Ricardo led us into a room located on the upper floor of the Agallofione Sword Emperor's Palace.

　The room was large. There was a plush carpet, an expensive table, and a variety of furnishings.
　There was a large bed in the center, and a girl was sleeping there.

''.....................''

　The girl slowly turned to me, perhaps awakened by the noise we made as we entered.

　Her long, red hair was striking. She had a dignified face and was looking at us somewhat strangely.

'I'm home now, Sylvia.

　Ricardo said with a kind look on his face.

'Welcome back, Father. Who are those people?'

　Sylvia visits her in a dignified tone, despite the fact that she is awake in her sleep.

'These are people from the earth. We didn't get the elixir today either, but you say that this person may be able to cure your illness.

　Ricardo pointed with his hand as he introduced me to his daughter.

'This is Lord Anos Voldigord,'

Nice to meet you.

　As she said this, Sylvia raised her upper body on the bed.
　She bowed her head with a smile.

'Thank you for traveling so far. I am Silvia Arbicious, the dragon knight of King Diedrich's entourage. The pleasure is mine.

　He took the hand Sylvia offered him and shook her hand.
　While doing so, he turned his magic eye on her.

　The flow of magic power is stagnant.
　As expected, it seems to be quite a serious illness.

''I'm sorry. It's not that I haven't explained to you yet, but my daughter's illness is called the lack of dragon disease--

It's as if a hole has been drilled into the vessel and magic power has fallen out of the body, a disease that can lead to death. I'm sure you'll find that the bracelets on your wrists are designed to prevent the magic power from overflowing from its source. But we can't suppress it completely.

　Ricardo looks at me with a surprised expression.

''Could it be the same disease on earth...?''

What? I've just examined him. It seems the disease is caused by organs only a dragonborn possesses. I don't think this disease will affect demons.

　I look into the depths of Sylvia's lesion.

''Hmm. A part of the magic organ is in a state of runaway. With this, it's only natural for the root magic power to overflow.''



　Ricardo exhaled in astonishment.

''Heal the magic organ, and you'll be cured of the missing dragon disease.

...can it be... cured...?

　Sylvia raises her voice in a way that sounds like she's skeptical.

''Oh.''

'But, Lord Anos. The lack of dragon disease is a disease that cannot be cured, even if you try to heal your body with the power of the Watchtower of Regeneration. Other than the Giant Headed Dragon's elixir, no other magic will be able to cure it.

　Ricardo says.

''The giant-headed dragon's elixir won't be able to completely heal you,'' said Ricardo. It can only alleviate the symptoms for a time. ''Isn't that right?''

　Ricardo nodded in a tone of horror.

''Yes. The effects last for about a year, and with the use of great magical power, the symptoms will worsen.

''To be precise, the Giant Head Dragon's Spiritual Pill is a poison. It would have the effect of paralyzing some of the magical organs. It just so happens to coincide with the magic organ that is run amok by the Absent Dragon Disease, thus suppressing the symptoms.

　He draws a magic circle on Sylvia's body.

'The reason why even the power of the watchdog god of regeneration cannot heal is because this magical organ is considered normal. God is an order. He can regenerate what is broken, but he cannot regenerate what is working according to order.

Your magical organs are out of control and you think you're normal?

　Don't you understand, she asks me.

'Would it be easier to understand if I told you that your magical organs are overdeveloped?　We've become so strong that we can't control ourselves.

I see.

'One more thing. A source has a physical memory. It has a physical memory, and it can't be rewritten. It's you that's been affected. The Guardian of Regeneration does not interfere with the source.

　Even though he was slightly hopeful, Ricardo visited as if he was afraid.

''........How do I.......?''

Just cut off the bad part at the source. It'll hurt a little less than dying.

　Then Sylvia said, as if she was prepared to do so.

'No matter. I am a knight too. I will bear any pain. Do it.

Good point. You know, I won't take long. Just a moment.

　He applied to his right hand and pierced Sylvia's chest with his black fingertips.



　I'm going to elaborate my magic eye and aim at the lesion.

　Although it's hard to say because it involves a magical treatment, if it were expressed in terms of physical size, the lesion is only about one billionth of a heart.

　The area to be cut off is the center of the root cause. If you cut off too much of the root cause, there is a possibility that you may be left with some kind of aftereffects.

　With good aim, delicate fingertips and magical manipulation, I split the root source in two.
　Then I cut off the inner lesion and instantly joined it.

''Ahhhh!!!!!

　A loud scream escaped from Sylvia's mouth.
　Pulling out her right hand, she cringed and fainted.

　＜''I'm going to heal the hole in your body with the Total Demon Complete Healing (Aye Sheal).

''Hm. ''Success. The source of the damage is a little broken, but she will recover soon. He'll be awake in a few hours.

'........Are you cured.......?

You'll see.

　I send magic power with my fingertips and remove Sylvia's bracelet.

　The magic power that would have overflowed without that magic tool until the previous day, but now it is circulating through her body normally.

''Oh ... how ...''

　With tears in his eyes, Ricardo bowed deeply to me.

'What a miracle. How can I thank you? Truly, I can't even find the words to thank you. Thank you.''

Raise your head. I've done my part in ruining the elixir. It's just so infuriating to be so grateful.

　Sasha, who was behind me, laughed proudly and Misha gave me a warm look.

'That's not how it works. You are the benefactor of my daughter, Anos-dono. It's not a problem. I'll do whatever I can to repay this debt.

　Suddenly, he fell silent and Ricardo's body fell forward.
　I supported it with my hands.



