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🕑 Added 2025-05-02 16:16:14 +0000 UTCBear-san, After the Battle with the Ice Dragon
Two Ice Dragons descended.
Kagali-san and I didn't know what was going on, so we made sure we could take action no matter what.
The old Ice Dragon descended to the ground and looked at the frozen Ice Dragon.
"It seems like he doesn't have enough experience to lose to a human." (Ice Dragon)
The way she said it sounded like she could beat me.
Maybe she was just trying to say that she didn't intend to lose.
The mother Ice Dragon walked over and came in front of us.
"So, just to confirm, is the Ice Dragon behind you okay?" (Yuna)
"We made a contract of subordination." (Ice Dragon)
A contract of subordination?
"You can do that?" (Yuna)
"There was no need for both parties to consent." (Ice Dragon)
So they could make a contract of subordination without the other party's consent.
It might be similar to my Bear Contract Magic.
I turned my attention to the Ice Dragon frozen by my Bear Magic.
Then to the Ice Dragon that was trying to kill the mother Ice Dragon not long ago.
Then back to the frozen Ice Dragon.
I was not convinced that this frozen Ice Dragon would simply obey me.
But there was no reason not to try it out.
"Can you do the contract of subordination with this trapped Ice Dragon as well?" (Yuna)
Just like how I froze the Ice Dragon, I wouldn't know until I tried it.
The mother Ice Dragon moved in front of the trapped Ice Dragon.
She was just staring at it.
"It looks like they're talking." (Kagali)
"Could it be that you can understand what they're saying?" (Yuna)
As expected of Kagali-san.
That was what I thought, but the answer was different.
"I don't know. I just thought so because there was magic power flowing between them." (Kagali)
I see, they were speaking using magic power.
After watching the Ice Dragon for a while, the horns of the trapped Ice Dragon and mother Ice Dragon started to glow. Then, after a while, the light disappeared.
"We made a contract of subordination." (Ice Dragon)
So this time, it was finally over.
"But it's you who made a contract of subordination." (Yuna)
I couldn't imagine Ice Dragons being the kind of beings that obeyed someone else so easily.
"If he doesn't obey, I'll crush his body." (Ice Dragon)
"Can you do that?" (Yuna)
Normal attacks didn't work on them, and even their skin was really tough.
"Ice Dragons cover and protect their bodies with their magic. If one loses that magic, it should be much easier to defeat them." (Ice Dragon)
So, if I drained the Ice Dragon's magic, only that way could I defeat them physically.
"You were thinking that you could have defeated the Ice Dragon if you had depleted its magic power, right?" (Kagali)
"Kagali-san, can you read people's minds!?" (Yuna)
"I can't read them. It's just written on your face." (Kagali)
I silently massaged my face with my Bear puppet.
Poker face, poker face.
"But didn't you say it would be better if it was defeated?" (Yuna)
"That would be from the perspective of humans, they would normally think that it would be better for them to be defeated." (Kagali)
Different people had different ways of thinking. I think there were people who wouldn't accept things and choose death based on their own beliefs.
But there were also people who would make a contract of subordination because they either valued their lives or wanted to protect something even if they had to endure humiliation.
It depended on the situation, position, and feelings at the time.
"But that Ice Dragon lost to me, right? So will it be satisfied with this outcome?" (Yuna)
"Those who lose have no right. They can either live or die." (Ice Dragon)
So it chose to live.
"Human child, please melt the ice." (Ice Dragon)
"Just to be certain, is it really okay? If I melt the ice, it won't attack me, right?" (Yuna)
"Because of the contract of subordination, he can't defy me." (Ice Dragon)
So it all depended on the mother Ice Dragon.
Well, I also couldn't just leave it frozen like this, so I decided to trust the mother Ice Dragon for now.
I melted the ice that was wrapped around the Ice Dragon.
The ice turned into water and flowed down to the ground.
The Ice Dragon, freed from the ice, started to move and roared.
The air shook.
Above all, it was noisy.
Perhaps thinking the same thing as me, the mother Ice Dragon moved its tail and slammed it against the Ice Dragon's head.
