53

"What? Is it true?!"

Crash!

"Hyak?!"

Sephir, who was in the middle of her meal, suddenly jumped up in a commotion. Her face was filled with surprise.

"What's going on?"

Athena glared at her icily.

"I found it..!!"

"…?"

"I said I found it! I just received a message from my familiar."

"Found what?"

Sephir looked at us with an excited expression.

"What else could it be?! It's the hatchling, of course!!

"What?"

"They found the hatchling's nest in a cave near the forest. If we go now, we might be able to see it!!"

Sephir was visibly thrilled.

Athena, intrigued by her words, raised one eyebrow.

"A dragon, huh…"

She muttered to herself as she looked at me.

"Hera, what do you want to do?"

"Huh?"

"We've dealt with the demons, so there's no reason to stay here any longer. Honestly, we could head back to the mansion right now."

Athena's suggestion to return to the mansion.

For some reason, it left me feeling conflicted.

Was it because I enjoyed spending time with her here? Or maybe because I didn't want to return to that suffocating mansion.

"Uh…"

Athena, noticing my expression, gently stroked my hair as she continued.

"But if you want, we could stay one more day and take a look at the hatchling."

"R-Really?"

"Yeah. I've been interested in dragons myself for a while now."

She smiled softly as she spoke, leaving a light kiss on my forehead.

"Do whatever you want, Hera."

"I want to see it..! I want to see a dragon too."

In truth, it was less about the hatchling and more about not wanting to go back to the mansion, but I was still curious about the hatchling.

Dragons have never appeared even in the stories.

They've only occasionally shown their majestic forms in the sky. They're such legendary beings.

It's said that their wingbeats cause typhoons, and their breath can make an entire forest vanish.

Of course, since it's just a hatchling, it won't be as massive as a fully grown one. Still, I was curious about what it might actually look like.

Who among fantasy lovers doesn't adore dragons?

A being with mighty wings unfurled, breathing fierce breaths of fire. What would it feel like to witness such a creature in real life?

"Hehe. Alright."

Athena looked at me with a warm smile.

So, we finished our meal and set off to find the hatchling.

***

"You called for me, Master."

Back at Athena's grand mansion.

Once again, Alina had answered the call and arrived to see him.

"You've come."

As Alina bowed her head in respect, Bordin took out a cigarette and lit it.

"Everything is prepared. Now, we just have to wait for her to return."

Through the thick smoke he exhaled, Alina's trembling eyes were revealed.

"You really intend to… the lady…"

"Yes."

Bordin took a deep drag on his cigarette, then took out a small item that looked like an insignia.

A golden badge adorned with a red ruby.

It was the imperial insignia.

"I went through quite a lot to obtain this."

Despite his eyes swirling like a storm, Bordin's expression remained utterly calm.

"As a loyal servant, I should teach my master too."

The pain of losing someone precious right before your eyes.

***

"Over there!"

In the eastern forest.

After following Sephir deep into the woods, we finally arrived at a cave.

"The mana density is intense."

As we entered the cave, Athena murmured to herself.

Even though I couldn't feel mana, I could sense a weight pressing down on me.

And that pressure grew stronger the deeper we walked into the cave.

As we continued forward, Athena, leading us, suddenly stopped and extended her hand to the side, signaling us to halt.

"I found it."

Following her gaze, I saw it clearly.

There, sleeping soundly in its nest, was a small blue creature.

"Is… that a hatchling…?"

Beside me, Sephir murmured in a low voice.

It was certainly a stretch to call it a dragon yet.

Its length was about the size of my arm, with tiny wings sprouting from its back.

Compared to dragons that soar through the sky with massive wings, its size was irresistibly cute.

However, its sharp blue scales and the two horns rising from its head were unmistakably those of a dragon.

"Gr-r-r."

The hatchling, seemingly awakened, turned its head toward us and let out a soft growl.

But what could have sounded threatening felt completely different to me.

"So… so cute…"

I've always had a soft spot for cute things.

Whether it was puppies, kittens, or hamsters, I was weak to anything small and adorable.

And now…

The cutest creature I'd ever seen was right in front of me.

Its sparkling eyes, triangular teeth that hadn't fully grown in, and that gentle face.

My heart started pounding at the hatchling's overwhelming cuteness.

Athena patted my head and spoke.

"Just watch. If you get too close, it might disappear in an instant. Dragons can use all kinds of magic from birth."

"Uh-huh…"

But ignoring Athena's advice, the pink-haired succubus took a step forward.

"Hehe! I can't just stand here after finding a hatchling!"

Sephir, eyes widening, stretched her hand toward the hatchling.

"Watch, Athena. I'll show you the power of my charm."

With a confident tone, she focused on the hatchling and shouted.

"Become mine, little one… Charm!"

In an instant, her eyes glowed, and pink mana began to pour out toward the hatchling.

As the pink mana enveloped it, the hatchling's eyes began to glow pink, as if responding to Sephir's charm.

