[The first wave will be coming soon. Are you ready?]
Hearing the voice from above, Ayla cast her gaze beyond the darkness.
A cave with no exit.
The single path ahead had no light coming in, but when she perceived it through senses rather than sight, she felt an intensely thick magical energy.
“Yes, I’m ready.”
[Are you really sure?]
“Yes, big sis.”
[It doesn’t look like you’ve prepared any magic though?]
“No, I’m ready. This is enough.”
Ayla equipped [Black Crystal] on both fists, palms, the edges of her hands, then her elbows, knees, insteps, soles, and even her forehead.
She’d been deeply inspired by the ‘Chirp Punch No. 1’ that the chirper used.
Someday she wanted to use a punch like that too.
Well, more precisely, it wouldn’t end with just a punch—she’d wrap black crystal around both arms and legs to make it even more magnificent…
Anyway, after that, Ayla had been training alone, combining her ‘black crystal’ with the Triasta-style self-defense technique that prided itself on ‘speed’ and ‘precision’—and today was the day of its first demonstration.
She couldn’t win as an ordinary long-range mage.
That’s why she’d do everything she could.
[Wasn’t Ayla a mage?]
“Yes. I’m a mage. But now I can cover close range too.”
[Th-that’s right. Then shall I send them?]
“Yes.”
From afar, with a screeching sound, goblins came running.
Grotesque figures. Her fists trembled slightly.
She had to stay calm. Ayla Triasta.
She’d hunted goblins a few times before when going on expeditions with her father.
But now she was alone.
Neither her father nor Wolfram, whom she trusted most, was here.
How could she overcome this fear?
“…Phew.”
She let out a deep breath.
During the strategy meeting just now, she’d said something weak to Wolfram.
‘What if I’m so scared I can’t move my arms or legs?’
‘Then shout the following out loud. It will help.’
It wasn’t a magic spell, but Wolfram said it would definitely work.
Ayla shouted the magical words Wolfram had given her and threw a straight punch.
“Go! I said!”
“Gweeeek!”
The iron fist smashed into the goblin’s head, and it scattered into thin air.
Normally, green blood would have spilled—but since it was an illusion created by the dragon’s magic, she was grateful she didn’t have to see such a gruesome sight.
“…Kiik.”
“Kiiik…”
But even these illusionary goblins couldn’t hide their shock at seeing their comrade scattered by a mage’s fist.
“Next!”
Ayla flicked her fingertips, and soon the goblins and Ayla clashed.
—
“Hmm.”
She fights well.
No, she fights better than I expected.
Watching the footage Phitia was projecting, I fell into thought for a moment.
She dodged a charging goblin, struck its forehead with an open palm, and its neck snapped before it scattered into nothing.
“…What exactly is Ayla…?”
“……”
That’s what I’d like to know.
“I, I was planning to shake you up by showing Ayla struggling… but why is she fighting so well…?”
“Hmm… So that was your plan.”
How can you be so wicked. Are you a evil dragon, perhaps?
When I looked at Phitia, she averted her gaze, then puffed up her cheeks and glared at me.
“B-because little brother and Ayla were ganging up on big sis, so big sis had to have her own countermeasures too, didn’t she?”
“…Big sis.”
“…Ugh.”
Phitia said that and avoided my gaze.
Well, I knew she was this kind of character, but still.
She pretends to be a scary and dangerous dragon at first, but once you dig a little deeper, she’s incredibly fragile and anxious.
I’ve played her route countless times—do you think I don’t know?
There are two main reasons why you die so much on her route.
First—going against her feelings when she’s acting as a ‘dangerous dragon.’
Once you enter the route and raise her affection, you don’t die that often.
After all, to Phitia, I’m Hark’s descendant and her real little brother, so I came with the calculation that she wouldn’t kill me.
The second reason is dying while trying to clear the ‘Demon Realm Gates.’
She has more bad endings, and you die a disgustingly large number of times—but once you get close, she surprisingly grumbles but still gives you lots of gifts.
That part is also cute.
