Translator: Nox

I Married the Dragon I Killed

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

“Truly astounding.”

Those were the words Ruri let out as she looked at Ferda while bringing in breakfast.

As a dragon spawn and Valdrova’s sole attendant, her powers of observation were exceptional.

“Have you really opened your circuits?”

In just one night?

Ferda nodded.

“I have.”

“It should be impossible for an ordinary human to open them in a single day.”

“Perhaps it is because I am not ordinary? Rather than that, I would like an answer.”

“To what?”

“Have I proven myself qualified to be her spouse?”

“…….”

Instead of answering, Ruri bit her lip and looked up at Ferda.

By her standards for potential, he had passed.

‘No, he’s actually exceeding my expectations.’

Just two weeks ago, when she made the proposal to Ferda, she had thought: it would be a miracle if he managed to squeeze out a single drop on the final day of the fourth week.

Yet, in just two weeks, Ferda had satisfied the condition with ease.

‘No, it wasn’t even two weeks.’

Since there hadn’t been a single sign of progress until now, he had achieved it in a single day.

‘The cause of that awakening… must have been the Master’s battle.’

What kind of change could one possibly feel from that?

All a human should feel is being overwhelmed by fear and awe.

In fact, she was the one who had moved his broken body to the bed, so she knew exactly what state he had been in.

She didn’t like how he was acting with such composure, as if this were only natural.

“Why no answer?”

“……Fine.”

“What is?”

“The criteria.”

Ruri cleared her throat and changed the subject.

“The criteria have been met, so you may rest until the engagement ceremony. You have worked hard.”

“Resting is all well and good, but don’t we still have a long way to go?”

After finishing breakfast, Ferda wiped his mouth with a napkin and rose from his seat.

“Is there a place where I can practice?”

“What do you plan to practice?”

“Magic, of course.”

At that, Ruri shook her head.

“Unfortunately, we have no supplies for mages. I can procure some, but it will take about three days.”

“It won’t take that long. I don’t need things like that.”

The training Ferda was about to undertake did not require such expensive and sophisticated items.

“A few targets will suffice.”

“Targets?”

“I’m saying a few straw scarecrows will do.”

Ruri looked puzzled.

What kind of training did this novice, who had only just stepped into the 1st Circle, intend to do with scarecrows?

But for Ferda, they were the best and most optimal tools.

His magic training required a level of delicacy that could not be measured or corrected by equipment.

And that level of delicacy was something Ferda was already capable of controlling on his own.

---

The place Ruri led Ferda to was the clearing where she had spread her wings to head for the mountain peak.

It had now become a training ground.

The kind of place meant for ordinary soldiers, not mages.

Straw scarecrows, distance markers, obstacles, and tools.

‘I can see how she manages this massive castle alone.’

The speed at which she transformed the clearing into a training ground in just thirty minutes was impressive.

With the dexterity and speed to create a space like this, what couldn’t she do?

Ferda looked at Ruri, who stood politely beside him, and spoke.

“Thank you for setting this up.”

“What specifically do you intend to practice?”

“Mana control.”

Ruri tilted her head.

“Why control it?”

“To use magic efficiently. There are many cases where mana is wasted through excessive use, or the spell fails because too little was used.”

This time, she tilted her head to the right.

“Does that actually happen?”

“Is it not so for dragons? I heard almost all dragons can use magic, even if only a little.”

Ruri nodded.

“We can handle magic, as you say. The magic we can use varies depending on whose blood we inherited, but almost all dragon spawn are capable of it.”

“Then you don’t understand?”

“Yes. To put it simply, what you are saying sounds to me like worrying about whether you’ll forget how to breathe. If other dragon spawn heard this, they would call it ‘primitive.’”

Ferda stared intently at Ruri.

“So, does what I’m doing look primitive to you?”

“I am also a dragon spawn, after all.”

She was calling it primitive.

“Well, you’re not wrong.”

Arrogance was their basic nature, so what could he do?

Dragon spawn, who could wield magic instinctively.

And humans, who wielded magic through effort and understanding.

It was natural that those with innate talent and those who achieved it through hard work could not understand each other.

Ferda turned his head toward the scarecrows.

“May I watch your training?”

“If you find watching breathing exercises interesting.”

“Then, by all means.”

Ruri stood a short distance away and began to observe.

Ferda closed his eyes.

