06: I’m Helping! …Or So I Thought, but I Was Wrong Again!

“Woof! (All right! We’re here!)”

We break out of the thicket, and the moonlight shines down on us.

We’ve finally arrived at our destination. We are able to exit the forest ahead of the adventurers.

Below us is a stream flowing through a wide riverbed.

It’ll probably take the adventurers another two to three days to get here.

Plenty of time to prepare.

“Squee? (Darling, what in the world do you plan to do here? The remains of our battle are off in that direction.)”

Exactly as she says, the cave we fought in is a little farther north from here.

However, that’s not where I want to execute my plan.

“Mewl. (Hmm. You mentioned you wanted to give the adventurers a treat, but you haven’t yet told us what that treat is.)”

“Woof. (I’m going to prepare it right now. You’re going to help, too.)”

I survey the area for a suitable location.

Somewhere close to the river but not too close. About twenty meters away should do. This place with a bunch of round stones polished by the river should be perfect.

“Woof… (Well, it’s been a while, but…)”

I open my mouth a little and howl.

Magic coalesces in my mouth, and a narrow beam fires. I aim just in front of my feet, firing the beam of light straight down, piercing right through stone, dirt, and bedrock.

“Squee? (…What are you doing, my darling?)”

“Mewl? (Are you looking for earthworms to eat? They’re not very tasty, you know.)”

That’s not it.

I’m not going to eat anything.

Wait, Nahura’s tried earthworms?

“Woof? (All right, you see the mountains near here?)”

We look up over the waterfall and toward what people called the sacred mountains.

“Woof. (If you dig deep enough in an area like this, a hot spring will pop up… Maybe.)”

And with that, I point my snout down in the same place and blast my vomit beam.

I try howling for longer so it will reach deeper.

The beam continues on for as long as I continue to howl. I’m able to dig really deep down.

Apparently, the intensity of my howl does change the beam’s power, and the length of time I howl for changes the range.

I’m really getting the hang of how to use this beam. The key is to feel like you’re vomiting when you fire it. I have to be careful; if I’m not careful, then I actually will throw up.

“Squeak. (The more I watch you, the more I am convinced that’s a messy way to control that power. Then again, it is extremely powerful destructive magic you’re firing.)”

“Woof? (What? So you can’t do this?)”

“Squeak! (D-don’t be ridiculous! I am a dragon. There is magic in this world that I can and cannot control. Extremely destructive magic is easy. But I am not proficient in regulation. It’s strange that you can fire it like that.)”

“Woof. (Oh, I get it. You’re a sore loser.)”

“Squeak! (I am not!)”

Just then, I hear a bubbling coming from the hole I just dug.

“Woof! (Oh, it’s here!)”

“Squea? (What’s here?)”

“Mewl? (That thing you called a hot spring?)”

Len and Nahura peek into the hole.

“Woof! (Ah, don’t, you idiots—!)”

The bubbling sound turns into a low rumble, and a second later, water bursts out of the hole.

“Squeeeeeeee?! (Wh-whaaaaaaaaat?!)”

“Meeeooowww?! (E-eeeeeeeeek?!)”

Len and Nahura are thrown into the air by the waterspout.

They’re not ordinary animals, so I’m not too worried about them, but I run over to the direction they’re thrown in, catching Len in my mouth and Nahura on my back.

“Mew… (Ahh…)”

“Squee… (I’m dizzy…)”

A moment later, spring water falls on us like rain.

“Woof! (That’s hot! —Or not…)”

It’s the perfect tepid temperature.

Just because it’s spring water doesn’t mean it’s going to be boiling hot.

This is great. I had anticipated the hot-spring water mixing with the river water to cool down, so this works out perfectly.

“Woof? (Nahura! Can you cover the hole with a large boulder for me?)”

“M-mewl. (S-sure. Just leave it to me.)”

I look around to see that Nahura has gotten up and buried herself beneath my belly.

She pops her face out from between my legs and floats a boulder buried in the river with her magic.

“Woof? (…Why are you between my legs?)”

“Mewl. (You’re a good rain shield. I absolutely hate getting wet.)”

Oh yeah, she hates baths, too.

I’ll have to force her into the hot spring when it’s done.

She’s starting to smell. Like a damp cloth.

“Mewl? (How’s that?)”

She rests the boulder on top of the hole, and the rush of warm water stops.

“Woof. (It’s great.)”

I use my large beam to open two holes on either side of the boulder. The beam doesn’t crack the stone at all and instead creates two tunnels.

I then jump on top of the boulder and fire a narrower beam than the one before straight down through it.

This hole overlaps perfectly with the hot-spring hole I opened before.

Of course, this means the warm water comes pouring out in three directions.

The left and right holes are bigger, so the water doesn’t shoot out, but the one in the center sprays up into the air with the same energy as before.

“Woof? (Hey, Nahura, can you cover this hole up now? The one in the middle.)”

“Mewl. (Sure, sure. I guess Hecate isn’t the only one who likes to push around cat familiars.)”

Nahura remains under me as she stuffs in a rock that’s roughly the size of the hole with her magic.

This causes the water that was welling out of the top to split left and right.

The water flow isn’t too strong and flows in an arc onto the ground.

“Bark. (All right, now can you cover the left and right holes.)”

Nahura covers the holes with rocks just as before.

“Squee. (Hmm. I have no idea what you’re trying to do, darling.)”

“Bark. (You’ll see.)”

I begin to fiercely dig around the boulder.

“Woof. (There. That’ll do.)”

I’ve dug a donut ring into the riverbed around the boulder.

