Comet Dragon, breaking into the gravity field

"Anyone want some fish?"

With the protection of the Fengpiaolong armor, everyone doesn't have to worry about frostbite from the cold air.

So, Le Nai and Takamatsu Deng, who were very interested in this, moved closer to the ice and carefully observed this creature they had never seen before.

Compared to "an ancient dragon transforming on the spot", "a fish swimming in lava" doesn't seem to be that bizarre.

"The fish is so big."

Compared to the silent Takamatsu Deng, Kaname Rakuna blinked immediately after hearing Naruse Ritsu's voice, and looked at this giant among giants with shining eyes.

"Is this kind of fish...really edible?"

Hearing his suggestion, Shiina Riki's eyes passed through the ice and clearly saw the lava shell attached to the surface of the lava dragon's body.

Thinking of the scene of it jumping out of the lava just now, she began to wonder whether the fish would jump out of the pot as it did before when it was stewed in the pot.

"Although the overall meat quality isn't great, it should be good for stewing. And I heard that its fins seem edible."

As he spoke, Ritsu Narusha looked at the Ice Curse Dragon who remained silent beside him.

Feeling his gaze, the Ice Girl nodded.

As she did this, the ice that had completely wrapped the lava dragon gradually melted, exposing the hard grilled fish to the hot air.

As if sensing the temperature change, its motionless tail suddenly shook.

Noticing its little movements, Ritsu Narose immediately swung the sword in his hand to prevent the fish from causing trouble after waking up.

There was no need to unsheathe the sword, he simply smashed the scabbard forged from a special material against its forehead, causing it to fall into a baby-like sleep.

Afterwards, Mingse Ritsu tied up the restless grilled fish with a rope and dragged it all the way to Gu Long's residence.

In this way, the journey finally came to an end with the quarrel of "the grilled fish was awakened by the heat from friction" and "Ritsu Naruse knocked it to sleep with a heavy punch".

As everyone went deeper into the underground of the Dragon Crystal Land, the orange-red magma that originally spread all around gradually disappeared, replaced by a quiet and soft azure.

In this vast cave, high-purity dragon crystals were scattered all around. As everyone descended the rocky steps, they saw a river quietly blocking their way.

Without saying much, when the girl walking in front stepped on the water, a road made of ice led directly to the other side.

Seeing the girls stepping onto the ice one after another, Ritsu Narose, who was guarding the end of the team, dragged the despairing Lava Dragon to follow.

With a loud "plop", the grilled fish, which had lived in magma since childhood, fell into the water for the first time, and could barely understand how its cousin, the mudfish dragon, lived.

When Ritsu Narose walked ashore and dragged the lava dragon out from the bottom of the water, the lava armor that had been attached to its body even showed signs of loosening and falling off.

Of course, Ritsu Narose would not sympathize with this stupid fish that was planning to attack them. He would only increase his strength to try to ease the work of modifying the fish later.

This last trip wasn't that far.

About ten minutes later, when everyone went deeper underground, they saw a huge stone door open before them.

The dragon crystals serving as lamps around here emit fluorescent light, adding a touch of mystery to the space, making it seem like a temple from a fantasy story.

However, the scene inside quickly broke that filter.

Watching Mello bending over, mopping the floor, the girls' amazement gave way to astonishment. Sky Comet Dragon and Ice Curse Dragon also fell silent after seeing the astonishing masterpiece titled "Mingbo Dragon Washing Map."

"……What are you doing?"

Although cleaning is a good thing, seeing that the usually lazy Mello actually used his body to scrub the floor, Ritsu Narose felt it was strange.

"..."

As if sensing Narushe Ritsu's thoughts, Mello, forced into a maid outfit, remained silent. After giving him a sharp look, she continued to work silently on her task.

"Do you know what's going on?"

"I am only responsible for leading the way. I don't know anything else."

After asking the Ice Curse Dragon without any results, Ritsu Narose could only shrug his shoulders and let Mello continue his great work.