To control magic, one must feel the stillness and slowly approach the gentle flow.

That was the standard method for controlling mana.

‘But that control method is strictly limited to the Blue Circle.’

Most established magic was designed for the Blue Circle.

Ferda’s circle was a Red Circle.

A Red Circle, forged from the turbulence of emotion, cannot be governed by the control methods of the Blue Circle.

Even if one were to attempt control that way, the power would diminish so drastically that one would become, in common parlance, a ‘half-wit.’

‘I must control what must not be controlled.’

The Red Circle was something illogical and full of contradictions.

If one only knew the secret to breaking that contradiction, one could master the power.

And Ferda had made that possible.

With his eyes closed, he let his senses slowly sink.

His consciousness, falling like a stone into a lake, reached his dantian.

The circle, spinning tensely in a ring, appeared vividly behind his closed eyes.

Ferda observed it quietly.

The rapidly flowing mana was like a torrent during the monsoon season.

It felt as though he might be swept away if he approached it incorrectly.

Ferda carefully reached out toward it.

What he was trying to do was like shaping pottery.

Carefully touching the edge of the rapidly spinning circle, maintaining its form while scooping out the mana.

‘Lifting.’

Even for the relatively slow-flowing Blue Circle, this was a stage that required over a year of discipline.

For the Red Circle, it was a process that should have taken several times longer.

‘I put in blood-soaked effort.’

That sensation remained vivid in Ferda’s memory.

Ferda concentrated on the circle and brought his finger to it.

The mana of the torrent lightly brushed his finger, and the mana within used his finger as a new stream, flowing out along it.

‘I feel it.’

He felt the mana from his dantian rising through his blood vessels.

Through the vessels to the heart, and from the heart to the arteries.

Using the blood vessels as a path, the mana began to move.

‘The time it takes to do this is one year.’

But Ferda skillfully found the path, finally reaching the tip of his right index finger.

‘It took one minute.’

A one-year process completed in one minute.

Now that he had lifted the mana, he moved to the next stage: ‘Sphere Formation.’

Wooooong—.

The mana gathered at his fingertip was released and began to scatter.

He felt the blue threads of light spreading out from his fingertip.

‘Condense.’

The scattering mana gathered and condensed about an inch above his finger.

The gathered and compressed mana took on a deep hue.

When it condensed to the point where even someone who hadn’t awakened to magic could see it clearly, that stage was complete.

Ferda’s sphere was a perfectly smooth and solid orb.

Usually, mana that isn’t fully controlled escapes in the form of blue steam.

But in Ferda’s sphere, there was no such waste.

‘Another year to reach this point.’

The series of processes that had once taken a total of two years were now accomplished in two minutes.

He wasn’t particularly overjoyed.

As Ruri said, this was an act as natural as breathing.

Just as no one rejoices at discovering how to breathe, it was that much of a given for Ferda.

‘The final stage.’

A task that takes most mages six years.

And a task that Ferda, despite his great talent, had barely mastered over three years.

He entered the ‘Three-Beat’ stage.

Ferda looked down at the clump of mana gathered on his finger.

A pure crystal that could transform into anything according to the user’s will.

The first thing one does with that crystal is the projectile ‘Mana Shot.’

Literally, it simply meant firing a clump of mana.

However, that training was also a measure of whether a mage could perform their role.

‘Condensation, speed, and accuracy must all align.’

That was the Three-Beat.

It was a stage known as the Wall of Lamentation; countless mages who had reached the 3rd Circle still couldn’t overcome this step.

Even Ferda had only managed it after reaching the 2nd Circle.

Looking down at the clump of mana, Ferda raised his head.

He saw the sign and the scarecrow, marked as being exactly 50 meters away.

“Hmm……”

Ferda narrowed his eyes and let out a low hum.

“This won’t do.”

After muttering that, he focused on his finger once more.

Then, three spheres were fashioned and rose above his finger.

Looking at them, Ferda whispered.

“Yes. This is it.”

It had to be at least this much for it to be worth doing, right?

Ferda’s finger slashed through the air.

Simultaneously, three mana bullets traced a parabola and flew out.

The target was exactly above the scarecrow’s forehead.

Pop-pop-pop—!

The high-density mana bullets burst and exploded.

The scarecrow’s head vanished without a trace.

Ferda watched and muttered.

“I haven’t lost it yet.”

