Blessing from the Goddess and Transfer to Another World! ~No Thanks, I Don’t Need a Special Ability~

Chapter 76 – The Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area and The Chieftain

Author’s Note: Dora’s homeland is finally here. Various things will come to light. Some that have already been foreshadowed (kind of), and some that I totally forgot to mention before (sorry about that).

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The moment we stepped onto the Dragons’ Gate to start the transfer, the scenery in front of us changed.

However, what appeared isn’t much different from the underground ruins. If there is a difference, it’s that, unlike in the cave, there’s sunlight falling inside, and the place is much better maintained. I couldn’t tell back in the cave, since there were earthen walls surrounding the place, but the temple itself barely has any walls, and you can see the outside from the very centre.

“What the heck!? Intruders!?”

“Who are you!?”

Before we could even say anything, the man and woman pair in the room cried out, both of them seriously startled.

The man looks strong and muscular, and gives off a vibe of a seasoned warrior, while the woman is tall and has a well-toned body, which makes her look like an experienced hunter with her sharp eyes. I wonder if these two are supposed to be the gatekeepers, since they’re standing in front of the Dragons’ Gate and all…

By the way, both of them are completely naked. To the point where it looks like their natural state of being.

Come to think about it, Dora doesn’t shy away from being naked either. The two of them are obviously Dragon Newts, so maybe it’s not just Dora, but all Dragon Newts who don’t mind being naked all the time… Are they a nude tribe?

“Kya!”

“Uga!”

Sakura and Mio both shrieked and looked away. That’s not a very maiden-like scream you’ve got there, Mio.

“Wait! You are human!?”

“M-moreover, Isn’t that Shirayuki-sama with you!? Did you go outside!?”

“What!? When the heck did that happen!?”

While the man showed wariness towards us, the woman addressed Dora instead, and even called her ‘Shirayuki’. Perhaps, that’s Dora’s original name? Well, not that it matters any more. Her name is ‘Dora’ now. See? It even says so in her status. (ED: It’s not written in kanji, but it’s a homonym for ‘White Snow’)

“Dora, do you know these people?”

“Kyui~. Don’t know them~.”

The woman acted like she knew Dora, but Dora herself doesn’t seem to recognize her, …or maybe she just doesn’t remember.

By the way, Dora usually speaks only via telepathy, but it seems that all Dragon Newts in the Hidden Area actually speak in Draconic language.

“N-no way. We’ve even met twice before…”

“Two times is not that many, you know…”

The woman got dispirited, looking as if the world had come to an end. Still, just as Mio pointed out, you can’t expect a five-year-old to remember someone whom they’ve only met twice, you know. Even I probably wouldn’t remember someone like that, unless they left a strong enough impression.

“That’s not the point, they are intruders! You people! How on earth did you get here!? Why did you enter the Hidden Area!? And while you’re at it, you can also explain why Shirayuki-sama is with you!”

The man declared in a loud voice.

I guess it’s only natural to be wary when someone from another race (especially, if it’s a large group of people) suddenly invades the place where you’ve been hiding, together with a child who is supposed to have gone missing. Well, we originally came here to explain things to them, so I don’t really mind. Even if they were to suddenly attack us, I’d just parry them lightly. Well… lightly-ish.

“As for how we got here, we used the Dragons’ Gate in Narnka Kingdom, and if I had to say why, we came to visit Dora’s… Shirayuki’s home town.”

“Well, if it’s just a visit…”

“Nevertheless, you mustn’t address Shirayuki-sama so informally! Don’t forget the ‘-sama’!”

The woman must have a lot of respect for Dora, given how she complained about me addressing her without honorifics.

“No, wouldn’t it be pretty weird if I addressed my own pet using honorifics?”

“In Jin-kun’s mind, Dora is totally a pet…”

“Kyu, Kyui~! If Dora can be with Master, Dora is happy to be a pet~!”

Sakura smiled wryly, but Dora confirmed her position as my pet.

