In the early days of December, with powdery snow fluttering around, we gathered in the garden of the imperial residence in the capital.
It was a day off from work, and everyone had assembled at the mansion. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I wanted to try something I had been wanting to do for a while.
Despite my insistence that it was harmful to their bodies, Rico and Mei, both with big bellies, defied my instructions to stay indoors and came outside. Naturally, I had set up a barrier to absorb any impact in case they fell and to maintain a constant temperature.
And a little distance away from us was Soleil. She was currently gathering MP throughout her body, preparing to concentrate on her incantation.
Since we had become a married couple, Soleil’s spirit magic skill level had reached its maximum. While she had been summoning forest spirits until now, with her level increase, she would be able to contract with even higher-level spirits. It was decided that she would temporarily nullify the contracts with the spirits she had previously formed agreements with and attempt to contract with a new spirit.
I worried about what would happen if she failed to contract with a higher-level spirit, but it seemed my concerns were unfounded. Once a spirit had been contracted, there was a high possibility they would contract again. Soleil and the forest spirits had developed a good relationship thus far, so that aspect was likely not an issue.
Since a while ago, Soleil had been taking deep breaths while extending both hands forward. It seemed she was focusing her magic power in her lower abdomen. Wondering what she was trying to accomplish by concentrating her magic power there, Soleil began her incantation.
“نا حبك نا حبك نا حبك نا حبك ساعدني ساعدني ساعدني هيا هي ساعدنيا…” (T/N: In arabic, this is what I got “Na hubbuk, na hubbuk, na hubbuk, na hubbuk, sa’edni, sa’edni, sa’edni, hia, hi, sa’edniya”)
…I had no idea what she was saying. The magic power accumulated in Soleil’s lower abdomen flowed into her hands. And a magic circle appeared in front of both her hands. It was quite large. Then, it slowly descended to the ground.
“Come forth before me!”
Soleil’s resolute voice resounded through the winter sky. At that moment, a dazzling light emitted from the magic circle.
“Soleil!”
Soleil, who had released all her magic power, collapsed, completely drained. Despite the winter cold, sweat was trickling down her face. I quickly replenished her with magic power.
“Are you alright, Soleil?”
“…I’m fine… But…the spirit…”
I looked around, but I couldn’t see anything.
“…I can’t see anything at all.”
“…I’m sorry. It seems the summoning failed.”
Soleil slumped down, crestfallen. I motioned for everyone outside to enter the mansion. I carried Soleil in a princess carry, with Rico’s permission, of course.
“Well, I never expected the summoning to fail. Is this something that happens often?”
We sat in the dining room of the mansion, eating zenzai, a sweet red bean soup with roasted mochi inside. The slightly burnt mochi paired well with the zenzai.
Soleil seemed to be deeply shocked as she didn’t touch the zenzai at all.
“Well, don’t be so down. Even if it didn’t work this time, you can try again. But for now, eat up. The zenzai will get cold, you know?”
“Yes…”
“By the way, Mei-sama, it’s quite impressive that you were requested to form a contract by a spirit.”
Gon spoke while munching on the mochi. Mei smiled and replied, “Oh no, it’s just a coincidence. The spirit Soleil summoned this time was probably of a considerably high rank, right?”
Soleil slowly put down the zenzai she was eating and looked at Mei.
“Yes, that’s right. I summoned a divine-ranked spirit.”
“Divine-ranked?”
I couldn’t help but raise my voice in astonishment.
“Hey, Soleil, are you sure you’re okay? Don’t summon any strange gods, alright?”
Soleil looked surprised and shook her head vigorously.
“No, don’t worry. I won’t summon any evil gods or anything like that.”
“Well, you know, there are various kinds of gods, right? Like the god of plague… the god of poverty… the god of death…”
“Master! Talking about the god of death is such bad luck!”
…I was scolded by Gon. I felt dejected and apologized in a small voice. For some reason, everyone burst into laughter.
“Well, since nothing happened, let’s just leave it at that. I made plenty of zenzai, so help yourselves to seconds! We still have mochi left, so eat up. So, how is it? Is it delicious?”
“It’s delicious!”
“It’s amazing!”
“It’s really delicious!”
“Delicious!”
“It looks so good!”
…Is there something I’m missing? I looked around the dining table. Rico, Peyris, Gon, Mei, Ferris, Matokal, Luala, Fairi (T/N: Changing her name to sound a little different form fairy), the child, Considy, Soleil… Huh? Child?… Who is that?
For some reason, there was a child with pure white skin and hair, standing there. Their eyes were large with green irises. Additionally, they were wearing a robe-like attire, typical of a mage, which was also white.
“That looks delicious. Feed me too!”
“…Who are you?”
In a daze, Fairi suddenly flew into my chest. Wondering what was going on, I held her in my arms, and she trembled.
