Unlimited Fafnir:Volume 6 Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Invading Tempest of Green

Part 1

Due to the unexpected incident at the amusement park, we—the students of Brynhildr Class—returned straight to the research lab without taking any detours.

Then Shinomiya-sensei joined us and I told everyone what I had heard from Kili.

"The reason for Vritra's disappearance and the truth of Hekatonkheir—Although it is very interesting information, there is no proof. It would be dangerous to believe her completely."

After the sharing of information, Mitsuki proposed caution.

The venue was Mitsuki's room again. Like last time, I listened to her speak while leaning against the wall with the window.

"However, Kili's words cannot be ignored. I have asked NIFL, hoping they could verify the effectiveness of jamming... I received their response just now. The result is just as Kili said. Jamming's effects lasted only momentarily and was quickly neutralized."

Shinomiya-sensei replied gravely. She had stayed at the lab today, probably to contact NIFL.

"In that case... Approaching to attack is currently impossible. Furthermore, if what Kili-san said is true, then even if the plan succeeded, Yggdrasil still cannot be defeated."

Lisa spoke tensely.

"But we can't do nothing just because failure is possible!"

Iris protested urgently.

"...Iris is right. I believe we must do what we can at the moment."

Firill calmly supported Iris' stance.

"In that case, given the current situation, the only choice is still to strengthen Mononobe-kun's cooperation with Ren. You two have grown quite close today, so let's try making a fictional armament again right here."

Saying that, Ariella pushed Ren's back, bringing her before me.

Ren looked up at me slightly nervously.

"Then let's try it."

"Mm."

I said to her and Ren nodded.

Fictional armament—Siegfried.

I generated the fictional armament shaped as an ornamental gun. Ren placed her hand on the gun.

Dark matter instantly flowed in, causing Siegfried to expand and distort in shape.

"...!"

If I lost control at this point, things would end up the same as last time. Hence, I focused my thoughts and transmitted my imagination to the fictional armament, correcting Siegfried's shape that was twisting unnaturally.

My thoughts were transmitting to Ren's dark matter more easily than before.

—So dark matter really consisted of fragments of the mind.

Growing closer meant understanding each other.

I knew how to transmit my thoughts to Ren and Ren knew how to receive my thoughts.

Naturally, this was only on the level of a "feeling," but it was the difference between heaven and earth compared to when I understood nothing. In that case—

However, I must have lowered my guard just as success came into sight.

Siegfried suddenly collapsed into bubbles just as it had expanded to roughly three times its size.

"Oh... What a shame. But I think this is a great leap in progress after merely a day."

Despite the failure, Ariella still applauded us.

"Indeed, all that remains is sustained practice, I suppose. Through repeated attempts, you should be able to master the key principles."

Lisa nodded in satisfaction. Since this was coming from Lisa who had trained similarly with Ren before, I could take this as: I'm finally at the starting line.

But amidst the slightly excited atmosphere, only Tia kept her head bowed silently.

"Tia?"

Feeling concerned, I called to her. Tia shook in fright then looked up.

"Eh, Yuu... What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much, but I think you're acting a bit strange."

Hearing what I said, Lisa also looked at Tia and frowned.

"Speaking of which, Kili-san took those forceful measures in order to talk privately with Tia-san. What on earth did you talk about?"

"......"

Tia's gaze wandered in hesitation in response to the question.

Seeing her reaction, I hastily interrupted.

"No need to force yourself if it's hard to talk about. But if you encounter any trouble, you can talk to me any time."

"...Tia understands."

Tia answered quietly and nodded.

Lisa sighed then reminded her "It's a promise for sure, okay?"

"Well then, the night is getting late. Let us adjourn today."

Perhaps deciding there was nothing left to discuss at the current stage, Mitsuki announced the conclusion of the meeting.

Thus, we left Mitsuki's room and returned to our own rooms.

My assigned guest room was exactly opposite to Mitsuki's.

The furniture in the room consisted only of a bed, a desk and a closet. Then there was a bathroom with a toilet. A simple room. Compared to staying at the royal palace at the Principality of Erlia, this was quite cramped but to me, this type of room felt more reassuring instead.

Despite the temptation of lying on the bed, I held back my desire for sleep and returned to the corridor.

After making sure there was no one around, I went to Iris' room.

I knocked and she responded soon.

"Coming."