“W-w-what…!? Shirayuki-sama being someone’s pet!? And who is ‘Dora’…? No way! Did you let that human tame you, Shirayuki-sama!?”

“Don’t be stupid! There’s no way a proud member of the Dragon Emperor’s family would wag their tail in front of a mere human! It’s either a mistake, or… he must have deceived Shirayuki-sama somehow!”

“Well, that certainly sounds much more plausible…”

The man’s initial guess was actually correct, but the woman denied it, and in the end she managed to persuade him, causing the pair to turn hostile towards us.

“Kyu, Kyu! If you’re mean to Master, Dora will fight you!”

As I pondered how to respond, Dora stepped in front of me.

On a side note, when the pair turned hostile, Maria instantly reached for her swords, but she took her hands back after a moment. Maybe she decided to let Dora handle this one.

“Sh-shirayuki-sama… Why are you protecting a human!? Why did Shirayuki-sama bring strangers to the Hidden Area in the first place!? Did you forget the rules of our clan!?”

From the Dragon Newts’ point of view, it must have been no good to bring humans to the Hidden Area, but I’ve never heard a thing about it from Dora herself.

“Surely, she must have been deceived or even threatened by that person. How dare you do such a thing to Shirayuki-sama!”

The woman seems to admire Dora a lot, even if the person in question doesn’t seem to remember her…

“Kyui~? Which rule~?“

“”Huh?””

The pair got stunned. It looks like Dora either didn’t know, or totally forgot.

“Dragon Newts’ Rule No. 53: No unrelated people are allowed to enter the Hidden Area.”

As she came to her senses, the woman explained, but Dora just tilted her head.

“Kyu~? Kyukyu~. 53~? Dora only knows 51 rules~.”

“”What!?””

“You should have taught her better!”

I couldn’t help but retort.

Although it sounds like a pretty important rule, the number is far from 1. If she went missing, before being taught all the rules, it’s no wonder she doesn’t know. The fault clearly lies with the teacher on this one.

“Wait wait wait, what do you mean? Shirayuki-sama didn’t learn rule No. 53? …Then, you don’t know rule No. 52: Keep away from humans; either? What do we do now?”

“Please calm down. I know how you feel, but we shouldn’t jump to conclusions. It’s not something we can decide on by ourselves anyway.”

“R-right… Well then, let me ask you this. Did you come here to fight us?”

Having recovered from his confusion, the man turned back to us and asked.

“No, not really. At least, I’m not going to attack you guys unless I’m attacked first. Why would I attack my companion’s home town, that I came to visit in the first place…”

“R-right… I’m sorry, but could I ask you to wait here for a moment?”

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

“Then, I’ll go call the Chief.”

Saying that, the woman immediately left the Dragons’ Gate to call their patriarch.

By the way, what kind of gatekeepers are you, to take my word at face value, and even leave your post? If you’re thinking ‘I can handle them on my own’, you’re clearly nothing but foolish…

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Now then, since I have some time while I wait, let’s ask Alta about some things I’m curious about.

A: What would you like to know?

Where is the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area actually located?

You mentioned before that it’s protected by a barrier, and one can only enter through a Dragons’ Gate, but it’s not like it can’t be reached from the outside. Well, I guess, in games, such hidden areas are sometimes hidden in subspace… Still, even then, they are usually connected to somewhere in the main world. 

After we got transferred, the adjacent area became one I’m unfamiliar with, so I don’t know our current location. I wondered if Alta could tell our relative location, so I thought I’d ask. (ED: The Map can only show the current ‘area’, and the adjacent ones)

A: It is located in the centre of the Dragon Forest, which is uninhabited by humans, and located far north from Kastal and Estia.

The Dragon Forest, you say? When I looked at the adjacent region on the map, it was indeed a forest with a large number of dragons displayed. And it wasn’t just a hundred or two either. I didn’t count them because it was too much hassle, but there must have been no less than tens of thousands of them.

A: 53291 dragons, to be exact.

I didn’t really mean for you to count them… Well, it’s definitely not a place that regular people can approach.

