A boy raised by a demon king and a dragon king seems to be peerless in his school life.

Volume 10 Chapter 2 Bud

“After school. Ruisha, who had done various shopping in preparation for the adventure starting the next day, headed towards the back of the boys’ dormitory after returning to his room.

It was evening, and the students who had been playing outside were returning to the dormitory sporadically.

The back of the dormitory had a spread of grass, and during the day, students could be seen napping or engaging in magic training. However, Ruisha thought that at this time, nobody would be around, but his expectation turned out to be wrong.

“Oh, there’s Ruisha. I thought you wouldn’t come today.”

The one who spoke was Chisha, a halfling of the small folk.

Beside him were Ben, a disciple (self-proclaimed) of knowledge and muscles, and Palom, the wise parrot.

“Both of you came.”

“Well, yeah. We’re in this together, so we’ll stick around till the end.”

Saying that, Chisha shifted his gaze to a small garden beside him. It was a garden where Ruisha had planted seeds he received from Chrome, the strongest swordsman of the Empire. Chisha and Ben were helping to nurture them.

“At first, I helped because I was bored, but strangely, I started to feel attached as I nurtured it. Right, Ben?”

“Yeah. Moreover, this plant is really intriguing. I’ve gone through the plant encyclopedia, but I can’t identify its species. I have no idea how it grows…!”

Ben said enthusiastically, his glasses gleaming.

They had planted a mysterious seed about half a month ago. While it was growing steadily with sprouts appearing, they still didn’t know its species. Ruisha had a bit of anxiety, unsure if it was a dangerous plant. However, his friend was helping, and he had grown attached to it. He was also curious about how it would grow, so he diligently took care of it, watering it and tending to it.

“It’s growing steadily, but… I still feel like this one is struggling.”

Caught in Ruisha;s gaze was one particular sprout.

Out of the ten seeds they had planted, while nine sprouts were growing well, this particular one was clearly lagging in growth. Its stem was thin, and it had few leaves. A strong gust of wind could easily uproot it.

Ruisha couldn’t help but see a reflection of his past self in this struggling sprout.

“Hey, Ben, can’t we do something for this one?”

“Hmm. Ideally, we should thin them out, but I understand how you feel, Ruisha. Well… if we could somehow provide it with a strong nutrient.”

“A strong nutrient?”

“Yeah, some monster materials have incredibly potent effects, enough to alter the nature of the one who ingests them. Things like the liver of the Black Serpent or the horn of the Senjuji Deer are well-known for this. However, they are expensive and rarely available in the market. It’s a slim hope to expect them through adventurer requests.”

“I see…”

Ruisha looked disappointed and sat by the weak sprout.

He wanted to do something, not give up. Like his mentors who had trained him without giving up. In that moment, Ruisha came up with an idea.

“Hey Ben, do you think dragon’s blood is effective?”

“Hmm? There’s some effect to it, for sure. Dragon’s blood used to be considered a panacea in the past. Well, if an ordinary human were to drink it, the effect would be too strong and might end up harming their body.”

“I see…”

With a serious expression, he looked at his own palm. Inside his body flowed the blood of both dragonkin and demons.

Gradually mixed within the infinite prison were the blood of the two races, and Ruisha had fully adapted to that blood. Thanks to that, Ruisha could wield techniques of both races, which regular humans weren’t supposed to be able to use.

In essence, Ruisha’s blood held power.

“If I leave it like this, it’s only a matter of time before it withers away. In that case…”

Ruisha lightly bit his fingertip and, as a last resort, let a drop of his own blood fall onto the sprout. Mixing in his magical power and Qi, the blood was absorbed into the sprout as soon as it touched the leaves.

“I hope this makes it a bit stronger…”

“What’s wrong, Ruisha? You’ve been crouching there for a while.”

“Ah, sorry, sorry. Chisha, I’m really sorry, but starting from tomorrow, I’ll be leaving the capital, so can I ask you to take care of the fields and feed Palom?”

“Well, I can’t really help it, I’m busy too… that’s what I’d like to say, but I’m terribly free, so it’s totally fine. I don’t have a hometown to return to, and I’m planning to stay in the capital throughout the summer break. Ruisha, you’re going to cause some commotion again, right? I know you like doing that.”

“I’m not causing commotions because I like to… Well, anyway, thank you. Sorry to Palom too.”

He gently stroked Palom’s neck, and the large head nuzzled against him, making an affectionate sound. While Palom wasn’t lacking in combat abilities, this journey was too dangerous. Taking Palom along wasn’t an option.

