[V12C25] Answers

Theodore held Gluttonous Zoe firmly above his stomach, gazing absentmindedly at the sea.

The dragon-infested port was illuminated by the morning sun, coloring the water with the sparkling of their scales. Occasionally, a few of the water dragons would emerge from the surface and roar.

Theodore felt the urge to wave at the dragons, but he decided against it because he wanted to hold onto Gluttonous Zoe with both hands.

Meanwhile, the lid of Gluttonous Zoe was slightly open, releasing the accumulated mana in the form of a black mist. This mist expanded to cover the ground at Theodore’s feet, growing thicker as time passed.

Theodore took a deep breath of the mana-dense sea breeze and smiled.

Once this mana reached a certain concentration, the summoning of the gate would commence, fulfilling his one and only desire.

Theodore wanted to begin the summoning procedure earlier, but his plan had to be pushed back after Gluttonous Zoe devoured the Star Arrow spell.

(Moni-Moni used some pretty outrageous magic. She’s as scary as Carla.)

Devouring such a powerful spell proved to be quite a burden, even for Gluttonous Zoe. This was especially true since light magic was the antithesis of the artifact’s dark magic.

Originally, Theodore had intended to summon the gate using the large amount of mana gathered from the black rain. However, the unexpected setback from the Star Arrow forced him to wait additional time for recovery.

If another spell like the Star Arrow came at him, the box wouldn’t be perform the same trick again.

(Come on, come on, I want to see you again.)

Gluttonous Zoe was still trembling slightly. Samuel Throth, who had been granted a portion of the artifact’s powers, was apparently struggling against a formidable foe.

Presumably, the mages of Sazandol were desperate to break through the blockade, and launched a coordinated assault against him.

Theodore had already given Throth a considerable amount of mana and shadows. Now that the summoning of the gate was drawing near, Throth needed to handle the rest on his own.

(Hold on for a bit. Just a little bit longer. Come on…)

Suddenly, he heard footsteps from behind. Who could it be at a time like this? If anyone intended to interfere, they would need to be eliminated.

Theodore turned around to see a blond young man approaching him. He was tall, unarmed, and wore an eyepatch over his right eye.

“Hey.”

The young man gave Theodore a casual greeting.

Though he looked intimidating, his voice was friendly and gentle.

“I take it you are Theodore Maxwell?” asked the man.

“I’m just plain old Theodore.”

“Right, of course. Because you’re…”

The man with the eyepatch cut off his words for some reason.

Theodore felt a bit uneasy about this situation. What if the man suddenly attacked him? However, the man simply continued in the same friendly tone as earlier.

“I’d like to talk to you for a bit.”

“Sure, that’s fine.”

Theodore had always enjoyed talking.

It was a bit too embarrassing to initiate a conversation with a person you just met, but he was genuinely happy to have someone wanting to talk to him.

There was still time until they could summon the gate, so this was a welcome proposal. Theodore nodded at the man, who smiled and replied…

“I thank you for accepting my offer… Phantom Dragon of Pistraune.”

＊　＊　＊

Phantom Dragon of Pistraune. Theodore seemed confused, not understanding what Isaac was referring to.

“Pistraune? …What’s that?” Theodore asked.

His response only confirmed Isaac’s suspicions.

Eight years ago, a luxury cruise ship sank in the waters of Pistraune. The culprit of the incident was an unidentified dragon.

Any magical creature biologist worth his salt should know about this event.

Isaac observed the location of Gluttonous Zoe, which was secured firmly above Theodore’s stomach. As long as Theodore held it there, it would be difficult to retrieve.

Thus, Isaac needed to unsettle Theodore and divert his attention away from Gluttonous Zoe.

“Twelve years ago, a dragonling was discovered at the Minerva Institute for Mages. The magical biologist Theodore Maxwell identified it as the offspring of a red dragon, so he released it into the Dalsmore mountain range.”

Isaac changed to a different subject, and his words brought a smile to Theodore’s lips.

“Oh, that brings back memories.”

Both Theodore’s tone and smile indicated that he wasn’t lying. These memories were genuinely nostalgic to him.

“But then, that dragonling ended up remembering the human who saved it…” Isaac continued. “In hopes of meeting him again, it continued wandering the Dalsmore mountains instead of returning to dragon territory.”

Once Theodore Maxwell realized this, he attempted to persuade the dragonling to go back into dragon territory.

These events were documented in Theodore Maxwell’s diary, which was discovered in the forests of Dalsmore. Over a period of four years, the biologist visited Dalsmore repeatedly, making contact with the dragonling.

It did not describe his exact actions. Perhaps he tried to convince it through words, or maybe he acted cruel to drive it off.

Either way, Theodore Maxwell ultimately developed an attachment to the dragonling, and sensing that, the dragonling became fond of him in turn.

“Man, that was so fun…” Theodore muttered. “Maybe even the happiest I’ve ever been. A time as precious as any treasure.”

Those words triggered an intense anger within Isaac, but he quickly suppressed it.

A time as precious as any treasure? Isaac had learned the despair that came with losing something so precious when he lost his friend Arc.

…Such was the mistake that led Isaac and Theodore astray. Both of them clung onto memories that needed to let go.

“Eight years ago,” Isaac continued. “A dragon was sighted in Dalsmore, and the Dragon Knights were dispatched to investigate.”

Four years had given the dragonling time to grow. It was no longer small enough to be called a baby. As a result, the humans eventually discovered it, prompting the Dragon Knights into action.

