Foreigner Volume 7, Chapter 111

Volume 7 Chapter 111, Magic Sword ~ 19

　After that, Minerva cried herself to sleep.

　Although she had a good night's sleep last night after her wild adventure with Satoru, he still felt strange that she could sleep, but he carried her in a princess carry to one of the spare rooms in the hollow and laid her down. Her face is streaked with tears, but that does not diminish her beauty. Satoru felt restless thinking that he had impregnated such a beautiful woman.

　The atmosphere was a little heavy, and the members, except for Minerva, were sitting around the dinner that Rico had prepared, looking at each other with difficulty in the same room.

「Well. I'm happy for you, but at the same time, I'm in trouble.」

「Ah ......」

　Satoru has been in the air since the other day. He just can't get a sense of reality.

　Satoru remembers a friend's husband was blabbering about how her husband couldn't really feel it when he found out his wife was pregnant. and Satoru thought to himself, "I get it now".

　Leia gave a sharp look at Satoru, who only replied vaguely.

「Do you understand, my Lord? As long as Minerva cannot become the Flying Dragon form, it will take longer for us to move, and our combat power will inevitably be reduced. Although she can use magic to some extent, it's quite biased..」

「Besides, we can't force her to do too much.」

　Leia nodded her head strongly in agreement with Rico's addition as if to say, Of course.

「True. Minerva has never pushed herself too hard, except for my Lord's outburst the other day.」

　The number of times Minerva has used magic in the attack on the 『Labyrinth of No Return』 can be counted on one hand. The only time Minerva has overtly overreacted was in the case of an outburst.

「Still, you know...」

　Rico was about to interject again, but Leia looked at her and stopped her from speaking any further. Satoru knows that even if Rico doesn't tell him.

「Rico's fears are not wrong. We are about to enter into a conflict with the Academy of the Wise. Besides, there is another problem.」

「What's the problem?」

「I'm talking about the child that will be born ― a 『Dragon half-breed』. I don't know if they can be raised normally, or what to do with them. Even the unborn child state, that they are affecting the sorcery that is cast on the parent's body, you know?」

「Ah ......」

　If it is a normal human baby, Rico knows a little bit about it because when she was a member of the Thieves Guild, she once took care of a child born from a woman who was a member of the guild. The same is true for Liz, as the elves believe that a child born in a village should be taken care of by all the members of the village, and she has taken care of more than a few babies.

　However, they have never heard of a tiny fetus influencing the sorcery cast on its parents' bodies. In this aspect, too, the 『Dragon People』 of legend are not mere babies. They don't even know if they can be born and raised in the same way as normal human babies.

「Umm, may I ask you something?」

「Hmm?」

　Leia nods to Liz and allowed her to speak. Since Satoru, the mainstay of the group was out of his depth, it was up to Leia, who was the most senior slave in the group, to manage the group.

「About Minerva-san, is it all right for her to continue traveling together with us?」

「That is also a problem. I don't know if Minerva is aware of that or not.」

　It is clearly a problem, but Leia is probably being attentive in her own way by not saying so. Even though Rico, Liz, and Solor don't think it's a problem, it's a complete problem if it's just a matter of fact.

　In the early days of their encounter, Leia would have thought that Minerva would be the sole mother of the child. She also thought that Minerva would simply conceive a child and then leave, but now that they are so close, she doesn't think Minerva would want to leave, much less allow Satoru to do so.

　Glancing at the still stunned Lord of the magical slaves, Leia sighed this in a lamentable manner.

「For now, I guess we'll be traveling together for the time being. We can't leave Minerva in this state, no matter what the cost.」

　Rico nodded. She, too, is concerned about Minerva. If Leia had declared that Minerva would be left in this place, Rico was going to be mad at her. But Leia did not say that. Rico was relieved.

　The room fell silent. No one knew how to solve the problems that were about to arise. There was no doubt that a bad move would have a negative impact on Minerva, the mother. How should we treat her, who had been longing to conceive a child with Satoru and had finally fulfilled her wish?

