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Chapter 115

Side: Cordelia Allston

Twelve elite members of the Dragon Village and us are on the road.

Lute, myself, Lilith, Koharu-chan, the Guild Master, and the elderly elf.

Everyone has left the realm of ordinary humans.

Even the elite members of the Dragon Village, as the leaders of the seven tribes, are all skilled individuals of S-rank level or higher, even before their dragon transformation. And there’s also the red-haired uncle who seemed to get along well with Lute.

Anyway, we are not your average humans.

—Naturally, our pace is several times faster than that of horses, perhaps even ten times faster.

Passing through the realm of human influence, through the Demon Realm ruled by the Demons, who are a hybrid race between monsters and humans, to the ends of the polar region.

Passing through the wilderness where the ultimate demons called Aragami, which retain the most pronounced characteristics of the former biological weapons, roam, before simply heading east.

Eventually, passing through the cracked land that was once a sea—through a large depression, through a forest of beautiful mountains resembling bowls, and then—

—The Ruined Capital.

Descending underground from the large hole Lute once found, we were greeted by an expanse of gray.

When I first saw the colossal buildings where the Emperor and the Pope reside… as a country bumpkin, I was frozen in shock for quite some time.

But—

「What… is this? 」

A massive structure that covers the sky with overwhelming pressure.

As Lilith and I stood frozen at the sight—

「It seems to be a group of buildings spanning over 300 floors made of super-enhanced ceramics. Even after thousands or tens of thousands of years, while the concrete and cement on the outer walls may have crumbled, the foundation remains undamaged.」

With a shrug, Lute said.

「Well, with this level of technology, you could create biological weapons modeled after myths through genetic manipulation, or even realize a world like a game with nanomachines.」

「Hey, Lute? What about this light? We’re underground, right?」

「Those are radioactive and environmental contamination covered with a lid. For years, they were covered with dirt and sand… It’s best to think of it as a product of magic. Although it’s not a perpetual motion machine, it’s probably does something close to it to produce light.」

「Radiation? Environmental contamination? Perpetual motion?」

「If you don’t understand, that’s fine. It’s not poisonous. It’s already been quite some time and it’s weakened, and besides, it’s the status’s job to deal with all that, and it’s nanomachines that is needed to make status a reality.」

「I see… I feel like I understand, but I don’t… Anyway, this… this ridiculously huge building… is this an ancient civilization?」

「Oh, maybe.」

「Maybe?」

「I don’t know if this is the end of the Shibuya that I know. But at least… The writing on the signs and the like is my native language. Well, it seems that the kanji, hiragana, and grammar have changed as well. As there are some things I don’t understand.」

「I see……」

After Lute looked at the statue called Hachiko with deep emotion, he descended further underground.

「The names of the places haven’t changed, so following the subway is the fastest.」

Descending underground and looking at a map depicting spiderwebs, Lute made an indescribable expression, saying,

「The Ministry of Defense’s Ichigaya Garrison… Well, it looks like it. No, probably… I guess it is.」

After walking through the underground passage for a bit, Lute took a side path. Going through a narrow passage where only four people could lie down side by side, we reached a metal door at the end—

—And it opened up into a spacious area.

It was a space filled with countless paper boxes, which Lute said were cardboard boxes, and without hesitation… he headed towards a corner of the paper boxes.

「It’s an underground facility for emergencies. I was surprised when I came here last time, but I didn’t expect canned beer and canned food to survive. What kind of food preservation technology is this?」

Lute handed me something metallic, and then proceeded to distribute the metal to the members of the Dragon Village.

「Hey, Lilith? Can you use your ice magic to chill the beer? It’s our last supper. There are canned foods surviving too… Well, try them out. Canned mackerel seasoned with soy sauce, mirin, and miso will probably surprise you.」

And so, the banquet began—

「Wow, this beer is delicious! I’ve never had such a drink before!」

「The flavor of the mackerel in miso is terrifying!」

「Dried squid is the best!」

The members of the Dragon Village were enjoying themselves.

There were about twenty of us in total, including the seven elders of the seven dragon tribes, but the number of empty cans exceeded a hundred.

Clearly, we were drinking too much.

「Lu, Lu, Lute-kun… I feel a bit dizzy…」

Saegusa-chan collapsed.

Because we were eating and drinking food reminiscent of Eastern cuisine like crazy, it was no wonder.

Well, at that pace, it was bound to happen.

「But, isn’t this going a bit too far?」

All these matters regarding the survival of humanity… The burden placed on our shoulders was indeed heavy—

That’s why, I was the only one who hadn’t touched alcohol at all.

「…Going too far? You can shup, Cordelia Allston.」

「No, Lilith… but, we’re not here for a picnic, right?」

…

Ahead of my gaze, an arm wrestling competition had started between Lute and the heads of the seven dragon tribes.

Since Lute can easily win one-on-one, it turned into matches like one against four or one against eight, which was absurd.

Still, Lute managed to win, and that made it somewhat appropriate.

Especially the red dragon uncle, who was closely related to Lute, was laughing so much that my ears hurt.

From the bits and pieces of conversation, it seemed like they all wanted to drink together someday, including Lute, Lilith, and me.

Their expressions were like those of fathers sharing a toast with their daughter’s fiancé—deeply happy from the bottom of their hearts, yet somewhat lonely…

But anyway—

「I’ll say it again, we’re not here for a picnic, okay?」

That’s what I thought.

「No, but…」

Lilith, with veins popping on her forehead, said.

「…When we meet the goddess at the Ichigaya facility tomorrow, they won’t be dragons anymore.」

「Huh…?」

With a shrug, Lilith sadly raised her beer.

「…Hey, Cordelia Allston? Abandoning the power that defines the existence of the Dragon Tribes… What’s wrong with them having their last supper as strong individuals?」