S Rank Boukensha de aru Ore no Musume-tachi wa Juudo no Father Con deshita

Chapter 42: Decisive Battle

The next morning.

We set off for Duego Volcano.

After talking with Anna last night, I secretly made up my mind.

Let's tell Elsa and Meryl the truth.

But not now.

If I tell the girls the truth now, I'm sure I'll upset them. It would be a hindrance to the battle against the Ancient Dragon.

That's why……

I'll talk about it again when this battle is over and I've calmed down.

We arrived at the Duego Volcano just before noon.

I've been to this place several times when I was an adventurer, but today it was filled with an unusual amount of miasma.

……No doubt. He'll be here.

That's when it happened.

An evil roar echoed through the sky.

The atmosphere trembles.

「Aa! Papa! Look!」

I looked in the direction Anna was pointing.

A huge black shadow flies from the crater of the volcano.

Golden eyes that shine eerily. Thick scarlet scales.

A huge, intimidating physique. Its claws are sharp and its tail is packed with muscles.

I'll never forget.

How could I forget.

The figure that had been burned into my retina for 17 years.

Ancient Dragon.

It took off from the crater flew straight at us. When he landed on the ground, he looked down at us from a great height.

(Note: Anyone else got Fatalis from Monster Hunter series vibe?)

「Did it know we were here?」

『Of course. This is my garden. I can sense when someone with your kind's power steps into it.』

「This monster…… is capable of speaking human languages.」

Yes……

The Ancient Dragon is a highly intelligent monster.

『……You're the adventurer from back then.』

「You remember me?」

『You're the only adventurer who has ever driven me to that point in my life. So you've come for a rematch of that time.』

「Yeah. I'm gonna get you today.」

『Hmm. Is it really that easy? By the looks of you, you're getting old. Your prime as an adventurer must have passed by now.』

The Ancient Dragon sneered.

『For me, a decade or so is but a blink of an eye, but not for a human. I don't think you can beat me with a body that's past its prime.』

「That's true when I'm on my own, I guess. But…… I have a family now. With everyone's help, I'm sure we can defeat you.」

『Interesting. Then…… let me show you my power!』

The Ancient Dragon shouted stoutly and breathed out flames.

The terrifying fires that burned down my daughters' home village.

It's going to burn us to the bone.

But……

「Water splash!」

The advanced water attribute magic that Meryl had invoked stopped the flames. The whirlpool of compressed water canceled out the flames and turned into a mist.

「Mufufu…♪ It's easy for me to stop a flame♪ Papa. Please praise me a lot!」

「Haha. When this fight is over.」

『Hou…… Sounds like a wizard who can do a little. But…… as long as you finish them off before they can activate their magic, they're nothing!』

He swung his huge claws down on Meryl.

Elsa, standing in front of Meryl, caught it with her sword. She blocked all the claw strikes that were coming from all directions.

「Papa! Now's your chance! Ancient dragons have high magic resistance, but lightning magic is relatively easy to pass!」

Anna sends her advice from the carriage.

I'm sure she has been studying the literature on Ancient Dragons for today. On that basis, she derived their weaknesses.

Meryl and I set up a magic attack.

As soon as Meryl shot water bullets into the body of the Ancient Dragon, I immediately showered it with lightning magic.

『Guaaaaaaaaa!?』

Good. It's definitely working.

I could barely keep it even on my own.

But……

The whole family has the upper hand by fighting together.

Elsa and I stand in the front line, and Meryl fires magic one after another from the rear guard. Anna gives us a bird's eye view and sends us instructions.

Slowly but surely, the Ancient Dragon's vitality was being drained.

Its movements, which had been agile at the start of the battle, began to slow down, and with each attack, the thick scales that had functioned as an absolute shield began to peel off.

Elsa's sword slices through his hard claws.

I severed the tail, and the formation solidified.

『Impossible…… This can't be…… I'm not going to be pushed around by a human……! There's no way I'm going to be able to fight off this much power and manpower……!』

「Haaaaa!」

Elsa's ripping blow broke his center of gravity.

「Chance♪」

Meryl activated her earth magic, and the thorns that crawled out of the ground entwined around the whole body of the Ancient Dragon, restraining it.

The Ancient Dragon struggled to shake it off, but it could not escape.

Right now, a chance of a lifetime had just landed.

「Father! Now!」

「Papa! Do it!」

「Uoooooooooo!」

I kicked the ground with a shout and flew high into the air.

I swung my clenched sword over my head as if I were offering it to the heavens.

Seventeen years have passed since that day.

I never forgot you, not even once.

I've been storing in my heart all the regrets and conflicts I've had from failing to defeat you.

Now I'll unleash it all.

「This is the end!」

I thrust my sword, which contains all my thoughts, into the top of the Ancient Dragon's head.

I smashed through the hard scales.

It pierces from the top of the brain to the tip of the chin in one fell swoop.

『Gaa……!?』

The Ancient Dragon let out a grunt.

There was a definite response.

The Ancient Dragon swayed limply and fell to the ground. It was full of majesty and power, as if a mountain was about to collapse.

It was long.

I've been waiting for this day for a long time.

Finally, I was able to break the chains of the past.

「This time, it's my…… No, it's our win.」

I pointed the tip of my sword at the Ancient Dragon's throat.

He was already dying. Even if I left him alone, he would probably die soon. But the light behind his eyes was still strong.

The Ancient Dragon glanced over at the girls.

『Your comrade there…… Could they be the survivors of the village I burned to the ground that day……?』

「Yeah, That's right.」

『What a mess…… I also failed to defeat…… I couldn't stop the girls from breathing……』

「……What do you mean?」

『I have awakened from my long sleep because they were born. I raided that village to kill them. It was my duty.』

「Wha……!?」

Until now, I had thought that I had awakened the Ancient Dragon by engaging in a fierce battle with a wyvern.

But……

Was it to kill my daughters when they were just babies?

The Ancient Dragon said.

『They're supposed to be…… never meant to be born.』

What?

「Oi! What do you mean!?」

『You'll know it sooner or later. As long as you live in this world.』

When the body of the Ancient Dragon emits light, it turns into particles and returns to the sky.

No matter how much I called out, it was useless.

When I came to, there was nothing left in the area.

「Father. You seemed to be talking about something.」

「Tell us about it too.」

「It's nothing……」

I achieved my long-held dream of defeating the Ancient Dragon.

It lifted the stagnation in my heart. But instead, a new lump was born.

The words of the Ancient Dragon at the end……

What is that supposed to mean?