But before he could leave, he saw the door on the other side being pushed open.

Then, a short figure that was very familiar to Ritsu Narushe appeared in front of everyone.

It was a girl who looked to be in elementary school age.

Her dark blue pajamas completely enveloped her petite figure, leaving only her fair, moist face exposed to the air. Her orange-yellow eyes shone slightly—especially after she saw Ritsu Narushe, their brightness intensified even further.

The girl held a lantern in her hand, the pale blue flame inside swaying slightly as her body swayed. Only when the girl stood in front of Naruse Ritsu did the flames stabilize.

"Welcome home."

Seeing the family members who used to take care of her like brothers appear before her again, the young dragon who has not yet grown into the king of ancient dragons couldn't help but smile.

72. A common bad taste

Led by the girl, everyone came to a room built in normal human size.

She placed the lamp in her hand on the table beside her, and the living room-like space suddenly became much brighter.

From this, everyone could see clearly that there were many strange things placed inside this spacious residence.

Soft cushions, high-purity dragon crystals stacked in boxes, natural amber with orange-red and sea blue as the backdrop, and an unopened gift box were placed on the carpet on the side.

"My name is Jiva Liddell, and I'm your brother's sister..."

"It's obviously just a relationship between a nanny and a child."

After leading everyone to her room, the girl who looked like a little adult began to introduce herself.

But before she could finish, Ritsu Naruse stopped her from outputting the wrong information.

Not paying attention to her little tricks, Ritsu Narose, who hadn't seen her for a while, felt a faint joy in his heart after seeing this life that was originally ignorant of the world grow into this cute appearance.

"'Jiva Liddell'—is this the name your teacher gave you?"

"Hmm... more or less. Since the teacher's naming skills are terrible, I took it upon myself to change the previous name!"

"Ahaha, that's it..."

Ritsu Narose, who had the same experience, instantly understood the deep meaning of Jiwa's words, so she chose to stop asking questions.

Not intending to dwell on the matter any further, he simply changed the subject to someone outside who was struggling to mop the floor.

"That idiot with her brain soaked in water all day did something bad, and the teacher found out, so the teacher punished her by making her clean the classroom."

The dark blue hair fell from between her nightcaps, adding a touch of cuteness to her already lovely appearance.

However, when those sharp words that were completely inconsistent with his well-behaved appearance suddenly came out of his mouth, everyone present was caught off guard except for the Ice Curse Dragon who was already accustomed to this way of speaking.

Looking at the girl in front of him with a bright smile, a sense of strangeness suddenly grew in Mingse Ritsu's heart.

Damn it! Why did the once cute child become like this?

After a moment of silence, Ritsu Narushe felt that he needed to correct her.

"Did Jiwa receive the gift I brought back?"

"Is that it?" Pointing to the gift box in the room, Jiwa looked at Mingse Ritsu and asked.

"Yeah, didn't Jiwa open it to take a look? Wu Yiqi Bazhiling Qi Liuying Lingmeng"

"Because I have to wait for my brother to give it to me personally."

Hearing this, Chihaya Aine, who was sitting on a cushion, whispered to Takamatsu Deng next to her, "I feel like something's weird."

"?"

Looking at the little animals looking at her with confusion, she suddenly felt that it was not wise to discuss this topic with the little animals.

Without noticing the movement here, when Jiwa took the gift box handed over by Mingze Ritsu again, she couldn't wait to open the box and take out the gift inside.

"This is……"

"It's called 'LEGO', the ultimate toy with endless possibilities, allowing us to unleash our creativity and build our dream fortresses!"

"oh oh!"

Looking at Jiwa running back to the inner room excitedly with her toy held high, Naruse Ritsu was sure that she had not grown completely crooked.

Finally relieved, after handling this matter, Naruse Ritsu prepared to go visit the teacher. As for the task of entertaining everyone, Naruse Ritsu could only temporarily entrust the task to the girl who seemed as cold as ice and unapproachable as human.

