Vol 1 Chapter 1 (1/2)
I couldn't help but feel dizzy from the massive dissonance between the scenery before me and the world I used to live in
Clear blue skies A navy-blue sea A white beach Coconut trees in the breeze This tropical island scene was like a drawing
Because it was too hot, I took offjust a shi+rt, then looked out to sea
”A?”
Ito the sound of waves
This suspicion rapidly turned into certainty
Because a girl suddenly appeared out of the sea
Beautiful silver hair, dripping as glittering brightly froht Droplets of water slid over clear, flawless snohite skin, flowing along gentle curves
Without wearing anything at all, she alking on the beach nude
Roughly the sae as me, probably fifteen or sixteen years old
It really had been too long since I last saw a girl of e, so I had no idea how to react
However, I could not tear es that flashed in and out vieeen gaps in the silver hair, wobbling as the girl walked, I could not help but gulp
”Yeah This has to be a dream”
I sighed
This kind of scenery could not possibly be reality I must be quite exhausted
Then at least before I fall asleep, allow me to enjoy this paradise Because once the drea for ain
After thinking that, I stared at the naked girl
Her beauty was akin to a fairy's—a kind of otherworldly charm detached froure
Perhaps noticing irl turned her head to look in my direction
Then the girl stopped
Meeting her gaze, I felt extremely nervous, but since this was a dream, there was no need to panic Anyway, I lifted reet her
”H-Hi, the weather's so nice today”
The girl's face instantly froze
”Ky”
”Ky?”
”KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!?”
The girl went bright red in the face and screa up the front of her body with her arms, she squatted down on the spot
I was rooted to the spot by this shrill scream that almost split my eardrums in pain
What could one say? This was a very nor, developht?
In other words, no way—
”This island and you They're all real?”
”Y-You, hat are you talking about? No, I should be asking why is there a man here!?”
Staring into aze conveyed not only shame but also fear
This was apparently no dreaed her
If this was reality, this island down south—Midgard—was indeed supposed to be coirl for being so unguarded I should have realized earlier
”Oh Ummm, sorry, actually—”
I apologized to her, but just as I was about to explain the whole story, the girl interrupted me and yelled loudly:
”C-Caduceus!!”
Using one ar the other arm towards the sky, she manifested a black sphere on her palm, which then turned into a silver-white staff
”Dark matter transmutation!?”
I stared wide-eyed in aetting surprised over
Because every child at Midgard was a ”D”—a superpoielding candidate for the Dragon Subjugation Squad
”I-I can do this I'll take care of you, a mere intruder!”
Speaking in a treirl pointed the front end of her staff at me
”Hey—!?”
I noticed that the girl was about to attack using her superpowers
So-called dark y substance that only Ds were capable of producing, which could be converted into any h-te me to ashes would not be impossible
If what she intended to unleash was a wide-area attack, even trying to defend or evade would be pointless
—I instantly felt my hairs stand on end
In the depths ofmonster woke up at this time
This monster was deeply rooted in my subconscious
When confronted with a crisis of life and death, instinct would calculate multiple patterns to strike preemptively
Auto the most efficient and certain h reflexively
Recognizing the girl as an enemy, the monster of my subconscious brandished its claws at her
Without changing ht hand by the minimum amount—
”Eeek!?”
Seeing fear surface on the girl's face, I instantly came back to my senses
—At this rate, she will die I was going to kill her
My nized this fact
But ti my method of attack If I did that, her attack would surely take my life first
Instinct was insisting on the legitimacy of its actions, but I screamed in my heart to oppose instinct
—What does my own life matter!?
Using rationality, I forced ainst the girl
”Kuh”
Muscles screamed while bones creaked from forcible exertion
Perhaps due to coercive suppression of subconscious responses,my body unable to follow the next order
Although , hts
Withoutpresented by the halt in irl yelled loudly:
”I won't lose!”
Multiple black spheres could be seennear the staff's tip
Since I had shown murderous intent towards her at one point, it was unlikely that she would show mercy towards me
Chances ofthis wave of attacks were very low
—Even so, this was my choice too
Telling myself that, I quietly prepared myself
However—
BOOM!!
The expected explosion arrived, but it happened under the girl's feet instead
”Kyahhhhhhhhh”
Raising a tall cloud of dust, the girl was blown into the air Her shrill screaradually faded into the distance
Sand and soil fell in the surroundings like rain while the girl fell into the sea
—Splash
Then she did not float up again
”Hey? Hey hey hey!”
