Arc | Chapter. 106: The Might of a Dragon

Chapter. 106: The Might of a Dragon

Lara was shaking. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She was looking right at the Dragon of Wind. A being she had only seen in books, a being whose existence had been regaled as a kid when she was but a child. And now, such a being was standing there before her.

She didn’t know what faction dragons were allied with.

At least, she didn’t remember anything about them hating humans or the like, but still. As she stared at the green dragon and met her eyes, she couldn’t help but tremble. It was like a prickling feeling all over her body; it felt as if an apex predator was staring right into her soul. It was…

Terrifying.

Lara stood there, trembling, not daring to move from her spot. She was too terrified about what would happen if she did⁠. Unfortunately. Lars the Red Blade had fainted in a battle against the foul beast⁠— or rather in his battle against the green-haired woman.

Lara had seen the identity of the Dragon of Wind; when she first saw the woman Lara thought she had an elegant air to her, but that was all⁠— she never imagined that person was actually the Dragon of Wind, and now, she didn’t know what to do. It was… scary. It was… terrifying⁠— soul-sucking.

She just stayed there, her legs on the ground. There was nothing for her⁠— and she remembered the poor adventurer that had entered the arena. Lara looked only to see her standing nearby.

“Run,” she called. “While you can⁠—”

And she shook her head. “I wouldn’t run from my mentor, but more importantly.”

The adventurer approached and knelt before her, their gazes meeting. Lara stared as the green dragon loomed in the background, unsure of what the current situation was. She turned to the black-haired adventurer once again and met her green eyes.

“Yes…?” Lara asked in a gulp.

The adventurer smiled. “Can you not speak to a single soul about this?”

Lara blinked. “I can try…?”

And her shoulders were grabbed as the adventurer gave her a very serious gaze.

“You must.”

“Right…” Lara gulped looking at the dragon behind who gave her a death glare. She gulped. “I will keep it a closely guarded secret.”

With that, the Dragon of Wind returned to her human form. It was as if nothing had happened except for the marks of a grand battle. The tension had died down now, and finally Lara could breathe a sigh of relief and digest what was being said. The adventurer went to check on her master, and all Lara could do was shake her head.

Her heart was still very much rushing and looking at the field… She really wasn’t looking forward to explaining the events that had transpired to the Guildmaster, but it wasn’t as if she had an option.

That said…

She really was going to have a lot of trouble explaining how an S Tier woman had shown up out of nowhere ⁠— one that wasn’t even an adventurer from the looks of it.

Lara was sure she’d get reprimanded.

A sigh left her as the Dragon of Wind and her student were walking past her. But that was when she came up with something⁠— something that could perhaps save her a lot of trouble and even perhaps boost her resume.

Lara was nervous, but she had to do it.

She took a very deep breath and turned towards the exiting figures.

“Faral, would you like to become an adventurer?

And at that moment, the Dragon of Wind paused.

* * * * *

Faral couldn’t help but wonder if she had heard that right.

To become an adventurer.

She turned to the person that had called.

That would certainly save her a lot of trouble. That said, she had made a mistake by transforming, but she didn’t want to kill the adventurer that kept coming after her⁠— and at the same time she had to stop him somehow. However, she had failed to predict the possibility of eye-witnesses⁠. Thankfully, it had just been one.

The same guild receptionist that had guided them to the arena.

But now, she had asked Faral to become an adventurer; again this would certainly save her a lot of trouble, but also would link them closer together. Faral didn’t want to do anything that could draw attention to Arc or be detrimental in some way. At the same time… perhaps it could even be beneficial.

She frowned in deep thought.

To accept or not to accept. It wasn’t an easy decision. Even though she herself was interested in the preposition on an individual level, she couldn’t let that sway her. What mattered was; potential consequences, and potential returns. And that was why she couldn’t make a decision so easily.

And so her eyes narrowed.

* * * * *

Lara jumped.

W-What was that gaze?

At first, the Dragon of Wind’s expression had been neutral, but it had progressively gotten worse and worse. And now, it was a very deep frown ⁠— an almost wrathful expression, one that made Lara quake in her feet.

Had she offended the Dragon of Wind with her proposal? She didn’t understand why such a reaction, it had been an inoffensive question⁠— and it clicked. She hadn’t specified any type of rank, perhaps even in the Dragon of Wind’s eyes adventurers were nothing but savage hooligans.

Wait…

Didn’t that mean…?

Lara’s eyes grew wide.

She had deeply disrespected the Dragon of Wind?!

At that moment, she felt her face grow pale as her legs began to shake. She had just signed a death sentence. Dragons weren’t inherently hostile to humans but if there was anything that Lara had understood was that stepping on a dragon’s pride would automatically mean…

Death.

