by Virlyce
“Have you been to the place he’s talking about?” I asked while Snow was distracted by other people’s questions. “By plane … does he mean another world?”
Cain glanced at Snow. The rabbitkin seemed intent on doing a question and answer session. “You could say that. Once you reach the legendary realm, you’ll understand. Just think of the Larkspur family as a family from another country where dragons are as common as scavenger crows. Compared to them, all the royal families might as well be country bumpkins.”
“You’re serious?” I’ve never heard about this. Not even in any books. Well, there were some vague creation myths and legends that might fit with this scenario, but those are myths and legends!
“You saw the dragon, didn’t you? After discovering their plane, I … fell into despair for a while. I finally reached the peak, but I realized I was just a big fish in a little pond. That’s why I hoped for you to be my disciple, so I could raise the next generation to be strong enough to protect our plane. I’m not the first one to discover their existence,” Cain whispered. His eyes narrowed. “The Godking did as well. He used Durandal and Vera as seals to prevent our plane from being found once he realized the disparity between our planes’ strengths. But that idiot squirrel girl undid one seal. These plant demons have been invading our lands ever since Durandal chose her as an owner. It was only a matter of time for a major family in the wind and thunder plane to figure out what was going on.”
“You said you didn’t get along well with them? So you can’t negotiate for us?” I wonder if this is how wild beasts feel like when we encroach on their territory and cut down their trees and homes. It’s not a pleasant feeling at all.
“I, uh, stole some dragon cores from their family,” Cain said, his face cramping. “And may or may not have killed one of them to do it.”
“So what will it be, ladies? Gentlemen?” Snow asked, his voice echoing through the whole city. Even the crackling of the flames and the roars of the dragon were drowned out. I shivered and met Snow’s gaze, stepping in front of Cain. “Now that you know the circumstances, will you swear loyalty on your souls to my family, or will you choose destruction?”
“What do you think, Ilya?” my father asked. “Become puppets for some plant people or death?”
Snow pointed at the acorn stew-hating lionkin. “You, make your choice.”
The lionkin stared at the ground. He clenched his fists. “I want to live!”
Snow nodded and pulled a seed out of his bag. “Very well,” he said, offering the seed to the lionkin. “Put this up your nose.”
The lionkin hesitated before grabbing the seed. He grimaced and took in a deep breath as he positioned the seed on his finger. Then he jammed it up his nose. A second later, his eyes widened and bestial screams rang out of his mouth. A green tendril snaked out of his ear and grew into a bud. Then it blossomed into a purple flower. A line of drool fell from the lionkin’s mouth as his eyes glazed over.
Snow smiled at the sight and pointed at the human standing next to the lionkin. “Make your choice.”
“I, I’d rather die than become food for a plant!” the man shouted and charged at Snow, brandishing his sword. The predator underneath Snow blurred, and the man was bisected by a single swipe.
“Foolish,” Snow said and shrugged. His gaze locked onto a woman who tried to run away. The dragon dashed over from its position in the sky and breathed a breath of flames on her before she could get very far. Even her bones had turned to ash.
Is this how I’m going to die? By having a plant shoved up my nose which will eat my face? That’s a depressing way to go. Maybe I should just let the predator kill me. It seems less painful.
“Breaking…”
Was that Lucia’s voice? How far away was she?
“Blade!”
The world turned red. It was as if blood had been smeared on everything: the sky, the ground, the people. The phenomenon lasted for a few seconds. When the world regained its color, the dragon in the sky became a headless dragon in the sky. Its head, which was falling towards the ground, blinked and shifted its gaze around while opening and closing its mouth. Its wings continued to flap as if its body hadn’t realized it was already dead. Then it froze, and the massive dragon plummeted towards the ground with a crash.
Lucia’s laugh echoed through the city, and the predators all stiffened before rolling onto their backs while playing dead. Then a flying squirrelkin girl … slammed into a nearby streetlamp. Maybe it wasn’t appropriate to say she flew. I’ll try again. Then a falling squirrelkin girl slammed into a nearby streetlamp.
***
I did it! I killed a dragon with a single sword strike! It’s unfortunate I crashed into a lamppost afterwards, but at least I made it to Ilya. She didn’t get eaten or burned. It looks like I didn’t take too long to break through the divine realm. Ilya Number Two is scared but safe. Her grandmother’s fine too. And Ilya’s dad looks unhurt as well. All the important people are accounted for. And there’s Snow!
“Snow, you bastard! It’s time for you to meet your maker!” I charged at the bunnykin and raised mini-DalDal into the air. I couldn’t use my qi since there were predators around, but there was no way Snow was going to escape my strike! My speed was an uncountable number of times faster than it was before. And I can see every minute movement of his.
The bunnykin screeched and raised his hands in front of his face. “I’m Reena! Reena!”
Oh. It’s a good thing my strength increased too, or I might not have been able to stop my sword in time. Phew.