“Fairi, what’s wrong?”
『Auh… Ahh… Ahh, au…』
She seemed confused, and I couldn’t understand the telepathic message coming from Fairy.
“…Oh, it seems that dragon understands me.”
Generally, I have a barrier set up around this mansion that prevents anyone with ill intentions or hostile feelings from getting close. Although this child had a tongue-twisting way of speaking, the fact that they passed through my barrier raised considerable suspicion.
“…Who are you?”
As I said that, I activated my appraisal skill on the child. In an instant, everything went pitch black, and a deafening explosion echoed in my head.
“Uaaaaaaaahhhhhh!”
I held my head in pain, crouching down involuntarily. Everyone around me was shouting my name, but I couldn’t focus on that. It felt like my head was about to explode. I terminated the appraisal. Instantly, cold sweat dripped from my entire body.
“Oh, so you appraised me, huh? You guys are tough. Normally, it would explode, but you managed.”
Although their tone was nonchalant, what they said was unbelievable. Wiping away my sweat, I continued speaking.
“…Who are you?”
The white child showed a surprised expression.
“Didn’t you summon me? That’s why I went through the trouble of taking this form.”
“Um… Who exactly are you?”
“I am the Divine Dragon.”
“What?! No way!”
Soleil, who stood up in astonishment, dropped the zenzai bowl she was holding, her mouth wide open. Upon closer inspection, Ferris seemed to have lost his strength and slumped down.
“A… Divine Dragon… Could it be…”
“I am the Divine Dragon.”
“Wowwwww! I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Soleil’s voice echoed as she stood up. She still held the bowl of zenzai, completely flabbergasted.
“Divine Dragon… I can’t believe it…”
Soleil was trembling in a pose as if praying to a god.
“Hey, what’s going on, Soleil? Explain! Ferris! Hey, Ferris!”
Ferris remained frozen and didn’t move. Then, I heard a slow clapping sound.
“Since you’ve come all this way, why not have some zenzai for now? How about some mochi as well?”
“Oh, it looks delicious. I’ll eat it.”
“In that case, please wait a moment.”
Rico headed towards the kitchen, cradling her big belly. After a while, she returned with zenzai filled with mochi.
“It’s hot, so be careful while eating.”
“Oh, yeah.”
The white child had somehow taken a seat at my spot. Skillfully using my chopsticks instead of the provided spoon, they sipped the zenzai.
“Mmm, it’s delicious.”
“There’s plenty more, so please have as much as you want.”
“No problem.”
I looked at Rico with trepidation.
“Rico… Aren’t you afraid?”
“I’m not afraid at all. Isn’t this child adorable? There’s no harm in a child.”
Rico then sat next to the white child.
“If you don’t mind, please tell us. You said you’re a Divine Dragon, but why are you here?”
“I heard the summoning spell of the gods. The melody was beautiful, and it had a pure atmosphere, so I came to see.”
Soleil was still trembling, Ferris remained frozen, and even Fairi trembled in my arms. But Rico remained composed.
“I see, I see. But, would you like seconds?”
“Please, I’m counting on you. The white one too.”
Rico headed back to the kitchen once again. The white child seemed to be happily swaying their body. After a while, Rico returned with more zenzai.
“Well then, here you go.”
“I’ll have it.”
And thus, the white child claiming to be the Divine Dragon continued to eat the zenzai. Since I couldn’t have Rico make more multiple times, Peyris took over. Afterward, Soleil, who had regained her composure, explained that this Divine Dragon was positioned at the highest rank among the spirits, a legendary existence. They were referred to as the “Messenger of the Gods” and possessed the power to eliminate all forms of evil.
“I truly, truly apologize for summoning you.”
While bowing repeatedly, Soleil apologized to the Divine Dragon.
“No, I was summoned, so there’s no need to worry.”
“So, Divine Dragon-sama, what will you do from now on?”
Curiosity got the better of me as I asked, and the Divine Dragon answered in a carefree tone.
“It’s already decided. Since I was summoned, I will make a contract.”
“What?!”
Soleil was completely astonished. The Divine Dragon raised their index finger, and Soleil’s body began to emit a white light. It seemed that this was a sign of the contract being completed.
“The dragon that sensed my presence has good taste. And you, dragon, frozen over there? That’s good taste as well.”
In high spirits, the Divine Dragon continued eating the zenzai. Eventually, they finished all the zenzai and the prepared mochi, and finally disappeared. Originally, the zenzai was meant to be offered as an offering, but since they had eaten it all, I began making zenzai again.
By the way, Ferris, who couldn’t move, managed to crawl back to her room. I later learned from Rico that she fell off her chair the moment she realized the Divine Dragon’s identity, and apparently made a mess. I’ll keep that secret inside of me.
