Chapter 26: It’s Muscle Time!

"Vooo… VOOOOOO…"

The giant dragon radiated a furious crimson glow from head to tail.

With its face still caved in from a kick, it bared its fangs and gums and let out a feral roar.

"VaoooooOOOOOOO!!"

The dragon's cry became a rumbling quake, kicking up sand and cyclones in its wake.

Seconds later, even from where I stood far in the distance, a sprinkle of dust hit my face.

"...H-Hey, Lady Rishali. What is that?"

"You mean Takeru?"

"What is that human!?"

Dragons have no natural enemies.

The only thing capable of killing a dragon—typically—is another dragon.

To them, humans are nothing but a source of nourishment. They have no reason to see us as a threat.

"That guy just kicked a dragon! What the hell is he!?"

"...He's the same as you."

"The same?"

But the dragon glared down at Takeru, growling.

Within its crimson glowing eyes swirled unmistakable hatred.

The dragon had clearly recognized Takeru as an enemy.

"Takeru is my loyal knight."

"...You're kidding."

Berka let out a dry laugh, realizing he'd been lumped into the same category as a freak like Takeru.

In the clash between that monstrous dragon and the absurd Takeru, the first to move was the dragon.

Noticing Takeru readying his fists, it spread its wings wide and soared into the sky.

"Vao!!"

"It's... it's running away!?"

Dragons are creatures that can move freely through the air despite their massive size.

It had only come to the ground to hunt us humans.

"Viiiiiii...!"

The sky was a clear blue without a single cloud. The dragon cut through it with fluid grace.

It must've acknowledged Takeru as a genuine threat—and chose to retreat into the sky.

And then—

"That thing's gathering flame!"

"...The temperature is rising... rapidly."

The dragon climbed high into the heavens and spewed a torrent of fire from its throat sac.

Flames powerful enough to paint the sky red—it was a monster in every sense of the word.

The heat was intense enough to draw a bead of sweat from my brow.

"VaVaVaVa...!"

It was going to unleash a storm of fire on us.

Thinking that, as long as Takeru was human, he couldn't reach it in the sky.

It chose to burn him alive from afar.

"...I won't let you."

But that—was a mistake.

For an ordinary human, sure, there would be no way to touch a dragon mid-air.

"...Shissh!"

But Takeru dashed straight beneath the flapping dragon in a single breath.

Then he bent his knees deeply, coiling his entire body like a spring—and leapt straight up.

"Drop dead, you overgrown lizard!"

"VUAAAAAH!!"

The moment Takeru shouted, the dragon's belly caved in with a thud, and its flames burst apart mid-air.

Spinning as it spewed a dull, ochre-colored vomit, the dragon plummeted back to earth.

No matter how mighty a beast, beneath them is always a blind spot. There's no defense against a blow from directly below.

The dragon had taken a direct hit to the solar plexus, totally unguarded.

"U-U-Unbelievable...! Dragon God...! Dragon Gooooood!"

"H-He's winning—an actual human is winning against a dragon!"

Both the Yaiban Army and the Byuredesto soldiers stood frozen, weapons in hand.

They could only stare, dumbfounded, at the clash between two monsters.

"This can't be...! Lord Gurdebakh... there's no way!"

The impact of the fall had snapped the dragon's wings at a sickening angle.

It thrashed in panic, swinging its tail in a desperate attempt to keep Takeru away.

"VIYAAAAAH!!"

"Too slow!"

But Takeru grabbed that tail, spun the dragon around like a giant swing, and slammed it down into the earth.

A pained moan echoed across the battlefield.

"Splendid, Takeru!! Right there, yes!!"

"...This makes no sense. Honestly, this is more shocking than the dragon showing up."

"Well of course. A human who can kick a dragon is rarer than a dragon itself."

The battle was on an entirely different level.

Intervening would just mean throwing your life away.

Both armies simply set down their swords and stood watching in silence.

With equal parts hope and terror—that maybe, this was the day a dragon would be slain.

"...Wow, that was tough."

But—

Though Takeru appeared to have the upper hand, inwardly he was troubled.

"I really punched hard just now...?"

When Takeru struck the dragon's belly earlier, he intended to pierce through its body and kill it outright.

He wanted to finish off the lizard quickly and get to talking with Princess Rishali.

"VRYYYYYY Vriiiiii!!"

"Ugh, that didn't work at all."

Takeru's fist was caught by the dragon's belly and even bounced off.

He tried slamming it into the ground with full force afterwards...

But although the dragon showed signs of pain, it stood up calmly.

"I see. I need to get serious about this."

It was the first time Takeru had attacked with full strength and failed to finish his opponent.

Just as the dragon recognized Takeru as a threat, Takeru now recognized the dragon as one.

"VUAVaaa!!"

"Whoa! Watch out!"

Without missing a beat, the dragon's tail gouged the earth. Countless stones flew into the air, raining down on Takeru.