It’s only about fifty centimeters deep but is quite wide, giving me a lot of space.

“Bark. (Right, then. Please open the left and right holes.)”

“Mewl. (Okaaaay.)”

The stones plop out, and the water flows freely again. It slowly fills up the donut-shaped hole I dug.

There’s still soil left in the hole, which quickly turns the water brown, but that’s fine for now.

“Bark. (That should be full enough. Please plug them again.)”

The water stops, leaving us with a spring that’s an ordinary brown color.

“Woof. (We’ll leave it for today and come back tomorrow when the soil’s settled.)”

“Mrow! (Okay, I’ll set the anchor here, and we can head back!)”

“Squee. (I still have no idea what you’re trying to do, beloved.)”

Len tilts her head, and we teleport back to the mansion with Nahura, who has no idea what the future holds for her.

I wash the mud off my body in the garden’s fountain and shake the water off with all my might.

Then I slip back into bed with Lady Mary, looking completely innocent.

“Hmm……Routa……?”

“Arww. (Yes, I’m here.)”

Phew, that was a close one. But today was another successful “mission complete.”

My lady subconsciously hugs me, and I’m reminded of her softness as I soon fall asleep.

“Mmm, you’re so warm, Routa.”

She wraps her arms around my body, enjoying my coat.

“Arwf! (Oh, Lady Mary! You’re so bold.)”

“Mmm, so fluffy.”

Hee-hee, the fur around my cheek is particularly soft, right? You can pet me more if you’d like.

She buries her face into my white fur and breathes deep, drowning me in affection.

I would not lay a paw on such a beauty. But it doesn’t count if she’s the one who touches me.

As she lies on my belly and rocks her body back and forth, I spot a maid in traditional attire.

It’s Miranda. She’s as neat, tidy, and cute as always.

“It’s time to get up, miss.”

She has approached silently and now calls out to Lady Mary.

“…Aw, time flies when you’re having fun.”

She rubs her face into my chest in protest.

“Very well, my lady. I shall return a little later.”

“But then you’ll be scolded, Miranda. Sorry for being so selfish. I’ll get up.”

Lady Mary is such a good girl. She always puts others before herself.

This no-good mutt sometimes worries that she doesn’t take care of herself because of it.

I’m sure that when we ran away to the lake a while ago, it was because of all the stress that had built up. I need to offer her my glossy, fluffy body for further therapy. As her beloved pet, I want to help my lady de-stress. I’ll never surrender this sovereign duty to Nahura or Len.

Jealousy burns in me for all the small creatures that have stolen my lady’s heart from me.

“Routa, we’ll play again later.”

She seems reluctant to leave as she gets up.

“Woof, woof! (Let me know if you ever you want to skip your studies! You can hop on my back, and we’ll run away!)”

Although, I’ll come back as soon as I’m hungry. Then we can get scolded together.

I can be brave for my lady even if we get scolded! I don’t care if she develops a tiny delinquent streak!

“Squeak… (I know you just want to play, but you always get so bashful around that girl……)”

Ever since Len experienced the petting prowess of Lady Mary, she’s hidden herself deep in my fur and doesn’t come out whenever my lady is around.

She said something about not wanting anyone to touch her except for her husband, even if it’s another female.

“Woof? (What’s thiiiis? Len, are you jealous?)”

“Squeak! (Yes, I am! So pay attention! Pay attention to me more!)”

“Woof! (Wow! So honest! And ouch! That hurts!)”

Stop biting me whenever you can’t think of a comeback.

I guess I am the one who destroyed her last home, but now that she’s taken up residence in my fur, she steals my food and bites me when she gets irrationally jealous. I’m at my wit’s end.

I see Miranda leave the mansion with the shift change, and Toa starts to work.

She’s working hard again today.

She’s carrying the heavy laundry basket as usual. I can see it piled up with white sheets.

She finally gets to the long clothesline and tries as hard as always to stand on her tiptoes and hang up the sheets.

But it doesn’t look like it’s going well. It would help if she had a footstool or something.

“Arwf. (Oh, right, I just remembered.)”

I run over to Toa.

“Woof! Woof! (Toa! Toa!)”

“Eek!”

Oh, whoops. I forgot that barking like that scares the crap out of her.

I thought we had gotten closer since the incident the other day, but it looks like I made her cry again.

“…………”

Toa, whose shoulders are frozen in surprise, turns around.

“…What is it, Routa?”

Oh, she’s not scared?

No, now that I take a closer look, I can see she’s trembling, but she hasn’t gone into a panic like before. She’s being careful not to hurt my feelings.

G-great. So let’s take advantage of this newfound bravery by letting me help you.

I go right up to her and lie on my belly.

“Huh? Routa?”

She tilts her head in confusion, not understanding what I’m trying to suggest.

She stares right at me lying prone.

I don’t know if it’s the way her maid clothes move at this angle, or if her skirt is just short, but when I tilt my head at just the right angle, I can see right up— No, that’s bad!

Shut up, brain!

“Arww. (Come on, Toa. Climb up.)”

If you don’t have a footstool, then you can use me instead!

“…Do you want me to get on?”

“Woof! (Yes! By Jove, I think she’s got it!)”

“You want to help me? But…”

Nooo, no buts.

I paw at her.

“Fine… Thank you.”

She giggles and takes off her shoes.

“Is that okay? I’m not too heavy, am I?”

“Arwf… (Oh-ho, this is quite…)”

The feeling of her soft stockings and light body seems to have awoken a new pleasure in me.

I feel like I’m starting to understand how Christina feels.

