The Fourth Generation charged at the golden dragon at such blistering speed that afterimages trailed behind him, practically vibrating with excitement.
"This one — its scales regenerate, even the ones that fall off!"
The reason he kept carving away with his silver short sword was precisely because the scales kept regenerating as he stripped them off. His wife watched him, clenching her fists.
"This is amazing! Keep gathering scales just like that!"
The Fourth Generation's wife leaped at the fallen scales and examined them. She touched them, tapped them lightly with her fist — checking their value.
"Fredricks! Look, look! These scales have got to be precious materials!"
Watching his mother laugh with such innocent glee, Fredricks nearly dropped his serpentine blade.
"...Yeah, that's right, Mom."
Nearby, their sons and daughters were launching attacks against the dragon. They bombarded it with magic and used their Skills, not giving the dragon any chance to fight back.
Watching this scene, Xenoa closed her red fan and aimed it at the Legend Dragon — it had been roaring and spreading its wings, trying to blow away those who climbed aboard and anyone who got too close.
That Legend Dragon was suddenly trapped inside a translucent octahedron. One of Xenoa's Skills.
"You're so noisy. Won't you be quiet for just a moment?"
And then, the Legend Dragon inside the octahedron was suddenly engulfed in flames. Seeing the dragon burning inside the octahedron, the Seventh Generation screamed.
"Heyyyy!! I was going to taxidermy that thing, wasn't I?! At least blow the insides out!"
The surface being scorched like that was apparently unforgivable to the Seventh Generation. However, among the insides, there were those who would have a problem if the contents got blown away.
The First Generation's wife, for one.
"Don't be ridiculous! If the insides get all mangled, it'll be a nightmare to cook! You!"
The First Generation's wife glared at her husband, the First Generation. She was telling him to gather the parts neatly. The First Generation straightened his spine.
"Y-Yes! ...Huh? Wait, you can eat that thing? It clearly looks like it tastes awful. It's gold — literally gold. My gut says that thing would taste terrible, so..."
"You won't know until you try! You should be the one to taste-test!"
"You want me to be the guinea pig?!"
The First Generation screamed as he hefted the greatsword onto his shoulder.
A golden dragon. Its horns were enormous and vivid red. If anything, it didn't exactly look appetizing.
The Fourth Generation's wife turned to the First Generation's wife.
"The insides are obviously for selling too! Dragon meat would absolutely fetch a fortune! Get it in pristine condition! What do you even mean by eating it?!"
Freed from the octahedral restraint, the Legend Dragon collapsed onto all fours on the ground, breathing laboriously. Its scorched surface was regenerating.
The Second Generation's wife watched the Legend Dragon while spinning a metal ring at high speed.
"If it put its mind to it, it could probably regenerate its wings and horns too. The tail as well."
Everyone's gaze turned toward the Legend Dragon.
Meanwhile, all around:
"I'm taking the horns!"
"The tail! It's the tail! It's gotta be delicious!"
"Secure the wings!"
The members of House Walt were completely absorbed by the Legend Dragon. They had abandoned all concern for Lail and were wholly focused on the creature before them. Novem's objective, though not as she had envisioned, had been achieved nonetheless.
Damn it! Those idiots are so obsessed with the dragon they're completely ignoring me!
It pissed him off to see the lot of them carrying on like that from a short distance away, but the fact remained that Novem was right in front of him—and she was his problem.
There was no choice but for him to handle this.
But...
"Without any weapons, this is going to be rough."
I dodged Novem's scythe slash while gasping for breath. When it hit a piece of debris, it sliced through cleanly. The cross-section was perfectly smooth.
A direct hit would certainly be fatal. Armor would be no different from paper against Novem. No, less than paper.
As I shed my heavy metal armor and fled, I could see Aria and the others fighting a subspecies land dragon nearby. It was an opponent they were at a disadvantage against, and they seemed to be struggling.
I couldn't count on rescue from their direction.
Novem was chasing me.
"Judging to discard your armaments is a good choice, but you leave far too many openings. If you tell me to wait, I will wait."
I honestly almost said, "Then, please wait a moment." Was it okay to say that? Would I get scolded?
But asking for such a thing felt somewhat unpleasant in its own way.
"You're showing too much composure!"