Iris opened the door and poked her head out.

"Can I have a moment with you?"

"—Sure."

With blushing cheeks, Iris nervously invited me into her room.

Iris was identical in layout as Mitsuki and my rooms, but there were all kinds of belongings scattered messily already.

"Oh, I'll tidy up straight away!"

"O-Okay."

I avoided looking while waiting for Iris to frantically stuff underwear and other articles into her bag.

"T-Thanks for waiting. Sit here, Mononobe."

Iris pulled out the chair at the desk for me then sat down on the bed herself.

"Thanks."

Seeing me sit on the chair, Iris spoke up.

"So, what's this about?"

Iris tilted her head and asked me. I answered:

"I wanted to explain what happened to you in more detail, Iris. In fact, I've confessed my secret to Ren."

In the beginning, only Iris knew my secret and now I was telling her that Ren was in on it as well.

"I see, hmm... I guess that's for the best. How did Ren-chan react?"

"Although angry, she was more worried about me. She said: 'Now isn't the time to be having fun in this kind of place. Hurry and go back to practice dark matter transfer.'"

"Ren-chan really is so kind."

Iris smiled gently and continued:

"So, how do you feel, Mononobe, now that you've gained such a kind little sister?"

Iris asked as though poking fun at me.

"Well... Umm, I'm really glad I can become better friends with her."

I chose my words carefully. Somehow, I got the feeling that things would be bad if I phrased things carelessly.

"Definitely. Your face looked so gentle when she called you Onii-chan."

"I-I didn't..."

"You can't hide it, because I'm always watching you closely, Mononobe, ah..."

Iris asserted confidently but went red as soon as she realized what her words meant. Feeling embarrassed too, I looked away.

"Don't suddenly say something so embarrassing..."

"Ahaha... Sorry."

Despite apologizing, Iris looked quite happy.

"What's with you?"

"Uh, somehow it makes me very happy to know that you get embarrassed by what I say, Mononobe."

Iris answered with her face red. Hearing something like that from her made it even harder for me to face her directly.

The conversation halted, making me conscious of the silence in the room.

But instead of being suffocating, this type of silence felt like a time of sweet comfort.

However, we could not stay like this indefinitely because I came for a different purpose.

After the battle against Yggdrasil at Midgard, I had not had a chance to spend time alone with Iris and talk properly, so I must tell her about that now.

"—Iris, there's actually something important I need to tell you."

I intentionally tensed my relaxed expression and spoke in a serious tone of voice.

"Eh? What is it?"

Seeing me like that, Iris prepared herself and asked me stiffly.

"As long as Ren can supply me with dark matter stably, the Yggdrasil battle plan should be possible to put into action. We can't know whether or not what Kili said was correct until we try it."

"Yeah.. We can't do nothing."

Iris agreed while listening to me.

"Also, once the battle begins, your Catastrophe will be a major force in the battle. Mitsuki and Shinomiya-sensei's battle plan will probably take your power into consideration. When time comes for the decisive battle, the principal will probably permit you to use Catastrophe, then even if you didn't want to, Iris, you'll probably realize it too."

"Realize what?"

Iris widened her eyes and asked.

—I already knew she was not aware, which was why I had to tell her personally using this opportunity.

"Iris, you used Catastrophe without going through dark matter."

"Eh... What is this about not going through dark matter—"

Perhaps it was hard to imagine. Iris showed a troubled look.

"During the Yggdrasil battle at Midgard, Iris, you used that red beam—Catastrophe—directly, which is why you weren't affected by Yggdrasil's interference. If it's your Catastrophe, Iris, I think you'll probably be able to attack normally even if you approach Yggdrasil's main body."

"Eh! Isn't that wonderful!? It means I can fight Yggdrasil head on! Maybe I might be able to defeat it on my own!?"

With an expression of joy, Iris exclaimed excitedly.

"N-No, it's uncertain whether you can fight alone since we don't know the scale of your Catastrophe or how many times it can be used. And even if Yggdrasil's body could be destroyed, it'll just transfer its core consciousness somewhere else."

"Oh right... After destroying the body, you need to attack Yggdrasil's mind. But because dark matter will be stolen, you can't approach as the key person... Hmm, what should we do?"

Iris crossed her arms and started to rack her brain, but her reaction was completely different from what I expected.

