I want to eat dragon meat - Chapter 10

The sun began to tilt.

Almira, who had headed for the Water City of Atlantia, still hadn’t returned.

“…She’s late.”

Feeling a bit hungry, I pulled some salted fish out of a barrel and nibbled on it, keeping an eye out for any activity outside.

Peeking my head out onto the deck, I observed the presence of someone new. This time, it was a thug.

He looked to be in his late teens.

Compared to the rough duo from earlier, he seemed much younger, but still unmistakably a thug.

As he noticed me, he waved his hand, saying, “Hey.”

“Hey. Are you Tatsuki, the one Almira mentioned?”

“That’s me.”

He seemed to know Almira. Hurriedly, I descended from the ship.

As I approached, the young man’s eyes widened.

“What’s up?”

“Well, I heard stories about a goddess or something from the lady, but seeing you in person, I’m genuinely impressed by your beauty.”

“I’m not sure how to feel about being praised like that…”

Being praised by a guy isn’t exactly thrilling.

But the fundamental issue is that I haven’t even confirmed my own appearance yet. Despite having no real sense of it, being showered with compliments like “beauty” or “goddess” just feels… weird.

“Oops, didn’t mean to offend you.”

The thug apologized crisply. He seemed like a decent guy.

“By any chance, are you the ‘reliable person’ Almira mentioned?”

“Nah, I’m someone else.”

The thug shook his head.

“But I owe the lady big time. She asked me to help you out until she gets back if you’re in trouble.”

I nodded in understanding.

Well, I don’t really need protection, but if he can handle situations like the earlier thugs, it would be helpful.

“I see… How long until Almira’s expected back?”

“She’s at the place of that ‘reliable person’ right now. If she’s done with her business and walking back, she’ll probably be here around sunset.”

The thug explained.

“I’m Holk. Glad to see you’re safe.”

“I’m Tatsuki. Nice to… Well, trouble still happened, but…”

I muttered the latter part under my breath.

Well, it’s not really worth mentioning that I gently returned the wild older brother and his sidekick.

“Hm?”

“It’s nothing.”

Feeling a bit suspiciously scrutinized, I offered a Mona Lisa smile.

It felt like my eyes were darting around like in a ghost story from school, but it must have been my imagination.

—

I ended up waiting for Almira’s return with the thug—Holk.

He said I could wait inside the ship, but being new to the human world, I was full of curiosity.

“By the way, Holk-san, what kind of person is Almira meeting?”

“She’s like the lady’s mentor or something. I don’t get along with that person much.”

When I asked, Holk scratched his head while answering.

Judging by his expression, it wasn’t that he didn’t get along, but more like he disliked or even hated them.

“Master? What kind?”

“Magic, spells, that kind of stuff.”

Come to think of it, Almira seemed knowledgeable about magic and such. She said she couldn’t use it, but now that I think about it, she said “for now”. There must be some reason behind it.

“Holk, you don’t seem to like the master much?”

“Yeah.”

Holk responded immediately to my question.

“――I can trust her to some extent. After all, that woman only moves for money. She doesn’t care about loyalty or human feelings.”

As Holk continued to speak ill of the “master”, the wind suddenly picked up.

Shortly after, a voice carried on the breeze.

“――Quite a mouth you have there, thug. Even I have principles. Those who receive payment from me don’t betray.”

A female voice, or rather, a girl’s voice?

It sounded young yet had a strong presence.

Instinctively, I looked into the wind.

No one was there… or wait, there was a figure in the distance.

A figure clad in a black hood, gliding closer on the wind.

Then, she stopped right in front of me.

The face peeking out from the hood looked young.

It was hard to decide whether to call her a young girl or a teenager.

Her long hair was beautiful silver, and her pale blue eyes had a distant, unfocused look, as if seeing a world different from ours.

“――Old hag.”

As soon as I uttered those words, the thug twitched and tingled, as if hit by a weak electric shock.

“Calling such a young girl an old hag is not acceptable.”

“What did you say? You greedy, money-grubbing brat of an old hag!”

The thug twitched again.

It wasn’t a strong shock, but his body jerked so much it looked really concerning.

Then, a brown kitten leaped out from the silver-haired girl’s bosom.

“Tatsuki-san, I have returned!”

“Almira, welcome back. And this person is…”

“Yes, this is the witch, All-All-sama. With her around, she can take care of the ship!”

A witch.

Looking at the silver-haired girl—All-All again, I felt a sense of something undeniable coming from her… which probably meant she was quite the adept.

“I’ve heard stories, but… you brought quite the character, Almira.”

The young girl sighed deeply as she looked at me.

She seemed to want to appear dramatic, but she just looked cute.

“――Some kind of stray god? Quite the powerful being.”

Since I was called a god, I responded with a victory pose of Nike, the goddess of victory.

It didn’t work. And I got a puzzled look. But even her furrowed brow was cute.

“…Well, I don’t care who or what you are. I just expect you to earn the money you’ve received.”

With that, the silver-haired girl smiled.

Her smile was angelic, but her words were harsh.

After tucking away her smile, the young girl turned back towards the Dragonship.

With a metallic chink, she pulled out from her bosom a silver necklace with a bluish gem attached.