“Squee? (What an unsightly expression… Isn’t this one even more of a child than the last female…?)”

That’s not it. Don’t say something so rude about Toa.

It’s fine! I’m not doing anything wrong! Different worlds have different rules!

With me as her footstool, Toa gets the laundry on the line in no time.

“Thanks, Routa.”

“Arwf. (No problem at all. Thank you.)”

I don’t know if I should say you’re welcome or thank you.

“I’m sorry for getting scared that time. You haven’t changed at all from when you were a pup.”

No, I’m sorry I scared you.

Now that I think about it, I do look scary. But I believe that if I can help out like this, then Toa’ll think I’m cute like she used to.

She gives me a little wave, picks up the empty laundry basket, and heads back to the mansion.

“Yaaaaaaaawn… (One job, and I’m already exhausted…)”

Sooo sleepy. I should take a nap so I’m not tired tonight.

Tonight’s the night we finish it!

“Woof, woof. (That’s it, you need to lay the entire thing with stones. Slowly now. If you rush it, you’ll kick up the settled dirt.)”

“Meow. (Okay, leave it to me.)”

Bathed in moonlight, Nahura gets to work with her levitation powers.

With a flick of her paw, stones from the river float up and one by one sink to the bottom of the spring.

The stones have been smoothed round by the river, making them a great floor to sit on when laid out correctly.

The once-warm water in the donut-shaped hole is now freezing, but it’s also beautifully clear after being left alone for a day.

The stones cover the dirt carefully so as not to move the water too much.

Nahura’s magic really is useful. We can do this without much labor or any heavy machinery.

“Mrow? (How does that look?)”

Stones of various sizes lie on one another so there are no gaps. The dirt shouldn’t get kicked up into the water now.

“Bark, bark! (Great! Next is the waterway.)”

I leap over the spring onto the riverside.

I stick the tip of my nose under the water at an angle so there’ll be a slight slope.

“Blurbl! (Little beam!)”

A hole opens from the spring to the river in a flash, causing the water on the edge to cascade out into the river.

A perfect free-flowing hot spring.

The ever-circulating spring will help maintain the temperature, and the overflowing water will be fed back into the river.

“Woof! (Open the gate! Opeeeen!)”

“Mewl. (All right, all right.)”

With a pop, pop, Nahura removes the plugs from the boulder in the middle of the spring, and hot water flows out of the left and right sides.

The arcs of spring water are quite impressive, and now the colder water will soon warm up.

“Awoooo! (All right, then! It’s done!)”

“Mewl! (Congratulations!)”

Nahura gives me soundless applause as I howl with joy.

“Squeak? (So? What is it?)”

Len questions me, stomping on my head.

She’s acting pretty haughty, but she never lifted a paw to help.

“Squea? (It resembles the water fountain back at the mansion… What’s the point of it?)”

“Arwf?! (Huh?! You still don’t know?!)”

You’ve gotta be kidding me.

“Mewl. (I don’t know, either.)”

Yeah, I guess it’s fine if you don’t understand. It would honestly make things harder if you did.

It’s best that you don’t know until you try it yourself.

“Grwl! (My king! I have a report!)”

Garo and a few other Fen Wolves come up to me just as we complete the hot spring.

“Grwl. (The adventurers will be here soon.)”

“Woof? (Ah, they finally made it?)”

“Grwl. (Not a single one of them has been harmed. We eliminated all monsters on the way.)”

“Woof. (Oh, nice work.)”

“Grwl! (I-it is an honor to be praised by you!)”

Garo and the other wolves are so moved they lie on their bellies and tremble.

They’re always so weird about proving their loyalty.

But since Garo and the other wolves don’t want to be equals, I’ll have to reward them for their efforts.

A job well done should be rewarded, after all.

I am just barely able to see my plan through to the end before the adventurers get here.

Thanks to the Fen Wolves’ thorough escort duties, the adventurers are able to have a relaxing trip.

But despite the lack of danger and injuries, walking all the time must still be tiring.

There’s where the hot spring comes in.

There’s nothing better than soaking your tired body in warm water, and eating delicious food should energize their bodies a hundred times over. Their long journey is over, and they can go home feeling refreshed and accomplished.

That’s why I made this plan, “Hot-Spring Vacation! Drip, Drop!”

Huh? What’s going drip, drop, you ask?

Well, that would be the adventurer’s— You know what? Never mind.

“Woof! (Nahura! Bring out the food we collected.)”

“Mewl! (Okay!)”

She activates her teleportation magic.

The basket with little bits of bread, ham, and cheese that I had snuck out of the kitchen at night falls out of her magic circle.

The poor adventurers, who have been eating nothing but those disgusting-looking rations, should have a feast with this.

They’re preserved foods, but old man James made them. Which means they’ll taste heavenly.

I’m sure they’ll be satisfied.

I place the basket next to the hot spring, and now everything is ready.

Now all that’s missing are the guests of honor.

“Woof! (Okay, everyone, hide in the shadows and watch over them!)”

The Fen Wolves disperse, hiding themselves in the shadow of a boulder or the long grass.

“Arwf, arwf? (Are they here yet? Are they here yet?)”

“Nom, nom. (They won’t arrive immediately. Have some patience.)”

“Nibble, nibble, nibble. (Yes, that’s right. Haste makes waste, you know.)”

“Woof! Woof?! (Hey, what are you two eating?!)”

They’re both holding food from the basket.

“Mrow. (It’s just a taste. Just a taste.)”

“Squee. (That’s right. I need to check for poison. You should thank me.)”

“Bark, bark! (No fair! Let me have some!)”