Eve has her Eve faction, Regina has the incomprehensible personality-destroyer collective Regina faction, Isolde also has her ‘Isolde faction’—those who call themselves ‘Isolde’s Guardian Warriors’—but honestly, those can be pursued even in the first playthrough, so they push through with numbers, whereas the ‘Phitia faction’ were all users who had cleared the Demon Realm Gates in the second playthrough or beyond.
The fact that they abandoned first-playthrough heroines and chose Phitia—there must be a good reason.
“Now then, let’s begin my test.”
“…Uh, huh? Right. Wait a moment. Let’s see. I’ll go prepare for a bit?”
“Hm.”
Saying that, Phitia left the area, and I watched Ayla’s battle footage while lost in thought.
The intellect test of the Dragon’s Trial isn’t that different from the mini-game last time.
Except that it’s a bit more difficult, has more questions, and has a few more trick questions mixed in.
Now. In my head are about a thousand questions and answers that appear in this Dragon’s Trial.
Come.
Phitia Bluebreeze!
Immediately after.
As if reading my mind, she opened a portal of blue-shifting magic power and appeared.
“…Ahem. Are you ready? It’s teacher’s special lesson time.”
“……”
“Wh, what is it?”
“No, what’s with that outfit?”
Phitia was wearing a professor’s formal attire, holding a pointer in her right hand, looking at me.
To be clear.
It was a female teacher concept.
“Well… I read in a book that boys lose their focus when they see this kind of thing.”
“……”
“Ahem. Student Wolfram. I’ll now conduct Teacher’s special exam. Are you ready?”
“Start whenever you’re ready.”
“Good. Hehe. Then I’ll give you the first question. The test has a total of 20 questions, and if you get them all right, you’ll pass the Dragon’s Trial.”
“All of them have to be correct?”
Phitia nodded.
That’s strange.
In the original, you only needed 15 out of 20… No. Let’s not think about it.
“Not confident?”
“Of course not. I’m confident I can answer anything you throw at me.”
“Oh my, so confident.”
“Good. Let’s begin.”
“Alright. Then the first question. Papa, in his youth, rode on a dragon’s back and spread bombardment magic, earning the epithet of the Dragon Riding Demon God. At that time, the dragon Papa rode—”
“Langris Bluebreeze. Phitia big sis’s father.”
“……”
“Is it not the correct answer?”
Phitia’s face turned red, she puffed up her cheeks, and brushed her palms together.
Is she upset that it’s correct but doesn’t want to admit it?
“—the name is! Langris Bluebreeze! Then, where was the battlefield where that Langris Bluebreeze was lost!”
Ah.
This question doesn’t exist.
Hmm. I see. Since she doesn’t want to admit it’s correct, she’s twisting it around.
Ha.
“Yudra Plateau.”
“……U-ugh.”
Phitia’s eyes even welled up with tears.
What.
Do you think I can’t answer just because it’s not in the ‘question book,’ only in the setting lore and not in the main story?
Really?
“Next question.”
“Th-then the next question. Among the ninety-nine demon swords Papa used, the seventy-second demon sword is—”
“Yeowol Cheonjo’s Demon Sword.”
“……Yeowol Cheonjo’s Demon Sword it is. The effect of this sword is—”
“It chips away at the enemy’s mind with the sword’s resonance.”
“It chips away at the enemy’s mind with the sword’s resonance. And this sword’s scabbard is embedded with jewels. How many in total!”
“Thirty-nine.”
“……U-ugh… ugh… C-correct… answer.”
Phitia’s fists trembled in frustration.
Well, I can understand how she feels.
In the original too, passing the Dragon’s Trial places an enormous burden on the dragon.
And for passing, the reward is that the dragon has to grant almost anything they can.
“Next question.”
“…Th-that’s right. Next question. At the northern entrance of Zefflin, the Snowy Plains of Poyoung—what’s the fastest way to break through the illusions and reach the Ice Queen’s Fortress!”
Hmm.
I need to think about this one.
“Hehe, little brother doesn’t know this one either, does he? Give up and…”
“Dongdongseobuknambukbukseo”
“…C-correct answer.”
Surely.
The non-bugged one is the correct answer, right?
—
Ayla lightly shook her stiff shoulders.
