Ch. 104
“…Haha, those two get along so well.”
“Indeed.”
“They’re full of energy, too, right?”
“Of course. For a spirit to eat a dragon heart, it’s only natural he’s bursting with energy.”
Adelaide, a wyrm-class dragon over five thousand years old, said that out of all the foolish things Magi had done, the biggest was giving a precious dragon heart to a metal spirit as food.
And she often gave me a look about it, but I was truly innocent.
‘Hey! If it was that valuable, you shouldn’t have trusted it to your idiot son. You’d be better off giving fish to a cat!’
If it could have been spit back out, they would have taken it for sure, but it was already part of Rai’s bones and flesh.
Rai was a spirit, but it was true.
The dragon heart melted inside Rai, coating him in that dazzling golden glow from head to toe.
Adelaide would sometimes wipe her eyes as she looked at the radiant Rai.
Almost as if she were holding back tears.
“We really should get going now! Rai, that’s enough.”
[Hey! Let’s finish this next time!]
“That makes it 423 wins, so I win!”
[That’s 424 losses for you!]
“No, it’s not!”
Adelaide and I each grabbed one of the two idiots by the scruff, pulling them apart as if it was routine.
“Human, I appreciate that you taught my son Magi magic.”
“Oh, it was nothing.”
I was just trying to stay alive, after all.
“But if you spread word of this to humans…”
“I won’t! Never! I swear on Rai’s life I won’t!”
[Wait, me?]
“Good. I think you’re a smart human, so I’ll trust you. I owe you a small favor, so I’ll give you a gift for your journey.”
A gift!
The word “gift” really caught my attention. I’d heard dragons’ gratitude was on another scale.
A treasure hoard big enough for ten generations, or the ultimate sword made from a dragon’s claw, or feather-light, mithril-strong armor made from dragon hide.
Of course, all I did was tutor Magi, so it wouldn’t be anything that extravagant.
“You’ll need this to get out of the forest. It’s a vast place for a human.”
With her usual cool expression, Adelaide tossed me a round object I couldn’t identify.
I barely managed to catch it before it hit the ground.
“What did you give him, Mom?”
“A compass.”
Wait, that’s it?!
“Thank you, but… this compass only has a needle, no directions marked?”
Shouldn’t it at least have north, south, east, and west?
I may have a poor sense of direction, but even I know that much.
“That’s no ordinary compass. It’s the Compass of Rubao.”
Just hearing the name told me everything I needed to know.
No doubt they sacrificed something else to make this dragon magic item.
Just like Toka’s Orb, dragons viewed other races as expendable.
Are we just magical materials to you?
“Do you know of Rubao, an ancient magical beast?”
“Of course.”
“What?”
“I mean, no, I mean it’s my first time hearing of it.”
“It’s a now-extinct bird. It was said you could always hear its call, no matter where you were. It responded especially strongly to the call of the heart, so lovers used to share a pair. That compass has the soul of a Rubao inside.”
So, in a world without cell phones—or even pagers—it was a useful creature.
Looking at the compass, I wondered if I ought to make an offering to it.
“That compass doesn’t point directions—it doesn’t lead you to a place, but to a person.”
“A person…”
The compass looked quite worn.
It was a faded green overall, with a single gold needle pointing off to my right.
That was where Magi stood.
“It leads its holder to the nearest person they long for.”
“So… that means, someone who longs for me?”
“Yes. Dragons are included, of course.”
I walked toward Magi, following the needle.
I turned my body and tried facing other directions, but the compass always pointed straight at Magi.
“It wasn’t supposed to be like that, but the crafting went a little wrong. Now it only responds to longing.”
“That’s pretty amazing.”
“Still, it will lead you to someone who wants to see you, so it should be enough to get you out of the forest.
If you follow the needle, you’ll find a human who knows you.”
Someone who misses me…
Thinking about it, I couldn’t really come up with anyone right away.
Maybe my parents in this world?
They always write in their letters that they miss me. If I follow the needle, will I get out of this vast forest and see them?
Or will I reach the academy first?
“So, you can’t tell who it’ll lead to?”
“Right. Just think of it as taking you to the closest acquaintance. Maybe you’ll have a happy reunion.”
“Thank you. I’ll use it well.”
The Compass of Rubao—a curious item, not sure if it’s a blessing or not.
“But it’s just pointing at Magi right now?”
“Try touching it together with Magi. Magi, put your hand on it.”
At Adelaide’s words, Magi placed his hand on top of the compass in my hand.
Immediately, the needle spun around several times before settling in a completely different direction.
It must have found someone else who knows me and wants to see me.
“I wonder who it is.”
“You’ll find out when you go.”
I nodded slightly.
At first I thought I’d rather have a map, but I probably would’ve gotten lost anyway, so this was better.
At least I wouldn’t have to worry about losing my way while leaving the forest.
Now I was really curious who I’d end up meeting.
“Human, see you in twenty years.”
“Yes! Exactly twenty years from today.”
“Magi’s so naive. He made such a silly promise? At that rate, you’ll die before he even sees you two or three times.”
“…Hahaha!”
“Well, it’s fine. It’ll be good for Magi’s emotional growth. When a cherished pet dies, you become more mature.”
Can’t you treat me like a person?
Guess it’s pointless if you don’t see humans as people in the first place.
“It’ll also be a chance for him to learn that humans die quickly.”
“Mom! I want to do that thing with Geenie. That thing.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know! The thing where you give a treasure to a human.”
“Oh, that. Watch carefully. I’ll demonstrate, and you can try it yourself next time.”
Can’t you just let me go already? I’m not some educational animal. This is just insulting.
“Human, congratulations on surviving the dragon’s lair.”
“It is kind of impressive, right?”
“You can take as many jewels as you can carry from the treasure vault over there.”
“…Jewels!”
I take it back! Being a guinea pig for study is totally worth it!
“Fill both hands, stuff them in your clothes, whatever you want. It’s our gift to you.”
I know this!
I read about it in a fairy tale long ago. Wasn’t it the dragon’s trial?
In that story, the human even swallowed jewels, ripped clothes to bundle up gems, or floated them with magic, but couldn’t keep the magic up until returning, so ended up with nothing.
If you refused the jewels, the dragon was moved and gave you a magic pouch filled with gems—that was the story’s lesson. But I’m different.
“You’re a spirit mage, so you can use your spirit too.”
“…You won’t regret this?”
“Of course not. Dragons never break their word.”
“You won’t get mad if I take a lot, right, Lord Adelaide?”
“Do you think we’re stingy? Take as much as you can carry.”
With Adelaide’s dignified answer, I grinned broadly.
Adelaide didn’t know Rai’s basic ability was [absorption].
Well, she’d never seen it! The only thing she’d seen was Rai spitting out custom alloys. She didn’t know what a metal spirit could really do!
“Let’s go, Rai.”
[Slurp.]
Rai licked his lips.
Geenie Crowell, returning home! Rich!