“By the way, Ben, will you also be in the capital during the break?”

“That’s the plan. I intend to read all the books I’ve been curious about at the library.”

“Really?”

“Hey, what’s with that smug grin, Ruisha? I assure you, I have nothing to hide!”

“Don’t worry, Ben. I know how to keep a secret.”

“Grr… remember this.”

Some time ago, Ruisha had seen Ben and Lona, who seemed to get along well, at the library. They would probably deepen their friendship even during the break, Ruisha thought, but he didn’t say it out loud. Because that was the nature of friendship between men.

“…What’s with that creepy wink?”

However, the crucial message didn’t get through to Ben.

◇

Volume 10 Chapter 3 Departure

The next day.

Having had a good night’s sleep in preparation for this day, Ruisha arrived early in the morning at the magical airship ‘Blue Empress’ anchored near the royal castle.

“You’re early, Ruisha.”

Saying that, Prince Yuri greeted him.

Still looking a bit sleepy, he approached Ruisha while occasionally rubbing his eyes.

“I came, Yuri.”

“I’ll see you off since we won’t be able to meet for a while.”

Yuri knew where Ruisha and his friends were going and what they were planning. He had taken care of all the troublesome procedures to enter the Holy Kingdom, so Ruisha was quite relieved.

“It would’ve been nice if you could come too, Yuri.”

“Lasisco is a resort. It’s true that relaxing there would be nice, but if I went with you guys, we’d inevitably get involved in some event. Not going is the right choice.”

“It’s sad that I can’t strongly deny that…”

Ruisha was aware that every time they did something, they ended up causing or getting involved in an event. It’s not like he intentionally sought them out… or so he thought, but this time too, he was prepared for various unexpected events.

“Well, that also sounds like fun, but I have things to do as well. I’ll endure with souvenir stories. Do your best.”

“Yeah. Thanks for everything, Yuri.”

After a farewell handshake with his friend, Ruisha joined up with Sharo, Iris, and Wolf who came later and boarded the ‘Blue Empress,’ ready to embark on their journey.

◇　◇　◇

“Alright! Blue Empress, take off!”

Wolf shouted the command loudly, and the magical engines started, slowly lifting the body of the Blue Empress into the air.

“…No matter how many times I ride this, I can’t get used to this feeling.”

“Are you scared, Sharo? Shall I hold your hand?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Iris. You seem fine, and I’m jealous.”

“Do not underestimate the strength of a vampire’s vestibular system. We maintain the same strength and speed regardless of the environment…”

“Are you two okay with motion sickness or anything?”

“Oh, I feel a bit dizzy.”

Saying that, Iris intentionally leaned on Ruisha, pretending to be unsteady.

Naturally, Ruisha was worried and caught her as she collapsed.

“Are you okay? Do you need some water?”

“No… I think it’ll settle if you hold me for a while… maybe about three hours.”

“Ru! She’s faking it! Don’t be deceived!”

Knowing that Iris wasn’t really seasick, Sharo, who had caught on, pulled Iris away from Ruisha.

“Hmm.”

“It’s not ‘hmm.’ You really have become shameless…”

Being pulled away, Iris, who had slipped from Sharo’s grip, put on her usual composed expression. Ruisha also chuckled at her attitude, as if nothing had happened.

“Haha, well, as long as you’re feeling good.”

Relieved, Ruisha went out to the deck to look outside. The Blue Empress, slicing through the air at high speed, flying through the sky. Birds that saw this sight were startled and flew away.

“It seems we’ll arrive by this evening. Airships are really fast.”

The capital, Exadore, and the destination port town, Lasisco, were quite far apart. If they had gone by carriage, it would have taken over two weeks, but with this airship, it wouldn’t even take a day.

It required a significant amount of magical energy supply, but other than Wolf, the other three had a substantial amount of magical energy, so there was no need to worry.

“Iris, you mentioned you have companions in Lasisco, right?”

“Yes. They’re my cousins, but… they’re a little different, so please be careful.”

“Different?”

“Yes. They’re not bad, but they’re genuinely a bit peculiar… they have abilities and are reliable, but…”

Iris frowned and spoke, looking troubled.

This was unusual for her. Ruisha speculated that this person must be quite unique.

“But it’s not often we get to meet other vampires, so I’m looking forward to it. I hope we get along.”

“Get along… yes… get along…”

Iris tilted her head, looking puzzled.

To that extent. Ruisha became anxious, wondering if this person was really that strange, as they headed towards Lasisco.