We traveled through time together, but I'm the only dragon? The others are all beautiful girls?

The darkness that Helket's corpse transformed into did not, like the souls of ordinary undead, enhance Eleanor's total magical power; it merely increased the quantity and activity of the writhing darkness within her.

Therefore, finding the elemental bottle became of paramount importance.

But it must be said that this thing truly lives up to its reputation as an immortal treasure; it is indeed extremely rare.

Akalion slaughtered thousands of undead on the outskirts of the Undead Town, yet he didn't even see a single elemental vial.

Even though these zombies in the game are all skilled at taking out elemental vials to restore their health.

He knew this was reality, but couldn't this be done according to the game's rules?

"Now, you can be considered to have the ability to protect yourself."

Akalion was about to say that he needed to return to Eldra first to replenish his food and satisfy his hunger before coming back to help her.

However, Eleanor's voice rang out first.

“I want to go back to Eldra with you.”

She loosened her grip on the dragon-shaped greatsword.

The next moment, the writhing darkness, like a living shadow, surged out of her body, completely engulfing the enormous weapon before silently merging into her body.

"?"

Akalion looked at Eleanor with some confusion. She was...hungry too?!

"Didn't you already say that?" Eleanor looked at him and couldn't help but tiptoe slightly, her crimson eyes flashing with an undeniable light.

"Yes, I did say that, but, but—"

He remembered, but—Akkalion was interrupted by Eleanor before he could finish speaking.

"But what?"

She stepped forward and stared straight at him with her pure, unadulterated eyes.

It's as if she'll burst into tears if I don't agree to her request at any moment.

"……All right."

Akalion had indeed made a promise to Eleanor, and could only nod helplessly.

"Let me make this clear first, I only have that 'feeling' that I can take people through time, but I've never actually tried it."

"Then, I will be your first 'object' to try."

An irrepressible gleam of excitement appeared on Eleanor's face. She suddenly embraced Akalion's enormous dragon claws, which resembled pillars of a palace.

"...I feel like there's something off about what you're saying."

Akalion felt even more helpless. He closed his eyes, sank his consciousness into the depths of his soul, and carefully searched for that "feeling" that could connect the two worlds.

It felt like passing through an incredibly thick fog, or sinking into a cold and heavy body of water.

It was a long and distant dark gap that seemed to belong to the world between worlds.

Until, a beam of light appeared ahead.

That was the light of the lighthouse.

The path forward was instantly determined.

Open your eyes again.

Akalion had already brought Eleanor to his spacious private room on the top floor of the Tower of Mystic Light. All of the former owner's unnecessary belongings had been put into the storage room so as not to affect the new owner's actions.

"—"

"!"

"This is... Ansersheen?"

Eleanor gazed down from the towering windows of the Mystic Tower at the entire elven city bathed in the eternal shadow of the sky. She gently pressed her cheek against the cold glass.

The city gave her a strange feeling—it wasn't dead, but simply... asleep, sleeping peacefully in the long night.

"How about it?"

Akalion's voice carried a subtle hint of lordly pride.

"...loneliness."

Countless magnificent words to praise the scene before her flashed through Eleanor's mind, but in the end, she uttered only these two words.

"There's nothing we can do. These are the only elves we can revive right now." Akalion's tone carried a hint of regret. "'The Well of Souls' is still in a state of self-maintenance. It's estimated that it will take at least thirty years to fully recover."

"But, thirty years is just a fleeting moment for you, a time between growing from a young dragon to a young dragon, isn't it?"

Eleanor turned to look at Akalion, a glint of light seeming to flash in her crimson eyes.

"And we're here with you—however, as your size continues to grow, I'm afraid that apart from that dark space, in reality, we'll be..."

After careful consideration, Eleanor realized that she couldn't handle the ever-growing Akalion in reality either. Although the Dark Souls game depicts a scenario where the stronger the soul, the taller the body, she hadn't changed at all yet.

"This is all I can do to stay with you."

"Hey, the way you're talking makes me sound like some kind of lecherous dragon." Akalion stepped forward and gently pressed his massive head against her side.

“Am I not?” Eleanor turned her gaze back to the sleeping city below, a hint of a smile in her voice.

"what--"

Akalion let out a soft, ambiguous laugh.

Of course, it's just that there wasn't a chance before. He wouldn't be so shameless as to blame it all on the nature of dragons.

He gave the order to the Mysterious Tower.

Soon, a pile of brightly colored fruits and some 'lucky stones' with golden patterns on them were teleported to the location he specified by an invisible magical hand.

Would you like some?

As he spoke, he carefully picked up a ripe red fruit with his dragon claw and presented it to Eleanor.

These magical fruits from the botanical garden all possess the special effect of making the eater feel "happy." This particular red fruit, compared to other fruits, is juicier and has a more moderate sweetness, making it Irving's favorite.

