It's Just a Misconception

An uncomfortable silence hung between them.

Ferda pressed his index finger hard against his forehead, rubbing it in slow circles.

I understand, at least.

Cursing was something people did. Clinging to one target and cracking open the seeds of gossip let them feel a sense of belonging to the group. Being able to do it was one thing; getting caught was another matter entirely. Especially when the seeds you were cracking belonged to the fiancé you loved.

Yet Ferda did not grow indignant. If anything, he grew calmer. Was it because the affair with Erdes had already burned him out, or simply because this belonged to the past and he saw no reason to make an issue of it now?

He decided to ask the questions that were on his mind.

"I have something I want to know."

"...Go ahead."

"Do the other dragons think of my fiancée the same way?"

"...I'd prefer you simply accept that dragons don't get along particularly well with one another."

"No. I only need objective facts. If you intend to help me, speak without filtering anything."

Ferda's tone was completely serious. Erika could not tell whether that seriousness sprang from anger or pure intellectual curiosity. Still, she gave him the answer he wanted.

"Yes. When you look at her history, you can't help but say such things."

"..."

"Even this very moment is an example. Wanting to take a human as her mate and marry him? It's so absurd it doesn't even rise to the level of a joke."

The contradiction between the rank of power and the rank that could not wield power—looking at it that way, it truly was absurd. Baldrova was a walking contradiction in every respect.

"Setting emotional talk aside..."

Dwelling on the past would do no good, so he steered the conversation to the present.

"What advantage is there in forming an alliance with Iorga?"

"We can lend our strength to the eastern campaign that Regent Ferda intends to carry out."

"With your people?"

"We've been researching the far eastern regions for a long time."

Pride colored Erika's voice, along with the particular arrogance unique to dragon spawn.

"The reason the far east cannot be conquered is because of the Magi that saturates it."

That much Ferda already knew. The junk mana rising from the Land of Evil collapsed both mind and body.

"To set foot in the far east, the blessings and magic of every god were required. That is why only an extremely small elite of heroes could ever enter."

Twelve heroes. The high priests who served each god and every dragon had chanted protective blessings over them. Among those twelve expedition members had been the dragon spawn Erika Iorga, and Erdes Roton.

"While researching Project Hestia, we only recently achieved meaningful results."

Meaningful results. At those words, Ferda felt a faint lift of excitement.

"What are they?"

"Something called anti-magi resistance."

Anti-magi resistance. Not a bad name. The fact that the term did not exist in Ferda's memories suggested it was something like a strategic weapon Iorga had kept hidden.

"Can it cure people?"

"No. It is not a solution that resolves the fundamental problem of Magi erosion."

"You said it was a meaningful result while researching a curative agent."

"That's how research works. Discoveries in unintended directions still count as results."

Ferda shot her a look that clearly said, Are you joking right now? Erika mumbled, "Anyway," and pushed on.

"Put simply, what we discovered is roughly the difference between prevention and cure."

Prevention prepared for what was coming; cure dealt with what had already arrived.

"Then how is the curative agent progressing?"

"That... still shows no progress. Since it's research starting from absolute zero, the direction of results remains opaque."

Erika exhaled a heavy sigh through her nose.

"So the point of this conversation is that if you have any intention of approaching the Land of Evil, we would like to research anti-magi agents further rather than curatives."

"And once you've researched anti-magi agents, what then? You expect the Grand Duchy of Baldrova to take the risk?"

"No. We plan to pull the Adventurers' Guild in more deeply."

"The Adventurers' Guild?"

"We've already drawn the Adventurers' Guild in, but until now we've only been tossing them errands of the most trivial sort. We kept throwing temporary measures at them, and only now has the time come to make real use of them."

Adventurers handled every kind of work—from mail delivery and minor errands to monster subjugation and even the elimination of regional guardians. Fees varied enormously according to skill and difficulty.

"And you think they'll voluntarily head into the Land of Evil?"

"If this works, there's no reason they wouldn't."

Erika formed a circle with her thumb and forefinger.

"What if, instead of simple survey commissions, they could bring back eastern mysteries before Magi erodes them completely? Even trash would fetch feverish prices at auction."

Mysterious records from the east were treasures capable of captivating not only mages but knights as well. Even Ferda had once thought that learning eastern magic might bring him tremendous progress.