I ran towards the sea While running, I removed my shi+rt then jumped into the clear seawater
Fortunately, the seawater was clear and transparently, allowing irl
Picking up the apparently unconscious girl in my arms, I returned to the beach
Unconscious people usually felt very heavy, but the girl's body was far lighter than iined—far softer too
”She shouldn't have died Right?”
Laying the girl down on the beach, I examined her condition No external injuries The earlier explosion probably happened underground in the sand
My gaze shi+fted doards Alirl's bosoely shaped birthmark near the side of her abdomen
”Is this a dragon mark?”
A so-called dragon mark was an eirl's body did not resemble the kind caused by abrasive wounds
Then trying to check her breathing, I brought my face close to hers
The girl proceeded to open her eyes suddenly
”Eh?”
Our eyes e
Only after inspecting at such a close distance did I realize that her face was very well-proportioned Added to that was her head of silver hair and flawlessly clear skin
Such sublime and otherworldly beauty, like a work of art, it made me stare in mesmerization—
”So pretty”
The words slipped out of my mouth unintentionally
”W-What hat”
Lying on the sand, the girl went red in e nonstop
But she suddenly regained her senses Using her left arht hand
”H-Hold on!”
I held her ar off her movements
”L-Let o! Molester! Pervert!”
”I'm neither a molester nor a pervert, nor an intruder! Could you please listen to my explanation!?”
Although I are that such words should not be said while pinning a naked girl down on her back, I knew there was no way I could withstand more explosions from her
”Q-Quit lying! I won't be tricked! Because Midgard is not supposed to have men!”
”I was brought here! I was stuffed into a shi+pping container along with supplies to be transported here!”
Last night, I suddenly received a reassign detailed explanations, I was taken to a container
Then I was left behind in that dark and rocking container for a number of hours When the container was finally opened, I already found myself on this tropical island
The shi+p that had delivered the container was no longer in sight I found myself surrounded by autonomous work robots
I wandered all over the place in search of people but ran into this naked girl
”I can't believe you hid inside a container to sneak in here Y-You ht?”
”No, I said I was stuffed into a container, right? And even if I ed to sneak in, it's impossible to bypass the security system here Do you really think the concentric defensive systenable, is that easy to breach?”
I calirl still retorted defiantly
”B-But humans have infinite potential!”
”How did that even occur to you!? Besides, if I' out leisurely at the beach, right!?”
”I-It could be a trap too! Your goal is to lure so to be silenced!? I'll be tortured, forced to give up information, then finally killed!?”
The girl went pale, falling into despair on her own
”Listen to me! I won't silence you nor kill you!”
—That's right, I absolutely won't kill her Even if my body h willpower
”T-Then you wouldn't by any chance intend t-to do obscene things to me?”
The girl's face gradually turned fro that kind of reaction from her, I felt rather troubled too It forced , the fragrance of maidenly scent, as well as the lovely shape of her twin peaks
I had no intentions of that sort, but my face naturally heated up
”I-I said I won't do anything”
”Liar! Your face is going red!”
”Why are you so sharp when it co!?”
I sighed deeply after retorting This would take forever at this rate In any case, I had to deliver the necessary explanations first
”I aanization directly under Asgard's coard, effective today The official document is here”
I took out the drenched docu it, I carefully spread it open for her to read
The girl's eyes widened in surprise
”Mononobe, Yuu You really are a soldier? Not a pervert?”
After inspecting the docuirl asked me
”Correct”
From an intruder to a pervert, her choice of words to describe nored it
”You said you're a 2nd Lieutenant You Mononobe, how old are you?”
”Sixteen”
”I-Isn't that the same as me!? It would be understandable for a D, but fora rank of 2nd Lieutenant at this kind of age is too unusual!”
”Even if you say it's unusual, it's the truth Nothing I can do about that So, what's your name?”
”Huh?”
”I already given you my name I'd appreciate it if you could introduce yourself too”
After I urged her, the girl finally spoke despite her hesitation
”I am Iris Freyja Student No 7 in Brynhildr Class Rank is Private 2nd class, no wait, the students aren't NIFL soldiers so there's no rank hierarchy between us!”
”Yeah, that's right Midgard is just a school Rank is irrelevant”
”G-Glad you know that”
The girl—Iris—nodded, apparently relieved
”So, Iris, now that we've introduced ourselves, I think the ht?”
”Oh Right”
Iris nodded a little absent up the shi+rt I re into the sea, I handed it to her
”Anyway, put this on first Otherwise, I won't knohere to look”
Casting ested
”T-Thank you”
With a complicated expression on her face, Iris put onhem, at least it covered up the lower part of her body that was not meant to be seen
”Umm, I'm very sorry I shouldn't have approached the beach so casually In this place free froirls going skinny dipping”
After all, I was the one at fault, so I bowed ain However, Iris tilted her head and said:
”Eh? Even if it's only girls, we don't go skinny dipping either, because that's too indecent”
”What? But unless I' a swimsuit just noere you?”