“Grwl… (M-my king. Please be silent…)”

I hear human footsteps coming from the forest as we argue like always.

“Woof! (They’re here! Silence everyone. Munch, munch.)”

“Squeak… (You’re the loudest one here, darling. And I won’t forgive you for stealing my cheese…)”

“Meow… (He took my sausage, too……)”

I only took a little!

Don’t act like I took everything!

I can slowly see the outline of humans coming from deep in the forest.

“Uwah…”

“Urgh…”

The four adventurers emerge from the forest looking absolutely ghastly.

They haven’t been fighting, so their equipment isn’t torn. Only their boots are covered in mud. But they still look like death.

Even zombies have healthier-looking faces than these guys.

I’m not entirely sure if they’re conscious. They look worse than I did when I died of overwork with a zillion bags under my eyes.

“Squee? (Hey, why do they look so tired? All they did was walk, right?)”

“Mewl. (Yeah, maybe it’s because they’re such low-ranking adventurers.)”

“Squee. (Honestly, humans are so weak.)”

“Woof. (Oh well. It’ll all be worth it once they start relaxing.)”

They should have learned along the way that the forest is completely safe.

Now they just have to relax in the hot spring and stuff themselves.

I hold my breath, waiting for the adventurers to see the treat before them.

“Uwah…”

“Urgh…”

The death march comes to an end as the adventurers break free of the deep forest. Before them lies the dried riverbed, bathed in moonlight.

Even though the moon is half-hidden by clouds, the pale light is almost blinding to their eyes, which have become used to the darkness.

Having been through the wringer, the weathered adventurers finally feel their sanity returning.

“…Where is the destination point…?” the captain with the claymore asks the ranger.

“…Just a little farther. We should reach it by sunrise at this rate…,” spits the ranger, exhausted and with drool hanging from his mouth.

The instrument the guild loaned him is reacting very strongly. Their destination must be incredibly close.

The captain glances behind them.

The fatigued priest and steely lancer at the rear have become little more than groaning mannequins.

Their exhaustion is incredibly bad. They don’t know what’s going to happen at the investigation point, either.

It’s too dangerous to go on like this.

“…We should rest here while we can. We’re in no shape to conduct the investigation…”

The mysterious eyes that were following them until this point have gone away.

They should be able to rest for a little while now.

They have no idea what the creatures wanted with them. Maybe they were simply hoping to torment them? They never did get to see what the creatures looked like in the end.

“We don’t need a lookout… There’s no point… Just rest for as long as you like…”

If the creatures were going to kill them, they would have attacked them ages ago. And even if they were attacked, the group no longer has the stamina to fight back.

Recovering strength and energy is their top priority. Even if only a little, they need to be as refreshed as possible before moving on to conduct their investigation.

The whole party collapses by the riverbank. They throw down their things, sit on the ground, and let out sighs of exhaustion.

It’s incredibly improper behavior for A-Rank adventurers, but there’s no one around to point that out.

“Captain… What do you suppose that is…?”

The first one to notice the anomaly is the ranger.

Steam can be seen rising just a short distance from them.

“What is that…?”

It’s hard to get back up again after they just caught a break, but they have to check it out.

The captain heads over to the steam with the rest of the party following behind.

“What in the world…?”

It’s a circular stream. It looks man-made. There’s no way something like this occurred naturally.

The ranger takes off his glove and dips his hand into the water.

“It’s warm. There’s also a faint smell of sulfur. It’s a hot spring.”

“Out here?”

In the middle of the hot spring is a giant boulder, with plenty of warm water flowing out of the central hole.

He’s seen a lot of naturally forming hot springs before. But someone clearly made this one.

“Do you think anyone lives near here?”

“Impossible. I heard this forest is unexplored. The reason we’re even here is because no one lives near where that magical disaster occurred.”

“Then what is this?”

“If you think about it, maybe the things that were watching us this whole time made it?”

“Then our situation really is hopeless…”

This completely changes what they thought about their stalkers simply being strong monsters.

The carefully placed stones. The boulder carved to provide hot water. Now that they look closer, there’s even a waterway dug out to the river to let out cooled water.

This means there are creatures intelligent enough to make something like this deep in the forest.

It wouldn’t just be hopeless, but the worst of the worst situations imaginable.

“C-Captain. Do you see that…?”

The lancer is pointing at a willow basket. It’s full of bread and cheese and other food.

“““Gulp…”””

All of them gulp.

For the past few days, they’ve had nothing to eat but claylike provisions, making this simple basket look like a banquet.

“I’m not hallucinating, right…?”

“Ha-ha-ha-ha… A hot spring and banquet in middle of the forest? What kind of sick joke is this?”

The ranger grasps his cheeks and lets out a dry laugh.

Even if it’s an illusion, they’ve stopped caring. They’re past understanding at this point.

The ranger’s laugh, which is closer to a sob by now, echoes into the forest.

He suddenly stops.

“…Nobody. Move,” he warns.

The others look over to where the ranger is staring.

It’s the unchanging forest thicket.

What could have gotten the ranger so worked up?

Just then, the clouds that were covering the moon shift.

There, reflected in the moonlight, are countless eyes.

“EEK…!”

How long have they been hiding there?!

Sure, they’re tired, but even from this distance, they didn’t sense anything.

Now they understand the strength of the creatures hidden in the woods.

They suddenly have the ominous feeling that a dragon, or some other legendary beast, is staring at them.

Ordinary adventurers wouldn’t have noticed them.

But the guild’s best high-class adventurers can tell the difference in their power.