But Magi made it impossible.

That massive barrier of Magi had relegated everything to mere legend. If there was big money to be made, adventurers would leap into a pit of fire without hesitation. It was a genuinely solid idea.

People had only observed the current ecology of the Land of Evil; who had ever set foot there in person? Mapping the terrain and discovering what lay within would prove invaluable for later conquest attempts.

Building on her proposal, Ferda continuously sketched out the future. What he had lacked was being filled in; things he had never imagined grew steadily richer. Even so, he could not let go of one lingering doubt.

Can I truly trust this woman?

The emotions he had felt at the Grand Council still remained vivid in his mind.

"You're wondering whether you can trust me, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"As direct as ever."

She lifted her teacup, pretending to savor the tea while closing her eyes. Then, as if she had made up her mind, she opened them and spoke.

"The words you said keep coming back to me. You asked what I intended to do in the end, didn't you?"

It had been something Ferda flung out in a fit of temper.

"My conclusion is that I will not think about that 'end' at all."

The moment he heard it, he found it absurd. Was fleeing from the future something a leader should say? But he quickly realized that was not the case. What lived in her eyes was a leader's sense of responsibility.

"I want to do my utmost with what I can do right now."

Looking into those eyes, Ferda too became certain. This woman could be trusted.

"Very well. Let us form an alliance."

Joy spread across her face, but as a seasoned leader she answered with a composed expression.

"I hope we can develop a good relationship."

"Since we've formed an alliance, may I make a request now?"

Erika, who had been about to wrap things up, looked slightly flustered by Ferda's request.

"I didn't expect you to need help quite so soon."

"The timing is rather coincidental."

Ferda had Ruri bring the items seized from Research Director Linne and showed them to her.

"What is this?"

"Items taken from a demon research facility. The director's journal and samples."

"Demons!"

Erika was considerably startled. Ferda briefly explained what had happened at the research facility. The more the explanation continued, the more agitated Erika became.

"Good heavens... You're saying the demons have created a drug that can instantly produce knight-class beings?"

"It's still a prototype, but a bouncer-class fought two of our knights."

"There's always a difference in skill, but a true bouncer shouldn't have struggled that much. That means either the prototype's efficacy is incomplete or there are side effects..."

Erika peered into the liquid inside the bottle. Her pupils, layered with multiple magic circles and mana, tried to analyze its composition. All that returned was a frustrated expression.

"More than anything, this is something that imitates Godwin's power. Good heavens. To only learn of such a thing now... Erika, you stupid bitch, what have you been doing all this time?"

Her eyes went round and her body bounced up and down; she could not contain her excitement. Then she locked eyes with Ferda and sucked in a sharp breath. "Ah!"

"My apologies. I made a spectacle of myself. Before being a leader I am a researcher, so when I see something like this I get far too worked up..."

"I'm used to it."

He already had a guy who ran around screaming naked and a woman who absorbed components by smelling people's hair; this level was practically cute.

Next she examined the journal. The moment she saw the script, her brow furrowed.

"This is... the language of the High Elves."

Unlike Ferda, she recognized it at a glance. Perhaps she could interpret it?

"Can you translate it?"

"Unfortunately I only know that it's High Elf script. The language of the World Tree's guardians exists for the sake of secrecy."

"So it's impossible?"

"It's not completely impossible either. No matter how secret it is, the principle is that the elven mind must always remain connected. Those closest to the rooted origin handle everything."

Ferda understood what that origin meant.

"The Great Patriarch."

"Yes. That person should be able to interpret it. We'll have to go deep into the western regions, but that shouldn't be a major problem..."

They had found a way through, yet it was not as good as he might have hoped. High Elves ranked among the highest echelons of elves and formed a closed society. The Great Patriarch would never be easygoing.

"If we can persuade the Great Patriarch, we might manage somehow..."

"There's no need to persuade. We just threaten them."

"What?"

"If we threaten to reveal to the entire world that a High Elf became a Dark Elf, they'll come running out barefoot."

"That... well..."

It was a delicate issue. Was it a brilliant idea or pure madness?

"Let's discuss it later. The High Elves are in the middle of their autumn festival right now, and they'll be preparing for the winter festival as well."

They offered prayers celebrating the abundance of autumn and the desolation of winter, prayers that did not stop until the first sprouts of spring. At the very least they would have to wait more than an entire quarter. Even so, the mere fact that a sliver of possibility had appeared was worth something.