He leapt and dodged, but some debris grazed his cheek, and blood dripped down his neck.

"After one hit, I have to back off immediately. If I stay close, I can't avoid it."

Though tougher than most, Takeru was still human.

Had that debris hit his face, death could have been instant.

The dragon could kill Takeru in one blow, but Takeru couldn't finish the dragon.

...This would be a harsh endurance battle, Takeru realized.

"VaOO Vaooo!!"

"All right, come at me!"

Still, facing the attacking dragon—

"I'm Princess Rishali's knight—I won't lose here!"

He steeled himself, shouting to rally his spirit, and stood to face the beast.

---

"Are you unharmed, Lady Rishali!"

"O-oh! Lord Rouga, you've worked hard!"

Some time had passed since Takeru's arrival.

Rouga Spio of the Salipa Kingdom's army arrived at Byuredesto with a massive force in tow.

"I was shocked when I read the letter. ...The Yaiban army attacking, and even a dragon making an appearance?"

"I-I was just as surprised. So much has happened..."

Takeru and the dragon had been locked in a breathless battle for hours.

The dragon sought to crush Takeru with overwhelming defense and sheer mass.

Meanwhile, Takeru countered with precision, gradually wearing the dragon down.

The intensity of their clash left both armies frozen, unable to intervene.

"My, that Takeru fellow is a magnificent specimen of muscle! Even I, Rouga, cannot contain my excitement!"

"Indeed."

"When I heard of the dragon, I, as a descendant of the dragonslaying Spio lineage, was fired up... But never did I expect Lord Takeru to possess such strength!"

With that, Rouga ordered his forces to halt and observe Takeru's duel with the dragon.

It didn't seem like he intended to treat Takeru as expendable...

Rather, he likely believed that interfering would only hinder him.

"Ah... What splendid muscle! Truly, a man among men—Takeru! MASSIVE MUSCLE!"

Rouga didn't appear to harbor any ill will toward Takeru.

In fact, he gazed at Takeru, who was trading blows with the dragon, with a look of rapture.

...His stare was so intense it was borderline unsettling.

"...Lord Rouga. Have you heard about Takeru's homeland?"

"Lord Takeru's homeland?"

Growing slightly concerned, I decided to ask Rouga about it.

About the possibility that the first Lord Spio might have stolen the credit from Takeru's great-grandfather.

"In truth, Takeru's ancestor may have been the true dragonslayer."

"What do you... mean?"

Rouga seemed like an upstanding young man at a glance, but I hadn't spoken with him in depth.

If the Spio family were cunning nobles, they might harm Takeru to turn lies into truth.

With that in mind, I wanted to gauge his reaction.

"The fool who once claimed to have slain the dragon—Foolish Crown. His great-grandson is Takeru."

"O-ohhh! So that's the case! ...Now it makes sense."

Upon hearing my words, Rouga's eyes widened in shock.

After a few seconds of silence, he suddenly burst into laughter.

"Then it seems my grandfather's story was true after all!"

"...Your grandfather's story?"

"When my grandfather asked the first Lord Spio how he slew the dragon, he told him this."

Still smiling, Rouga watched Takeru's battle before continuing with a slightly regretful expression.

"The first Lord Spio looked remorseful and said, 'The dragon wasn't as strong as I'd heard. It may have already been wounded.' 'I find it hard to believe that fool alone could have injured the dragon. Yet the dragon I felled could not fly and dragged its legs.'"

"...Then—"

"The first lord didn't believe the fool's claim of 'slaying the dragon alone.' But he was certain there had been a 'hero who wounded the dragon' before he delivered the final blow."

He spoke honestly.

No trace of deceit or pretense could be seen on Rouga's face.

"Hahahaha! Do you see this, first lord? You may not have believed it, but it seems a hero capable of wounding a dragon alone truly exists!"

"Lord Rouga..."

"The honor my Spio family has held for four generations should have been shared with Lord Takeru's great-grandfather! To witness this battle with my own eyes—this must be fate!"

With those words, he covered his face with his palm.

Letting out a deep sigh, he looked up at the sky.

"The regrets of four generations ago, the disgrace of the fool Foolish Crown—I, Rouga Spio, shall overturn them with my testimony! Look and see—Lord Takeru is without a doubt the descendant of a dragonslayer!"

"Yes."

"Now then, Takeru—win! Bring an end to this long-standing grudge with the dragon!"

Rather than denying Takeru's past, Rouga accepted it wholeheartedly.

With an expression of conviction, he cheered for Takeru at the top of his lungs.

"Leave the aftermath to us! The Yaiban forces lying in wait will be crushed by my elites! VIVA MUSCLE!!"

"MUSCLEEE!"

...Yeah. This Rouga Spio seems like a trustworthy noble.

No wonder Father the King entrusted him with Sister Lulu.