Editing Seikoku no Ryuu Kishi: Volume 6 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 8===
The four girls Eco, Silvia, Lucca, and Jessica, who were all kicked out of from Julius Hall sat side by side on a bench in the academy, bored. There was no doubt that all four of them had feelings for Ash. As a result, the current scene was somewhat awkward and unnatural. No one wanted to start talking about anything, so the tense and silent atmosphere continued.

''—Ah…the one who should be closest to Ash should obviously be me, why are there so many attractive female animals sticking beside him…''

Eco quietly peeked at Silvia’s and Jessica’s chests. Both of them had breasts which could make their uniform jacket tall and full. Moreover, Silvia was the Princess of the Knight Country, and Jessica was also quite impressive. As for Lucca, although she had a quiet personality, and her bust size was just as flat as Eco’s, she had the unique, fairy-like beauty that only those of Eckbald possessed, in addition to being quite gifted.

''—C-Could…I be the one lacking the most feminine charm among these four people…?''

Ever since she had obtained the information from the Mother Dragon, Eco no longer needed to worry about the difference between races. If she was allowed to grow for a period of time, Eco would also be able to bear children with humans. Being able to stand on the same starting line as her rivals caused Eco to feel excited. However, not long after that, she began to have a new feeling of unease.

''—Also, Rebecca feels strange.''

Only the two people, Ash and Rebecca remained to work inside Julius Hall. The serious Rebecca didn't seem like a person who would have indecent relationships, but when discussing who was the strongest and most beautiful female student in the school, everyone would undoubtedly say ‘Rebecca Randall’. Furthermore, the way that Rebecca looked at Ash compared to the other male students felt completely different. Of course, Eco didn't have any evidence to support her ideas. It was based purely on an animal — no, a woman’s intuition. At that time—

“—Hey, ladies. How’s your mood today?”

A male student with long hair had suddenly flown over to them. The male student had a tidy appearance, and the temperament of a noble. The Maestro which exuded a brilliant elegance swept up a gust of wind, and then landed on the ground. The Maestro had a large figure, on par with Gawain. The black crystals which were decorated on its forehead blossomed with a chilling cold glow. The instant that she saw those black crystals, Eco shuddered. Although the crystals looked like decorations, a terrifying aura could be sensed from them. With the imposing appearance of a noble, he stood on top of the Maestro’s head.

“He is…!”

Seeing his face, Jessica immediately stood up from the bench. It seemed as though Jessica knew the name of this man. Eco carefully looked at the noble’s face. His jet-black hair was tied into a bunch, his slender eyebrows possessed determination, and his two eyes were a shade of dark blue. He had a high nose, and he was like a handsome statue crafted by top-class sculptors.

“…Who are you?”

After Eco angrily glared at him, the noble made a hearty laugh.

“Seeing as you have the horns of a dragon on your head…you must be Eco, right?”

Zidon, zidon…the Maestro moved closer to Eco, step by step along with the sound of its muffled footsteps. Both sides became very close to each other, so much so that if they had the intention of doing so, it could open its mouth to swallow Eco. Even so, Eco did not show any signs of fear. It was because she knew that dragons wouldn't harm their own kins’ descendant of the Avalon Royal Family without reason. The noble extended his hand towards Eco with a graceful movement.

“Young dragon Eco — starting today, you will be my partner.”

“What?”

What was this man trying to say?

“Listen carefully, Eco. In my rule, you play an indispensable role. I’ll get straight to the point; I need you. More specifically, I need the power of the Avalon Holy Dragons’ Royal Family.”

“You…are you a pawn of the Empire!?”

Eco became more vigilant, and stared at the noble.

“Fu…how sad, you’d actually lump me together with those people from the Zepharos Empire.”

“Then, who are you?”

The noble revealed an eloquent smile, as if he had been waiting for Eco to ask this question for a long time. As if it had understood its master’s thoughts, the Maestro immediately switched to stand on its hind legs. Oscar’s foothold was suddenly elevated higher.

“My name is Oscar Brailsford, the future king of Chevron! This dragon is my faithful Pal, Tristan!”

The noble imposingly declared that from high above them.

“That sounds rather condescending…”

Jessica, who was beside Eco murmured that with a somewhat surprised expression. At that time, Silivia, who had initially remained quiet, stood up and walked forward.

“That’s a rather rude and condescending introduction, Oscar-dono.”

“Well well, it’s actually Her Royal Highness Princess Silvia Lautreamont-dono. I almost didn't recognise you because you were mingling with these common people.”

After Oscar scoffed at that, he looked down at Silvia arrogantly. The two of them seemed to be old acquaintances. One of them was the Princess of the Knight Country, and the other was a noble of the Chevron Kingdom, so it wasn't strange for them to have met each other before in other places…Eco secretly thought.

