Dragonlord

Ep 171. I’m Always Right Here. (4)

Ep 171. I'm Always Right Here. (4)

The first thing Serenis noticed was the clumps of mana that were closing in.

The second thing she noticed were the sounds of approaching footsteps, crunching through the forest’s snow and leaves.

And finally when she turned her head, she could see Karas returning to camp, his student sound asleep in his arms.

“I see you’ve found her, Karas.”

“Ah, yes – quite easily at that. We had a small chat, and she fell asleep not long after.”

“I see. Is everything alright then?”

“…Actually, about that-“

Karas’ tongue was on the verge of explaining what had happened outside of the dragonlord’s awareness: from the moment the world had frozen at the Archive, to the small chat he’d just had with Rien.

But the professor soon stopped himself, the Historian’s voice lingering in his head.

- ‘It’s best others don’t listen to this.’

The Historian had gone out of his way to prevent Serenis from listening to them – of the temporary change he’d incurred in Light that had allowed his short reunion with Rien.

‘Why?’

It wasn’t that Karas particularly trusted the deity, of course – and definitely not more than Serenis, who he’d now known for quite some time.

But even so, the academic felt a pang of reluctance in telling her everything that had went on – not jut for the Historian’s sake, but for his own and Light’s as well.

And if he were to leave the past behind, then it made sense to leave it in the dark.

“…Karas?”

When Serenis probed him once more, Karas seemed to abruptly awaken from his train of thought. He hurriedly turned to face Serenis afterwards, rushing to answer the dragonlord.

“Ah, my apologies. This may seem a bit offtopic, but…Serenis, do you perhaps know of what the Historian’s divinity is?”

“I do not. In fact, I was hoping you would.”

“Is that so…”

Karas’ voice trailed off as a small frown crossed his expression. From the way Zenon had banished them from the Archive, as well as what he’d done to Light, the answer seemed relatively simple.

Alas, it was only an assumption – and one he was rather reluctant to share.

“Judging by your voice, I’m assuming you aren’t aware, either.”

Karas looked to Serenis once more.

As torn as he was on what to say, the need for an immediate answer only allowed the simplest response from him.

“…No. I’m afraid not.”

✧   ✧   ✧

Truth be told, Serenis thought their troubles were, for the time being, over.

Felicir was no more, with Karas alive and well. They’d at least confirmed the existence of the Historian and their whereabouts, and several other divinities had been dealt with in the process. All that remained was to bring Raizel home, where Karas would be able to transfer the youngling’s essence back to the body it belongs in.

And the matter was, in fact, simple. As soon as they arrived at Ilias’ nest in the morning, Karas had rushed into the bedroom where Raizel was: the entire room had turned into a caring home of sorts, with Ilias and Eline watching over the unconscious steel dragon.

Even as Serenis, Light and Karas poured into the room, no one bothered to share pleasantries or the like; instead, Karas briskly approached the bedside with the spider in tow, delivering Raizel from the critter Felicir had trapped her in.

And not long after, the body that had remained dormant for so long immediately stirred awake, bringing a surge of relief to everyone involved.

The relief was especially evident for Eline, who collapsed onto the floor once she saw Raizel stir awake.

“Oh, thank goodness…I thought I was doing something wrong the entire time…”

Meanwhile, Theolus hopped off from the herbalist’s shoulder, squirming over to the bedside where Raizel was.

The little black dragon stared at the awoken youngling for a time, before waving a short hello.

“Gwood mwoning!”

“…Ugh. Yeah…good morning, I guess.”

Raizel then began to examine her body, seemingly testing how much of it still functioned as she remembered.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t help but grimace at her lacking state.

‘Tch. Can’t even feel my leg right now…’

And as soon as the youngling tried to get off the bed and onto her feet, Eline jumped back up, rushing to press Raizel back down onto the bed.

“Wait, you can’t get up!”

“What? Why the hell not? I’m fine, I just need to move around a bit.”

“You are NOT fine!”

A brief silence ensued following the herbalist’s sudden shout.

However, the fact that she’d just screamed at a dragon’s face didn’t seem to bother Eline one bit. She instead continued to press Raizel further down unto the bed, accompanied by plenty of reasons as to why the youngling should stay there.

“Raizel, right? Listen here. You might feel okay right now, but that’s because I applied a ton of medicine on your left leg. If you get up and walk around, your leg’s going to collapse.”

“Collapse? The hell do you mean, collapse?”

“I mean literally collapse. Like a sandcastle.”

“…”

“It might look okay, but your leg’s barely holding itself together. You absolutely cannot get up.”

“…As if an arm wasn’t enough.”

Sighing, the youngling quit resisting the herbalist’s pressing, letting herself sink back to the bed.

Eline likewise let out an exasperated sigh, before turning to everyone else in the room.

“…Sorry. Could you all come back later? Now that she’s awake, I need to look over some things again.”

After a few nods, everyone began to exit the room in silence. Ilias quickly brought Theolus into her arms, bringing the hatchling outside with her.

But even as everyone exited the room, Serenis came to a brief stop before closing the door, turning back to face the herbalist.

“…Eline.”

“Yes?”

“Will Raizel…”

Be alright, is what she’d meant to ask.

But truthfully, the answer was obvious: even if her leg were to somehow return to normal, the missing left arm never would. Unlike the absence of wings or horns, the absence of an arm was far more visible, and far more detrimental.

Hence, the question itself was pointless.

But as if knowing what the dragonlord had wanted to say, Eline returned a small grin, answering without hearing the question in full.

“I’ll try my best.”

“Pft, you’re all worried about nothing. I’ll be fine by tomorrow.”

As even Raizel chimed in to reassure her, Serenis’ gaze fell to the floor.

She soon turned back around to leave, closing the door after a short, quiet answer.

“…Thank you.”

As the door soundlessly closed behind her, Serenis let out another exasperated sigh. She knew that Raizel’s current state was far better than what would have been without help, but she nonetheless felt responsible for their misfortunes.

However, as if to deny even a moment of respite, the nest’s entrance soon creaked open to reveal Bruton and Aether.

“Mom! Dad! You’re back!”

Despite their daughter’s greeting, the two elders only returned a curt nod towards their daughter. They both scanned the interior, making their way straight towards the dragonlord as soon as she was spotted.

“…Lord Serenis. I see you’ve returned.”

“For the time being, yes. I was wondering where you two were. Is something the matter?”

“…Well…”

As Bruton hesitated to deliver the news, his partner shook her head. She approached a step closer to intervene, gesturing towards outside.

“Serenis…the other elders wish to speak with you. We came as soon as we heard that you were back.”

“…The elders? What of?”

“It’s probably best you hear it for yourself.”

While Serenis remained quizzical, she had little reason to doubt the two dragons before her. Both Bruton and Aether seemed to be in a hurry, and she had no mind to delay an urgent matter concerning her kin.

Serenis briefly spared a glance towards the others to exchange curt nods with one another. Karas and Light knew better than to involve themselves in the dragonkins’ affairs without being invited to – and Ilias knew she had to remain behind, if only to tend to their home.

And if the past few days were anything to go by, her parents would deny her from accompanying them anyways.