So, the Dragon Newts live in the Hidden Area and the dragons live in the surrounding Dragon Forest. What kind of relationship do they have?

A: Most likely a hostile one. All this time, the dragons outside of the Hidden Area have been attacking the barrier. I can’t tell for sure, but given Dora’s previous attitude towards the Flame Dragon (ED: One of the bosses in Estia’s dungeon), they seem to be enemies.

Dora seemed to seriously hate that dragon, so I thought that might be the case.

So does that mean that the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area is a secret place for the Dragon Newts to hide from dragons, and that the barrier is there to keep them out?

A: That seems to be the case. Conversely, it is also possible that the Dragon Forest came to be because of the presence of the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area.

You don’t say… Hopefully we’ll be able to find out more during our stay…

Can you please tell everyone else about this?

A: Understood.

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After waiting at the Dragons’ Gate for about 15 minutes, I finally got bored, and decided to pass the time by giving Dora a piggyback ride, putting her on my lap and doing other forms of skinship. The Dragon Newt man watched us with a complicated expression.

After another 20 minutes a group of more than 10 people led by the woman from before finally arrived. All of them are similarly in their human form, but at least they are properly dressed this time around. …Well, it would be more accurate to call these loincloths, than actual clothes, but I guess it’s better than nothing.

Most of them are strong-looking men and women, with only a single old man among them. He’s probably the Chieftain.

“Kyu, Kyukyu~. Ah, Grandpa~.“

By the way, in case you forgot, Dora is an ‘Imperial Princess’, so it’s only right for the Chieftain, who’s pretty much the Dragon Newts’ equivalent of an Emperor, to be her grandfather.

“Ah, Shirayuki. Thank god you’re safe. Come, give me a hug like you always do.” 

“Kyu, Kyui~. No, Dora likes hugging Master more~.“

While I’m happy to hear that, it kind of makes me feel sorry for the Chieftain when you put it like that.

“Wha… How can that be…?”

“Ah, Chief! Please stay strong!”

“Don’t give up, Chief”

The Dragon Newts tried to encourage the utterly dejected Chieftain. I used that chance to call Sakura and Mio over.

“Mio, Sakura, these new guys are clothed, so you can look now.”

“Oh, they really are.”

“It’s true… It’s troublesome to keep your eyes closed all the time…”

“Did you keep your eyes closed all this time?”

It looks like they really didn’t want to look at the naked Dragon Newt man. Well, he’s also wearing a loincloth now, so it should be okay …kind of.

On that topic, let’s take a look at the Chieftain’s status.

Name: Ryouma
Level: 189
Gender: Male
Age: 4098
Race: Dragon Newt (Dragon of Origin)
Skills: <Draconic Magic LV6> <Body Strengthening LV10> <Flight LV10>
Title: Dragon Newts’ Emperor

ED: His race literally translates as ‘root dragon’, since he’s supposed to be the precursor of all Dragon Newts, but ‘the original dragon’ sounds a bit too gangsta…

I feel like I’ve been seeing a lot of extraordinary statuses lately. For now, let’s go through it point by point.

Firstly, the name. The Dragon Newts’ names, including Dora’s ‘Shirayuki’, the Chieftain’s ‘Ryouma’, and the names of people surrounding him all sound Japanese, and many of them are pretty old-fashioned too.

Then, the age. Suddenly, a ridiculous number appeared. At 4098 years old, he’s by far the oldest person I’ve met so far. By the way, the second contender is only 1291 years old.

The level is okay, I guess. It may seem a bit low, considering his age, but given how he’s been living in hiding all this time, it’s only natural for it not to go up as much.

Next are the skills. Although there aren’t that many, both ‘Body Strengthening’ and ‘Flight’ are already maxed-out. However, that’s not the case for ‘Draconic Magic’, which should be the trump card of the Dragon Emperor’s family. I’ve checked the statuses of a bunch of other people here, but his seems to be the highest at level 6. Dora had ‘Draconic Magic LV3’ when we first met, but could it be that she’s the abnormal one?

A: It’s very abnormal. She should be considered as a child prodigy.