I hurled a convenient piece of debris at Novem. Without slowing down, she cut it down with her scythe. I picked up another piece and threw it.
"Again—"
She cut that down too. But among them was an item I'd been carrying. When the tube-like device was sliced open, smoke poured out.
It was a smoke bomb for distraction.
"See, you fell for i—t"
Novem quickly emerged from the smoke and swung her scythe down at me. It missed my vital points by a hair's breadth. However, the scythe was driven deep. Seeing that, Novem smiled.
"...Splendid, Lord Laiel."
As my illusion vanished, Novem turned her gaze toward where I was hiding. I had used a skill from the Third Generation to create the decoy, but it barely bought me any time.
I wanted to grab a weapon from somewhere, but there was nothing around that could serve as one. Even if I picked up a sword haphazardly, it would be easily sliced away by Novem's scythe.
Could I dodge without clashing and land a single blow? But I doubted a common weapon could leave even a scratch on Novem.
My breathing grew ragged. Seeing my state, Novem hovered slightly above the debris-strewn ground, waiting.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Hahaha, I'm tired too, so I'm taking a break."
Seeing Novem smile, I muttered internally, *Liar.* Not a single bead of sweat, not a single breath out of place—Novem was waiting for me to finish preparing. Grinning away. How could she smile when she was waiting to be killed?
I gripped the Jewel tight.
When had it started—when did this become a habit? When did I start believing that if I squeezed it hard enough, I'd receive advice?
Right now, the Successive Heads and their merry companions were swarming a dragon nearby, not sparing us a single glance. I wanted to tell them, *You lot, could you at least be a little useful?*
Novem watched me.
"It doesn't look like help is coming. Everyone over there—seems to be having a wonderful time."
There was a slight pause in her words, but it was probably all part of Novem's plan. No interruptions, testing my abilities, all while waiting to be killed by me.
It was frustrating, but no solution presented itself. Would I have been better off as my higher-tension self from after the growth? Was I just not enough?
I squeezed the Jewel harder. The silver filigree had worn down considerably. As my breathing began to steady, I was about to steel my resolve.
Then.
*'You're really hopeless. Sigh, why do you have to be so negative? Try believing in yourself more, would you?'*
I heard a voice. It was a young voice—the voice of Lael, who had disappeared.
"No way..."
Novem's eyes narrowed. She was irritated.
*'—You're still coming out? And to think, of all people, it's you.'*
A blue light appeared before my eyes, and there stood 'Lael' in the form of my ten-year-old self. In one hand was the treasured saber I'd received as a birthday gift.
Saber in hand, Lael stood before Novem. And then, with a smile, spoke to her.
"Honestly, Novem, even I was a little put off by that. Declaring yourself everyone's mother, saying Lael would be completed if you were killed—you're out of your mind."
Facing Lael with a smile, Novem swung her great scythe.
"I'll have to ask you not to interfere. My priority isn't you—it's the real Lael standing behind you—!"
Lael deflected the great scythe with his saber and kicked Novem away. I couldn't hide my surprise at the sight.
"Can you even win?!"
At my words, Lael glanced back while dodging Novem's slash.
"Huh? Don't be ridiculous. There's absolutely no way I can win. My specs are capped at ten years old. Well, I can buy some time. Besides, that was the plan from the start."
Lael had come out to buy time. What exactly was he planning? As he continued to fight Novem, Lael spoke.
"...What's that thing you're clutching? And broaden your perspective a little. Most importantly, believe in yourself. The reason Lael can exert power after growing up is because he believes in himself absolutely. The current Lael has given up somewhere inside."
At Lael's words, Ceres's face came to mind. Believing there was absolutely no way to win—and then defeating Ceres by gaining allies. That was because I had acknowledged that I couldn't win on my own—.
Novem lunged at Lael.
"—Don't interfere!"
Sacrificing his left arm, Lael landed his magic on Novem. No blood came, but his left arm shattered into particles of blue light and scattered away.
Using the momentum from the magical explosion, Lael stood before me. He turned to face me.
"Lael has potential. And it's in your hands. Try to remember—every weapon of the successive heads was distinctive, wasn't it? Each of their favored weapons had its own unique characteristic. That means—"
Then, a flash crossed Lael's body. Novem's great scythe carved a line across his form.
As Lael began to vanish, he looked at me.
