Chapter 62 – Nozomu’s destiny – part 1

Nozomu gave a slight smile and said, “Okay, understood, Hinotsume.”

“It is probably better if I tell you another thing. I didn’t know you could make those weird explosions, so I said Raluth was going to awake when you would be long dead, but that might not be correct. You should prepare yourself for Raluth in your lifetime. That also means I must talk with Mizukonta. For you to exist means that Raluth will awake. From what I know, it has happened before. A being immune to Magic and able to make unusual Magic was born, and Raluth awoke. It is as if the Gods created beings like you to fight Raluth. Among the Dragons, this story is told by parents to their offspring about a being that fights Raluth and dies every time. There was once one being that refused to fight and remained hidden. He survived the cleansing, but remorse ate him inside. He killed himself two months after the cleansing.”

While Taisetsuna was trembling, Nozomu took a slow deep breath and calmly said, “I had a feeling I was not supposed to live long, you know? If three thousand years haven’t passed since the last time Raluth woke up, that could mean I still have many years ahead. Maybe I can warn people, or… I don’t know, make some sort of plan to stop him?”

“That would be interesting, but the problem is, in the end, you will be the only one immune to his Magic. You will have all the beings in the World after you, to feed you to Raluth.”

“Unless no one knows I am that interesting. I can pretend to be controlled and escape. Or find a way to beat him.”

“Good luck with that! Others tried before you, and they were all eaten.”

Nozomu shrugged and answered with a slight smile. “They weren’t me. I managed to trick you, didn’t I? I will think of something.”

“I admire your optimism, Nozomu. I only wish I’d shared it. Raluth searches for beings like you, as if he knows that your strange explosions could hurt him. Or maybe it’s because he wants to absorb that ability. I am not sure. No one knows for certain. Dragons only know that Raluth and beings with your ability have been faded to face each other. Who knows? Maybe you will be the one to end the cycle. Or you will join the countless beings that came before you.”

“Well, I don’t know if any of them ever tried, but I could be eaten and swallowed without dying while carrying a bag with a good amount of ‘Fool’s Death’ flowers. The nitroglycerin in those flowers, together with my explosions, would make quite a bang. Considering that Raluth is full of Magic and if I absorb it, the explosion will definitely shake the entire World. We will both die, for certain, but there will be no more Raluth to eat people. I have already avoided death a couple of times, and that is why I am living my life to the fullest, as if I am on my last days. If I have to die, I might as well take Raluth with me.”

Taisetsuna squeezed his stomach and said, in a trembling voice, “Can you stop talking about dying? What about me? You want to leave me alone, is that it? Raluth might not wake up so soon!”

“He might awake, or he might remain dormant. I am not going to worry about that or let that thought rule my life and decisions. I just like to have a plan in case he wakes up, but only that. If he doesn’t wake up, we will grow old in our lands, surrounded by our family, just as we promised when we were kids. If he wakes up, I will blow him up and myself up, and you will grow old and safe with your family. To me, it’s a win-win situation. As long as you are alive and happy, it’s all good.”

Taisetsuna leaned her head on Nozomu’s back and spoke in a low tone while fighting her tears, “I wouldn’t be happy without you, moron...”

Nozomu pretended not to hear and said, “Hinotsume, it’s that mountain. Make a circle and look down. You will see there is a plateau in the middle with the Drakes on top.”

The red Dragon descended in circles, getting closer to the top of the mountain, and looked down. He saw the Drakes, and he then went up again, leaving room for the blue female Dragon to have a look.

He went towards the Academy again and said, “Tomorrow we will go there and take the scales. We will have a nice meal, and we will put the scales on a pile for you and your friends to recover. I saw a group of Goblins in there, but they hid in a tunnel. Maybe ten or so of them. We will get them tomorrow, for sure.”

“Are there still Goblins alive? Damn! I thought we killed them all!”

“Goblins are tricky. They live in enormous groups, and for as many as you kill, there are always some Goblins that escape to breed again. I am used to dealing with them, and they can’t escape my Fire. And then, Mizukonta uses her Water Magic to drown the survivors.”

Nozomu nodded, and he asked, after a few moments of silence, “After leaving us at the Academy, what are you and Mizukonta going to do? Do you have a nest somewhere to spend the night?”

“We have, but it is far from here. We will probably sleep near the mountains so that tomorrow we can take care of the Goblins and eat. Why? Afraid of spending the night without me around?”

“I was thinking that you could probably sleep near the Academy. For sure, it is warmer than on top of a mountain.”

“Do not worry about that. My Fire takes care of keeping us warm. Besides, we are never near meat sacs. Most of your kind are afraid of Dragons and our mere presence makes them fear for their lives. Although Dragons don’t eat Humans or Beast-kind. They don’t have enough meat on them. We prefer Drakes or a horde of Goblins. Occasionally, Lamias, Harpies, or Orcs. It is thanks to Dragons that those Monsters don’t cause the death of more meat sacs than the ones they already cause, you know?”