My little girl is amazing!

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After a while, the Chieftain managed to pick himself back up, and spoke in such a dignified manner, you wouldn’t believe his previous exchange with Dora had actually happened.

“I’m sorry, I’ve shown you something unsightly. I’m Ryouma, the Chieftain of the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area.”

“I’m not really affiliated with anyone in particular. I’m Jin, a traveller.”

“I’m Sakura…”

“I’m Maria, Jin-sama’s slave. These two are Mio and Sera.”

“I’m Mio.”

“I’m Sera.”

He introduced himself, so we returned the courtesy. I said I was an unaffiliated traveller, though technically I do belong to the Adventurer’s Guild with my C-Rank title. Still, I haven’t done any adventurer work for a while now. I only took some simple collection requests to keep my rank from falling.

“Good. I’m sorry, but may I ask you some questions?”

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

“Then, first of all, how did you learn about the Dragons’ Gate and the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area? Did you hear about them from Shirayuki? Can you even understand Shirayuki to begin with?”

“I can’t give you any details, but I didn’t learn about the Hidden Area from Dora. I can understand her, but I also can’t tell you why.”

Even if you are Dora’s relative, I still won’t tell you about the Map and my other abilities.

“Aren’t you just avoiding the question?”

“I can’t answer. That’s my answer.”

“Well, it concerns the safety of the Hidden Area, so I have to ask about it…”

The Chieftain looked at me with some blame, but I can’t talk about things I can’t talk about. I will give you a hint though.

“I have a lot of secrets, so there are things I can’t talk about. Please think carefully about how you ask.”

“I see… Then, let me rephrase my question. Apart from the people here, how many people know about the Dragons’ Gate and the Dragon Newts’ Hidden Area?”

Apparently, the Chieftain got my hint, as he changed his question to focus on the things he actually wanted to know.

“Only the people present”, I said.

“I see. That’s a small relief, I suppose.”

The Chieftain relaxed a bit. It looks like the tension of the Dragon Newt men and women behind him has also dropped somewhat.

“Then, for my next question. You just called Shirayuki ‘Dora’, so, is it true that you tamed her?”

“That’s right. I’m Dora’s master. Dora?”

“Kyu~! That’s right~!“

“”What!?””

Dora hugged me as she said that. Some of the Dragon Newts suddenly exclaimed, and the atmosphere became tense again.

“H-how is that possible… My cute Shirayuki…”

“H-how dare you! To be so rude to the Princess of the Dragon Emperor’s family! I will crush you here and now!”

The Chieftain got dispirited again, while the Dragon Newt man by his side, who seems to be his aide, roared infuriated. He has golden eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair, which makes him look like a foreign movie star. Honestly, he’s handsome enough to play a leading role. Let’s take a look at his status.

Name: Akatsuki (ED: Homonym for ‘daybreak’)
Level: 81
Gender: Male
Age: 221
Race: Dragon Newt (Golden Dragon)
Skills: <Draconic Magic LV2> <Body Strengthening LV5> <Flight LV4>

How very subtle…

“That’s right! We must kill these human intruders at once!”

“We must rescue Shirayuki-sama as soon as possible!”

A few Dragon Newts seemed to agree with the handsome guy.

“You dare to harm Jin-sama…”

Maria muttered, while reaching for her swords. …Her eyes look serious.

“Stop that! …They are Shirayuki’s benefactors, and I must reward them for bringing her back home.”

“But!”

“Plus, I’m partially responsible for this, since I didn’t teach her all the rules. I didn’t think Shirayuki would cross the Dragons’ Gate without permission… I have to teach her better so that it doesn’t happen again in the future.”

The Chieftain tried to calm everyone down, though it looks like he’s mistaken on one key point.

“Originally, in accordance with the Dragon Newts’ rules, all humans who enter through the Dragons’ Gate are to be imprisoned for life. However, it’s our fault that Shirayuki didn’t know the rules, and it seems like you didn’t force her to bring you here. Therefore, if you release her and swear not to tell anyone about the Hidden Area, I will give you some treasures and send you back through the Dragons’ Gate. Are there any objections?”