　It was Liz who opened her mouth.

「We have to ask someone who knows how to give birth and raise children, don't we?」

　Leia's willowy eyebrows rise. What is she talking about when we are in trouble because no one knows?

「Huh? What are you saying, Liz? It's Dragon people, you know? They are legendary beings from the earliest days of the Ancient Magical Kingdom. There is no one who knows―」

　After saying that much, Leia also came to an idea. Right, a being who knows almost everything about this world.

「Feather Dragon」

　Solor muttered a few words, and Liz nodded her head as if to say, That's right.

「If he is a being who knows everything that has happened in this world, wouldn't he also know how to give birth and raise dragon people? Of course, going to Nevis, the sacred mountain where the king of dragons resides, is also very dangerous.」

　Feather dragons are also said to know everything that has happened in this world. The reason why it is omniscient is not clear, but it is said that it probably has a close connection with God, Mother Earth.

　It is said that those who successfully meet the royal dragon can have one question answered per person. It is said that it cannot tell you about a few things, such as the mystery of the destruction of the Ancient Magical Kingdom, because it is forbidden, but it can answer almost anything else. Certainly, a Feather Dragon would know how to give birth and how to raise Dragon People.

　However, as Liz pointed out, and as Leia told Satoru before, Nevis is a steep mountain where Feather Dragon lives, and many of the monsters that live there are also vicious. The success rate of meeting the king dragon is said to be 20%, even if you gather the best of the best to take on the challenge.

　After careful consideration, Leia finally gave up and took a deep breath.

「...... Is that the only way?」

　Leia thought that perhaps there would be books on Dragon People in the Forbidden Books of the Academy of the Wise, but there was no way to find out what they were about. Not only are they hostile to each other, but it is also quite difficult to find what you are looking for in the vast amount of Forbidden Books. And it is not always possible to find the information that one wants to know for sure in those books. After all, they existed at the very beginning of the age of the Ancient Magical Kingdoms. It is meaningless just to find a book that says that there was such a thing.

「Sorry, everyone.」

　Satoru suddenly bowed his head to all of them. Even though it had been Minerva's long-cherished wish, it was Satoru who had accomplished it. Amid the battle against the Academy of the Wise, Satoru felt an irrepressible sense of remorse that he had done something to drag them down.

　But everyone laughed off Satoru's apology.

「What is there to say now? We all know that Minerva has always wanted a child with my Lord.」

「That's right, Satoru. Sure, it may be Minerva and Satoru's child, but if you ask me, it will be the child of everyone here and Satoru.」

　Leia tells him with a sly smile, and Rico tells him with a sincere look on her face ― the two, who have known Minerva since before she became a human, simply dismiss Satoru's apology as nothing. Satoru, who thinks that the timing is still bad, bows his head further.

「......I'm sorry 」

「Don't apologize, Onii-san.」

　Liz called out to him. This girl has only been Satoru's magical slave for a short time, but she is well aware of the strength of the bond between all of them. What is needed is not an apology ― the girl had said as much when they decided to accept and get under each other's skin.

　Acknowledging that Liz was right, Satoru raised his head once and then lowered it again. However, the words are different.

「......I see. Then, again. Thank you. I know it's a lot of work, but I hope you all can help me.」

　Everyone but the expressionless Solor nodded with a smile.

　Satoru is fine with that. It's not like he did anything he shouldn't have done. No one wants to be apologized to.

「May I give one more suggestion, too?」

　Unusually, Solor raised her hand.

「What's the matter?」

「It is about our future move. You mentioned that the inability of Minerva-sama to become a flying dragon will reduce the speed of our movement, right?」

　Leia, who made that statement, looked at Satoru's face and then nodded. It is an indisputable fact that Minerva, in her flying dragon form, is the reason for the speed they have been able to gain on their journey so far. Solor continued.