"I'll return the journal, and I'll take these samples. We might even find a clue toward a curative agent."

Her excited face made him think she might actually pull it off. Perhaps that was why—

"There's one more thing."

"What else is there?"

Erika's eyes sparkled like a child receiving birthday presents.

"My mana."

"...What?"

She looked as disappointed as a child who had just received a gift in grandmother's taste.

"What do you mean by mana?"

"I can neutralize Lady Baldrova's blood aura with my mana."

At those words her eyes went perfectly round. Her vertically slit pupils contracted like a cat's in broad daylight.

"You mean you healed her?"

"No. I merely neutralize the blood aura that emerges in those situations."

Erika's expression was more puzzled than intrigued. The claim was so radical it was hard to believe at face value. The mages of Blue Eye were elites. All of them had racked their brains researching, yet they had failed even to create a method of suppression or neutralization. And now a mere human possessed such strange mana? A human who could affect a dragon, no less?

"I knew that Red Circle mana, being composed of emotions, possessed peculiar properties. But for it to be a power that can suppress or neutralize Godwin's chaos..."

She thought and thought and thought again. Even then she could not understand. Iorga, who held the rank of water and magic. For Erika, who served as leader under her, to fail to comprehend this was an extremely wounding blow to her pride. In the end Erika discarded that pride.

"All right."

She spoke.

"Let's try it."

"Try what?"

"The mana. Since I need to figure out what yours is like, I should experience it directly, shouldn't I?"

Erika removed her glove and held out her hand to Ferda.

"It probably won't have any particular effect. It only works on Lady Baldrova."

"Are you certain? One hundred percent?"

It had worked on Baldrova. But it had shown no effect on Ruri, a spawn of Silverwind. Therefore it would either have no effect or only a negligible one on Erika, who was likewise a spawn.

"Reasonably certain."

"'Reasonably' and 'certain' are words that cannot coexist. Let's feel it for ourselves. It's not as though it will have any great significance anyway."

True enough—what special meaning could there be in simply transferring mana? Thinking that, Ferda took Erika's hand.

"My prediction is that your magical power isn't anything special. Like sorcerers who inherit magic through their bloodline, you might have used magic unconsciously or something of the so—hiiiiyaaaaah!?"

The instant the mana entered her, a sharp scream burst from her lips. It was the cry of a young lady startled by a cool breeze slipping under her skirt. Erika's legs gave out and she collapsed onto the spot. Looking up at Ferda from the floor, she stared at him. Ferda, equally unprepared for the situation, hastily released her hand in flustered haste.

On the face of the cold leader Erika, a flush of shame and trembling pupils took their place.

"??"

"??"

Ferda and Erika stared at each other's faces.

"?????"

"?????"

No matter how long they stared at each other, there was no one who could resolve this question.

"Playboy."

Ruri condemned him with frigid eyes. She had not spoken a word, but she had held her breath and watched everything.

Ferda was considerably shaken.

"What's this sudden talk of playboys?"

"Did you not just have an affair with that arrogant girl?"

"I only held her hand, and the leader screamed."

"Scream? Anyone listening would call that a moan."

Even Ferda had to concede that point.

"I only let mana flow. It was what Leader Iorga herself wanted."

"You've brought out the classic repertoire of adulterers."

I'm going to lose my mind.

"You've experienced it yourself."

"And did I howl like that arrogant girl?"

"No."

"There was nothing special about it. It was just mana. Yet when you did it to Leader Iorga, something was different. Could it be..."

Ruri narrowed her eyes and asked,

"Do you like that woman?"

"Have you lost your mind?"

He reflexively snapped and cursed.

"It was just mana."

"Then why was I fine?"

"Does that matter?"

"It does."

Ruri irritably stripped off her gloves.

"Do it. If I feel even a little something, I'll scream with all my might just like that woman."

With Ruri acting like this, he no longer felt any desire to take her hand regardless of the truth. Ferda decided to respond firmly as well.

"Why are you so oversensitive?"

"Don't change the subject."

"I didn't particularly mind the interrogation. But today you're being remarkably persistent."

"...Isn't it because someone who already has a fiancée is doing such things?"