“I’m against it, Chief! We shouldn’t make exceptions to the rules! Even if they are Shirayuki-sama’s benefactors, they should still be imprisoned! If we send them back outside, these humans are sure to break their promise!”

The Chieftain suggested a relatively mild punishment, but the handsome guy denied it outright. Looks like he’s vying for the maximum sentence of lifelong confinement in the Dragon Newt’s Hidden Area.

“Calm down. They didn’t come here with malicious intentions, so we can deviate from the rules somewhat. Also, …I’m sorry to say this, but Shirayuki seems to be very fond of him. I can’t really see him as a bad guy. What’s more, Shirayuki came back, so we don’t have to send people outside to look for her any more. Now everything can go back to normal.”

“But…!”

The Chieftain decided to defend us, but he’s still gravely mistaken on one thing. I guess I should probably clear it up now.

“Aren’t you two misunderstanding something?”

“”What?””

My remark made both the Chieftain and the handsome guy turn towards me.

“I’m not going to leave Dora here. She’s my favourite pet/body pillow.”

“Kyui~! Yay~!”

“”What the heck!?””

Dora was overjoyed by my declaration, but the Chieftain and the handsome guy both got stunned. Looks like they were both working under the assumption that Dora will stay in the Hidden Area.

“I told you from the beginning that I came to visit Dora’s home town. I never said I came to bring her back home, since this place isn’t her home any more.”

“Kyui! Dora belongs with Master~!”

Bringing her back home would mean bringing her to the place where her home is, but Dora’s home is already wherever I am.

“What kind of nonsense are you talking about! This girl, Shirayuki, will eventually succeed me and become the next Chieftain of the Hidden Area! I’m sorry, but such selfishness can never be forgiven!”

“That’s right! Shirayuki-sama is my bride! She will become the next Chieftain and I will support her! I will not allow a mere human to take her away!”

Oh, did Dora’s title of an ‘Imperial Princess’ actually mean that she’ll become the next Chieftain? Also, what’s all this about the handsome guy taking Dora as his bride… You and Me, after classes, behind the gym.

All that aside, there’s actually something I always wanted to say to Dora’s family.

“Then, why didn’t you go look for her outside of the Hidden Area? You must have known she could have gone through the Dragons’ Gate. If you sent someone to search outside, there was a good chance you might have found her.”

I never saw a single Dragon Newt outside of the Hidden Area before.

When I first found Dora, I searched the Map for other Dragon Newts to see if anyone was looking for her, but no one ever came. After that, I even asked Alta to report on any Dragon Newts she might find, but the result was always the same. In other words, it’s very likely that they never sent anyone to look for her to begin with. At that point, the option of giving Dora back to them was already off the table.

“Well, that’s because we have rules that prevent us from coming in contact with humans… We couldn’t just go outside the Hidden Area…”

The Chieftain said awkwardly. As it turns out, no one has even gone out to look for her…

“So, basically you’re saying that you prioritised the rules of the Hidden Area over Dora, and abandoned her when she went out. …Well, I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. Everyone has different priorities, but still… You abandoned her once before, and now that she’s back, you suddenly want things to go back to how they used to be, and even talk about her getting married like nothing has ever happened.”

It was due to Dora’s insufficient education by the Chieftain, that she left the Hidden Area, and it was also the Chieftain who decided not to look for her once she did. It would have been a different story if you searched for her, but couldn’t find her, but If you chose to follow your rules and abandon her instead, you no longer have the right to call yourself her parent.

I won’t allow that.

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After I finished talking, the Chieftain was the first one to speak.

“I’m sure it’s pointless to say now that I didn’t mean to abandon her. …When Shirayuki went missing, and I realised that she had likely crossed the Dragons’ Gate and went outside of the Hidden Area, I didn’t send anyone to look for her. …At that point, we all thought that Shirayuki was already lost. …There was even talk about electing another candidate for the next Chieftain…”

The Chieftain seemed to be aware that he had abandoned her, as he said with a face that looked as if he had already given up on her. Listening to his words, most Dragon Newts had equally sad expressions.