In the early days of December, with powdery snow fluttering around, we gathered in the garden of the imperial residence in the capital.
It was a day off from work, and everyone had assembled at the mansion. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I wanted to try something I had been wanting to do for a while.
Despite my insistence that it was harmful to their bodies, Rico and Mei, both with big bellies, defied my instructions to stay indoors and came outside. Naturally, I had set up a barrier to absorb any impact in case they fell and to maintain a constant temperature.
And a little distance away from us was Soleil. She was currently gathering MP throughout her body, preparing to concentrate on her incantation.
Since we had become a married couple, Soleil’s spirit magic skill level had reached its maximum. While she had been summoning forest spirits until now, with her level increase, she would be able to contract with even higher-level spirits. It was decided that she would temporarily nullify the contracts with the spirits she had previously formed agreements with and attempt to contract with a new spirit.
I worried about what would happen if she failed to contract with a higher-level spirit, but it seemed my concerns were unfounded. Once a spirit had been contracted, there was a high possibility they would contract again. Soleil and the forest spirits had developed a good relationship thus far, so that aspect was likely not an issue.
Since a while ago, Soleil had been taking deep breaths while extending both hands forward. It seemed she was focusing her magic power in her lower abdomen. Wondering what she was trying to accomplish by concentrating her magic power there, Soleil began her incantation.
“نا حبك نا حبك نا حبك نا حبك ساعدني ساعدني ساعدني هيا هي ساعدنيا…” (T/N: In arabic, this is what I got “Na hubbuk, na hubbuk, na hubbuk, na hubbuk, sa’edni, sa’edni, sa’edni, hia, hi, sa’edniya”)
…I had no idea what she was saying. The magic power accumulated in Soleil’s lower abdomen flowed into her hands. And a magic circle appeared in front of both her hands. It was quite large. Then, it slowly descended to the ground.
“Come forth before me!”
Soleil’s resolute voice resounded through the winter sky. At that moment, a dazzling light emitted from the magic circle.
“Soleil!”
Soleil, who had released all her magic power, collapsed, completely drained. Despite the winter cold, sweat was trickling down her face. I quickly replenished her with magic power.
“Are you alright, Soleil?”
“…I’m fine… But…the spirit…”
I looked around, but I couldn’t see anything.
“…I can’t see anything at all.”
“…I’m sorry. It seems the summoning failed.”
Soleil slumped down, crestfallen. I motioned for everyone outside to enter the mansion. I carried Soleil in a princess carry, with Rico’s permission, of course.
“Well, I never expected the summoning to fail. Is this something that happens often?”
We sat in the dining room of the mansion, eating zenzai, a sweet red bean soup with roasted mochi inside. The slightly burnt mochi paired well with the zenzai.
Soleil seemed to be deeply shocked as she didn’t touch the zenzai at all.
“Well, don’t be so down. Even if it didn’t work this time, you can try again. But for now, eat up. The zenzai will get cold, you know?”
“Yes…”
“By the way, Mei-sama, it’s quite impressive that you were requested to form a contract by a spirit.”
Gon spoke while munching on the mochi. Mei smiled and replied, “Oh no, it’s just a coincidence. The spirit Soleil summoned this time was probably of a considerably high rank, right?”
Soleil slowly put down the zenzai she was eating and looked at Mei.
“Yes, that’s right. I summoned a divine-ranked spirit.”
“Divine-ranked?”
I couldn’t help but raise my voice in astonishment.
“Hey, Soleil, are you sure you’re okay? Don’t summon any strange gods, alright?”
Soleil looked surprised and shook her head vigorously.
“No, don’t worry. I won’t summon any evil gods or anything like that.”
“Well, you know, there are various kinds of gods, right? Like the god of plague… the god of poverty… the god of death…”
“Master! Talking about the god of death is such bad luck!”
…I was scolded by Gon. I felt dejected and apologized in a small voice. For some reason, everyone burst into laughter.
“Well, since nothing happened, let’s just leave it at that. I made plenty of zenzai, so help yourselves to seconds! We still have mochi left, so eat up. So, how is it? Is it delicious?”
“It’s delicious!”
“It’s amazing!”
“It’s really delicious!”
“Delicious!”
“It looks so good!”
…Is there something I’m missing? I looked around the dining table. Rico, Peyris, Gon, Mei, Ferris, Matokal, Luala, Fairi (T/N: Changing her name to sound a little different form fairy), the child, Considy, Soleil… Huh? Child?… Who is that?
For some reason, there was a child with pure white skin and hair, standing there. Their eyes were large with green irises. Additionally, they were wearing a robe-like attire, typical of a mage, which was also white.
“That looks delicious. Feed me too!”
“…Who are you?”
In a daze, Fairi suddenly flew into my chest. Wondering what was going on, I held her in my arms, and she trembled.