They cannot win against whatever’s in the brush.

The countless eyes hold no malice. But they are unsettling enough.

“…What is going on…?”

The captain has to swallow his fear to think.

Let’s review the details.

Eyes watching them from the forest and the occasional flash of murderous intent. A hot-spring bath for cleaning the body. And a basket full of food.

What is the meaning behind all this?

“…Oh. I see now…”

The captain comes to a single conclusion.

“I get it. I have it now, you shapeless monsters. I know what you’re after now.”

He glares at the forest as he grits his teeth.

“We’re your meal.”

They prepare their meals by observing their prey, driving them to the edges of fear and exhaustion.

He’s heard of vampires, intelligent monsters that improve the taste of their victim’s blood by instilling them with fear.

The endless observation and hostile aura are all for the purpose of leading them here to be feasted upon.

And the final phase of the plan is to have the adventurers clean themselves in the hot spring and fatten themselves up with the food.

In response to the captain’s conclusion, countless eyes seem to blaze in the darkness.

“Their meal…? Did you say we’re their meal…?”

“Damn it all… We were playing right into their hands the whole time…”

Their bodies are frozen with fear.

Even if they head back now, it’s too late. There’s no way they would be able to return alive now that they know the truth.

The eyes in the thicket are just waiting for them to be done.

To go on is death. To turn back is death. The adventurers shout.

“Who… Who would happily go along with your plan?!”

“Do you think we’re going to just let you eat us…?!”

“We’re proud adventurers, the Swords of Dawn! Not some pigs to be eaten!”

“Let’s go, men! We must complete this investigation no matter what. We’ll go to the magic disaster point and report our findings to the guild! Even if only one of us survives, we shall emerge victorious!”

“““Yeah!”””

The adventurers, now fueled by rage, ignore the hot spring and food and run north for the waterfall.

“““…………”””

Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!

The adventurers suddenly become enraged and run off.

“Arwf?! (The hot spring! The feast! Aren’t you going in?! Aren’t you going to eat something?!)”

I don’t get it! What was wrong with the gift I put all my effort into?!

If it were me, I’d be over the moon to get in a bath and eat some good food. But it doesn’t seem to appeal to the adventurers at all.

“Squee? (More importantly, beloved, they’re heading straight for the waterfall. Should we just leave them to it?)”

“Arwf? (Huh? The waterfall…? What about it…?)”

I’m so shocked at my gift being ignored that I can’t think about anything else.

What’s wrong with them going there?

“Mrow. (You know. The plan was to show them that there are no dangers in the forest while also slowing them down so that we could disperse the magic around the waterfall. Remember?)”

“……Arwf. (……Ah.)”

“Squeak? (……Don’t tell me you forgot. What did you think we were going to do after this?)”

“A-arwf. (H-ha-ha-ha, whoops… Yeah, I completely forgot.)”

“Mew… (Routa…)”

“Woof! (S-stop it! Don’t look at me like that!)”

I look away from Nahura’s judgmental stare.

“Squeak. (Oh dear. So you’re the type who turns the means into the goal and forgets about the future.)”

Grrr. You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?

But I have no comeback. Our main objective completely left my mind halfway through making the hot spring.

“Bark! (N-no, we still have time!)”

The treat failed, but we can still recover from this.

We just have to get to the waterfall before them and disperse the magic.

“Woof! (Let’s go! We’re going to get there before the adventurers!)”

“Grwl! (Yes, sir! Leave the escort to us! You head there right away, my king!)”

With a low growl, the Fen Wolves disperse.

Nahura and Len get on my back, and I run as fast as I can.

“Squee? (By the way, darling, how do you plan on dispersing the magic?)”

Len’s question forces us to realize one crucial detail.

“Woof? (Huh? Don’t you two know?)”

“Mew. (I don’t.)”

“Squeak. (Neither do I. I know how to use the magic within myself, but I have no idea how to disperse magic I’ve already released.)”

What?!

Shouldn’t that be your field of expertise as fantasy creatures?!

Just do some kind of pow, pow, poof, and it’s gone, right?!

“Squeak. (Weak humans have probably thought about how to use magic in the atmosphere. But dragons with an abundance of magic have no need for such things. We don’t learn what we don’t need to learn. That’s just common sense, isn’t it?)”

“Woof! Woof! (Don’t act so high and mighty! What good is a thousand-year-old spinster?! A dragon who knows nothing is useless!)”

“Squeak! (Wh-what did you say?!)”

“Woof! Woof! (Which reminds me! You were completely useless this time, too! All you did was act arrogant and hang out on my head!)”

“Meow! (Oh, I helped out!)”

“Woof! (Yes you did! You’re a good girl! Garo and others are good wolves! But, Len, you’re a bad girl!)”

A very bad girl! I won’t forgive anyone who’s an even bigger freeloader than I am!

“S-squeak! (Wh-what?! If you’re going to go that far, then just you wait! I’m going to show you how useful I can be!!)”

And with that, Len flies into the air.

With a flash of light, a giant blue dragon appears.

“GROOOOOAR!! (I just need to get there faster than them, right? When I put my mind to it, I can fly faster than the speed of sound!)”

She grabs Nahura and me in her thick front claws.

“Bark! (Hey! Wait! What if the adventurers see you?!)”

Making them believe no monsters live here is a key part of the plan!

“GROOOOAR! (It’s fine! You males shouldn’t split hairs! I just have to fly fast enough that they don’t see me! Let us be off!!)”

“Arwf! (It’s not fine! This isn’t good at all! If you fly faster than the speed of sound, then you’ll have to break the sound barri—)”

We’re suddenly struck with incredible speeds before I can finish.