Without rejecting Ritsu Narose's request, Elsa Veronica, the ancient dragon whose true form was the Ice Curse Dragon, watched him leave and then turned her attention to this group of humans.

After repeated observation, until the woman with a temperament a bit like a small animal shrank back uneasily, she realized that her behavior might be a bit excessive.

"Excuse me, this is the first time I've seen a human other than a hunter."

Despite her appearance, she is not afraid to apologize to humans. After apologizing to Takamatsu, she leads everyone out of the Dark Dragon's residence.

When they walked outside, Aisha introduced this place to the girls just as Ritsu Narose had introduced the environment here to her.

Following this aloof girl, even the lively and active Chihaya Aine couldn't help but lower her voice.

Looking at Nagasaki Suyo, she whispered her thoughts so far: "I suddenly realized... it seems that all the ancient dragons that Naruse-kun knows are girls."

"Eh? Yes, yes..."

Hearing this, Nagasaki Motoyo finally realized the source of the uneasiness that had been surrounding her. She then began to wonder if she should find an opportunity to ask Naruse Ritsu about this matter.

But before she could think too much, Aisha, who was walking in front, said, "Because most male ancient dragons are more interested in hunting and fighting, or looking for a territory to prepare for future reproduction."

"That's why he is a rare outlier."

After saying this, she seemed to have no intention of continuing to explain, and just let the girls imagine the rather suggestive word "alien".

It wasn't until they entered a stone chamber filled with the fragrance of herbs that she continued, "Compared to beasts driven only by instinct, everyone would rather deal with sentient beings."

"'Sentient being'...does that mean Naruse-kun?"

"'Narose'? Is that his name now?"

As if recalling the farce when she asked his name before, a faint smile appeared on Aisha's face. Although this change was subtle, it was particularly obvious on her seemingly cold face.

"that……"

"If you want to know, just ask him yourself."

She knew what the pink-haired girl, looking around, wanted to ask. But rather than just giving the answer directly, she wanted to see the person's face full of confusion but still having to speak.

"Since he has entrusted me to entertain you, let's start here."

As an ancient dragon that often preys on wind dragons, Elsa can tell the material of everyone's equipment at a glance.

I thought they were all hunters or investigators, but their behavior silently revealed the fact that they had no hunting experience.

So there is only one thing left to do.

"This is where he keeps his props. Plants, insects, and other items he collected in the past are all kept here."

“If you want to understand the world he once lived in, start by learning how to correctly identify plants.”

After saying that, she took out a book from the bookshelf that looked quite old.

Just looking at its appearance, there are a few not-so-delicate scratches on the tan leather cover.

But if you open the book and see the bookmarks made of leaves and feathers in different colors and the wrinkle-free pages, you can appreciate the owner's careful care for the book.

Seeing the timid girl who made people inexplicably reminiscent of a small animal take the initiative to take the book, Elsa Veronica's perception of them finally changed slightly.

73. The White King of the Ancestor

If we divide Ritsu Naruse's life so far, it can be divided into three parts.

Part of it is used to wander around the world and record those trivial things worth remembering;

One part is living as a hunter in the New World, observing the blue planet that looks like nothing human up close;

The last part is to study in the Land of Dragon Crystals and re-understand the world from a different perspective.

Standing outside the door, Ritsu Narose felt a little nervous for the first time in a long time.

However, this emotion did not last long. After taking a deep breath, he stepped in with his notebook.

Compared to the Dark Lantern Dragon's room, the atmosphere here is even more tranquil, making one unconsciously lighten their steps, fearing to disrupt this peaceful and comfortable feeling.

Unlike the rugged stone walls exposed outside, the ceilings and walls here have been polished to a smooth surface. After being painted with brown paint, a layer of wallpaper of similar color is pasted on top.

As for the floor and furniture in the room, they also match the color of the overall environment. But the difference is that the floor and furniture are made of wood.

As she walked into this room which was both a library and a place where teachers often rested, a feeling of nostalgia suddenly lingered in Ritsu Narose's heart.