of course, a transfer spell is used.

The enemy, despite groaning in agony, held on until the very end, but suddenly his body lost its strength. Just before his magic power was depleted, Sphere adjusted the direction of 'Crimson Asura'—the residual image of the fire dragon flew into the sky and eventually disappeared from sight.

"...I misjudged... even a child... can be called a hero..."

(Oh no...!)

The enemy lost his balance and fell from the black dragon. Banning accelerated and circled below to catch him, but in a final act of defiance, the enemy threw a magic stone at us—sealed wind spirits burst out, creating a chaotic airflow that prevented us from approaching.

"Dad...!"

(---There's still something I need to ask him! We can still make it, I'll catch him at the last moment!)

"Uh-huh!"

The place where we were fighting was above a valley with a large river at the bottom—falling from this height would not be without consequences, but we could reduce the impact before hitting the water.

Sphere immediately understood my intention and guided Banning’s flash towards the river. Multiple water columns rose, reducing the falling speed before we reached the surface—aiming for this, we landed just in time to catch the iron-masked knight.

"...Ugh..."

Banning, using his free arm, scooped the knight from the side. The impact could not be completely absorbed, and a few bones might have been broken—but with Sphere, who inherited my skills, she could use healing magic.

(Let's land somewhere... Sphere, there's a large cave on that cliff. Let's head there.)

"Uh-huh!"

Transporting two people in Elsain’s armor to Alvein’s village could cause confusion. However, seeing two people in the same armor again made me curious about the circumstances.

(Fighting each other... I can guess what's going on, but...)

"Dad, what's going on?"

The black dragon that flew from the Latcris Magic Kingdom to Elsain. If this was the dragon that attacked Irena, there was one point that concerned me. Why did he choose to be seen when he could use 'Stealth' to remain hidden?

If he deliberately did not use stealth and left the possibility of being seen by the people of Alvein, why?

There are several possibilities, but it was probably to create the misconception that the Latcris Magic Kingdom was in league with Elsain.

(I thought Julius had fallen for the spy's trap and challenged us. It was too reckless. So, I deliberately accepted Julius's proposal, but the dragon battle in this valley was what the spy... this person, aimed for.)

"Wow... Dad, you figured all that out without even talking to him?"

(No, this is just a hypothesis. We'll know how accurate it is once we hear his story.)

And there was one more thing that bothered me. When the iron-masked knight used 'Dark Spirit Bullet,' I recalled a certain magic.

A spell to summon the dead—essentially a form of summoning magic. I know someone who is involved with the magic kingdom and uses summoning magic. Needless to say, it's Verlene.

Banning landed at the entrance of the cave and lowered Irena and the other woman from his arm. Sphere jumped down and brushed the water from her hair.

(Sphere, can you take off her iron mask?)

"Uh-huh, I understand... Oh... this person..."

When the iron mask was removed, a purple-haired, dark-brown-skinned girl emerged. Unlike Verlene, who had smooth hair, this girl had wavy, gentle-looking hair and wore armor that didn't match her appearance.

Irena, who had been unconscious, woke up after being lowered from Banning’s arm and, with great effort, raised her body to look at the dark elf girl.

"...Cryune... why..."

"Cryune... is that her name?"

"Ah, you... you're all wet. You'll catch a cold in that outfit... Oh..."

Irena had also been drenched in water, and the mantle she wore over her armor was soaked. Since it was a leather mantle, it would be damaged if left wet.

(Dad, I think I'm different from the people of Alvein, so she's not on guard, right?)

(If it were me, she wouldn't be so relaxed... She seemed quite confident.)

What race is Irena? She is different from a dark elf and closer to a human. She has long, light blue hair and two feather-like hair decorations.

When she was aggressive, she seemed confident, but in her true self, she seemed more gentle. First impressions can be deceiving.

"I don't catch colds easily, so I'm fine. More importantly, the other person... Dad said we need to treat her immediately."

"Dad? Could you be talking about... the dragon we've never seen before?"

"No, this dragon is Banning. Dad is always watching over me."

"Ah... I'm sorry, I said something insensitive without knowing anything..."

(No, he really exists. Think of him as a guardian spirit living in our daughter.)

"Ah... a male voice... Who are you? A knight of the Elsain Magic Kingdom, show yourself before Irena Buefon! With this spear... Ah, what?"

"Spear? It seems you dropped it."

"...Even without a spear, I will protect this child! Come out!"

"Actually, that voice is really Dad, so you don't need to be afraid."

(Does the knight of Elsain not believe a child's words? Isn't that against the code of chivalry?)

"Ugh... That is true... A knight is nothing if he doesn't believe his benefactor!"

"Please, I'll help you find your spear later, but I want to treat Cryune, so can you help me carry her to the cave?"

"Treating... but this person..."

"I want to hear her story. We can't understand anything without it."

"I apologize. It is not right to hesitate in the face of my benefactor's decision. I will carry her immediately."

Although she hesitated a bit because this was the person who attacked her, Irena carried Cryune with Sphere.

Inside the cave, Sphere used a light spell, and floating balls of light illuminated the surroundings. After laying Cryune down, Irena took off her mantle and cast a spell.

"In the name of Irena of the Water People, I beseech the water spirits. Use the water that has soaked this leather as your sustenance."

(The 'Water People'... so there are other elemental people. Though they are lumped together as magic folk, there are various races—Water People seem to be very close to humans.)

Water spirits emerged from the droplets on Irena's hair, forming a mass of water in the air and rapidly absorbing the moisture from the leather, drying Irena's mantle.

Irena then laid the mantle on the ground and placed Cryune on it. The water spirits continued to work, drying the clothes of the three of them.

"How do we take off Cryune's armor?"

"Well, you need to unfasten the clasps here..."

Irena, forgetting that I was there, began to remove Cryune's armor. While focusing on the treatment, I couldn't help but notice the clear contours of Cryune's body through the wet fabric as the inner armor was not yet dry.

(Dad, can I share some of my magic power with her?)

(Ah, yes... just enough to bring her back to consciousness.)

For Sphere, magic power is necessary to maintain her physical form, but sharing a small portion would not be a problem.

"Sharing magic power. Please wait a moment... The clasps are quite tight. But if I loosen this..."

However, the issue was that touching the skin was the most efficient way to share magic power—watching Irena skillfully remove Cryune's inner armor, I couldn't help but wonder if she was actually getting revenge.