Chapter 4.2 (1/2)

The Dragon Will Soon Go Out and Leave the Nest Part 2

The morning of the following day had gray clouds totally blocking the sky. Though it didn’t rain, the air was damp with moisture.

I told Yggdrasil [I’m leaving] and decided to look for materials for my bed in the afternoon, but first I decided to leave for the hometown of the Harpy.

From the World Tree, the hometown of the Harpy was located in the mountainous region to the south. The fountain to the north of the World Tree was home to the Lamia.

I had originally intended to bring food to the Lamia every morning, but the snake-like Lamia had explained her digestion method worked differently. She said that she didn’t have to eat anything for two weeks after consuming that amount.

[Then I’ll come again in one week] I promised, she had a surprised expression and deeply lowered her head.

Well, after I fulfilled the promise I made with the Lamia, I decided to make good on another promise. I arrived at the hometown of the Harpy.

The Harpy was a race which lived in a group, with villages forming a small community.

When I visited the village without any announcement, the Harpies screamed in panic.

I was careless. Harpies were the previous dragon’s favorite food.

It was no surprise that the Harpies were either running away and trying to escape, or trembling in fear without moving. I lowered my head and explained I only came to meet a friend.

I asked the Harpy closest to me [Where is the Harpy girl that can’t sing?] and while trembling GakuGaku she pointed in a direction away from the village.

I thanked her and flew in the direction her trembling finger had pointed.

I heard sighs of relief from the Harpies behind me.

About four kilometers away from the Harpy’s hometown I found a little hut made of cloth and wood.

It was in the shadow of the mountain, the surrounding area had become a small wetlands. This was a place where a Harpy would willingly live, nothing was here except the hut.

I felt signs of life inside the hut and decided to look for an entrance.

A joint of cloth seemed to be the entrance, but there was no way to knock on the ‘door’ and there wasn’t a doorbell either.

I decided to call out to the Harpy girl.

“Miin min min min.”

(TL: Harpy, are you there? I’m the dragon.)

As soon as I spoke out I heard fluttering noises from the house. After some rattling, rolling, and what sounded like things falling onto the floor, my friend timidly showed her face from the behind the cloth.

Water was dripping from her azure blue hair. It seemed like she was in the middle of wiping her body.

After she found me she opened her mouth PakuPaku like usual.

She couldn’t say anything, however, she looked surprised.

When I put my finger on her head like before, I exchanged words with her.

“(Didn’t I promise you? That I would take you over the clouds? Do you want to go the sky and play now?)”

After opening her eyes wide for a moment, her face broke into a smile like a small apple.

“(Yes~)”

She answered cheerfully.

She asked me if I could wait for ten minutes because she had to get ready. I answered of course and like a turtle she withdrew her head into the hut.

I heard noises from the hut again.

Ten minutes pa.s.sed…and another ten…and after ten more the Harpy came out of the hut. She apologized for taking so long, but there wasn’t any reason to be sorry since I came unannounced. As I apologized she frantically moved her head, hands, and wings side to side.

The Harpy girl was wearing a thin orange tunic.

It was a light shade which suited her azure hair well. Although they looked old they were clean, and you could see that they have been handled carefully.

“It suits you very well” I told her. The harpy girl, appearing bashful, answered joyfully that she had gotten it from her mother.

Though, those clothes were a little too thin to be flying over the clouds with…but seeing her smile, I thought it would be bad to pour cold words of reality onto her.

Besides, the cold didn’t matter. The cold air and wind in the sky could be prevented with my inexhaustible magical power.

“(So, should we go? Hold on tight.)”

When I confirmed that the harpy was clinging tightly to the back of my neck, I flew towards the cloudy sky.

The earth faded away in an instant and the clouds steadily approached.

“(Amazing! Amazing! Fast! High!)”

The thoughts of the voiceless harpy were transmitted.

There was no s.p.a.ce for lies between us, who were talking through ideas and thoughts. The Harpy who was riding on my back was enjoying this from the bottom of her heart.

The Harpy race had feathers that shone a beautifully pure white. The wings, however, were too small for their body and couldn’t keep them in the sky for long.

Moreover, they didn’t have techniques which combined magical power and flying like me.

It would be the first time she has looked down at the earth from such a height.

As I flew higher, I punched through the wall of gray clouds that extended across the sky without hesitating.

The Harpy clung to my neck with even more force.

As we exited the thick layer of clouds, the sky changed radically and was clear as far as the eye could see.

We couldn’t see the ground, only a vast sea of clouds below us. The sun shone brightly above us, even the gray clouds were dyed pure white.

“(It’s so sunny above the clouds…)”

The Harpy became agape just from the sight.

I wanted to play a little prank, so I jumped into the sea of clouds again.

From the Harpy “(Kiyaaa)” was transmitted. And after leaving the clouds again we began to laugh a lot.

Though the harpy wasn’t able to make a sound I laughed for her too.

What a pleasant thing it was to play with a friend, and to laugh with a friend

After that, we enjoyed swimming through the sky for about 2-3 hours.

As the sun began to set, we returned to the Harpy’s home. She was still clinging to my neck and excitedly repeating “(It was fun!)”. Hearing this from her docile heart, it seems it was a good idea to have invited her.

As I was bidding her farewell, she invited me for lunch. It seems to be a soup made of mountain herbs.

She, who couldn’t lure prey with her song, seemed to entirely live on nuts and edible wild plants.

Though I was interested in the offer for lunch since I hadn’t eaten anything, I refused her offer firmly.

Even a full pot of soup for her wouldn’t even amount to a spoonful for me.

I couldn’t take her precious food.