"From where I stand it looks like more than simple oversensitivity. Did I whisper words of love? Did I drag her into the bedroom? It was merely a new reaction born of ignorance, so why are you turning me into a scoundrel?"

Ferda displayed his anger while remaining calm. Hearing those words, Ruri showed agitation beneath her expressionless face. She considered what he had said, then lowered her head.

"I'm sorry. You're right. I am merely Lady Baldrova's servant, so..."

Seeing her mutter like a dejected puppy, Ferda recalled everything that had happened that day. Ruri had endured a hard day no less than he had. The pressure of war and Goz Silverwind's stares—she had been forced to bear them all.

Yes, today was a hard day for her.

That was why she was this oversensitive and making such a fuss. She had been toughing it out as usual. This was not something to scold; it was something to praise.

Looking down at Ruri with her head bowed before him, Ferda said,

"You worked hard today."

Then he placed his hand on her head and gently stroked it.

"..."

Ruri neither lifted her head nor reacted. The moment his hand rested on her hair, she froze solid.

After placing his hand on her head, Ferda thought, What the hell is this insane act? He had followed his body without thinking, but why had he done something like this? He knew why the action felt so familiar. They said stroking a child's head was effective when an adult man praised a young child, didn't they? That was why Mori had asked him to do it when she wanted praise.

Yes. Ferda had treated Ruri like a child. She was the sort who already got irritated whenever anyone treated her like a little kid. She was certain to get angry.

"Ugh..."

He thought that—yet it was not the case. He had expected her to say, "Don't treat me like a child; I am a dragon spawn and you are human." Instead Ruri said nothing. She remained with her head lowered, simply feeling Ferda's hand.

Why?

He had no idea. Beasts were said to feel comfort when their scruffs were held—because they sensed a mother's love, or because of habit? Or perhaps her rage had overwhelmed her so completely that the moment he removed his hand it would act like a detonator and she would explode?

While every possible thought filled his head, she opened her mouth.

"H-hurry and leave. I need to clean."

"Right. Understood."

Only then did Ferda remove his hand, and Ruri moved as well. She immediately spun around and began sweeping the floor. For the briefest instant her skin, not hidden by her hair, became visible. Her face was flushed bright red.

Ruri thought to herself.

Humans all change. The heart cannot resist the flow of years. Consistency is treated as a virtue worthy of respect precisely because the heart is as fickle as a reed. Ferda was no exception. She no longer understood what that man was thinking. For a person to change this much in less than a year...

Even though Lady Baldrova existed, he kept playing the playboy and holding other women's hands. He kept doing nothing but detestable things.

...

No. Ruri knew. That man had not changed. She knew he had no particular thoughts even when holding their hands. She knew he had no intention of having affairs. She had simply used it as an excuse whenever she needed something to torment him with.

Yet now a stifling emotion welled up. Yes. The one who had changed was Ruri herself. She had noticed it vaguely as well. Whenever she grew anxious, rather than thinking she could handle it herself, Ferda's name rose naturally in her mind. And when Goz arrived at this castle, she had even unconsciously grabbed his sleeve.

That change had begun after Ferda killed Abel—after she had wept her heart out in his arms.

Lord Silverwind.

Ferda had felt like the Silverwind of a certain time.

Why...

She could not understand how she had made such an outrageous misconception. Silverwind and Ferda were different. Unlike the rough men of the north, he was gentle and intellectual. The strictness that valued discipline had been shaped by the harsh north and by Goz, the second-in-command.

They don't resemble each other at all.

When Silverwind polymorphed he became a middle-aged man with a long beard, whereas Ferda was a young man barely out of his youth. If there was any resemblance it was at best the color of their hair, and even that was only if one stretched the comparison to absurd lengths.

She carefully retraced her memories and realized one thing.

The scent.

The scent she had felt when she leaned against Ferda and cried. A cool fragrance of peppermint and chamomile blending together, intense yet subtle. And the ash-like smell that made things desolate. Why had she sensed that scent from Ferda?

It's a misconception.

An outrageous misconception. Overwhelmed by emotion, her memories had simply grown confused. That was what Ruri thought. She had to think it. Mistaking him for her father, for Silverwind, was sacrilege.

I really need to scrub myself raw.

She would fill the bathwater with lavender and steep herself thoroughly until she washed it all away. Whatever it was, the bad one was Ferda.