“Kruuuu…”
The troll she’d just defeated was disappearing. She didn’t know what monster would come next, but Wolfram had told her to fight with ‘physical’ combat only up to this point.
“Phew. This is good practice. It’ll be incredibly helpful when fighting Regina too.”
Now then. From here on, it’s magic combat.
At the roar coming from afar, Ayla nodded.
“Kwaaaaaaagh!!!”
“Next is an ogre? …This is my first time seeing one in person.”
Honestly, it’s absurd for a mage to fight an ogre at close range.
Ogres are fast and tough. Even Ayla could be in danger.
But…
‘Next comes an ogre, then a metallic wolf, and finally a crystal salamander.’
‘They’re all strong monsters. …Can I win?’
‘Yes.’
‘…How can you be so sure?’
‘Ayla. Where are we? Look closely at this terrain.’
‘Why this cave?’
‘This is a crystal cave. Do you understand what that means?’
‘……Ah!’
‘Quick on the uptake. So the strategy is as follows…’
Ayla smiled brightly.
Just as there’s nothing more foolish than openly opposing Eve von Lohengrin, magic shows even greater effect when you have terrain advantage.
In other words, Ayla Triasta becomes even stronger on land overflowing with ore.
And this crystal cave is… Ayla Triasta’s solo stage.
“Now, let’s do this.”
Fifteen magic circles appeared behind Ayla.
Four magic circles attached to the ceiling, the walls on both sides, and the ground respectively, and the remaining eleven magic circles flew in front of Ayla.
Four scooped up crystals, and the remaining eleven loaded.
“If I don’t need to use magic power to ‘create crystals,’ then I’m effectively an invincible artillery battery with that much more to fire.”
Ayla flicked her finger.
“Kiiieeeeek!!”
From afar, the sound of an ogre exploding before it could even approach could be heard.
“Hehe. This is the power of bonds! Now, scream! Be terrified of our jet-black rebellion!”
It wasn’t just the knowledge Wolfram had given her.
What would normally be exhausting magic consumption was recovered, magic was further strengthened, and firing speed increased.
At her chest, the pendant given by her fiancé was shining.
—
Watching Ayla’s battle made my heart swell.
Firepower like sitting down and auto-grinding in an uncle game.
Is Ayla the only one on auto-grind? Terrifying.
If a person got hit by that, they wouldn’t just be split or torn—something… something tremendous would probably happen.
Of course, I’ll never be hit by that for eternity, but Ayla’s projectiles were that fearsome.
“Wh-what is that girl? What is she really…?”
Phitia, as if she no longer had the energy to speak, hung both arms limply and stared at me with vacant eyes.
Well, at that level, she should be fine up to the crystal salamander.
And I have no problems either.
“Now, Phitia big sis.”
“Uh, huh?”
“It’s time to finish this side too. Give me the last question.”
“……Ugh. Under-stood. I’ll give you the last question.”
Phitia let out a deep sigh.
The difficulty had gradually increased, but I’d gotten all of them correct.
Now, what would the last question be? Honestly, it felt like I was doing a real strategy guide. Questions not from the question book, but from the setting lore in my head.
Now, what’s the last question?
“When was big sis’s first love!”
“Hm.”
A very personal question.
A question that can only be answered by digging into the character’s own setting.
“Hehe. If you don’t know… it’s big sis’s victory?”
“She doesn’t have one.”
“!?”
“Phitia Bluebreeze has never had a first love.”
“Ah……ugh.”
That’s a wicked question, but.
Is that really enough to stump me?
Do you know why the Phitia faction abandons first-playthrough heroines and switches over?
Because the fact that you’ve never had a first love in three hundred years tugs at the heartstrings.
Not even romance, not even a first love—yet you act like a big sis because you’re an old dragon—that’s what they say is cute.
Now.
So.
“Is it the correct answer?”
“………it is.”
“I can’t hear you well.”
“Correct…”
“Hm?”
“Correct… answer.”
Well, of course.
That’s how it would be.
‘Big sis! I’ve taken down the crystal salamander too! Does this mean it’s over!?’
From afar, Ayla’s voice could be heard.
“Heuh, heuw. Uweeh…”
Phitia cried.
We had passed the trial.