“Oscar-dono, with all due respect, I remember that your succession to the throne is ranked as one hundred and eighth, which in short, is last. Practically speaking, your succession to the throne is nothing more than a dream, correct?”

“Fu…it is correct that my current position is at the very bottom. But if you only judge the situation with one-sided information, you can’t become the Queen of Knights, you know?”

“What did you say…!?”

Silvia’s face became red.

“It is correct that among my siblings, there are hundreds of people with the right to inherit the throne, however, I have the Maestro Tristan. Among the potential successors to the throne, I am the only Dragonar.”

With an egocentric expression, Oscar continued

“In addition, the requirements for the successor of the Chevron Kingdom are concise and simple — as long as they’re male, and they’re the strongest, then that’s enough! In order to make myself become the strongest candidate to the throne, I need Eco!”

“It appears…there’s no room for discussion.”

Silvia decided to give up on convincing him, as she glared at Oscar—

“Listen carefully, Oscar Brailsford! Dragons are the treasure of the Knight Country, so as the Princess of the Lautreamont Family — and as a friend, I will protect Eco, and she will not be associated with you!”

“You…!”

Hearing this magnificent declaration, Eco looked at Silvia’s back in surprise. Ever since the novitiate ended, the relationship between Eco and Silvia had become rigid. Eco said that she could not forgive Silvia for kissing Ash no matter what, while Silvia locked herself in her own room all day. Even so — facing Oscar, who coveted Eco, Silvia did not hesitate to declare that she would protect her. She even called her a ‘friend’. Eco couldn't stop her eyes from becoming watery. Silvia took out a Bright Dragon Crystal from her pocket, and then raised it up high.

“—I command you in the name of Silvia Lautreamont! Come, Lancelot!”

“Hooooaaaaarrrrr…oooooo…!”

Lancelot’s roar responded to Silvia’s call, and a thunder-like sound rattled the sky. Lancelot instantly appeared at that point in space. After Silvia jumped onto its back and gripped the reins, she confronted Oscar. However, in contrast to Tristan, Lancelot’s body was rather small, and there was still room for growth. Their age difference was only a year, but it was like the difference between an adult and a child. The problem wasn't Lancelot’s lack of maturity, but rather, it was Tristan’s extraordinary growth.

“Fu…since that’s the case, we’ll come and test your skill. Tristan!”

In response to Oscar’s command, Tristan roared. From Tristan’s nose, a violet ball of lightning was fired. The sphere gradually became larger as it was accompanied by crackling sounds.

—Doon!

Next, a shockwave powerful enough to shake the earth exploded. What Tristan used was high-level magic — {{Furigana|Silver Ray of the Lightning Dragon|Shiny Silver Lightning Blast}}.

“Kuh…Lancelot!”

Lancelot followed Silvia’s instructions, and created a defensive magic shield. A crystal-like protective barrier shined brilliantly, and formed in front of Lancelot. The instant that those two impacted each other — a flash of light rendered everything in Eco’s vision a shade of silvery-white. Eco held onto Jessica’s body, and slowly opened her eyes. Then, she witnessed an unbelievable sight. Lancelot was actually being pushed pack while being pressed against its protective barrier/shield.

“Fufu. Has your arrogance from before disappeared? Princess Silvia?”

Oscar teased with a tyrannical tone. Tristan then fired a second, and third ball of light.

“Guh…hold on, Lancelot!”

Silvia gritted her teeth and made a cry of anguish. As strong as Lancelot was, it could only focus entirely on defence at this time, and seemed to be unable to move.

“Come, Gawain!”

Lucca, who realised that Silvia was struggling, raised her Dragon Crystal up high and called for Gawain.

“Ruuuooooooooooooooooo…!”

Gawain also jumped through space to instantly appear. After a mighty roar similar to that of Lancelot, Gawain carried Lucca on its back, and then flew towards Tristan to attack. Tristan’s magic attack was interrupted, as it quickly dodged Gawain’s sudden assault.

“Thanks, Lucca!”

Silvia, who had been freed, moved to Gawain’s side while she rode on Lancelot.

“That person…is very strong…”

Lucca actually made a rare frown.

“It’s alright, Lucca. As long as we work together he’s not a match for us.”

Silvia spoke confidently, but Lucca shook her head.

“Be careful…the black crystal on Tristan’s forehead…has an ominous feeling.”

“What are you saying?”

A leisurely smile emerged on Oscar’s face.

“Fu. You’re an Eckbald person in the Unios Course? This battle is becoming more and more interesting.”

Tristan’s massive body suddenly disappeared. Like the words ‘suddenly disappeared’, it had vanished from that spot.

“What!”