Lara spoke in a hurry.

“Please forgive me⁠—”

“Alright.” The Dragon of Wind nodded.

Lara paused, that was so quick⁠—

“I’ll become an adventurer.”

What?

Lara was floored⁠— what had just happened. She was still shaking, and she didn’t understand anything, but all the Dragon of Wind did was raise her brow.

“Is everything okay?”

Lara nodded. “Everything is… fine. I’ll go talk to the Guildmaster about it.”

With those words, she left making sure to not mention the situation that had just transpired moments earlier.

* * * * *

Faral had made her decision and ultimately it had been a weird one.

It certainly would only be beneficial for Arc, but it was still a weird thing.

Well…

Realistically speaking, the worst that could happen could be dealt with, so Faral wasn’t too nervous. And so she firmly settled in her decision.

* * * * *

Ceylon Malz and I were spending time together, I did feel a bit guilty about leaving Malz behind when I went to the Traitor’s Graveyard so I made sure to give her a bit of extra attention.

And if I was being honest with myself; I was enjoying it quite a bit.

Though while all of this was happening I couldn’t help but wonder:

What was Regis’karr and Faral up to?

* * * * *

Regis’karr had for better or for worse decided to wait. He didn’t want to tarnish the image of the Hermit by breaking out⁠— if someone realized he had been kidnapped his image would be forever tarnished. And at the same time changing his appearance was hard with no mirror present, or even changing his clothes. So all he could do was wait.

He wasn’t concerned for his safety, and at the same time Regis’karr was more than strong enough to survive  whatever was thrown at him, so all in all it was a trivial thing. Moreover, he could use this chance to thoroughly teach these peasants a well deserved lesson. He wasn’t going to kill them, however, he was certainly going to make them pay.

And so with utmost patience he waited.

He waited as he heard the kidnappers speaking with the guards, he waited as he heard the sounds of people pass and the sounds of the forest begin. Regis’karr was in no rush as minutes passed, but once they were far enough he made his decision.

First was… pushing.

Regis’karr felt his whole body well up with power as it began to glow within the sack. The Mana Suppression cuffs immediately shattered.

Then came the explosions⁠—

The land shattered as Regis’karr immediately transformed into a dragon and what he saw gave him pause. Around him were about five S Tier adventurers murdering the kidnappers, then, they all turned towards him.

This was bad…

And they all attacked as Regis’karr was forced to engage in a battle he didn’t want to have.

* * * * *

Verral had listened to her receptionist heavily emphasize the fight that had occurred between this woman and Lars the Red Blade, where Lars had been thoroughly defeated even though he kept trying to fight to kill.

Verral was familiar with the man’s antics and it even though it had been hard to believe once he made use of a surveillance artifact it had been more than clear. Lars was out cold, blood pooling around him from overexerting himself. Of course, there were no records of the fight⁠— not after adventurers kept complaining about their skills being shown off without their consent.

Verral wished to he could’ve seen the fight, but unfortunately he hadn’t been a witness. He was a Guildmaster and as such he had his own responsibilities to deal with. He couldn’t try to spy on adventurers⁠— the only reason Lars had entered the arena with others present was due to the fact he had forced himself into it.

He had ignored what Lara had said, and she had to start protocols only to arrive as the fight was climaxing; Verral believed all of her words, and that’s why he had prepared himself. He was about to recruit an S Tier adventurer, one that… might be hard to convince.

He had given Lara the go ahead and now…

His door was being knocked.

Verral took a deep breath.

“Come in.”

Following those words, the double doors of the room were pushed open by Lara, the receptionist. A moment later a green haired woman walked into the room. Her features were refined and for a moment, Verral couldn’t help but be surprised that he never so much heard of such an individual.

Their gazes met and she took a seat, and after a moment Verrel spoke.

“I’d like to offer you the position of an S Tier adventurer.”

Contrary to expectations she nodded, but immediately spoke.

“I’d like to make a business proposal.”

“Business proposal?”

Verrel blinked in confusion as strands of mana became visible. Suddenly, a sense of nervousness hit him, cold wind began to blow.

What was happening?

The woman’s eyes narrowed and the mana and wind began to coalesce as something began to form. The atmosphere quickly grew heavy as his eyes slowly grew wide.

“Yes, a business proposal as…”

This feeling…

He had been an adventurer long ago, and he knew what he was feeling…

Death.

The wind exploded as the mystical form of a green dragon faced him and roared before his face⁠— the entirety of the office exploded with a gust of wind; papers and pens flew as he was pushed into his seat.

His surroundings billowed around him. As he realized who was before him⁠— there was no need for her to finish her statement. Deep down, Verrel just knew.

It was the Dragon of Wind.

Faral.