Moreover, the man in command was Dunning, a supporter of the radical faction that utterly despised dragons.

Theodore Maxwell did his best to persuade Dunning to spare the dragon. However, Dunning noticed that he was harboring the dragon, and decided to use him as bait to lure it out.

What happened next was still unclear.

This was where Isaac’s speculation came into play. Perhaps Theodore Maxwell got into a struggle with, or was trying to escape from Dunning. In the midst of that, what if he slipped and fell off a cliff, suffering heavy injuries?

And once Dunning departed, what if the dragon who adored Theodore Maxwell found him in this state?

“Greater dragons can transform into what they devour.”

Isaac locked eyes with the man before him. From underneath the messy bangs, Theodore’s golden eyes stared right back at Isaac.

“…You are the dragon that devoured Theodore Maxwell and took his form.”

Theodore had done the exact same thing that Isaac did: after losing the one most precious to him, he assumed that person’s form to become their replacement.

Isaac had become Felix, intending to carve the prince’s name into history.

The dragon had become Theodore, seeking a way to reunite with his lost friend.

(…Ah, this feels so infuriating.)

That was why Isaac could understand Theodore’s exact line of thinking. It came so naturally.

“You knew about the existence of the ancient artifact, Gluttonous Zoe. Perhaps the real Theodore was the one who told you?”

“Yeah. Theodore told me an old story about a wish-granting box.”

The dragon believed that this box would allow him to see Theodore again.

Thus, he transformed into a small animal or bird, infiltrated the royal treasure vault, and stole Gluttonous Zoe.

However, Gluttonous Zoe was sealed, and many humans were sent to chase him down.

Theodore could not hold onto the small box if he returned to dragon form, so he used a human or animal form to slip onto a ship and escape.

That happened to be the luxury cruise ship Evangeline.

“After fleeing onboard that ship… Perhaps you accidentally dropped Gluttonous Zoe into the sea?” Isaac asked.

“No way. The other guys realized I was stowing away for free and took Gluttonous Zoe from me… They beat me up and tossed me into the sea.”

“…I see.”

It seems the cruise ship had some unruly passengers.

Either way, the dragon returned to his original form underneath the ship, causing the Evangeline to topple over and sink. This was the truth behind the elusive Phantom Dragon of Pistraune.

As a result, Gluttonous Zoe also fell into the sea.

“For the next eight years… You scoured the bottom of the ocean for Gluttonous Zoe, didn’t you?”

“Eight years? Not sure about that, but it took a long time and was really tough. When I finally spotted it stuck between the wreckage of the ship and some rocks, I practically jumped for joy.”

It was only natural that the culprit who stole Gluttonous Zoe evaded detection for eight years. After all, he had been wandering the ocean floor in dragon form the entire time.

That rumor about the Phantom Dragon of Pistraune constantly roaming the sunken ship to monopolize its treasures… it wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Then, last autumn, you found Gluttonous Zoe and came ashore in search of a way to break the seal.”

In order to do so, Theodore had to blend in with humans.

Thus, he took a job from the Anderson Company as a cargo handler in the port town of Talia.

On the subject of the Anderson Company, their most famous invention was the refrigerated carriages that employed ice magic. By cooling the interior of these carriages, they could preserve the freshness of food.

“You were loading cargo onto a refrigerated carriage… But there, you succumbed to the cold and ended up hibernating, right?”

“Oh yeah! I got sooo sleepy. Before I knew it, I was dozed off on top of some crates. I had to force myself up when we arrived in Sazandol. I barely managed to get off the carriage, but I still couldn’t stay awake…”

And so, Theodore took shelter in a nearby warehouse to escape the northern wind, going into hibernation there.

Theodore’s trail had gone cold in the port town of Talia, and there was a several month gap until early spring, when he was spotted in Sazandol. This was because he had been hibernating through the winter.

There was no longer any room for doubt. Theodore had to be a greater dragon.

Isaac had placed the scale from Theodore Maxwell’s knapsack into Silas’s dragon detector, and the device indicated the location of the man in front of him.

Above all, Theodore himself admitted to being a dragon.

However, there was still more to this mystery.

“…That explains everything except for two points of interest,” Isaac continued.

Theodore tilted his head, completely engrossed in the conversation. The arms holding Gluttonous Zoe loosened slightly.

Just a bit more. Isaac kept his eyes fixed on Theodore and Gluttonous Zoe as he explained.

“The first is regarding the barriers on the treasure vault where Gluttonous Zoe was stored. How did you nullify them? As for the second… red dragons are unable to swim in saltwater.”

That said, Isaac already knew of a certain dragon that would resolve both of these doubts.

It was a dragon who possessed the ability to breathe flames capable of incinerating everything in existence, including the most powerful barriers.

In addition, it could go for a refreshing swim in the ocean.

Why could it destroy the barrier on the vault but not the seal on Gluttonous Zoe? Because its fiery breath would burn Gluttonous Zoe to a crisp as well.

“Twelve years ago, the magical biologist Theodore Maxwell told a lie.”

The Society of Magical Creature Biologists recommends returning any discovered dragonlings to their habitat immediately. This applies to all dragons… except for First-Class Dangerous Species.

Theodore realized that the dragonling was a First-Class Dangerous Species, but he lied because he couldn’t bear to kill it.

“Humans label dragons by a combination of their species and location of first discovery. In which case, I will call you…”

Isaac declared the true identity of the man in front of him.

“…The Black Dragon of Minerva.”

That explains the title of Gaiden V5C1.

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