Chapter 97

With the Water Dragon's name finally decided, we resumed our exploration.

"Let's look for a water source. Water storage is important on an expedition, you know."

"Wha~?"

Dawu, splashing his front paws in a puddle, tried to show that he had found a water source.

"That's too muddy, so it's no good."

"Wha!"

Dawu enthusiastically ran off to find a water source that wasn't muddy.

I walked carefully, tapping the ground with a stick to avoid muddy spots.

"Sarah, that way will get muddy. This way."

"Got it."

I swung the stick in my right hand and held Sarah's hand with my left, walking cautiously.

Sui, with Korko on her head and Caro on her shoulder, followed behind us.

"Korko, isn't it heavy?"

Korko is a very large chicken.

"Sui is a dragon, so it's fine. Even Dawu can ride on her."

"Wow!"

"Wha~ wha wha"

Dawu placed his front paws on Sui's shoulders from behind.

Hearing Sui's words, Dawu seemed to think he could ride on her.

"Dawu, don't be so pushy!"

"Wha~?"

"If Dawu gets on Sui, everyone will be surprised!"

"Wha?"

Dawu tilted his head. But if you imagine it, you can see why.

If the frail-looking Sui had the huge Dawu on her head, it would be quite a sight.

"It would be wobbly!"

"Wha~"

Dawu said, "Can't help it," and went back to searching for a water source.

But he wasn't really searching seriously; he was just running around the yard energetically.

Dawu, being large, needs a lot of exercise.

"Even without searching, we can see the lake, right?"

"That's true. The problem is getting there safely."

I walked, tapping the ground with my stick to check for pitfalls.

"Sui thinks there are no pitfalls."

"Can't be too careful!"

"Is that so?"

As Sui spoke leisurely,

"Kyau!"

The next moment, Dawu, who had been running around, fell into a deep puddle.

Dawu, who was mostly brown, turned completely brown.

"Rya~"

Roah, who was on my head, covered her eyes.

"...There really was a pitfall."

"Right. Can't be too careful."

"Ruria is amazing."

Sui and Sarah looked at me with admiration, making me feel proud.

But it wasn't a real pitfall.

It was just a bit of mud, not even as deep as my knees.

It was such a minor puddle that Dawu had tripped and fallen because he was careless.

"Kyau kyau. Pee"

Dawu ran over, making a whiny sound.

"Dawu, you were really careless."

"Pee~. Kyau kyau"

Dawu was saying, "It hurts, it hurts," so I checked his body.

"You're fine, no injuries."

"...Wha. Pee~"

He seemed to have been startled and was just being clingy.

He pressed his body against me, asking to be petted.

"Dawu, wait."

"Wha?"

"If you stay like that, we'll get muddy too. Let's go wash up."

"Wha~?"

"We'll go to the lake."

"Wha!?"

Dawu started running, looking like he couldn't believe he had to go into the lake in this weather.

"Wait, wait~"

"Wha wha~"

I ran after Dawu.

I didn't have time to look for pitfalls. I ran quite seriously.

"Rya rya rya!"

Roah flapped her wings happily.

Thanks to her, I felt a bit of a tailwind, making my steps a bit faster.

But Dawu was still faster.

"Haa haa... He's out of sight."

"Ryam~"

"Roah, that was good. Let's practice that again."

"Ryam!"

Sui, who had been running slowly, caught up to us.

"Dawu ran away, didn't he?"

Sui had been carrying Sarah under one arm and chasing after us.

"It's spring, after all. Dawu might not have wanted to go into the lake."

Sarah, who had been put down by Sui, held my hand.

"That's true. But if he gets dirty, Mom might get mad."

It was a tricky situation.

"Hmm? Then, Sui can wash him with warm water. By magic."

"Really? Sui can?"

"Yes. With a snap, it's done. Sui is the Water Dragon, so water magic is her specialty."

"Sui, you're cool!""Amazing!"

"Thank you... I guess."

Sui wagged her tail happily, praised by me and Sarah.

"Then, let's call Dawu. Dawu, come here~"

"Dawu! Sui will wash you with warm water."

Sarah and I called out as we walked in the direction Dawu had run.

"Ah, there's Dawu!"

After walking for a while, we found Dawu.

Dawu, covered in mud, was watching us from a gap between the trees, away from the yard.

"Sui will wash you with warm water, not cold."

"Wha~"

But Dawu didn't move, just called out to us to come over.

"What's wrong, Dawu?"

As we approached,

"Miss, please wait."

A guard appeared from nowhere.

The guard had been watching us from a hidden spot.

"Beyond this point, you're out of the yard."

"Okay, I understand. Thomas, how far can we go?"

The guard's name was Thomas.

He was of common birth, but his father had been a squire to a knight.

He had won a swordsmanship tournament and was chosen by his father, becoming an excellent guard.

"Miss, that tree is the boundary of the yard."

"Got it, thanks!"

We were only allowed to play in the yard.

"Dawu, come here! You can't go that way!"

"Ah?"

"You can't go to the lake, so don't worry."

"Wha!"

Dawu slowly came out, understanding the situation.

"...You're completely covered in mud."

Thomas also looked at Dawu's state with a sigh.

"That's true. He got a bit carried away."

"Earlier this morning, during the walk, he wasn't so energetic, so it must be more fun with you, Miss."

"Is that so?"

This morning, Dawu had gone for a walk with Thomas before breakfast.

"Ruria, Sarah, watch this. This is Sui's power!"

Sui created a ball of water out of nowhere.

"Wow~ Sui, you're amazing!""Sui is incredible!"

Thomas also said, "That's impressive."

"Hehe, but I still have a lot to learn."

Sui, blushing, manipulated the magic. Steam rose from the large ball of water.

"Wow~ it's warm water now.""It looks warm!"

"Dawu, check the temperature."

"Wha~"

Dawu poked the ball of water with his right front paw.

"Is it just right?"

"Wha!"

"Then, let's go!"

Dawu's entire body was enveloped in the ball of water.

"Wha~"

Dawu looked very comfortable.

"Dawu loves baths, doesn't he?"

Whether a dog likes baths or not varies, but Dawu generally likes them.

He didn't want to go into the lake because it was too cold.

"Dawu, close your eyes. I'll wash your head."

"Wha~ bub bub bub bub"

Dawu closed his eyes and played with the water covering his face.

"That's it!"

When the ball of water disappeared, there was a clean, fluffy Dawu.

"Sui, thank you. Can you teach me how to do it later?"

"Sure."

"Dawu, you're so fluffy!"

Sarah hugged Dawu, who wagged his tail happily.

"Truly, the Water Dragon. You've shown us something amazing."

Thomas also praised her sincerely.

"Hehe~"

As we were talking,

"Ruria, there's someone in the forest I don't know!"

Suddenly, Kuro appeared in front of us.

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