"Mitsuki and Shinomiya-sensei are probably thinking about how to approach Yggdrasil, so leave it to them for now. Rather... Aren't you afraid, Iris?"

"Afraid? Why?"

"You used Catastrophe directly without transmuting dark matter, you know? It's unprecedented. If Asgard learns of this, Iris, you might be seen as a dragon."

"Huh..."

Perhaps she realized only after I mentioned it. Iris looked at herself in surprise.

"...But I'm not a monster like Basilisk or Leviathan, right? I won't destroy cities or do bad things, you know?"

"I know that, but Asgard and NIFL will designate dangerous Ds as disasters and allow them to be executed. If those guys found out about you, they'll definitely see you as a threat, so under all circumstances, do not openly disclose the fact you can use Catastrophe directly."

I stared into Iris' eyes and warned her in a strong tone of voice.

"O-Okay, I got it. But... Then that means I can't use it in front of other people?"

"Although there's a risk, you can say that you instantly transmuted the dark matter, then it should be impossible to tell the difference."

Iris seemed quite unsettled. I pondered while replying to her.

Dark matter was almost unseen if it was transmuted at the same time as it was generated. Even when watching from the side, it should be impossible to tell.

If Iris used Catastrophe again while inside Yggdrasil's interference range, the secret might get exposed... But since Mitsuki was unaware of this, she probably would not devise a battle plan that would lead to such a situation.

"That's good to know... I thought I can't fight alongside everyone else anymore."

Iris breathed a sigh of relief. Compared to herself, she seemed more concerned about others.

Thud. Iris dropped her upper body onto the bed and raised her right arm towards the ceilign.

"However, a dragon huh... Mononobe, do you think I look like a dragon?"

"No, not at all. You're human, Iris."

I asserted and Iris smiled.

"Thank you, but I think I've lost a bit of confidence."

Iris seemed to gradually realize the gravity of the situation. Her voice sounded a bit melancholic.

"Don't worry, Iris, you haven't changed one bit."

"Really? Then... please look carefully to confirm."

Iris got up from the bed.

"You're asking me to confirm...?"

"I want you to help me confirm through your eyes, Mononobe, that there's nothing strange about me. Please."

"O-Okay."

Iris begged me seriously and I stood up from the chair.

I circled around Iris, who was dressed in school uniform, observing her from all directions.

Dazzling silver hair, lovely facial features, slender arms and legs, pale skin, a bulging chest that could be seen even with the uniform, a slender waist—

Taking a good look again, all of her was still so attractive. I felt my heart rate rise naturally. The color of skin exposed between her miniskirt and kneesocks attracted my gaze compellingly.

"How is it?"

After seeing me circle her once, Iris asked me.

"Even if you ask me..."

Too conscious of her, I could not even look her in the eye.

"What? Don't tell me there's something weird?"

Seeing me hesitant, Iris got frantic.

"No, not at all, my only comment is... umm, Iris, you're really so adorable..."

I endured my embarrassment and replied. Iris' face instantly went boiling red.

"A-Adorable... Sheesh, that's not what I want to hear about!"

"Oh, of course, there's nothing weird, okay?"

I frantically added but Iris glared at me with a blush.

"Honestly?"

"I'm not lying."

I nodded but Iris did not seem satisfied. She looked at her own body.

"On further thought... To confirm beyond a doubt, I have to undress... Right?"

Iris spoke as though in a trance and started untying the ribbon on her uniform.

"W-Wait! That will be bad no matter how you look at it!"

I frantically stopped Iris.

If I saw her naked body under these circumstances, I was not confident I could hold myself back.

"But... I'll be too worried to sleep unless we confirm beyond a doubt."

Iris' expression was a mixture of shyness and unease. She looked at me with pleading eyes.

I desperately racked my brain, thinking what to do and finally came up with a compromise.

"Then just show me your dragon mark. A D's change usually shows on the dragon mark. It's not just when chosen by a dragon. Scars appeared near my dragon mark when I gained the abilities to replicate Leviathan and Hraesvelgr's powers. So I think there's no need to look at other places if there's no change in the dragon mark."

I said all that to Iris in one breath.

"R-Really?"

"Yes.'

While she was intimidated by my vigor, I nodded with a serious expression to make Iris accept my suggestion.

"...Got it, then you have to look carefully."

With slightly trembling hands, Iris grabbed her shirt and slowly opened the front.