Frowning, I looked at Iris who had been completely nude until just now
”Oh, , it so it That's why I dove into the sea to see if it got caught somewhere”
Iris repliedthe earlier explosion, I reached the conclusion that this girl—
”—Iris, you're quite careless, aren't you?”
”I-I am not careless! I'm neither an idiot, nor an airhead, nor useless!!”
”I never went that far”
It looked like I had poked her in a sore spot
Idiot, airhead, useless—
I felt like I was starting to understand Iris as a person Despite no similarity in appearance, Iris' earnest personality was actually quite siirl
”Eh!?”
Then I heard Iris e sound
”H?”
”D-Don't ask htened me”
Iris answered with her face gone red for some reason
”I was s just now?”
”Yes”
Iris nodded, answering somewhat uncomfortably
”Oh I s, so don't mind me”
I tried to sweep things under the rug a to discuss with someone I just met
”What did you recall, Mononobe?”
”Secret”
”Eh, what's wrong with telling others?”
Because Iris insisted on prying, I resorted to changing the subject
”—What's iht now is that neither of us are in decent attire If possible, Iris, I hope you can change back into your own clothes and give my shi+rt back”
Iris earing just my shi+rt whereas I was topless Under such circu could arise
”Ehhh!? Mononobe, you wantthat I've worn!? No way! No way no way no way! I scent and lick it all over, aren't you!?”
”I'ination!”
”Mononobe theof which, her family name is Mononobe too—”
Refusing to let one red, Iris suddenly came back to her senses, her head tilted in puzzlement
As it so happened at this moment, a calm voice interrupted our conversation
”Iris-san, could you please not use other people's fah I know you are clearly not referring to me, it feels very unpleasant”
Simultaneously, Iris and I looked in the voice's direction
A girl in school unifor the beach fro in the sea breeze, the girl sloalked down the steps leading to the beach
”No way”
Whether in facial appearance or voice, this girl greatly resembled a certain person I knew
But she could not possibly in a place like this Only she could not possibly be here
Because that hy I had—
But my flimsy hope was shattered by what Iris said next
”Oh! M-Mitsuki-chan! S-Sorry Speaking of which, your faot because I always call you by name”
Feeling guilty, Iris scratched her head and apologized
Ahhh So it really was true
In fact, I already knew the instant I laid eyes on her I could not possibly be mistaken I simply refused to believe it no matter what
”Mitsuki”
It took all I could to force these words out when she caers, she bowed elegantly then said:
”I have been waiting for you the whole time It has been three years—Nii-san”
Part 2
Twenty-five years ago, without any prior warning, a gigantic unidentified creature appeared in the sky above japan
The first dragon, possessing the power to generate dark matter
Amassive cala, it vanished as suddenly as it had appeared
Later on, the international organization Asgard, established specifically to handle dragons, announced that the gigantic creature was very likely the same type as ”the enveloper” Vritra recorded in ancient Indian scripture
Although Asgard had not publicized evidence to support this assertion, on grounds of confidentiality, thereafter, the first dragon caon—”Black” Vritra
Ever since, people possessing the saan to be born a huon Currently, they were all gathered at a certain place to be ed and protected
And this place was ard
A small remote island, several kilohly from a formerly uninhabited island, it was rebuilt as an educational institute
The island was surrounded by the autonoardsormr, which would mercilessly eliminate all unauthorized shi+ps and aircraft
I was redeployed to sonment order
”Say, Mitsuki, it's tiht? What on earth What happened?”
I walked over to ask Mitsuki as in front
”There are appropriate ti This type of road where anyone could overhear us is not a place suitable for holding discussions”
Mituski rejectedback I had already asked herthe sa to a pre-recorded voice
I gave up as a result to wait for the ”appropriate venue” that she mentioned
Currently, ere following the beach froh no people could be seen in the surroundings at all, Mitsuki still seemed worried about ”walls have ears”
As a side note, Iris had already left Taking her belongings that were on the breakwater, she had run away as though fleeing, still wearing my shi+rt as well It looked like she really did not want to giveshe had already worn
Hence, I was forced to put on the long-sleeved jacket I had initially taken off due to the heat Being knife-proof, the jacket locked heat within its thick fabric,
Soon after, I saw a large building Despite a ave me an impression like athen placed her hand on a sensor panel next to door Almost silently, the door opened automatically
I followed Mitsuki indoors As cool wind bleay the heat fro
The entrance area was a vast hall Taking care of all house chores, cylindrical robots were sweeping and vacuu as fully autonomous servants
”So grand Is this the school?”