Although firing three shots at the 1st Circle had drained half of his stored mana, it was fine.

Mana would increase as the circles grew.

Now that he had finished the practical test, Ferda no longer doubted his abilities.

That was the end of his practice.

The time elapsed from the start of the practice to the end was a mere ten minutes.

---

That night, Ruri went down to the Lair.

In her hand, she held documents she had organized herself.

“I am here to give the weekly report.”

—Proceed.

Even though she was in seclusion, Valdrova needed to know how the world was turning.

Ruri, as the sole attendant, carried out that role, and she accepted the task gladly.

Valdrova listened calmly to her summary.

When the thirty-minute situational report ended, Ruri closed the documents.

“That is all.”

—Yes, you’ve worked hard.

“It is no trouble at all. Is there anything you are curious about?”

Nothing. You may leave.

The words Ruri usually heard were replaced by a different sentence.

—Something I’m curious about……

Valdrova’s claw scratched her chin.

Having served her for a long time, Ruri could tell instantly.

She was curious about something.

‘Is she finally taking an interest in the outside world?’

Ruri’s eyes sparkled for a moment.

Valdrova’s mouth twitched, then she shook her head.

—No, it’s nothing.

“Please, tell me. What are you curious about? This humble Ruri is prepared to answer any question you may have, Master.”

Ruri’s eyes shone.

Valdrova looked down at her and spoke reluctantly.

—The one who will become my spouse…… how is he doing?

“Ah.”

What settled in Ruri’s heart was a sense of betrayal.

It felt as if her dreams were being shattered.

To think that the thing she was curious about was the status of that fellow.

However, since she had pressed for it, it was only right to answer.

“The one who will be your fiancé is doing well.”

—Did it seem like there was anything uncomfortable for him?

“Yes, you need not worry. Contrary to my expectation that he would be uncomfortable since I didn’t bring in separate attendants at first, he is doing well. He is very different from the nobles of these days.”

—I see.

“And……”

Unlike how she thought the conversation would end, Ruri’s lips twitched.

She agonized internally over whether she should say this, then spoke.

“And so, he is unpredictable.”

—Unpredictable? Do you mean he is below expectations?

Ruri shook her head.

“No. His ability is excellent. Rather, it’s because he is more than I imagined.”

—A human that you acknowledge? How peculiar.

Valdrova was surprised.

She already knew how much Ruri loathed humans.

—So is there a problem? Is he unstable?

“No. He was too perfect.”

—Isn’t that a good thing?

“Of course, being perfect is good. But not for a human.”

Ruri remembered what she had observed while watching Ferda.

In particular, it was this training session that made her think he was dangerous.

“Humans are a race that learns through mistakes. Thus, it is impossible for them to be perfect from the start.”

He had not failed a single time.

It wasn’t just today.

That was the feeling she got from observing him over the past few days.

His attitude was so different that even Ruri, who hated humans, had no choice but to acknowledge him.

And so, it went beyond acknowledgment of his lack of incompetence.

“Therefore, I can only think that man is dangerous.”

A feeling of awe took root in Ruri’s chest.

Because it felt like there was something she was missing.

Because it felt like he held something she didn’t know.

As a loyal servant, she couldn’t allow him to stand by her Master’s side.

—To think you would harbor such thoughts, he must be a truly remarkable man.

“I hate to admit it…… but yes, he is.”

Valdrova thought deeply about those words.

—Still, it is fine. Did he not say that his meeting me was for a pure purpose?

“…….”

—So, I shall try to believe in him.

It was a truly optimistic thing to say.

While Ruri was dying of anxiety, the party concerned was speaking so lightheartedly.

‘This is my Master.’

Ruri knew this and had factored everything into her calculations.

‘So, I must do what I can to the best of my ability.’

If she couldn’t stop it, she needed a situation where she could at least feel out his true intentions.

‘Perhaps…… it might not be bad to try that.’

Ruri decided to set the stage.

She was certain that even if he didn’t show his true colors, it would be a means to confirm his inner thoughts to some extent.

While fleshing out that plan, the words she had used lingered in her head.

“A surprising side……”

Chewing on those words, Ruri recalled something.

Ferda’s face—the way he had smiled and expressed admiration even while in pain.

She made a disgusted face, as if she had stepped in filth while walking.

“Master. By any chance……”

—What is it?

“……It’s nothing.”