“But let me ask you this. Why did you all come here today? You said before that you came to visit Shirayuki’s home town, but since you already knew that we abandoned her, was there really any need to come?”

“Well, no, but even if you’re no longer her parent, you are still her former family. I thought you might want to know that she’s safe.”

Just as Mio said before we came here, as her current guardian, I should at least notify her next of kin. Of course, I wouldn’t go as far as to specifically look for Dora’s home town, but since we’ve already chanced upon an entrance, we might as well go in and say hello.

“Her ‘former family’, you say… That’s why you’re not ‘bringing her back home’… I’d still like to ask Shirayuki about this.”

“Kyui~? What~?”

“Do you want to stay here, or do you want to follow this person? If you choose the latter, you will never be allowed to enter the Hidden Area again.”

“Kyu~! Together with Master!”

Dora answered immediately without even taking a moment to think about it.

“Not even a pause…? I guess it can’t be helped…”

Hearing her prompt answer the Chieftain seemed to have made up his mind.

“Shirayuki, in my name as Ryouma, the Chieftain, I hereby exile you from this Hidden Area. You can never enter it again.”

“Kyui~. All right~“

Seeing how I had no intention of returning Dora, and neither did they have any right to stop her from leaving, the Chieftain had no choice but to exile Dora to at least try and save some face. 

“Humans. You are likewise prohibited from entering the Hidden Area in the future, and you must swear not to tell anyone about it.”

“Yeah, I know.”

We only came to the Hidden Area to notify Dora’s former family, so it doesn’t really matter whether we can’t visit in the future. Of course, I still wanted to do some sightseeing, but there’s little point in doing that when the people here all want us to leave. I guess we should be on our way then. And as for the promise, it’s not like we have anyone to tell about this place to begin with.

“I’m sorry about this, but given my position, you left me with no other choice.”

“Yeah, I know that too.”

In his position as the Chieftain, it’s only obvious for his options to be somewhat limited, and given how we’re pretty much a group of humans who randomly broke into this Hidden Area, I’d say his decision is pretty reasonable.

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“Please wait, Chief!

Just as we were about to come to an agreement, the handsome guy, who was standing nearby, barged in.

“What’s the matter, Akatsuki?”

“I’m still not convinced that we should hand over Shirayuki-sama to these humans!”

“Well, we’d already abandoned her, right? Can you still even call it ‘handing her over’ at this point?”

The handsome guy really didn’t want to let go of Dora. …honestly, isn’t it a little bit late for that? Then again, it looks like despite Chieftain’s high position, it’s still pretty hard for everyone else to accept his decision.

“It doesn’t matter! Shirayuki-sama is alive, and she’s back now! That’s the only thing that matters now! And since she’s back, it’s only right for her to obey the rules of the Hidden Area! The Humans must also be killed in accordance with the rules!”

“She’s not back. We just came to visit. Also, it’s pretty self-serving of you to expect her to follow the rules she’d never been taught, don’t you think?”

He still seemed confused on the whole ‘coming back home’ part, so I decided to correct him once more.

To begin with, things like rules only make sense if everyone knows them. Asking someone to obey the rules that they don’t know is a contradiction in and of itself. Also, arguing for a death sentence instead of just banning us from future entry, even though it’s all your fault that this happened (since you let Dora go outside), …isn’t that a bit too cruel compared to the Chieftain’s ruling.

“Shut up, human! To begin with, why do we even give face to some humans, who put neither us Dragon Newts, nor our rules in their eyes!? We cannot allow them to leave this place alive!”

“Well, it’s not like they intentionally broke any rules… Either way, does that mean you disagree with my decision, Akatsuki?”

*gulp*

As he said that, the Chieftain turned his gaze at the handsome guy, causing him to immediately shrink away. …So cowardly.

“Y-yes, that’s right. I disagree! These people are still intruders! For that I ask for the death penalty! No, I’m not going to wait any longer! I’ll just do it myself!”