It became quiet.
The Ice Dragon that was hit by the tail glared at me for some reason.
I didn't do anything.
"You are causing trouble to the Human child." (Ice Dragon)
It was true.
But please, I didn't want to get myself involved in the Ice Dragon's troubles.
"But it really won't attack me, right?" (Yuna)
I turned my attention to the new Ice Dragon behind the peak.
"This is the proof of the contract." (Ice Dragon)
As the mother Ice Dragon said so, the horn of the other two Ice Dragons lit up and they fell to the ground.
"The horns are used to seal the contract of subordination. The horns are also needed to break the contract. It will take many years for the horns to grow back." (Ice Dragon)
In other words, it seemed that the contract of subordination could not be broken until a new horn grew back.
No, I didn't want them to break the contract of subordination, even after a new horn grew back.
"Those horns are fine. Do whatever you like with those two horns." (Ice Dragon)
Did that mean that she was giving them to me?
This time's reward was the horns of Ice Dragon.
I was kind of happy.
Dragon materials were rare, right?
The mother Ice Dragon looked at the two Ice Dragons.
"You two are free to leave." (Ice Dragon)
The Ice Dragons roared at me, spread their wings, and flew away.
It was not attempting to attack me, right?
Maybe that one simply hated me?
Don't ever break the contract of subordination, okay?
"Human child. Thank you for your help." (Ice Dragon)
The mother Ice Dragon also spread its wings and flew away.
There were still things I wanted to talk about, but I could meet it at the top of the mountain, so I should stop here for today.
I was tired, so I wanted to rest.
"It's over." (Yuna)
"That's right." (Kagali)
We stared at the Ice Dragon flying away.
"So, what do we do with these horns? Do you want it, Kagali-san?" (Yuna)
"I don't need them. You can have them." (Kagali)
The Ice Dragon's horns.
I wonder if they could be used for something.
Maybe make a weapon stronger than my mithril knife?
But could someone process something like this?
For now, I put the Ice Dragon horns, which were bigger than me, in my bear box.
I got Ice Dragon horns!
I summoned Hugging Bear and Swaying Bear. We rode back to Lize-san and the others.
"Kagali-san, are you feeling okay?" (Yuna)
I asked Kagali-san, who was riding Swaying Bear.
"I'm fine. I just put a little strain on myself by suddenly raising my body temperature to withstand the Ice Dragon's cold." (Kagali)
"You won't suffer any aftereffects, right?" (Yuna)
"You're quite a worrier, you know?" (Kagali)
Was I worrying too much?
I did end up putting her in danger when she ended up being enveloped by cold in my place.
"Thank you for that." (Yuna)
I felt embarrassed to thank her formally.
"Protecting children is the role of adults." (Kagali)
She looked like a little girl, but she was indeed actually older than she looked.
"But if anything happens to Kagali-san, Sakura and the others will worry, so don't do anything reckless." (Yuna)
"There was a way to endure it, so it was not a reckless move." (Kagali)
But when I saw her getting engulfed by cold air in front of my eyes, I almost cried.
"I apologize for making you worry, though." (Kagali)
"No, thank you for helping me." (Yuna)
Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear carrying me and Kagali-san returned to the mine.
"Yuna-san, Kagali-chan!" (Lize)
Lize-san and the others, who were watching from the entrance of the mine, came running over to us when they saw us.
"We're back." (Kagali)
"Are you hurt? Kagali-chan, why is your face red?" (Lize)
Lize-san put her hand on Kagali-san's forehead.
"Oh, it's hot. It's really hot." (Lize)
"It's okay." (Kagali)
"No, it's not. It's really hot." (Lize)
It was hot, but it was not as hot as before anymore since she could be touched now.
If they had seen her body emitting heat that melted the ice and snow around her, they might have been even more surprised.
"I just used my magic to heat up my body. It will heal soon, so don't worry." (Kagali)
Kagali-san gently grabbed Lize-san's hand and smiled reassuringly.
She was responding like an adult, as expected.
Though she looked like a little girl.