The same time that Silvia exclaimed in surprise, Tristan had moved behind Lancelot. Tristan’s tail twisted and bent like a whip, and directly struck Lancelot’s hind leg. Although Lancelot let out a painful wail, it endured the pain, and did not back down yet. The moment that it turned around, it released a red spray of dragon’s breath. Tristan also spat out a crimson fire dragon breath, without showing any signs of weakness. The two breaths got closer to a collision, and whipped up a burst of wind. However, with the same kind of breath attack, Tristan’s firepower overwhelmingly surpassed that of Lancelot.

“Uooh…!”

In order to protect its master at all costs, the wounded Lancelot made an intimidating growl at Tristan despite its injuries.

“—Gawain!”

At that time, without knowing what Lucca could be thinking, she began to fly straight up into the sky at high-speed.

“Could it be…!”

Eco widened her eyes. She recalled the scene from the lakeside training camp several months ago. Lucca was flying about in the sky over the academy. No, she wasn't just flying about without a purpose — Lucca was painting the pattern of her <Seikoku> on the canvas of the sky. It looked like she intended to release magic through a Dragon Dance. While gliding through the sky, Gawain left behind a trail of pink magic, and slowly completed the composition/pattern of her <Seikoku>. Oscar remained still, as he did not understand the meaning of it at all. After a while, the pattern of the <Seikoku> was finally completed, and shone down a bright light.

“Second Dragon Riding Dance — ‘Burst of Raining Spears’!”

At the same time that Lucca cried out, a countless number of spears which were made with the power of magic fell towards the ground.

“Hey…Lucca-san!? Even if he is an enemy, this move of yours is too much!”

The myriad of spears which rained down from the sky at high-speed caused Jessica’s face to go pale while she cried out in amazement.

“Fu, so that’s the famed Dragon Riding Dance?”

Oscar looked up at the sky, and happily muttered. In an instant, many spears pierced the ground, which caused a cloud of dust to rise into the sky. Oscar and Tristan were enveloped in the cloud of dust. They thought that the other side had been shown who the winner was, but unexpectedly, an arrogant voice actually rang out from within the cloud of dust.

“Unfortunately, the results make me rather disappointed.”

Stunned, Eco widened her eyes and stared ahead. When the dust in front of her dispersed, she could see that Tristan stood undaunted and unharmed within the centre of what had become a large crater, as well as Oscar, who stood upon its head with a clear smile.

“Kuh…!”

Lucca quickly descended, while riding on Gawain. She stood in front of Eco and Jessica to protect them, and also stared at Oscar, who was in front of her with menacing eyes. Maintaining a confrontational position, she said to Jessica without turning her head back

“Jessica…take Eco and run away. Someone able to defeat Oscar…Rebecca would probably be the only one!”

Lucca, who was usually rather calm, was now frantically yelling.

“—Lucca's right. You should hurry up and get President and Ash for protection.”

Interjecting from the side was Silvia. Thanks to the help from Lucca, she was able to gain some time and recovered a bit of her strength. Silvia took the reins, and moved with Lancelot to stand beside Gawain.

“I understand. Come on, Eco-san! We’ll leave this to them for now!”

Jessica pulled Eco’s hand, and quickly began to run — but after not even ten steps, she was stopped in her tracks by an ambush.

“Hmph. Did you think I would let you guys go so easily?”

A girl dressed in a black maid outfit acted as an impregnable wall, and stood in front of those two to block their path. Perhaps because she was wearing a black leather eyepatch, the girl exuded a sense of determination. Her eyebrows were high, which gave off an arrogant impression.

“Ora, hurry up and give the young dragon Eco to me. Otherwise—”

The girl with the eyepatch leaped forward, and then took out a set of daggers. Four in her right hand, and four in her left hand — she mercilessly threw a total of eight daggers at the two people.

“Hii!”

Jessica protected Eco behind her, but her body stiffened in fear—

—Pasha!

Accompanied by the sound of a flag or wings flapping in the air, someone interrupted midway. That person spun around at high-speed to strike down the flying daggers with her skirt.

“Hello, Celes-sama. You’re being too rude, okay?”

The reinforcements who saved Eco and Jessica out of nowhere, was actually Cosette. Looking at the basket in her arms, she should have just returned from her shopping. The daggers which she had struck down with her skirt before were all scattered around Cosette.

“Do you know this woman?”

Upon hearing this question, Cosette revealed a wry smile.

“She’s called Celestina Lafon. She’s Oscar-sama's personal maid. The Lafon family and Shelly family are relatives, which is why I've heard of her.”

“You’re the maid of the fourth Princess! Animals should have the appearance of animals, you should resign yourself to crawling on the ground!”

Celes’ eyebrows were raised to their highest point, and she cursed at Cosette with an unpleasant tone.

“I would return those words right back at you — counterpart-san.”

After Cosette replied with a smile, she whispered to Eco and Jessica

“Although I’m not sure what happened here, please leave this for me to deal with.”

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