"The third Skill has been activated. Lael, you have the right to use it too. Now, make your wish. If you do, the Jewel will answer—"
Lael dissolved into particles of light and disappeared. He had gone out of his way to appear before me solely to say that.
"Why do you have to be so damn meddlesome?"
When I gripped the Jewel, Novem looked slightly panicked. Or perhaps she simply didn't want any more irregularities.
"End this, Lael—"
Then three more beams of blue light appeared. What burst forth from them were Rondo, Rachel, and Raph—the trio I'd grown close to during my time in Darion. The three who had been killed by Ceres.
"We won't let you!"
"Novem, knock it off already!"
"C'mon, let's do this!"
The three of them attacked Novem. However, their strength was no different from fodder as far as Novem was concerned. They were the ones who were about to grow stronger. Before they ever could, they had lost their lives.
"Why are all three of you here?!"
Even as Raph was slashed by Novem, he laughed.
"…You idiot, we wanted to stand out too, didn't we? We also wanted to have an adventure like this—"
The returning blade cut down Rachel as well.
"Lael, our dreams were cut short along the way. So, if you're still alive—"
Rachel was fading away. And then Rondo was cleaved in half along with his sword by Novem.
"—if you're still alive, don't give up. That's what we wanted to say."
They were acquaintances. No—they were friends. The friends I'd made by venturing outside, and Novem cut them down without so much as batting an eye.
I gripped the Jewel tightly.
"All you ever do is get in the way. But not anymore."
Novem looked at me. The Jewel blazed with a brighter blue light, and silver filigree responded to my wish, reshaping itself. Ripple-like patterns ran along the silver curved blade. The pristine blade was like a mirror. A Jewel was embedded in the hilt, and my silver weapon—a katana—manifested before me.
Then, a second one appeared as well, roughly half the length of the katana in my right hand.
"I know. I know what kind of weapon this is."
Novem lunged at me with a slash, and the two silver weapons collided.
"—It seems you've obtained a fine weapon. I'm pleased for you too. Cut me with that blade, Lail!"
I grinned.
"Then I'll take you up on that without holding back."
I swung the katanas in both hands. The weight, the feel of the grip—everything was tailored to me, making them easy to wield. I launched a flurry of strikes at Novem with both katanas, forcing her onto the defensive.
Faster!
"Tch!"
Novem could no longer keep up with her great scythe. I leaped into the air, positioning myself directly above Novem and building rotational momentum. Seeing her try to dodge, I hurled the Wakizashi in my left hand at her.
The Wakizashi was knocked flying. But in the next instant, I was gripping the very Wakizashi Novem had deflected away.
Right next to Novem.
"Even with all this noise, I can still use my Skills to some extent."
With the katana, I sliced across Novem's back—from the nape of her neck at a diagonal. I felt the blade sink deep through her body.
Novem was smiling.
"Impressive. Are the Skills enhancing that weapon its special trait? What a fitting weapon for you, Lord Lail."
Novem was smiling, but so was I. A weapon designed for mastering Skills—certainly fitting for someone like me, who had come to rely on the Skills of the Successive Heads.
However, no one was saying that was all there was to it.
"Too bad, Novem... What I actually cut was—"
Novem's eyes widened, and she put distance between us. In a flash she had moved, then touched her own body to check.
She should have been cut, but there was no trace of a wound.
"Impossible. I told my body not to regenerate... and besides, I definitely—"
"Yeah, I did cut you."
I swung my two katanas to the side and took my stance.
"Focusing on Novem, who is both goddess and evil god, I said."
I pointed my katana at Novem, and she had a look of disbelief on her face. My silver weapons—the two katanas—only cut what I wanted them to cut. Skills and such were merely bonuses.
"I'll slice through everything, strip everything away... Novem, I'm going to leave you completely exposed."
Novem glared at me and lunged, striking out. It seemed she was trying to destroy my weapon.
However, once I understood Novem's aim, the rest was simple. I predicted her strike and cut her once again.
In my heart, I chanted. I can do this—I can do it if anyone can. I can save Novem. I can do it—because I'm the one who can.
Like when my tension was high, I believed in myself. To bring out my power to the fullest. And for that, first—
"What's wrong? That's the second strike. If you keep getting cut like this, it won't be long before you're completely exposed."
—I taunted her.