“Snow’s over there, Lucia,” Ilya said and pointed at one of the predators. Underneath the predator, a pale figure was struggling to get free. Its legs and stomach were pinned by the predator’s weight. On top of the figure’s head, there was a pair of bunny ears. It’s Snow! “There’s something wrong with him though. I think he’s already dead.”
A flower was growing out of Snow’s ear. It was purple and a bit creepy, but it did make him look more feminine. It made me a little jealous. Bluish-green veins were decorating the surface of his skin, and his eyes were bloodshot but glazed over at the same time. “That’s really Snow?”
What happened to him? I walked over and crouched in front of him, but he didn’t seem to notice me. He was still trying to crawl out from underneath the predator. They weren’t even that heavy. Mrs. Wuffletush only weighed about three tons, and this predator’s even smaller than her. I know Snow poisoned me and all, but it feels a little wrong to kill him when he’s not paying attention to me. So I poked his head with the tip of my sword. “Hey.”
Snow stopped moving and looked up. His eyes widened before narrowing. He sighed as his arms’ movements ceased, and he rested his chin on the ground. “There was another legend in hiding? And you seem to be unaffected by the giant squirrels. How inconvenient. Mm, well, the family should understand if I fail.”
Snow’s voice didn’t sound like the one I heard way back when. Maybe he went through puberty? It doesn’t seem like he recognizes me. “Hey, Bouncykins. Are you there?” I lifted the predator off Snow’s body to check his feet. He tried to move, so I brought my sword down and cut off one of his arms. And he didn’t even scream. Am I disappointed? I’m not a sadist! There’s no way I’d be disappointed about someone not screaming when I cut them. But Bouncykins isn’t there. Snow’s not even wearing socks.
“What happened to you, Snow?”
“You knew me?” Snow asked and raised his head. Blood continued to pour out of his shoulder, and the veins on his body were shrinking back underneath the surface of his skin. “Interesting. I don’t have any memories about someone as strong as you.”
“Who are you?”
“Snow Larkspur.”
I looked at Ilya. “Did I get the wrong person? Is he another one of Snow’s cousins like Reena?”
“That’s definitely Snow Flopsy, Mrs. Fluffytail.” One of the henchmen who reported to Reena earlier stood up and bowed towards me. “He cre
ated the Flopsy Gang again after it was destroyed the first time. I was one of the new gang’s founding members. While adventuring, he thought he found a space with treasures, but when he came out, he had that flower on his head. Then he started changing.”
“And you still followed him?” Ilya asked.
The henchman shivered. “I didn’t want to die. He still treated us well as long as we did what he asked.”
Then … doesn’t that mean Snow’s already dead? I was cheated! How dare he die before I killed him!? “You bastard, give Snow back to me!” I grabbed the flower on Snow’s head and pulled at it. Snow screeched like a dying pig as a bloody root came out of his ear, attached to the flower. It was nearly three-feet-long and there were bits of brain-like matter attached to it. Ew.
Snow’s body shivered and convulsed. He thrashed around on the ground like a fish out of water, and his eyes were rolled upwards so that only their whites showed. Blood gushed out of his ear and shoulder, and I wasn’t sure if I should’ve cut his head off to put him out of his misery or not. Luckily, he stopped moving a few seconds later, and his eyes rolled back down. They were clear but a bit dull. “L-Lucia…?”
“You’re Snow Flopsy?”
A weak laugh escaped from Snow’s lips. “I won’t apologize for what I did. You deserved to be poisoned after treating me like you did during our travels.” His eyes dimmed even further as his eyelids drooped. “Just kill me. Please.”
…This isn’t the revenge I had in mind. Where’s the despair? Where’s the begging and pleading? He should be on his knees, praying for someone to save him. He should have a strong will to live! This, this is pathetic. I was poisoned by someone like this? “Where’s Bouncykins?”
Snow exhaled, and his chest and stomach deflated. “Dead.”
Dead? “Beg for your life, dammit!” Ah, why are my eyes hot? I’m not crying!
“I refuse…, dummy.”
“Snow Flopsy! You’re not allowed to refuse!”
“Idiot….” Snow’s eyes closed.
“You can’t die like this!”
The corners of Snow’s lips turned upwards. “Stu…pid.”
Ah.
Snow’s dead.
Am I crying? Who’s cutting onions? Fucking flower, what are you looking at? I stabbed the flower with the long, bloody root and tore it to shreds. It screamed, but it didn’t make me feel better. Wasn’t I supposed to feel better after getting revenge? Why don’t I feel better? The hatred’s gone…, but nothing replaced it. I was promised happiness; where’s my happiness? Snow, you bastard. You were the shittiest first beastkin friend a person could’ve made. And you didn’t even let me say goodbye. I hate you.