Or so I think, but it doesn’t happen.

I look down to the dark forest to see it whizzing past, but I don’t feel the wind at all.

“GRRRAR! (Who do you think I am?! I put up a shield before breakfast! At this speed, the darkness will also keep us hidden from the adventurers.)”

“Mew…? (Um, about the adventurers…you know when we just flew up into the air…?)”

I look down to see that the adventurers, smaller than grains of rice, have fallen over on the riverbank.

They remind me of people I’ve seen get knocked over by typhoon winds.

Ohhh, they’re gonna be all beat up… Yikes…

“……GROOOOAR! (……Perfect! That will buy us some more time!)”

“Woof… (This is terrible. They’re definitely going to think there’s something wrong with this forest…)”

Even if we get ahead of them, we have no way to disperse the magic. There’s no way to fix this.

Checkmate. Total checkmate.

The adventurers are going to report everything to the guild. Then the real investigation will begin.

If loads of adventurers come, they’ll find Garo and the other Fen Wolves and spread the word that this forest isn’t safe.

And if loads of adventurers show up, at least one of them is bound to uncover my true identity.

Even the clueless people at the mansion will be swayed if a crowd of people explain it to them.

It’s over! My pet life is over!

I hang limp in Len’s claws as I lose all hope and the energy drains from my body.

Flying at that speed, it’s barely a moment before Len arrives at the waterfall.

She beats her wings a few times to slow down, and we have a smooth landing.

“GRAR? (Darling, we’re here… Hey, what’s the matter, darling?)”

“Arww… (Oh, you know. Just the realization that pet life as I know it is over, and there’s no point in trying anymore…)”

“GROOOAR? (Hmph. What if we explain everything to them? I don’t know much about these humans, but maybe they’ll understand if you talk to them. Or shall I have a word with them?)”

“Bark… (Don’t you remember what happened with Zenobia…? She attacked you before trying to talk to you…)”

I lie down, drained of energy.

“GRRAR? (Would you prefer we simply wait for something to be born of all the magic gathered here? A monster born of our magic would be a very powerful child. Then we can live a long life together as a family… Oh, that actually sounds like a great plan!)”

“Woof! Woof! (No it does not! How is it a solution to give the guild more monsters to hunt down?! Actually, can you please stop trying to force a kid on me?!)”

What kind of messed up life plan ends with my being stuck with the responsibility of fatherhood as a two-month-old puppy?

“Arwf… (Haah, it’s no use…)”

I won’t be able to live at the mansion anymore once the cat’s out of the bag.

Even if my lady and the others try to protect me, the guild will probably send adventurers to kill me.

Not low-level adventurers like this time, or hack adventurers like Zenobia, but a lot of really strong ones.

I’ll have to leave the mansion before it becomes a battleground.

But then where will I go? A weak, city-spoiled child like me can’t survive in the wilderness.

I’m scared of hunting, and I don’t want to eat raw meat. Especially now that I’ve tasted old man James’s cooking. Nothing else can even be considered food!

My life, my perfect doggy life, is over… All that awaits me is death by starvation…

Lady Mary, it looks like this is the end for your Routa.

Please be well…

“Mrow? (Routa? Routa?)”

Nahura pokes my nose with her long tail.

“…Woof. (…What? I’m about to read my last will and testament. Don’t get in the way.)”

“Mewl! (It looks like everything is okay now!)”

“Arwf? (Huh?)”

I get up and look over to where Nahura is pointing.

“Oh my, you guys sure are late.”

Over by the half-destroyed pool near the waterfall stands a witch with a silver staff.

She has silver hair, a wide-brimmed tricornered hat, long ears, and a voluptuous body.

She’s a witch I know very well.

“Woof?! (H-Hecate?! What are you doing here…?!)”

I don’t know if she’s using her levitation magic or something, but she’s standing on top of the water.

“Let’s talk later. I’ve just finished the spell.”

What spell?

As soon as she says that, she stabs her staff into the water. A giant, glowing magic circle causes the water to rise up with the staff in the center. It changes itself into complicated shapes as it expands all the way out to us.

“GRRAAR…?! (Wh-what is this magic circle…?! I’ve never seen such a complicated spell before! I cannot decipher its purpose at all…!)”

Looks like this magic confuses Len, even though she’s lived for so long.

The giant magical circle becomes three-dimensional, and the light gets more intense.

“Woof?! (Is it okay for us to be here?! Isn’t this bad?!)”

“Mew. (Well, Mistress didn’t say anything, so I suppose it’s okay. She probably would have sent us off somewhere if we were in the way.)”

Nahura, who knows Hecate the best, lazily plops down.

Hecate lets go of the staff stuck in the water and begins to chant in a way that sounds like she’s singing.

As if in response to her chant, the shining magic circle covers the whole pool, and its pattern gets even more complicated.

“…Hmm, it might not be quite enough. Routa, over here, please.”

“W-woof! (Whoa, hey! What are you doing?!)”

Hecate waves me over in the middle of her chant, and my body starts floating in the air. I float all the way over until I’m next to her.

“I was wondering if you might be able to add a little magic to my circle. It requires a bit more than I had expected.”

“Woof! Woof?! (We came here to get rid of the magic, but aren’t you just adding to it?! Wait, what are you doing here in the first place?!)”

“Now is not the time for explanations. But what if I told you that if you help me here, then all your problems up until now will be solved?”

“Woof! (Seriously?! Then of course I’ll help you!)”