「Although not as fast as Minerva-sama, flying in the sky was not uncommon in the time of my creation. There was a type of Flying Boat called a 『Airship』 that could accommodate multiple passengers. There was even a Flying Town called Rex, an aerial city.」

　Hooo, Satoru exclaims. When he talked about internal combustion engines, cars were the main focus, but of course, there are airplanes. Solor's point is that something similar has existed in the past.

「When you say Rex, you mean that one. The Fallen City」

　Leia mentioned the name of a certain place that is common knowledge in this world. Satoru vaguely recalled that there was such a place on the world map that he has been taking care of since the beginning of his journey.

「I knew it, has it fallen in the present day? Anyway, even without the power of the tower, something that flies for movement should be able to be made by grant if you think of Master's soul. Just ......」

「Just, what is it?」

「You need the basic tools to fly. And a crystal pillar of amethyst that could be a catalyst, a magic stone with a soul value of 150 or more, and at least three opals, preferably four. And silver thread.」

　The amethyst and magic stones were also found in Ingolshenes' treasure chests, so that's not a problem. I don't know about the opal and silver thread, but we don't necessarily need to make the same thing that was there in the past, Satoru thought.

「How about a flying carpet?」

　Solor shook her head seriously to Satoru, who muttered jokingly.

「I thought it would be difficult to maintain balance with a cloth. It must have a basic catalyst, amethyst, with variable buoyancy, which is the core of the system.」

「Hmm ...... hmm?」

　She still can't take a joke - or so I thought ― but Satoru examined what Solor said very carefully.

「Hold on, ...... For example, am I correct in saying that if you want to float, you can float, and if you want to come down, you can come down?」

「Correct. The art of 【Levitation】 is the main source of this art. Therefore, it is not so fast in both ascending and descending.」

　Satoru's mind recalls the time when he escaped from the labyrinth of the World Tree, which he had just finished conquering. At that time, Solor's control was advancing at about 50 cm per second. Roughly the speed of a typical elevator. She said that it would not go very fast in both ascending or descending, but if it went too fast, gravity would take a toll on it. In extreme cases, if you can install it, something like a balloon is possible.

　The ancient sorcerers must have arrived at that art by trial and error ― but there is still a mystery.

「What about the opal?」

「For propulsion. Caged with the art of the wind and connected to the magic stone by silver threads for control.」

　Satoru rubs his chin and thinks. The key to the "Caged with the art of the wind" is that the wind will blow out from the stone. The magic stone is the control system and the wire connecting them is the silver thread. The name "Airship," because it was described as a "Flying Boat", was it boat-shaped?

「...... I get it somehow. Just seems like balance would be important.」

　If the axis line is off, you don't know where it will fly up, down, left, or right. If you want to make a square box floating in the air fly straight, you have to align the axis line exactly. This is why paper airplanes do not fly straight. Paper airplanes fly straight only when the axes are properly aligned with the lift force and other factors.

「As expected of Master. In the past, we commissioned dwarves to build our airships. Even the slightest deviation would make it impossible to fly straight.」

「Right.」

　It seems that even in this world, dwarves are masters of craftsmanship. Satoru saw several of them in the city of Ares, with a stocky-looking man, around 4 feet (120 cm) tall, with a luxurious beard, one of the leading races in this world.

「...... I kind of get it.」

　Having heard about Satoru's world together with Solor, Leia, who seems to have always been a font of knowledge, seems to have understood it, even if only somewhat. However.

「I-I have no idea.」

「I'm also a bit ......」

　The uneducated Rico and Liz are twisting their necks. Well, it can't be helped.

「Simply put, it's like an arrow. You'd have to have good balance to make the arrow fly straight.」

　Both of them said "ahh" in unison at this Satoru's statement. Rico can use a bow and arrow to a certain extent, and Liz also grew up in an elf village and understands what a bow and arrow are all about. An unbalanced arrow will not fly straight. You need to choose arrows that match the size of your bow. A one-foot arrow cannot fly with a bow as strong as Satoru's, and a five-foot arrow cannot fly with a bow as short as Liz's.