　He coughed bitterly. Blood was seeping from his mouth.

''Hmm. Come to think of it, you seemed to be sick for some reason from the other day.'

The Soft Bed.

　Misha makes a bed in Ibis.
　I hold Ricardo in my arms and gently lay him there.

　He turns his painful gaze to me and says, ".......

".........I'm sorry........

'I thought you might have been wounded, Ricardo, but you're sick, too. And by the way. Let me fix you up.

No, sir. No, sir. This is not a disease, but a mere life span.

　Hmm. You say the strangest things.

"You don't look that old, do you?

"It's rare for a dragonborn to be born with a short life span. I'm a species whose body ages quickly in the first place. If I were an ordinary dragonborn, I'd be an old man. I've been beating myself up, but I wouldn't be surprised if my time came at any moment.

I'll see what I can do. I may be able to keep you from having a seizure.

　He turns his magical eye on Ricardo's body and explores the lesion.
　Indeed, at first glance, the cause is nowhere to be found, and it appears to be senility.

''How ragged it is. How could you fight a dragon with such a body? You're right, I'm on the verge of the end of my life.

　He must have whipped his body with magic power and forced it to move.

''If you can tell, then there's something I'd like to know...''

What do you want to know?



Now, that's tricky. What's going on?

Have you ever heard of a king dragon, Lord Anos?

　That dragon that Ahide stole.

"You mean the dragon that eats the root cause and gives birth to a baby dragon?

　Ricardo nodded.

''........If you can stay alive for one more week, you can offer this root source as a sacrifice to the king dragon. Then this body, which has no future, can become the power of a new baby dragon, the sword that will protect the Agaha and become the cornerstone....

　When you're on the verge of death, you want your country to prosper.
　A man after my own heart.

Didn't Diedrich say anything to you?

　Nafta would be able to see where Ricardo was going.
　That man would know how it would end.

'The Sword Emperor, the Prophet, will see everything, but he cannot turn it all into prophecy. I have decided not to turn bad prophecies into prophecies.

Why?

'The prophecy is absolute, and the people of Agaha will not doubt it. But once death is in sight, many of them will lose the will to live. If they deliver the prophecy of death, they will either cut off their lives before their time comes, or else they will live a miserable life. The Sword Emperor said that to see the future would be tantamount to despair.

　Indeed.
　If it's a good prophecy, it's still good.

　If you hear a bad prophecy, then a bad future will follow.
　Diedrich can see that the less said, the better the future will be.

Hmm. So, you're not prophesied to live a lifetime, and you've been spared.

...Saved by...?

　Ricardo gives me a questioning look.

"A disease of senility. It's a disease that was prevalent in parts of Dirheid two thousand years ago. At first glance, it looks like a form of senility. The cause of the disease is a worm with an altered form of magic called a worm, but it is only a parasite on helpless babies.

　He would have concluded that there is a short-lived species because only babies are parasitized.

'The old worm is a formless worm of magical power. Its existence is kept secret as it assimilates and unites with your magical power from the baby's point of view. It's believed that this magical worm rarely occurs naturally.

'..........?

I can't help but think of it as a magic created by someone else.

　But in the end, even Dillhade couldn't rule out that this was caused by magic.
　He couldn't find a magician.

　If Diedrich couldn't stop it, then the old worm must have been created before he made the pact with Nafta.

　Or perhaps the man who created it in Dirheid two thousand years ago and the man who brought it underground are the same person.

　Nafta, for all its order, can only see the future.
　He cannot remember the past for long, even the past he has experienced.

　I could see a future where I would be here talking about senility, but now that I know, if there is nothing to be done about it, there is nothing to be done about it.

　It would have been better still to leave it as a short-lived species.

'Anyway, there is healing magic.

　He draws a magic circle on Ricardo and cures the senility disease . In the blink of an eye, the old worm lurking in his body disappeared. The disease of senility could not get any worse.

Is it cured...?

The disease. I'm going to revert your body's time back to the way it was before it aged. I'm going to take a few minutes to read your memories.

　I drew a magic circle and used the .

''How do I........remember.......?''

Just do what I tell you and you'll get what you need. All right. Let's hear about Sylvia. You can't be her own daughter if she's a baby dragon.

　Ricardo nodded.

─ Because a baby dragon is born from the king, it has no parents to raise it. That's why their adoptive father or mother takes them in and raises them. I met Sylvia eighteen years ago. As a knight of the Kingsguard, I was entrusted by the Sword Emperor to raise a dragon knight.

　Ricardo's thoughts and memories of that time flowed in.
　If it was 18 years ago, it would be just the right origin.

　He drew a magic circle on Ricardo's body, and turned back time locally.
　In other words, he was rejuvenated.

It's over. Let's stand up.

　As he was told, Ricardo stood up.
　He moved his limbs and then made an expression of disbelief.

I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work. No, I even feel somewhat lighter than in the past.

''I can now use the magic power that was taken by the old worm. Now you can live like an ordinary dragon man. Even if you don't become a sacrifice to the king dragon, you can still defend your country with your hands.

　With a full face of gratitude, Ricardo opened his mouth.

''Truly........I don't know how to thank you, say about my daughter......if there is anything I can do for you, please let me know....

　Ricardo bowed his head, deeply and profoundly.

'Don't worry about it. It's just a side note.

　Saying that, I deactivate the realm of thought--just before I did, Ricardo's heart voice echoed in my head.


　-- With this, I can become the sacrifice of the royal dragon.