Even so, Fluff quickly adjusted her mindset.
After all, for someone who could endure over a dozen years of loneliness and neglect, a little disappointment was not a major issue.
At least… Sir Knight truly cared about her.
Even if it could not compare to the Lady Captain.
Even if it was only a little bit.
“Arlette, my mana is running low and needs to recover. You take the shift.”
“Understood, I am on it.”
At this critical juncture, it was Dela who timely broke the awkward silence, sparing Fluff some of her dignity.
For the remainder of the journey, the group took turns keeping watch and driving the vessel.
Progress was quite smooth. Despite being the most perilous zone, it was eerily calm, with almost no monsters in sight.
However, just as the Crystal Thorn adventure group was about to cross the entirety of the Sea of Gold, trouble arose.
The main force from behind had caught up.
Not only that, but most of them chose a riskier but more efficient method to cross the sea.
“Flight.”
There were at least three or four teams that chose to force their way across the lava sea by flying.
By the time Crystal Thorn reached the opposite shore, those teams were already halfway across.
If they delayed any longer, Crystal Thorn’s advantage might be overtaken in an instant, ceasing to exist entirely.
The process of hunting a Fire Dragon was inherently difficult and uncertain. Though Crystal Thorn had already established a battle plan centered around Melo, success was still not fully guaranteed.
Furthermore, the cost of time had not even been factored in yet.
Under these circumstances, if those competitors were added to the mix…
The situation would become extremely dire and even more unstable.
“Speed up. We need to get through here as quickly as possible.”
Upon seeing the competitors catching up, Melo’s expression instantly shifted from her previous relaxation and pleasure to one of gravity.
She did not want her goals to be interfered with by any external factors.
“Understood, My Lady. I will go assist Dela.”
With that, Arlette rushed to the stern, releasing all of his remaining mana to accelerate the vessel’s progress.
With the addition of double power, the stone boat soon reached the opposite shore of the Sea of Gold.
At this point, the members of Crystal Thorn could even vaguely see the cave housing the Fire Dragon’s nest not far away.
Arlette could faintly sense powerful mana fluctuations.
Undoubtedly, that was the final objective of this subjugation — the Fire Dragon.
However, there was also bad news.
By the time the members of Crystal Thorn reached the shore, many of the teams from behind had already arrived.
Many teams had chosen to fly, and although many failed, several groups were still closing in.
The cave had more than one entrance; if Crystal Thorn did not move faster, they would face the predicament of having their target stolen by another team.
“We cannot delay any longer. Everyone, follow me into the cave immediately to begin the subjugation — “
Just as Melo was halfway through her sentence, an anomaly occurred!
The Sea of Gold, which had remained calm until now, suddenly surged with intense waves.
In the next moment, two massive, terrifying, scaled monsters began to crawl out of the lava.
Arlette knew what these were.
These creatures were the Fire Dragon’s servants, the nest’s guardians — Companion Dragons.
Their bodies looked like miniature versions of dragons, only without wings.
The two monsters were roughly the size of bears, with specialized, razor-sharp claws and teeth.
The moment they left the lava, they shook off the remaining golden residue from their bodies, let out shrill roars, and showed intense aggression toward the Crystal Thorn party.
“Two Companion Dragons… are they the ones responsible for guarding this nest?”
When a dragon produces offspring, it lays an entire clutch of eggs. Only one will become a true dragon in the future. All the others will become Companion Dragons to protect and serve that one dragon.
Crystal Thorn had naturally made ample tactical preparations for dealing with Companion Dragons.
“My Lady, let’s engage according to the previously established plan.”
“Only two is actually fewer than we expected.”
“…My Lady?”
Arlette called out a few times before Melo finally snapped out of her daze.
“Ah, the plan… Yes, let’s follow the plan.”
At this moment, Melo’s state did not seem right.
Facing such a significant threat, she was unable to concentrate, appearing absentminded and slow to react.
For an adventurer, this was undoubtedly a very basic mistake.
Arlette noticed this, but he said nothing. Instead, he took over the duties of command and began issuing orders to the remaining two teammates.
The plan against the Companion Dragons was not particularly complex. It essentially involved the mage, Dela, weakening them; Fluff providing support; and Arlette handling containment and further attacks to create weaknesses.
Melo, meanwhile, would be responsible for the final kill.
With Arlette’s precise commands, Fluff struck the strings of her harp, and the powerful melody of a war song suddenly rang out.
Dela circulated her mana, using ice and water magic to forcibly lower the surrounding temperature and cool the high heat on the Companion Dragons’ skin.
The moment the cold air reached their bodies, the intense temperature difference instantly triggered their desire to attack.
In the next second, the terrifying beasts shrieked and charged at the members of Crystal Thorn at high speed!
“Get back!”
The instant he sensed the danger, Arlette gripped his greatshield and greatsword in both hands, standing firmly at the front of the group.
Immediately, a massive impact slammed into Arlette’s shield and armor.
Within just a few seconds, the two ferocious Companion Dragons had lunged in front of Arlette, using their entire bodies to bash against the defensive line he had constructed.
*Boom!!*
As the sound of powerful metal clashing exploded against Arlette’s armor, the intense force of the impact instantly pierced through his outer plates and into his entire body.
In that moment, Arlette could clearly feel something inside him shatter.
Those were old injuries that had been accumulating and festering within his body since a few days ago.
The pain, which had begun to go numb, erupted once again. The overwhelming agony caused his mind to go blank, and the muscles throughout his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
Waves of unstoppable tinnitus, mixed with the ferocious roars of the monsters, began to hover at the edge of his consciousness.
Dizziness, fatigue, weakness, nausea, and suffocation.
Countless types of pain were woven together, taking root in Arlette’s spine. They swelled larger and heavier.
It felt as though they would crush his body and spirit at any moment.
A powerful wave of drowsiness began to echo in his mind.
Every inch of muscle began to lose its strength, and his eyelids felt as though they were weighed down by a thousand pounds.
Those myriad pains were like demonic whispers, constantly pulling Arlette toward the boundary known as “death.”
Just as his body and consciousness were about to suffer a total collapse, Arlette vaguely recalled something.
It seemed that a long, long time ago, he had experienced this feeling before.
…Right.
It was that day.
The day war destroyed everything, when he lost his home and his parents, fleeing for his life alone.
Just like now, the young Arlette had been on the brink of death, his body and spirit completely filled with intense agony.
But on that day, a person appeared.
It was My Lady.
She descended from the sky and gave him everything he had thereafter.
“My Lady…”
As his eyes gradually lost focus and he reached the threshold of fainting, Arlette instinctively called out that title.
In the next moment, his consciousness snapped back, driving away the drowsiness that had been about to fully occupy his brain.
‘I haven’t let My Lady return to her old self yet…’
Instantly, adrenaline began to surge through this near-death body.
The dying embers were rekindled.
“My Lady.”
Accompanied by Arlette’s dream-like muttering, the muscles beneath his armor were once again filled with strength.
“I will definitely let you obtain the name of Dragon Slayer and return you to your former self.”
“At any cost.”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.