Pale and smooth skin was exposed to the outside air. Iris' abdomen was presented before my eyes.

My gaze was drawn to the navel's depression and the lines of her waist. I could not speak for a moment.

"M-Mononobe, quit staring at my belly and look at my dragon mark."

Iris spoke with her face bright red. Perhaps due to shame, her skin was sweating slightly with a slight red flush.

"S-Sorry."

I hastily took a kneeling posture, bringing my face near her dragon mark located on her flank.

"Kyah... Y-Your breath is touching me."

Iris shook.

The sweet fragrance from her skin was shaking my sanity but I mustered all the self-control in my heart and observed her dragon mark closely.

"There's nothing unusual."

I reported as calmly as possible.

I had seen Iris' dragon mark multiple times. Meeting Iris for the first time when she emerged from the sea naked and during the time when Leviathan targeted her. Since those were shocking situations, the memories were very vivid.

Hence, I could assert clearly that its size and shape had not changed.

"Don't just look, touch it."

However, Iris still felt worried and said that.

"You want me to touch it... C-Can I?"

"Yeah."

Iris answered in an almost inaudible voice.

Despite the hesitation in my heart, I still reached for Iris' dragon mark, touching her tender skin with my fingertips.

"Mmm..."

The sweet voice leaking from Iris' lips made my spin tremble.

"Ah—ya..."

I stroked my finger along the dragon mark. Iris seemed to squirm from the ticklish feeling.

"Mmmmmm... Ah—Ahhh!"

Seductive moans were shaking my eardrums. Iris' pale skin was showing a faint red flush.

The texture of the dragon mark was no different from normal skin, hence, I did not notice anything unusual.

"I-It's okay. Nothing weird."

Despite feeling a numbness in the depths of my mind, I still managed to maintain my sanity and speak.

"I see... Thank you, Mononobe."

But just as I was about to withdraw my hand, Iris placed her hand on top of mine.

"Iris?"

I looked up at her in surprise, meeting her passionate gaze.

Badump—My heart instantly jumped intensely. I could not take my eyes off Iris.

Thus, we gazed at each other. I stood up from my kneeling posture, reversing the height gap between our gazes. Iris looked at me with a feverish expression.

My heart sped up. Iris held my hand with our fingers interlocking and leaned herself against me.

Touching me with her scorching body, that soft sensation was gradually eroding my sanity.

My mind went blank, unable to think.

"Mononobe..."

Our face drew close naturally, our breaths mixing together, lips—

But just at that moment, my portable terminal rang.

"!?"

Iris and I came to our senses and separated in a panic.

"S-Sorry, I think it's a phone call."

"Oh... Umm, I'm done now, so you don't have to keep me company. That might be an important call, so pick it up, Mononobe."

Iris said to me in a fluster.

"Got it, then I'll go back to my room first."

"—Yeah, goodnight."

Iris waved and I said goodnight to her too then hurried back to my room.

The portable terminal kept ringing. The caller ID read unknown.

—This pattern, Major Loki again?

While recalling the face of my former commanding officer who always called at annoying times, I pressed the button to pick up the call. But the voice I heard did not belong to the person I expected.

'Sorry for disturbing you this late. Are you free right now?'

"...This voice... Are you Director Miyazawa?"

I called out the name of Ren's father and the director of this lab. Although portable terminals were capable of video calls, there was only a voice with a dark screen this time, so I could not check the face.

'Yes, I've got something to ask you privately, which is why I called you.'

"How do you know my phone number...?"

'Something so trivial is easily found out given my status. Putting that aside, could you take the elevator now? Once you enter the elevator, it will automatically take you to my current floor. Let's leave the details until then.'

"How can you decide on your own—"

While the director spoke on his own, I could not help but frown.

'Then I will be waiting for you.'

Ignoring what I said, he hung up.

"What the heck is this...?"

I had no reason to humor him. Normally, one should ignore this kind of rude request, but—

I recalled Ren's past that Ariella had told me today.

She said that Ren had given up talking all because of Miyazawa Kenya.

Although I wanted to tell him off, I already knew that scolding him would have no effect.

However, through interacting with him, perhaps I might be able to do something for Ren.

Thinking that to myself, I left the room and made my way to the elevator.

Part 5

Back to Chapter 2

Return to Main Page

Forward to Chapter 4