"These fruits are delicious!"

“No—” Eleanor’s face showed a helpless smile, “You’ve forgotten, the sense of taste of the undead is different compared to that of ordinary people—”

"But you were at 'that time'—"

Akalion's words were abruptly interrupted by Eleanor's suddenly rising voice, filled with shame and indignation.

"—That's because of you!"

Eleanor turned away in shame and anger. But when she saw her own flushed face reflected in the glass, she decided against facing Akalion.

She turned around very, very, very slowly, and obediently met what she thought was a mocking gaze.

A large portion of the field of vision was dominated by vibrant red.

Eleanor did not see Akalion's face immediately.

A round, red fruit, radiating an alluring glow and a vibrant life force, hovered in front of her, blocking her entire view.

"I'm really delicious. Want a bite?"

A deep, enticing voice seemed to emanate from the fruit itself.

"It's very sweet!"

"..."

Eleanor froze for a moment. Then, she suddenly remembered that Akalion's soul shared the same origin as hers. He, of course, knew better than anyone else what 'Blue Heir' truly craved.

A genuine smile unconsciously curved the corners of her mouth.

Immediately afterwards, she quickly coughed lightly to cover up the almost overflowing, inappropriate joy.

"...There's really nothing I can do about you."

Her voice carried a hint of helplessness, almost like a coquettish plea, which she herself was unaware of.

"Then I'll just have a bite!"

As she spoke, she took the red fruit. It looked like a perfectly flawless tomato magnified several times over. Really…won’t it be sour?

Looking at Akalion's dragon face, which was filled with expectant smiles, she actually forgot the cold fact that she was an "undead" for a moment.

He took a bite.

The next instant, a bright and radiant smile, like the warm sunshine of early spring, bloomed on her face.

"This...this is so delicious!"

It's not just a simple sweetness.

Rather, it is a more complex, more fundamental flavor that belongs to life itself.

It is the warmth of the sun, the sweetness of the rain and dew, the fragrance of the nectar... all the beauty that has long since passed away is concentrated in this moment, and then explodes on her taste buds!

The writhing darkness within her body trembled and cheered violently at this.

Her total magical power even increased several times over at this moment!

Surprisingly...surprisingly...surprisingly, I can actually feel the blissful taste of "sweetness" again.

Is this... the food of another world?!

"Eat slowly, there's still plenty here."

Akalion took more than half of the fruit from his own special portion and gently placed it in front of Eleanor with his magical hand. He himself, however, contentedly ate the 'Blessed Stones' that contained even purer energy.

These magical fruits, in the end, are not as filling as the 'Lucky Stone'.

Soon, after eating her fill, Eleanor nestled contentedly against Akalion's broad and warm chest, which resembled a mountain range. The two, human and dragon, closed their eyes together, their consciousness sinking into their shared dream.

They arrived at the dark space where all the 'Blue Heirs' resided.

However, before they even reached the stable territory, Ying's voice, full of judgment, rang out.

"Akaglion, you've been caught!"

Volume 1 Snowfield Dragon Lord: Chapter 46. The Incident

"Something happened?!"

Even though these words weren't directed at her, Eleanor felt a sudden, inexplicable pang of guilt. But outwardly, she maintained the cold, unyielding expression unique to the undead, a expression that seemed to freeze everything.

"What's going on?" Akalion looked completely bewildered. Even a dragon would be confused by such a strange situation.

"hey-hey."

A mischievous, delighted smile spread across Ying's face. With a swift, light leap, she appeared before Akalion, taking over the spot that had previously belonged to Eleanor with an air of absolute dominance.

Feeling guilty, Eleanor did not respond.

"Well, you'll have to ask Artoria about that."

"Artoria?"

Akalion cast a bewildered glance at the blond ahoge.

Ying followed his gaze and looked in the same direction.

“She’s different from us, she’s not some lone wolf.” Ying’s voice carried a hint of schadenfreude. “Although I have Paimon, it’s just a flying emergency ration.”

So, what exactly happened?

These words suddenly made Akalion feel inexplicably flustered.

"not--"

"That's right, it's the one you're thinking of!"

Ying grinned, confirming Akalion's worst-case scenario.

“Merry informed Sir Hector and Brother Kay that I was no longer an ‘innocent girl’.”

Artoria's face was as black as the sky before a storm. She clenched her fists tightly, and the air around her seemed to groan under the weight of her suppressed anger, as if she would transform into a 'Sea Tiger Explosive Fist' launcher at any moment.

"And she hugged me hypocritically, crying incessantly in a tone that made it seem as if I had truly been utterly defiled by an old pervert who had lived for who knows how long."

"Her heart was overflowing with joy—however, I could sense that beneath that joy, there seemed to be a trace of incredibly real sadness. Though it was faint, it was the first time in my life that I had been able to clearly perceive this emotion in her."