Is it just me, or is the weather unusually bad today?

It was as if there was a massive hole in the sky, with so much snow falling that it was hard to see the sky when I looked up.

If this world were like a country obsessed with religion, people would be panicking, claiming that the gods were angry.

But I was standing on a cliff with natural overhangs carved out in places, acting like rain shields, preventing the snow from falling directly here. Thanks to that, I had a clear view of everything happening in front of me.

Swish! Swish!

The sound was reminiscent of the noise my father used to make when sharpening his knife before cleaning the fish he’d caught, though now it echoed more absurdly in my ears.

This was the sound of Astie, my devoted maid who would risk her life for me, clashing blades with the Dragon Slayer.

Astie moved with grace and speed, even while fighting against the Dragon Slayer.

Her movements were far from those of an ordinary child. Considering how difficult it was for me to resist her strength when she tried to stab me before, it made sense that she was holding her own in this fight.

“Astie! Roll to the side!”

Without a word, Astie followed my command, narrowly dodging the Dragon Slayer’s fan that was aimed at her neck.

The Dragon Slayer, a powerful Outer God, frowned and glared at Astie. Perhaps the combination of her own instincts and my instructions was creating a synergistic effect.

Even so, Astie’s skill with her dagger, which seemed like a form of performance art, was beyond belief.

“Such petty tricks…!”

But her opponent was an Outer God, after all.

As a human, Astie would struggle to truly stand against the Dragon Slayer.

“What are you, to dare interfere with me?!”

The Dragon Slayer’s voice was filled with annoyance, but Astie continued to swing her blade at her without showing any signs of being intimidated.

Typically, when an Outer God raises their voice, people cover their ears or suffer mental anguish.

But Astie?

She remained calm, moving around the Dragon Slayer, looking for an opening to land a meaningful blow.

Is this the peak of human capability?

Even White Mask had shown a lack of resistance to the roars of an Outer God.

Just what kind of being are you, Astie?

“Now, Astie!”

At my command, Astie leapt toward the Dragon Slayer. The Dragon Slayer predicted her trajectory and swung her fan, but it turned out to be a poor choice.

Astie, as if she had anticipated this, pushed off the ground and changed direction in an instant.

“What…?!”

The Dragon Slayer was startled as Astie closed the distance in a flash. She opened her mouth, and in that brief moment, the same kind of sphere that the dragon maids had fired formed.

Pshooo!

A rainbow-colored beam shot straight at Astie.

Fortunately, Astie was already in the process of shifting her body to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack.

This was an almost impossible feat for a human to pull off.

Yes, by human standards.

“Guh…!”

The Dragon Slayer took advantage of the brief opening created by her own beam and swung her hand at Astie, striking her shoulder directly.

Astie’s body was thrown a great distance by the force of the blow.

“Astie!”

Seeing Astie tumble and roll away, I tried to run to her side, but I couldn’t.

The Dragon Slayer was still watching me and slowly advancing.

“Enough. You’ve caused me enough trouble, so I’ll be administering your punishment myself! Now, come with me.”

I didn’t know what kind of punishment she had in mind that was making her face turn red, but that wasn’t my concern right now.

How was I going to get past her?

Astie was curled up, clearly in pain.

It would take her some time to get back on her feet.

The Dragon Slayer was now just a few steps away, close enough to grab me.

She reached out to seize my collar.

“D-Don’t touch Tanton!”

Muyun’s desperate scream rang out, and her axe came down on the Dragon Slayer’s arm.

“Eek!”

The Dragon Slayer yelped in surprise, quickly pulling her arm back, causing Muyun’s axe to slam into the ground instead.

Boom!

A massive noise, like a boulder falling from the cliff, reverberated through the area, shaking the ground beneath me.

Muyun, unaffected, raised her axe again and, gritting her teeth, swung it at the Dragon Slayer.

“Hyaah!”

Bzzt! Bzzt!

The impact of Muyun’s axe against the Dragon Slayer’s fan created a strange effect, almost like something out of a comic book.

Her natural talent as a knight was showing.

While she wasn’t overpowering the Dragon Slayer like White Mask had for a moment, she was holding her own.

“Y-You’re not going to have your way!”

Drops of water were falling around Muyun, which, upon closer inspection, seemed to be connected to the corners of her eyes. She was still gripped by fear.

The mental and physical exhaustion, the fear—everything was weighing heavily on her.

It seemed that the only thing keeping her moving was her determination to protect me.

What a heartbreaking and noble sacrifice this was.

“Muyun…”

White Mask, watching this, murmured with a voice filled with sorrow and regret.

I could guess that her feelings mirrored my own.

Maybe even more so.

After all, things had escalated to this point partly because of White Mask’s impulsive actions.

But I understood her position.

She had lost her face, her subordinates, her comrades.

Losing all those memories alone would be enough to ruin someone’s life, but to top it off, the train that held all those memories had been blown up.

I thought it was impressive that White Mask was managing to hold it together at all.

Crash!

A loud collision echoed, and Muyun’s body was suddenly lifted into the air.

“Ahh!”

In the end, it seemed Muyun couldn’t hold out any longer. She landed softly on the snow beside White Mask, grimacing in pain before closing her eyes.

“Muyun!”

I called her name loudly, but she didn’t respond.

She must have finally succumbed to the overwhelming fatigue.

“…You almost scratched my noble body. Why do humans go out of their way to torment me?!”

The Dragon Slayer complained as she stomped towards me with heavy footsteps.