Nozomu raised his left eyebrow slightly as he asked, “You mean that Dragons are the predators of Monsters, and by doing that, keep their numbers low?”

“Yes. Mizukonta also likes to dive into the oceans and catch fish for us. She usually catches more than we can eat, and we always leave fish behind for Monsters, Humans, or Beast-kind to eat. Whoever gets there first, gets the pile of fish.”

“You know, calling people meat sacs is very rude. You should avoid doing that. It doesn’t look good on a mighty Dragon like you.”

“Like I care what a bunch of short-lived people think! Meat sacs die long before they have time to annoy me. After almost six thousand years, I know the value of meat sacs. None whatsoever, despite being food. And even Goblins are tastier than Humans or Beast-kind. But I will refrain from referring to you and your friends as meat sacs. Everyone else is free game.”

Nozomu made a slight smile and said, “You are a very weird Dragon, Hinotsume.”

“Look who is talking! You are weirder than I am, or has no one ever told you that? Now shut up. We are arriving, and you are distracting me. Unless you want me to lose my focus and stumble on the ground with you over there!”

Nozomu went silent, feeling Taisetsuna squeezing his belly tight, as the enormous red Dragon was flapping his wings to slow down his descent.

When they jumped to the floor, Hinen and Robert Keskula timidly approached, and Hinotsume frowned at them. “Come on, I don’t have all day! Hop on! And hold tight! I want to fly almost at my maximum speed to see if you can endure it! Nozomu and Taisetsuna had no problems with it, but I want to see how brave you both are!”

Robert rushed to the Dragon’s back, with Hinen seated right behind him. The moment Hinotsume ran on the ground to get enough speed to take off at the same time that he flapped his wings, Robert was having a blast, and Hinen was screaming in absolute terror.

Nozomu noticed the silent Taisetsuna at his side, looking up at the red Dragon flying away, and he tried to distract her. “That was fun. Now what? Do we wait for the others, or do we go put the Unicorns near the horses?”

“Let’s go with them. I need to walk for a bit to get used to the ground again. Flying felt nice, but now I feel my feet are still up there.”

While the other students were looking at them, Nozomu went with Taisetsuna and the Unicorns to the trees where the horses were, and the History Teacher, Ruh de Mills, whispered to the Principal, “You know that this will cause some problems, don’t you? When word spreads that a group of new students has two Dragons with them, and if the nearby countries perceive this as a threat...”

“I am aware. I will send a message to the Princess in a few moments so that she is prepared for it. She will come tomorrow for her usual speech together with her court, and I can talk with her about the implications this situation may cause for the Academy and the country.”

The History Teacher slowly nodded, worried. He knew very well that a group of students with two Dragons could cause an uproar in the entire World.

Meanwhile, Taisetsuna was taping Furnace’s side under the shade of the trees where the horses were, and she wondered, “Nozo… about what Hinotsume said… do you think… I don’t know, but… We could run away and hide somewhere, in another country or something. Maybe if God… I mean, Raluth surfaces, we can hide and be safe… I know how it sounds, but...”

“And where would our retirement plan fit in there? No, I refuse to let a possibility rule my life. We will do as planned. Besides, after graduation, we will get a bigger Noble title and some land, remember? But before that, we can go on Quests, and help people. If Raluth appears in our lifetime, we will see then.”

He then noticed that she had teary eyes, which she was trying to disguise. He put one hand over her right shoulder and said, “I know you fear for me, but you don’t need me as much as you may think. You are amazing, Suna. You don’t need to lean on me or anyone else.”

“Yeah… but… I like you, Nozo… and I don’t want to lose you… We have been together until now, and thinking that you might die, and I can’t do a thing… it’s worrying me.”

“I like you too Suna, that is why I am not going to worry about Raluth. I will get some things ready in case he shows up in our lifetime, but since we don’t know if he will, why should we be concerned? I have other things to worry about…”

Taisetsuna noticed the frown he made, even with him trying to disguise it by looking at Rampage and caressing his snout. She thought there was something he was hiding, so she asked, “You are worried, aren’t you? The last time we talked in the Guild, I got the feeling you didn’t tell me everything. What is it? You can tell me, you know? Maybe I can help.”

“I don’t think you can, because I already…”

Seeing her worried look, he sighed and explained, “You know I was seeing Miss Koyaga, right? Well, the last time we were in the Castle, I spent the night with the Princess. The problem is, because of my previous life memories, I was comparing the Princess with the wife I had in that life. I guess… I was trying to fill a void inside me with Miss Koyaga, and then with the Princess. She told me that Miss Koyaga and her were once a couple when they were both in this Academy, but because Miss Koyaga preferred to become an Adventurer, and the Princess was going to rule this country, they couldn’t be together. It seems they were also using me to fill their own voids.”

*I better explain Nozomu reasoning again, concerning the Princess and Koyaga, just in case someone forgot the last explanation and hates me for this choice.*