As I muttered to myself, I immediately heard a chuckle
I turned h once then turn to face me
”—No, this is not the school These arequarters”
”Huh?”
I was instantly stunned by what Mitsuki had said
”P-Personal living quarters? All of this crazy big building?”
”Yes, all of it is for my use, which is why I replied to you that way”
In other words, this was apparently the ”appropriate venue” mentioned by Mitsuki I stared in disbelief to check out the interior of this building The hall opened up to the third floor with an extreine how many rooms exactly there were inside
”Why are you living in this kind of house—No, speaking of which, why are you at Midgard? This tiht?”
”That is because I aard Acadeon Subjugation Squad Rank: Lieutenant Colonel I have attained higher levels of greatness than you, Nii-san”
”What”
I was dumbstruck from surprise Mitsuki continued:
”Nii-san, the personnel transfer of reassigning you to Midgard was acco tomorrow, Nii-san, please study at this school as a student A room in this dormitory has already been renovated for your use Your uniform is also ready inside there, so please try it on first If by any chance the size does not fit, I shall immediately send it away for alterations”
”H-Hold on! You're askingtomorrow? Are you for real? So this so-called personnel transfer isn't about a position in the coast guard?”
”Of course I am serious How could I serve as a role model for all the other students if I were to lie as the student council president? Midgardsormr is sufficient as defense already No other personnel is needed”
”No But I'uy!”
I pointed out the most important problem
For some unknown reason, all Ds were feard were inevitably girls only In other words, Midgard was an all-girls school, not a place where I could study
”There is only one eligibility requireard—namely, onefemale or male is irrelevant”
Indeed I was the sole exception
I was the male D whose existence was concealed the moment I was discovered
”Maybe you're right, in theory but is it really okay to publicize ard sent me to NIFL because they wanted to cover up the existence of soht?”
The international organization Asgard was established twenty years ago to handle various cross-border issues related to dragons Currently, there were two divisions under its banner
One was theweaponry and tactics for fighting dragons, as well as takingdaily
The other was the Midgard, the autonomous educational institute of the Ds
Reportedly, Midgard had been under NIFL's administration until recently, but currently, the two sides stood on diametrically opposite stances
Due to the systeard's coency situations, students like Mitsuki and Iris were assigned military ranks common to NIFL
In this kind of organizational hierarchy, I believed that even Mitsuki could not oppose Asgard's decisions as a Lieutenant Colonel, but
”No, hiding your existence was not Asgard but NIFL Taking advantage of the pretext of ensuring your safety, Nii-san, they decided on your treatard It was due to this that it tooktime to locate you, Nii-san”
Mitsuki gnashed her teeth in chagrin
”Mitsuki You've been searching for me the whole time?”
”Yes, I was so surprised not to see when I first arrived at Midgard It felt very odd that you were not here despite being taken away beforefor you”
Despite Mitsuki's explanation, I still felt a bit worried
”You ht? Won't that worsen your position—”
”Worry not, it was NIFL that took unilateral action, hence there is no need to worry about the on our door Please enjoy your school life, Nii-san”
Although Mitsuki wasa face that read ”absolutely no probleree candidly
”Well, I basically understand the situation now and I'ood intentions But in practice, there are still ht?”
Even if uncertain factors had decreased slightly, the fact of ender as a man still remained
”—Indeed, of course I have considered the irls school Precisely because of that, I have decided to e you myself, Nii-san”
Mitsuki h she understood my worries perfectly and nodded proudly
”M-Manage?”
”To prevent you fro public morals, Nii-san, I will supervise you properly and work hard to prevent you froe in such shameless behavior as earlier”
Mitsuki smiled for the first time, but it was one that made me shi+ver from the bottom of my heart
”Mitsuki, are you actually angry?”
Mitsuki had not brought up thebut a shi+rt in ht she haddown the naked Iris—so I was feeling relieved, but actually, Mitsuki was si for the opportunity to confront the whole matter
”Of course, because your indiscretions are my responsibility, but I cannot believe that you started accosting girls as soon as you arrived I fear for a terrible future”
”I-I was not accosting!”
”Is that so? But the two of you were flirting quite inti just met”
Mitsuki turned around and started walking without looking back
”Where are you going, Mitsuki?”
”I will take you to your room Follow me”
Giving off an aura of displeasure, Mitsuki led me to the far end of the corridor on the first floor, the rooht side