The next day, Inglis and the others were approaching the crater where the Dragon God Vufailbane was on their Flygears. They were going to cut off the tail of the Dragon God, a daily routine for them. However…
「Huh? That’s weird?」
Rafinha, who was holding the control of the Star Princess unit, craned her neck in confusion.
「You’re right…Something is different than usual.」
「The Phantom Dragons, right? They are nowhere to be seen.」
Leone and Pullum, who were riding with Rafinha, seemed to be wondering the same thing.
「…………!」
「What’s the matter, Mr. Lahti? Your face looks pale?」
Liselotte, who was riding with Inglis, noticed Lahti’s condition.
「I-, I don’t know, but… I-I’m shaking! Th-there’s definitely something not good, s-something grave! L-let’s go back!!」「Eeh?! Wh-, what do you mean?」
「Glis?! Do you know something?!」
「Fufufufu……Yeah, I know, I know it too well. Fufufu…」
When asked by Rafinha, Inglis showed a smile that seemed like she was the happiest person in the world.
「Uwah, that’s a sign a disaster is coming!」
「It’s no disaster. It’s something I have been looking forward to! I think it’s finally the time the costume you made for me is going to see some use!」
Up until now, she had only been wearing it for the enjoyment of Rafinha, her grandchild-like figure, who had made the costume by hand and loved seeing it being worn by Inglis.
Well, Inglis was enjoying it just as much, though.
「……! Glis, that means…」
「Yup. Now, for sure, the Dragon God has awakened! Fufufu!」
She had already enjoyed its meat, but she had yet to hear the state of this world from its mouth, and, most importantly, she hadn’t clashed hands with it. She had been waiting a long time for this, and now she was finally given the chance.
「「「「……!」」」」
Everyone’s faces tensed up at Inglis’ statement.
「For the time being, I’ll go and talk to it first. You guys can watch from a distance.」
「W-, will it be okay?」
「Yes. Just leave it to me. Ah, that’s right. There is one thing I need you to do for me!」
「…? What is it?」
「Say it, we will help with anything.」
「Thank you. You see, the thing I’ve been working on…can you put it here……and do this?」
「Ah, the thing you’ve been hitting with your bare hands!」
「So we can just bring it and do as you said?」
「Yeah. I leave it to you. Then, I’ll be going!」
Inglis told Rafinha and the others what to do before she leaped out of her Flygear with a smile on her face. And after a few somersaults, she landed on the ground with a thud.
She was well in the middle of the Phantom Dragons’ zone, where they would normally attack her all at once. Although Inglis was wearing the costume of the Shrine Maiden, she hadn’t manipulated her costume to be infused with mana. She was wearing the usual ultra-gravity sorcery for training purposes.
If the Dragon God was unconscious, she should have been attacked by the Phantom Dragons that was born out of its instincts. The fact that she wasn’t attacked meant that the Dragon God wasn’t on its instincts, but rather restraining the Phantom Dragons willfully.
As she made her way to the tail of Vufailbane, Inglis felt a tremendous presence, not only in her mind, but physically as well.
「……I knew it.」
Her own senses told her that it was different, the presence of the Dragon God was much closer. She could feel it on her skin. That was one of the few things that was different from the other days.
That being the case, she should be able to communicate even without the aid of the Shrine Maiden costume. As Inglis reached to where the tail of the Dragon God was, she called it out aloud.
「O, Dragon God Vufailbane, can you hear my voice? Can I have a few words with you?」
At Inglis’ call, there were words echoed directly in Inglis’ head.
『Old King. How is this possible? You have the power of those abominable gods in your body, and yet, you emit the aura of my kin?』
『Ooh!! I expected no less of you. You recognized me?』
When the Dragon God called out to her, Inglis responded in the same manner. The current Inglis was capable of doing so. If she had been able to do this from the start, she might have been able to wake up the sleeping Dragon God peacefully, but she only realized it now, so there was no use crying over spilled milk. This was probably how dragons talk and communicate with each other.
『How could I forget? That power, that wavelength of divine aura……I thought we would never see each other again in your lifetime, I am glad I was wrong……Although, it is a shame for you, Old King. It appears that your seal was incomplete, for I was resurrected, while you, the short lived son of man, was still alive.』
『I see. So you sensed my Ether and recognized me for who I am…』
Inglis nodded deeply. It could recognize Ether and even identify the individual from it! As expected of Vufailbane. That was a feat no one else in this world could do, save for maybe the leader of the Ironblood Chain Brigade, Black Mask. In short, Inglis could expect the dragon to be just as tough.
But, there was something unfortunate. Since it could only identify individuals by their Ether, Vufailbane recognized Inglis as King Inglis from her previous life. It seemed like it thought the seal was incomplete and he was freed earlier than expected. In other words, it talked as though it just woke up right after King Inglis sealed it.
『However, you’ve got one thing wrong. The seal seems to have worked its use pretty well, you know? At the time, Goddess Alistair directly lent me her power, and this is the first time you’ve awaken ever since, no?』
It had been fifteen years since Inglis Eux was born after King Inglis lived out his natural lifespan. During that time, Vufailbane had been asleep in his seal. If it had slept that deeply, perhaps it was no wonder it didn’t notice its tail had been cut off time and again.
『……What are you saying? The fact that the short-lived you is here is the best proof!』
『For that, you will have to get out of the ground and see me for yourself. There is no reason for you to keep yourself underground, is there? Unless it is too comfortable, then I won’t dare to bother you!』
『Don’t be stupid. How could I sit on my tail when I am finally facing you……I, who have destroyed even Gods, was reduced to the depths of the earth by no more than a son of man! In all of my long life, I have never experienced a greater shame……I will destroy you with my own hand and mend my shame with your blood!』
The ground under Inglis’ feet rumbled loudly. Cracks began to appear in a circular pattern around the protruded tail of the Dragon God! The ground then completely collapsed as something huge from deep within rose. The entire body of the Dragon God crawled out of the ground.
Inglis, who was standing near the tail, had her footholds collapsed, and her body carried high up by the back of the Dragon God. It was a majestic and impeccable beauty, with the size that could rival a small castle.
The air shivered and the power of its roar alone generated a gust of wind strong enough to be mistaken as a tornado. It was the perfect and majestic figure of the Dragon God Vufailbane that remained vividly in the memory of King Inglis. Inglis remembered how she used to tremble at the sight of this figure.
Just how many sacrifices had King Inglis made to rein in such a powerful being! He was too old to solve this problem by himself. However, for the sake of his country and his kingdom, he couldn’t leave this Dragon God on its own.
Much, much more promising young lives would have been lost if he hadn’t ordered a select few to fight. If only he hadn’t grown so old. Such were the regrets that lingered in his heart. Those were the thoughts that made King Inglis tremble at the time, but…
「Fufufu… Fufufufu……Here it comes!!」
The trembling that Inglis Eux was experiencing now was no more than an excitement for a fight!