“Now, rarest of ships, answer to the voice of I, All-All, the witch of the slums.”

With those words, she smiled and commanded.

The high-pitched voice of the young girl reverberated through the air.

“This is the sea, a very small harbor… Rare indeed is the dragon ship, come aboard now.”

The slow, soothing voice of the young girl carried an irresistible power.

“Shrink, shrink, shrink, shrink… Come to my hand…”

In response to the young girl’s voice, the ship began to shrink rapidly.

As it shrank, it floated gently and was drawn into her hand… and disappeared into the gemstone.

Incredible! It’s magic!

Impressed, I turned to the witch, All-All, who then handed me the necklace.

“Here, keep it.”

Despite her angelic smile, her tone didn’t quite match.

I accepted the necklace.

At first glance, it appeared to be a simple necklace.

However, upon closer inspection, I could see a dragon ship floating inside the gemstone.

“Um, how do I use this when I want to summon it?”

“Ask Almira. She’s a clumsy disciple, but she can manage that much.”

“Thank you.”

“No need for thanks. I’ve already received my reward.”

With an angelic smile, the silver-haired girl took out a dragon scale from her pocket.

“Wind dragon scale. Good condition and quality. This alone is a fortune. Consider it an exceptional reward.”

“All-All-sama, thank you! Now, it’s my turn!”

Almira exclaimed from the side, well, more like from below.

“Oh, I see. But the curse placed on you is troublesome. I can’t simply reverse it. For now, it might be best to transfer it to the black crystal amulet… ”

All-All chanted another spell and then placed a decorated black crystal amulet in front of Almira.

“With this, the connection to the amulet is established. Just touch it and focus your thoughts, and the curse will transfer to the amulet. Even in the shadows…”

“Thank you so much, All-All-sama!”

Before the young girl finished speaking, Almira quickly touched the amulet.

“Oh, she’s such a careless child!”

All-All didn’t have time to stop her.

As soon as Almira touched the amulet, her body swelled up in an instant.

Her brown fur turned into skin tone.

Her limbs stretched out, and her head hair, while remaining the same color, grew longer and longer.

Her facial features changed into those of a beautiful girl.

“I’m back!”

A naked beautiful girl stood there triumphantly.

I could swear I heard a *boing* sound.

I saw it all.

Thank you so much. Thank you.

“Whoa, my eyes, my eyes!?”

And then Hork screamed.

It must have been All-All’s magic. His face, caught in the corner of my vision, was shrouded in darkness. Nice save.

…

She seemed to realize her situation.

Almira’s face turned bright red, trembling.

“Eek!”

“What’s happening!?”

Almira screamed in panic.

Confused, the thug also raised his voice.

The witch All-All, with an oddly cute sigh, took out a gemstone from her pocket.

Rustle, rustle, and clothes emerged from the gemstone, piling up at the young girl’s feet.

“Really… Here, it’s clothes. I brought them, don’t forget.”

“Uh, thank you very much… Oh, Tatsumaki-san, please take some clothes too.”

Still blushing, Almira offered me some clothes.

Her voice was Almira’s, but her appearance was human, so it felt strange. But it was cute, so it was fine.

“Uh, by the way, sorry for borrowing clothes without permission.”

“It’s fine. But those clothes will stand out in town, so please wear these instead.”

The clothes given to Almira were more like Western-style clothing than the Greek-style ones I’m currently wearing.

“Thank you, Almira.”

“Your hair stands out too, so please wear a hood.”

“Understood.”

Blonde hair sounds nice, but it’s really shining like gold, so it’s understandable why it stands out so much. I’ve never seen this level of blonde hair in Western movies or videos.

“Hey, the clothes! I can hear the rustling of clothes! Old hag, even if you’re not told, get away and wait somewhere dark–Ah!?”

Hork collapsed, perhaps from a strong electric shock, but it feels like he brought it on himself.

“But anyway, Almira, you’re human, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am. I’m sorry. I should have informed you when I heard that you were from a different world, Tatsumaki-san,” Almira bows her head.

Well, it’s fine, but at this rate, Water City won’t be a Cat Paradise after all. It’s a bit sad.

Actually, now that I think about it, I might be the one who should apologize for thinking Almira was a cat and inadvertently sexually harassing her.

“…Well, I guess my job here is done. I’m going back… Almira, you’ve come back all this way. Do your best to stay alive,”

The silver-haired young girl stretches her waist as if mimicking an old person, which looks oddly cute.

“And one more thing, you’ve received too much for just one dragon scale, so consider this change. Take these coins as if they were in a purse. Also, having the scale exchanged for money now might devalue it. It’s troublesome to stand out, so keep it for a while. If you need money, let me know. I’ll buy it from you, but I’ll make sure to give you the proper amount in gold.”

Almira receives a lecture from Alouette.

It’s kind of like the behavior of an old lady who can’t be straightforward. Despite being a young girl.

…Or something like that.

“Holc-san, isn’t that, instead of being grumpy or greedy, just being a tsundere…”

“…What the heck is a ‘tsundere’? Besides, I still can’t see.”

I tried talking to the collapsed thug, but I didn’t get any agreement.