*inhale*

The handsome guy sucked in some air to use ‘Draconic Magic’.

“Stop that! If you use ‘Draconic Magic’ here…”

“Die, humans!”

Ignoring the Chieftain’s attempt to stop him, the handsome guy breathed fire toward us.

“I won’t let you do that.”

*fizzle out*

His breath attack was easily countered by my escort #2, Sera’s hand. As expected of our ultimate anti-magic weapon.

By the way, there would have been almost no damage even if it did hit. I mean, why would I be afraid of a ‘Draconic Magic LV 2’ attack? That’s even lower than Dora’s when we first met.

Still, all the Dragon Newts looked pretty dumbfounded by what just happened.

“What the heck!? My ‘Draconic Magic’ got erased!?”

Before the handsome guy could process all that, he received a roundhouse kick to the temple from my escort #1, Maria.

“Gaaaaaaaah!!!”

Whether it was due to his uselessly high sturdiness, or Maria’s screw up, he didn’t faint right away and kept screaming in pain as he squirmed on the ground.

“Akatsuki! What have you done! Shirayuki is over there too! And what if the Dragons’ Gate got damaged!?”

“Grr…”

The Chieftain, who was the first one to come to his senses, reprimanded the handsome guy.

And as for the handsome guy, he didn’t hesitate to use his ‘Draconic Magic’, despite Dora standing right next to me. Looks like he doesn’t really care about her after all.

“Humph, everything I did was for the benefit of the Dragon Newt’s Hidden Area…”

“Enough! I’ll deal with you later. Attacking the Dragons’ Gate is a grave sin. You guys, lock him up.”

“”Yes!””

“U-unhand me! I only wanted to…”

The handsome guy tried to make excuses, but the Chieftain knocked him out with a single blow. Two muscular men grabbed him by the arms and carried him away.

“…Hah, I’m sorry. My subordinate acted stupidly. And thank you for protecting the Dragons’ Gate. But still, to cancel out ‘Draconic Magic’…”

The Chieftain expressed his apologies and gratitude. He also seems pretty interested in Sera who was able to counter a ‘Draconic Magic’ attack.

“I didn’t really have to counter it, right?”

“Yeah, we didn’t even have to dodge really.”

Sera and Mio exchange some pretty hurtful comments (for the handsome guy).

“Still, I wouldn’t want my clothes to get burnt… Thank you, Sera-chan…”

“Right, our clothes would still get damaged. Thank you.

“You are welcome.”

Looks like the girls were worried about their clothes getting damaged, rather than themselves getting hurt. At this point, the handsome guy’s full strength attack is basically no different from some cloth-eating bugs. Doesn’t that make him nothing more than a bug in their eyes?

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Backstory – Dragon Newts

The Dragon Newts are a race of people who can change into two forms: dragon and human. Despite that, they are still considered monsters, and the skill level required to tame them is determined by the strength of their dragon form. They aren’t created from miasma, but rather reproduce normally. Their lifespan is usually around 2000 years, but some individuals of specific dragon species are said to live for 4,000 – 5,000 years. Regardless of the parents’ species, their children’s dragon form will always be of a higher dragon species. On that topic, the term ‘higher dragon species’ refers to monsters that can use ‘Dragon Breath’ (Dragon Newts use ‘Draconic Magic’ instead) like Dora’s Feather Dragon or Flame Dragon. Serpents, Basilisks and Salamanders, that have shapes similar to dragons, but can’t use ‘Dragon Breath’ are all classified as lesser dragon species. In fact, the term ‘higher dragon species’ was already mentioned as far back as chapter 7, but it was never explained until now. Sorry about that.

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Author’s Note: Many people may disagree with what Jin said in this chapter, so here are some key points behind his reasoning:

– There is no obligation to return children to people who don’t do their duty as parents (selling them as slaves, not looking for them when they go missing, etc.).

– Rules are only meaningful if they are made public. There’s no point in having rules if they aren’t known to everyone.