I Couldn't Become a Knight, But for Some Reason, I'm Beloved by Dragons - Chapter 26: It's the Empire this time!

Chapter 26: It’s the Empire this time!

“Traveling through the sky is so comfortable~”

Riding on Runa’s back, traveling through the sky is truly a pleasant experience. 

Not only can you see vast land below, but you also feel an omnipotent sensation that is hard to describe when looking down on mountains.

~I’m glad you’re having fun. With this, it seems like it would be a good idea to ask Lichter regularly to let us go out for a ride.~

“That’s not a bad idea. It’s like a date for us anyway.”

~Yes, that’s it! Let’s call it a sky date!~

Runa’s joy was evident as the flying speed increased. 

Even when she flies at high speed, the magic she’s using prevents any wind from hitting me, so the journey through the sky was repeatedly comfortable.

“…Oh, speaking of which. Don’t the dragons in the capital fly in the sky normally? There’s no reason why it would be impossible for Runa just because she’s the queen of dragons, right?”

~That’s right. Perhaps it’s because people think that there are certain rules since I don’t usually go outside, but there’s no reason why I, as the queen of dragons, cannot fly.~

“That’s a relief. But still, we should at least get Lichter-sama’s permission before doing so.”

~That would be good considering his stomach condition. Of course, don’t tell anyone that I can transform into a human. Only Xeno needs to know this secret.~

“I know. It’s a secret that only I know… because Runa is my wife.”

~…!?~

Although it was a little embarrassing, I had no regrets about telling her that. 

We had confirmed our relationship in our morning exchange, and it wasn’t wrong to say that Runa and I had already become a couple. When I called her my wife, Runa seemed incredibly happy and started to raise the altitude at an incredible speed.

“Runa!?”

Rather than gradually increasing altitude, she changed the angle sharply and ascended. And at a considerable distance from the ground, to my surprise, she transformed from a dragon into a human form.

“Runa-san!?”

“I love you! I love you, Xeno!”

Now that she transformed into her human form, she had lost her ability to fly and we were simply falling. However, she embraced me passionately in her human form, showering me with kisses to express her happiness. Despite engaging in such reckless behavior of kissing each other while falling from the sky, I feel no anxiety because I was held tightly by Runa.

(Is this Runa’s magic?)

Normally, when falling from a high place, one should feel a sense of buoyancy, but the surroundings were shrouded in a mysterious veil-like thing, and it seems that I no longer felt it.

After exchanging not just an ordinary kiss, but an intense one in which our tongues were also entwined, Runa, who had a regretful expression as she pulled away from me, was enveloped in light and transformed back into a dragon, carrying me on her back as we continued to fly.

“Geez, what kind of expression of love is that?”

~You’re being annoying, that was all your fault. You said something that made me so happy that I wanted to jump for joy.~

It seems that I was at fault. 

Well, she was cute, so I stroked her back as we headed to our next destination.

We left behind the uncomfortable Kusatorika and stepped into the empire, which had a history of war with the kingdom in the past, with casual expressions.

“The empire… It’s more ordinary than Kusatorika, but it still has a history of battles, right?”

~Yes. There is still some conflict between the two countries, but there is no problem with tourism. Of course, I can’t be seen in my dragon form.~

It was my first time visiting the empire. The land of the empire that can only be understood from the sky… I could see rural towns here and there, but I still couldn’t see the imperial capital, the heart of the empire, which was still a long way off.

~I heard that the imperial capital has a lot of rare things, but it’s risky to go that far considering you, Xeno.~

“Yeah. I don’t feel like going there either.”

~That’s good. If we’re seen as a declaration of war, it’ll be bad for Richter… Well, I could destroy the entire empire by myself, but we’re the ones in the wrong this time.~

“You can do that though…”

In this world, there are many countries, each with their own unique technologies, and each country is strong in terms of military power. Even among them, Runa’s potential is high. Well, it might be more accurate to say it’s the potential of dragons as a whole, rather than just Runa.

~Well, let’s visit a nearby city instead of going to the imperial capital.~

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

And so, we decided to head to a nearby city in the empire. 

The nearby city of Mirarus, as usual, we only knew its name, and neither I nor Runa knew what was particularly prosperous there. 

After landing nearby, I approached the gate with her in her human form.

“Stop right there!”

Then, we were stopped by the guards. However, it seemed to be a necessary inspection, as the people who had been in front of us were also stopped in the same way, so it wasn’t particularly strange.

“Hmm… You don’t seem to have any suspicious items.”

“Are you travelers?”

“Yes. We came from the kingdom.”

The soldier nodded at Runa’s words and showed a gesture of contacting someone before giving us permission to enter. 

However… Although we had no choice but to undergo a baggage inspection, I couldn’t forgive them for touching Runa’s body.

“Well… Let’s just say they didn’t touch any delicate parts. It’s still creepy, though.”

“I… see.”

“Fufu, it’s still nice to see you worry for me.”

After that, I regained my composure and started sightseeing with Runa. However, she said something like this.

“Xeno, I don’t think it will happen, but let’s try not to get too far apart. Did you hear the soldier contacting someone earlier? He mentioned something about a woman, so there might be some trouble.”

“…Wherever we go, Runa is always popular, huh?”

“Yeah, maybe it’s because my appeal as a woman has increased after our first time together?”

“That’s definitely a factor.”

“Right? Well, there’s no need to deliberately step into a trap if we know there might be trouble. Don’t worry, if something happens, I’ll burn them down.”

She’s really reliable as a wife.