I tried to move, but she quickly closed the distance and grabbed my wrist.

Her grip was strong.

It seemed impossible to break free with pure strength.

“Guh.”

“I’ve finally caught you, you slippery little thing. Now…”

I didn’t know why she was suddenly more interested in capturing me than killing me, but…

Once again, things didn’t go as the Dragon Slayer intended.

“Damn it…!”

Thanks to Muyun buying time, Astie had regained her strength.

Astie swung her blade at the Dragon Slayer’s arm, forcing her to let go of me, and then quickly grabbed my waist and retreated far back.

The Dragon Slayer, now visibly furious, couldn’t even speak. Her face was bright red.

“A-Astie… You saved me…”

But when I looked at Astie to thank her, I was taken aback.

Her once dull eyes had turned a bright, fiery red.

“A-Astie…?”

“Master, please listen to what I’m about to say.”

Astie began walking forward slowly.

“After you see what I’m about to do, all you need to do is finish the job. I will likely… collapse.”

As Astie said this, she raised her blade again, and for some reason, it began to glow with a red aura.

“And…”

Astie glanced back at me.

Though her face was still expressionless, her eyes held a look that seemed filled with irony and sorrow.

“The things I’ve done, the things I’m about to show you… I’m sure you’ll end up hating me. But please… don’t despise me.”

With that, Astie charged at the Dragon Slayer.

“Y-You! That power…!”

The Dragon Slayer was suddenly taken aback.

Astie brought her blade down hard.

At that moment, the very space around us seemed to shatter.

A red force distorted the space, expanding and closing in on the Dragon Slayer.

The Dragon Slayer tried to retreat, frowning, but the overwhelming power coiled around her waist.

“Let go of me!”

The Dragon Slayer twisted and turned, trying to break free, but she couldn’t move.

The red force began to solidify.

In my eyes, that red energy transformed into a giant, pale, white hand.

“Grrr…”

Even Bell, who was always so cheerful, started growling warily at the sight of that hand, ready to pounce at any moment.

But the white hand, intent on fulfilling its mission, grabbed the Dragon Slayer and lifted her high into the air.

Smash!

The hand then slammed the Dragon Slayer into the ground.

“Guh…!”

I was startled to hear the Dragon Slayer’s voice filled with pain for the first time.

After delivering that one powerful attack, the white hand crumbled into dust and vanished.

What on earth did Astie summon?

What is Astie…?

I’d have to ask her once this was all over.

For now, I couldn’t let this opportunity slip by.

“Let’s go, Bell!”

“Woof!”

Confirming that the ominous energy had dissipated, I charged toward the Dragon Slayer.

I jumped onto her as she lay on the ground.

“Grr…”

The Dragon Slayer, her face contorted with frustration, glared up at me as I prepared to channel Bell’s power to its fullest.

Yes, it seemed those horns were her weak point.

That’s why she reacted so sensitively to them.

If I pushed Bell’s power to its limit, I might be able to break the horns.

So I grabbed hold of them, but…

“Eek…!”

…?

A strange sound made me raise an eyebrow and look down at the Dragon Slayer. I saw her face, now filled with embarrassment.

What… what is this?

Thinking I must have misheard, I rubbed my thumb along her horn to check.

“D-Don’t touch me… like that…”

…Uh.

Right.

How should I even describe this situation?

The once dignified Dragon Slayer was now lying beneath me, biting her lip, her face flushed as she turned her head to the side.

Almost like a shy woman on her wedding night!

All I did was touch her horns!

“Uh, excuse me…”

“W-What is it?! Are you planning to do to me what you did to my loyal servants? If so, then hurry up and do it!”

Did she… see everything?

If she saw everything, why is she reacting like this?

Her bewildering behavior left me utterly confused.

This is really starting to make me feel like I’m forcing myself on her.

“…Hmph, you only petted my head…”

What is Bell talking about now?

I’m already feeling weird, so just be quiet, Bell!

Anyway…

If I were Leydan Tanton, I might have been excited and gone for it here, but I’m not that kind of guy.

I prefer to resolve things through conversation, if possible.

I don’t like using force!

Fortunately, the Dragon Slayer’s gaze and demeanor seemed much more subdued than before.

Maybe we could have a conversation now?

“…It’s not like that. I just… wanted to talk to you.”

“W-What?! You came all this way… just to talk…?”

The Dragon Slayer’s eyes widened in surprise at my words, and her expression shifted in a way that was almost amusing to watch.

First, a look of intense irritation.

Then, a contemplative expression.

Finally, her face took on a shadowed look as if she had reached a conclusion.

At last, she seemed to have decided.

“…Hehehe. So that’s what it was. You’re softer than I thought.”

The Dragon Slayer gently pushed me away as she stood up, and I kept my grip on her horns just in case she attacked.

Seeing this, she blushed and spoke.

“I-I won’t attack you anymore, so please let go of this.”

Could I really trust her?

But then again, I still hadn’t used Bell’s power to its full extent, so I could strike if things went wrong.

With that thought, I cautiously released my grip on her horns. The Dragon Slayer stood up and walked toward a piece of ice, which had been smoothed down to make a seat.

With a snap of her fingers, a drake appeared out of nowhere and quickly draped three layers of cloth over the ice.

I stared blankly at the scene, and the Dragon Slayer, now seated on the ice, spoke.

“What are you doing? Didn’t you say you wanted to talk?”

…What is it about those horns that made her so docile after I touched them?

I’ll have to investigate that when I look into ‘her.’