24
The world is great. After the Godking’s Brawl, I got my promised reward of land and a living space from the second prince right away. The emperor that was supposed to die of an illness in three months had been trampled to death by a predator, so the second prince ascended the throne. Algar tried to contest it, but since he turned out to be a pervert who stole even his second sister’s underwear, no one supported him. I only found out after the second prince was crowned that Ilya had stuffed all the miscellaneous items into one ring, which happened to be Algar’s. Talk about a stroke of bad luck, but that’s not my problem!
I was given the half of the empire that was closer to the demons and fae, but I don’t really mind even though Ilya says I’m being used as a buffer. The closer I am to the demons and fae, the closer I’ll be to Ilya and Ilya Number Two. Also, my portion of the empire is the more wooded one. The predators love it. After Snow died, I rounded up all the predators and tamed them with my fists and acorn stew. Thinking back, I should’ve left that dragon alive instead of killing it. I could be riding a dragon right now if I hadn’t, but I was too preoccupied with killing one in a single strike. At least that action made everyone see me in a new light.
To the common people, I am a savior! To the nobles, I am a savior! To the ruling class, I am a disaster! Everyone in the world knows Lucia Fluffytail scored first place in the Godking’s Brawl, robbed the man in the sky of his treasures, tamed a group of predators when others could only tremble, and slew a dragon in a single strike! Compared to the Godking who tamed a phoenix, isn’t taming a group of predators much more incredible? After all, the Godking just tamed a red baby bird. I tamed a savage beast with a history shrouded in blood. Before I took action, no one even knew what the predator’s fearsome appearance looked like since all who saw one died.
I’m still a bit peeved that there were no males amongst the batch though. I went for a short romp through the desolate mountains, but I couldn’t find any there either. According to Ilya, predators might not be native to our lands, whatever that means. All I know is my dream of having an army of predators probably won’t come true anytime soon. A shame, really. As for my other dream, Durandal and Puppers are working hard to cross over to the legendary realm. I can’t wait for the day Durandal crosses over. Speaking of the legendary realm, after I got used to controlling my strength, it doesn’t feel like a lot has changed. The only noticeable difference is the density of my bloody qi when I use it. I made Reena piss herself by circulating my qi. It was hilarious.
Ah, Reena. She’s living in my territory now—along with half the population of the human empire. I tried kicking them out, but the second prince said they came with the land, so I should keep them. So now I tax them cocoa beans and acorns. It’s really nice having someone manage your own lands for you. There’s no way I’d be willing to spend that much time and effort growing things on my own. And Reena takes care of Mrs. Wuffletush and company. It’s funny. I used to be a slave, now I’m practically an empress. Aren’t I an empress? I think I am. The three factions are treating me like I’m another faction of my own. Ilya’s reputation amongst the demons increased a lot because of that. Everyone knew she was my encyclopedia! Err, friend. So the demons treat her extra well in fear of provoking me. This is what it means to have face! The day has finally come!
And since I accomplished Durandal’s goal, he’s been getting depressed a lot less recently. He doesn’t sigh as much as before, and there’s always ice cream around to cheer him up when he’s feeling down. There’s lots of cookies and cuddles too, but he doesn’t ask for cuddles very often—at all—so I have to drag him to bed using force. Even though he makes an upset face when I interrupt his training, he enjoys our time together. I know I do!
Durandal had promised to make me into a legend, but thinking back on my journey to legendhood—is that a word?—didn’t I accomplish almost everything by myself? Durandal still tries to claim credit for my achievements because, according to him, he set up my foundation. I can’t help but roll my eyes at that. All he did was torture me into compliance while teaching me a few techniques. But I guess I wouldn’t have gotten as far as I did without his initial guidance. He also feels like I’m not a real legendary warrior because I used beast cores to advance. And I think there are some merits to his words. There were a few more people who came by with plants growing out of their heads, and none of them have referred to me as a warrior. They call me a fierce body practitioner instead. It’s hard to understand what they’re saying about different worlds and whatnot, and the plants growing out of their heads remind me of Snow, so I kick those people out of my territory and into the demons’. Ilya says Rogath likes studying them, so it’s totally okay.
So now, here I am, at the top of the world. I have my own mansion, my own workers, my own hot chocolate and acorn stew factories. I have two good friends: Ilya and Ilya Number Two. Wealth is meaningless to me now; the days of saving and scrimping for a month just to buy a rusty old firestarter are over. I still have that little metal bird. I don’t need to start any fires, but I like having it around. I don’t have to work as a punching bag or a luggage porter in an army anymore. I don’t have to go to sleep hungry and cold. There’s no more crying myself to sleep and struggling to wake up. And most importantly, I have Durandal! And he’s the
only thing, err, person I need in this world!
“Durandal!”
“Yes, Lucia?”
“Head pats!”
Ah, that feels good.
Afterword
Thanks to Sharda Hartly for supporting me on Patreon!
Feel free to check out my website at www.virlyce.com.
A sequel is planned for the future.
If you enjoyed the story, please leave a review. It helps me out a lot. Thank you for reading!
Other books by me available on Amazon:
The Blue Mage Raised by Dragons