I don’t know what she’s going to do, but I’ll do anything to protect my pet life!

“Thank you. If you could just hurl magic as hard as you can straight up, that would be great.”

All right! Leave it to me. I just need to fire a beam straight up, right?

I’ll just pack all my feelings into it, and here comes my vom-beam.

“Awoooooooooo?! (Hey, adventurers, why didn’t you want to get in my hot spriiiiiiiiiiiing?!)”

My howl of sorrow becomes a pillar of light, piercing right through the middle of the magic circle dome.

Or rather, the pillar of light crashes into the dome and splits off into six parts, which then diffuse down the walls of the dome, causing the circle to shine even brighter.

Like cogs in a machine, the complicated patterns of the magic circle begin to move faster, the light shining so bright it almost looks like daylight.

The white light illuminates all around me, and I’m forced to shut my eyes.

Just beyond my limited vision, I hear a click sound, as if a door just opened.

“That’s one down,” I hear Hecate murmur next to me, but her words are cryptic and strange.

“It’s over. Good work, Routa.”

I blink a few times as I open my eyes to see Hecate floating above the water.

The blinding magical circle that was just here has now completely vanished without a trace.

All that surrounds me is the glow of the moon and the sound of the waterfall.

“GRAAAR. (Oh, the dense residual magic is gone.)”

Dragon-mode Len lets out a long roar of admiration.

I can’t sense it, but it seems what Len said is true.

“GROOOAR… (Was it that magic circle? That seemed a bit excessive for the mere purpose of dispersing some magic… Rather than dispersing the magic, the circle seems to have converted it into something else…)”

Len ponders the possibilities.

I’m also a little worried that something will come out of that magic circle, but so far, nothing.

“Arwf…? (What was that…?)”

That was an impressive display, but for everything to come to an end without anything happening is a blessing, if not a bit anticlimactic.

If this were a show at a theme park, everyone would have booed.

I can hear Hecate giggling as I pore over this.

“Hee-hee, it’s a secret for now. But I know that someday it’ll be something you’ll find useful, Routa.”

“Arwf…? (Me…?)”

Hecate, who’s expression never falters, is covered in beads of sweat. Her breath is a little ragged, and her cheeks are flushed.

I guess that magic circle really did take a lot out of her.

“Arwf. (Hmm, well, all right.)”

I’ll have no idea, even if I try to figure it out.

A pet dog doesn’t need to know anything about magic. It’s best to let sleeping thoughts lie.

“Woof! Woof! (At least now all the residual magic is gone, right? Thanks, Hecate! I’m sure everything will be fine now!)”

I’m pretty sure the adventurers can’t see us.

And no matter how much they suspect, they won’t get any proof.

If there’s nothing wrong with the area they’re supposed to investigate, then everything should be written off as the adventurers’ hallucinations and baseless suspicions.

Okay, let’s get out of here. Everyone, disperse.

Nahura, wake up. Len, hurry up and turn back into a mouse.

Just as I turn around to say that—Garo and the others run up to me.

“Grwl! (Please forgive me, my king! We were unable to stop them from entering the magic circle!)”

“Woof— (Oh, hey, guys. Looks like things turned out okay in the end. The adventurers—)”

“Grwl! (—are almost here! You must hide yourselves, quickly!)”

“Woof! Woof! (Oh no! Hide, everyone! Hide now!)”

“GROOAR… (It would appear it’s too late for that…)”

Len points one of her claws over to where the four adventurers are standing.

“A-a dragon…?! That was what caused the strong wind before…?!”

“That’s not all! Look at those ridiculously huge wolves! And isn’t that white one from the mansion?! What’s he doing here?! Were they the ones watching us this whole time…?!”

“What was that massive magic circle just now…?! That couldn’t have been the work of humans…! Oh God…! I don’t know what’s what anymore…”

“No, what interests me more is that young lady!”

The adventurers are getting louder and louder, their rage increasing to the point where they’re about to draw their weapons.

Haah, it’s over. It’s really over now.

They’ve seen Len in her dragon form—and the Fen Wolves frozen next to her. And with Hecate—sexy as ever—standing right there, she looks like an evil witch controlling all the monsters.

No matter how you look at it, we’re a very suspicious group.

All that’s left is to report it to the guild.

I just want to disappear.

“Hey, you were sent by the guild, correct?”

Hecate gives my dejected head a single pat as she steps forward.

“Hey! Stop right there, you suspicious witch!”

The leader takes the claymore off his back.

“I’m not going to do anything. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

Hecate is unafraid of the sword as she steps forward.

“I—I said stop!”

“W-wait! Captain!”

It’s the lancer who reins him in.

“Ah, it is! Now that I get a closer look, it really is!”

“What? She a friend of yours?”

The ranger looks at the lancer suspiciously.

“Not exactly, but everyone should know her! You know, the portrait up in the guild’s headquarters!”

“But that painting is of the former guild master…”

“She’s the founder! So the rumors that she’s still alive and sometimes visits the current guild master are true!”

Hecate’s the guild’s founder?

That’s a new development.

She’s an incredible witch and an amazing doctor, she’s higher in the pecking order than Papa, and now she’s the founding guild master?

Who in the world are you, Hecate?

I don’t know how long the guild’s been around, but I feel like it’s an organization with a long history.

Wait, so how old is she really?

“……………”

Ah. Did it just get colder?!

I just noticed her eyes have narrowed, and now she’s looking at me.

Scary! Her wordless smile is emitting such murderous intent!

Any inquiry into age is bad. I’ll remember that.

“…Excuse me, but may I have your name?”