"So, what happened? I saw the Ice Dragons fly towards us. After that, I was told by the girls to watch the situation from the entrance of the mine, but..." (Bollard)
"All I could hear was a terrible noise, and I didn't know what was going on." (Bollard)
I gave a simple explanation.
That the new Ice Dragon had brought a companion with it. That Kagali-san and I faced one of them while the old Ice Dragon faced the other one. And that we had defeated them.
"Did you really win?" (Lize)
I took out the Ice Dragon's horn to prove it.
Lize-san and the others exclaimed in surprise.
"They won't attack people anymore. This is proof that they can't defy the old Ice Dragon." (Yuna)
"... Ice Dragon's horn." (Lize)
(T/N: Yuna only took out one Ice Dragon horn to show it to Lize.)
"Just leave it as it is and don't touch it." (Kagali)
Kagali-san stopped the old man who was trying to touch the horn without gloves.
Horn was giving off cold air.
"Maybe it's going to stay like this forever." (Yuna)
"It'll wear out eventually." (Kagali)
That would be nice.
"Now, once the baby Ice Dragon is born, the mother Ice Dragon will also be gone." (Yuna)
"That's right." (Kagali)
Everyone's expressions brightened.
Anyway, the sun had set today, it was late at night, and I was tired from fighting the Ice Dragon, so I decided to rest early.
Bear House?
Of course I brought out a spare.
I forgot to retrieve the Bear House that I took out on the mountaintop when I was fighting the Ice Dragon, so I had to retrieve it tomorrow.
"Thank you for this time, Kagali-san." (Yuna)
I expressed my gratitude to Kagali as I was getting ready to sleep.
"What is it about, all of a sudden?" (Kagali)
"Many things. You accompanied me on my exploration of the town, you accompanied me to meet the Ice Dragon, and even though it was dangerous, you fought the Ice Dragon with me." (Yuna)
"Don't worry about that. I also accompanied you because I was curious about what was on this land. It was also out of curiosity when I found out that the Ice Dragon could talk, so I joined you at that time. And when we fought the Ice Dragon, it was because I'm an adult and I couldn't let you fight it alone. Well, I wasn't of much help, though." (Kagali)
"That's not true. I was glad that you fought with me…. You helped me many times, including attracting the attention of the Ice Dragon, even though it was dangerous... And you even saved me without regard for danger. But you don't have to risk your life to protect me."
At that time, I thought that Kagali-san had really died, and my heart tightened.
I felt an indescribable emotion.
Even if my parents had died, I didn't think I would have felt this way.
"As I've said many times before, I didn't risk my life. I had a plan to survive." (Kagali)
"The one that involves heating up your body?" (Yuna)
"That's right. But the Ice Dragon's cold was stronger than I thought, so I turned into a fox and amplified my magic power. In human form, I might not have been able to withstand the cold." (Kagali)
So that was what happened.
"Even so, you came up with a good idea to freeze the Ice Dragon." (Kagali)
"I somehow noticed that the Ice Dragon hated water." (Yuna)
I explained that the Ice Dragon was avoiding not only the heat Kagali-san emitted, but also the water in the surroundings that was melted with fire magic.
Kagali-san thought for a moment about my explanation.
"Yes, now that I think about it, I did notice a bit of that happening during the battle. But it was only for a small moment." (Kagali)
"Yeah, that's why I thought I'd give it a try. Then, with the Ice Dragon's own coldness, it froze the water, hindering its movement." (Yuna)
When the dragon's wings froze, it definitely looked like it had difficulty moving.
"The Ice Dragon is stupid to let its own cold freeze it." (Kagali)
"But now, even if I have to fight the Ice Dragon again, I can defeat it." (Yuna)
"Are you planning to fight it again?" (Kagali)
"Only if it tried to pick a fight with me." (Yuna)
Kagali-san looked annoyed at my words.
"I won't join you then." (Kagali)
Kagali-san said that, but I felt like she would help me.
"What are you laughing at?" (Kagali)
"Nothing." (Yuna)
I was tired, but a long day was over.