“Fairi, what’s wrong?”
『Auh… Ahh… Ahh, au…』
She seemed confused, and I couldn’t understand the telepathic message coming from Fairy.
“…Oh, it seems that dragon understands me.”
Generally, I have a barrier set up around this mansion that prevents anyone with ill intentions or hostile feelings from getting close. Although this child had a tongue-twisting way of speaking, the fact that they passed through my barrier raised considerable suspicion.
“…Who are you?”
As I said that, I activated my appraisal skill on the child. In an instant, everything went pitch black, and a deafening explosion echoed in my head.
“Uaaaaaaaahhhhhh!”
I held my head in pain, crouching down involuntarily. Everyone around me was shouting my name, but I couldn’t focus on that. It felt like my head was about to explode. I terminated the appraisal. Instantly, cold sweat dripped from my entire body.
“Oh, so you appraised me, huh? You guys are tough. Normally, it would explode, but you managed.”
Although their tone was nonchalant, what they said was unbelievable. Wiping away my sweat, I continued speaking.
“…Who are you?”
The white child showed a surprised expression.
“Didn’t you summon me? That’s why I went through the trouble of taking this form.”
“Um… Who exactly are you?”
“I am the Divine Dragon.”
“What?! No way!”
Soleil, who stood up in astonishment, dropped the zenzai bowl she was holding, her mouth wide open. Upon closer inspection, Ferris seemed to have lost his strength and slumped down.
“A… Divine Dragon… Could it be…”
“I am the Divine Dragon.”
“Wowwwww! I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Soleil’s voice echoed as she stood up. She still held the bowl of zenzai, completely flabbergasted.
“Divine Dragon… I can’t believe it…”
Soleil was trembling in a pose as if praying to a god.
“Hey, what’s going on, Soleil? Explain! Ferris! Hey, Ferris!”
Ferris remained frozen and didn’t move. Then, I heard a slow clapping sound.
“Since you’ve come all this way, why not have some zenzai for now? How about some mochi as well?”
“Oh, it looks delicious. I’ll eat it.”
“In that case, please wait a moment.”
Rico headed towards the kitchen, cradling her big belly. After a while, she returned with zenzai filled with mochi.
“It’s hot, so be careful while eating.”
“Oh, yeah.”
The white child had somehow taken a seat at my spot. Skillfully using my chopsticks instead of the provided spoon, they sipped the zenzai.
“Mmm, it’s delicious.”
“There’s plenty more, so please have as much as you want.”
“No problem.”
I looked at Rico with trepidation.
“Rico… Aren’t you afraid?”
“I’m not afraid at all. Isn’t this child adorable? There’s no harm in a child.”
Rico then sat next to the white child.
“If you don’t mind, please tell us. You said you’re a Divine Dragon, but why are you here?”
“I heard the summoning spell of the gods. The melody was beautiful, and it had a pure atmosphere, so I came to see.”
Soleil was still trembling, Ferris remained frozen, and even Fairi trembled in my arms. But Rico remained composed.
“I see, I see. But, would you like seconds?”
“Please, I’m counting on you. The white one too.”
Rico headed back to the kitchen once again. The white child seemed to be happily swaying their body. After a while, Rico returned with more zenzai.
“Well then, here you go.”
“I’ll have it.”
And thus, the white child claiming to be the Divine Dragon continued to eat the zenzai. Since I couldn’t have Rico make more multiple times, Peyris took over. Afterward, Soleil, who had regained her composure, explained that this Divine Dragon was positioned at the highest rank among the spirits, a legendary existence. They were referred to as the “Messenger of the Gods” and possessed the power to eliminate all forms of evil.
“I truly, truly apologize for summoning you.”
While bowing repeatedly, Soleil apologized to the Divine Dragon.
“No, I was summoned, so there’s no need to worry.”
“So, Divine Dragon-sama, what will you do from now on?”
Curiosity got the better of me as I asked, and the Divine Dragon answered in a carefree tone.
“It’s already decided. Since I was summoned, I will make a contract.”
“What?!”
Soleil was completely astonished. The Divine Dragon raised their index finger, and Soleil’s body began to emit a white light. It seemed that this was a sign of the contract being completed.
“The dragon that sensed my presence has good taste. And you, dragon, frozen over there? That’s good taste as well.”
In high spirits, the Divine Dragon continued eating the zenzai. Eventually, they finished all the zenzai and the prepared mochi, and finally disappeared. Originally, the zenzai was meant to be offered as an offering, but since they had eaten it all, I began making zenzai again.
By the way, Ferris, who couldn’t move, managed to crawl back to her room. I later learned from Rico that she fell off her chair the moment she realized the Divine Dragon’s identity, and apparently made a mess. I’ll keep that secret inside of me.