The claymore-wielding leader directs the question to Hecate.

“Hecate Luluarus. I’m sorry to say I am still very much alive.”

The lancer realizes how rude he was and quickly claps his hand over his mouth.

“Your name and appearance are the same as the portrait’s— No, you’re more beautiful in person… Your fame precedes you. Even cowardly adventurers like ourselves have heard of you. Please excuse our rudeness.”

Their leader apologizes like a knight.

“But if you are the founder of the guild, then what are you doing here?”

The ranger turns his suspecting gaze to her.

His eyes look like they won’t yield to any authority.

“Sorry about that. I was just doing a little magic experiment. But everything’s fine now. It’s all over and done with. Look at your device. It’s not reacting to any magic, is it?”

“Huh, that’s impossible…… You’re kidding. All traces of magic have completely disappeared.”

The ranger with the device is speechless.

“I’m sure that even if we ask about this experiment of yours, we won’t understand, so I won’t ask, but…what about those monsters?”

“These are all my friends.”

“So they’re your familiars…? But I can’t believe you’d have a dragon familiar… No, that’s possible for someone like you.”

Hecate smiles, neither denying nor acknowledging his statements.

So she’s a schemer who prefers to let someone misunderstand a situation.

“GRAR…? (Who are you calling a familiar…?)”

“Woof! (Shh. This is going well—don’t interrupt! Stay! Staaaay!)”

“GRR…? (I know that. Who do you think I am, darling…?)”

Len only growled a little, but I can sense the adventurers start to tremble.

Not as bad as Zenobia, but pretty close.

“Th-then the ones watching us were these monsters?”

The priest asks the question in utter fear.

“Watching? Oh, sorry. These children seemed to have made a mistake. Please let me apologize on their behalf. I would be most grateful if you would tone that part down in your report to the guild. If you need a witness for your report, I’d be happy to answer a summons.”

Hecate manages to thwart all the adventurers’ questions before they’re able to ask them.

“Hmm, really… One more thing, though. Does Marquis Faulks, the owner of these lands, know you’re in these woods…?”

“Of course he does. It seems that piece of information didn’t make it to you.”

“Really? …Then there isn’t a problem here.”

They’d been made to come all this way just for this, and while they may feel there’s an issue, they won’t raise a fuss over it. These adventurers are professionals, after all.

The founder of the guild says there’s no problem, and in the end, any further questioning should be conducted by their superior. And Hecate says she’d answer a summons.

There’s nothing the adventurers can do right now.

Just as Hecate promised, everything is resolved.

“It seems you’ve endured something horrible on your way here. I hope you can take it easy when you get back. Make sure you tell the guild master that your mission has been completed.”

Hecate waves her staff, and a white light glows under the adventurers’ feet.

It’s the teleportation magic we’ve seen many times.

“Wh-what?! Is this—?”

She doesn’t show any consideration to them as they all scream, eyes wide, then vanish.

“Woof? (Hmm, that’s the fastest I’ve ever seen someone get rid of troublesome people. Where did you send them?)”

“To the front of the gate of the Royal Capital. It would cause an uproar if they suddenly appeared in the middle of the guild headquarters.”

Well, I’m sure the people you just sent away will be in an uproar themselves.

As well as anyone at the gate who happens to see them magically appear.

“Woof? (So wait. Does that mean this ordeal is finally over?)”

“Mew. (Looks like it. Feels a bit anticlimactic.)”

“GRAAR. (Hmm. Perhaps if we’d asked the Lady Witch right from the start, this would have been over a lot sooner.)”

Don’t say that. You’re going to make me regret everything.

I had made a new resolution when I was reborn. I promised myself I would mooch off the hard work of others whenever possible. But once again, I ended up doing honest work.

This is completely inappropriate behavior for a no-good freeloading hound. This just proves that working yourself to the bone is never worth it.

“Oh my, that is a problem.”

“Arwf? (What’s a problem?)”

“That hot spring you put so much effort into making is going to waste.”

“Bark? (Huh? You want to try it?)”

Wait, how does she know about that? I think for a second, but then I remember she’s connected to Nahura’s eyes and ears.

“Yes, of course I’ll use it. You worked so hard for this, after all.”

Oh right, Hecate loves baths. Or rather, she loves drinking in the bath.

Ah, I can see it now.

I can see one of Papa’s special-reserve wines waiting for us.

“And of course, she’ll need a clean, too.”

I look down to see Nahura lazily grooming herself.

Her face jolts up from everyone watching her.

“Mewl? (U-um, Mistress? Why do I have a really bad feeling right now…?”)

“I told you to say ‘meow’ at the ends of your sentences, didn’t I? This calls for punishment. I’m going to be even rougher than usual when scrubbing you.”

“Gyeow! (N-no punishmeeeent! No baaaaaaaath!)”

Hecate grabs Nahura by the scruff of the neck as she tries to run away, then casts her teleportation magic.

Suddenly, we’re back at the hot spring.

“Now then, it’s bath time. I really worked up a sweat, so I’m sure the liquor will taste divine.”

“Gyeeoow! (Not a baaath! Not a baaaaaaaath!)”

“GRRAR. (I see—so that is hot water for bathing… Then it is time for my secret plan.)”

“Woof. (Why are you making that face? Hurry up and turn back into a mouse.)”

“GRAR! (I will not! For this is my true form!)”

We’re arguing back and forth like always when suddenly, everything turns white with a burst of space-time magic.

Here I am, thinking we’d just been wasting our time, but this whole uproar has been wrapped up neatly with a nice little bow.

And they all live happily ever after.

…Right?