　This explanation seemed to make a lot of sense to both of them.

「First of all, the bare necessities are in the baggage room. I found a lot of it in the Ingolsheness's treasure.」

　Satoru does not know what kind of opal or whatever it is. However, he did know that propulsion could be secured. For example, it would not be impossible to build a car and drive it, but it would be impossible to drive it on the roads of this world, which are not always well maintained. It would be better to fly in the sky. It would be an advantage to be able to ignore border checkpoints and the like.

　Meanwhile, Satoru had come up with the idea of drawing plans for an airplane. Of course, there is no way to draw an accurate drawing of an airplane, but it does not necessarily have to be the same shape as the airships that existed in the past. If the airship had defects, it would be possible to reduce them a little with his knowledge. The most important thing is the wings.

「The problem is the main body. If you're still familiar with manufacturing, it's still Ars Vetter's?」

「Ars Vetter is a dwarven country. It is based on a mountain range called the Dragon's Claw. From here, it's southeast, maybe three countries over.」

「Houh ......」

　Leia's mutterings are supplemented by Rico. The sacred mountain of Nevis is located below the center of this world, or in human terms, at the navel. The location of Yarth is unknown, but it is highly likely to be in the southeast, and their current location is in the west-northwest of this world.

　If he compares it to the Eurasian continent, the current location is in Central Europe. Ars Vetter is in Eastern Europe, and Nevis is in the Himalayas.

　They can take a route from Ars Vetter to the sacred mountain Nevis.

「It's settled then. If it is possible to build a Flying Boat via Ars Vetter, we will build it and go to the sacred mountain of Nevis. Well, before that, we'll stop by Ares and smash that Chalk Tower.」

　Liz interrupted Satoru, who smiled ferociously.

「...... By the way, why are you in such a situation with the Academy of the Wise?」

　If Satoru wants to destroy the Academy of the Wise, Liz has no objection. The other slaves seem to agree with him. 

　However, the girl does not know why it happened.

　Satoru looked at Leia and Rico with fixed eyes. The two of them looked somewhat bummed out.

「You didn't tell her?」

　Liz said that she heard Satoru's story from these two people. So he assumed she knew, but Rico, representing them, nodded reluctantly at Satoru's question.

「As you can imagine, it was hard for me to say.」

　Well, that's right ― Satoru thinks. This should be said at your own risk. Satoru was angry, made up his mind, and turned to face Liz squarely.

「One of the things is that they ignore the warning not to mess with me......Also, those guys who killed Reine-san had something to do with the Academy of the Wise.」

「!!」

　Liz's complexion changed to such an extent that it was recognizable. Leia almost raised her voice for a moment but restrained herself. What is it? Satoru looked at her, but she just gave a small shake of her head from side to side. He wondered if she had something in mind, but he has no intention of disputing Leia's thoughts at this point. He trusts her that much.

「I had to take direct revenge in the form of my outburst. I don't want to forgive them.」(?)

　At Satoru's harsh muttering, Liz's closed her eyes and pulled her chin back. The girl must also be thinking. What to do with the symbol of human society's wisdom that led to her mother's death. Eventually, Liz's eyes widened, and the expression on her face was cold enough to creep Satoru out.

「...... understood. Thank you very much.」

　As usual, Solor was unresponsive, but Rico and Leia exchanged glances for a moment and gave each other a small nod. Let's watch this half-elf girl carefully, they thought.

　Liz is wise enough to know that there is no such thing, but she might do something out of a desire for vengeance. The two of them, who are the senior members of Satoru's magical slaves, should watch over the girl carefully.

　Satoru took a deep breath and declared,

「Tomorrow, we will leave. We will make a grave for Reine-san, and for now, our destination is Ares. Our goal is to destroy the Chalk Tower, the symbol of the Academy of the Wise.」

　At Satoru's declaration, each of the magical slaves nodded deeply with a serious expression on their faces.

Previous Chapter --- TOC --- Next Chapter