"Hehe… Look at that. It's working, isn't it?"

At a glance, it truly seemed like her charm was effective.

But contrary to Sephir's expectations…

Flap—

The hatchling flapped its wings once, dispersing Sephir's pink mana into the air in an instant.

"…Huh?"

Sephir, stunned by the unexpected sight, stared blankly ahead.

Athena looked at her with a sly smirk.

"I told you it wouldn't work."

"…How could this happen…?"

Sephir collapsed to the ground in frustration at Athena's mocking.

As she chuckled at Sephir's despair, Athena turned her gaze to me and spoke.

"Come to think of it, Hera, you could probably use it too."

"Huh? Use what?"

Athena pointed at Sephir, who was lying on the ground muttering to herself.

"You made her your familiar, didn't you? You should be able to use charm as well."

"What?"

One of the powers of the Succubus Queen—charm.

It's a technique that bewitches the target's mind, turning them into her servant.

Though it failed this time because the target was a dragon, Sephir actually possesses enough power to charm even legendary creatures.

'But… I can use a power like that?'

"You can probably use it, but it won't be as effective."

At some point, Sephir, now standing beside me with a gloomy expression, spoke up.

"Since you'd be using just a fraction of the power, it would be much weaker than mine. But with a little practice, you might be able to charm humans at least…"

"Do I really need to seduce someone..?"

From the start, I never knew how to flirt with anyone. Naturally, I was a man once—how would I know how to seduce anyone?

I probably won't have a reason to use any seduction tactics for the rest of my life.

"I don't think I need to…"

"What!!"

Sephir, hearing my muttering, seemed to take it as an affront to her pride, charging at me with a fiery glare.

"Are you ignoring the power of allure?! This is something incredible!! A power that can't be compared to mind-control spells!"

"H-Huh?"

"Do you know how many succubi crave this power?! You're blessed—"

"Don't shout at Hera."

Bang!

"Ugh!!"

When Athena slammed her fist onto Sephir's head, she ended up embedded in the ground.

Athena dusted off her hands a few times and gave a stern remark to Sephir.

"And it's a useless power anyway, right? You can't even use it on people stronger than you."

"N-No… it's… it's useful…"

She clutched her head with both hands, teary-eyed from the pain.

"It's… it's useful… it really is…"

Seeing her in that pitiful state, I felt a pang of sympathy.

I decided I should comfort her. I approached her and gently patted her back.

"No, Sephir… I think it's amazing."

Honestly, your charm did make the protagonist struggle quite a bit. So yeah, it's pretty impressive.

"Really? You think so?"

Sephir looked up at me with a teary-eyed expression, resembling a puppy that got caught in the rain.

"Y-Yeah! I even want to try it myself someday…"

Not that I really had any strong desire, though.

However, Sephir seemed deeply moved by my words, grasping my hand with sparkling eyes.

"R-Really?! You actually understand? This is such an incredible power…!!"

"Uh-huh…"

"Hehe, as expected of my master. You truly understand!"

A sudden thought struck me—could Sephir have some kind of mood disorder?

Otherwise, how could her emotions swing so quickly?

A moment ago, she was despondent, but now she was looking at me with a bright smile.

"Then, let me personally teach you. I'm sure you'll be able to use it too! After all, you're my master!"

"Huh..? U-Uh, sure! Sounds exciting…?"

Encouraged by my words, Sephir got up and glanced at the hatchling again.

The hatchling, still wary, growled low as it kept its gaze on Sephir.

"Right! The important thing is rapport! You need to know how to seduce your target's gaze."

"S-seduce ?"

"Yes. I'm a genius, so I can captivate someone with just a look. But you… not so much."

"I don't know how to do any of that…"

Beside me, I could sense Athena giving me a rather cold stare.

'Why is she looking at me like that…?'

"It's okay! The beginning is hard, but you'll get the hang of it with practice. Just try your own kind of charm!"

Sephir gave me a nudge, pushing me forward.

Before I knew it, I had been nudged close to the hatchling.

"Huh…?"

The hatchling gazed up at me with big, round eyes.

Its unbearably cute expression made my heart race a little.

"If you've done the seduction right, all you need to do is chant 'Enchantment' That's it!"

"E…Enchantment!"

"Yes, exactly. Then it's done. How well you did depends on how much you managed to captivate!"

"Don't push yourself, Hera. It won't be useful even if you learn it," Athena said, suddenly appearing behind me and gripping my shoulder.

"N-No… I'll give it a try."

At this point, it felt like I might as well practice a little. Maybe it would come in handy someday.

I didn't have a hobby of seducing others, but you never know what life might throw at you.

Leaving Athena behind as she watched with a wary gaze, I turned back to the hatchling.

The hatchling hadn't taken its eyes off me. For some reason, its gaze felt slightly intimidating.

'Seduction… Seduction…'

How does one typically go about seducing someone?

With zero experience in dating, and no romantic pursuits under my belt, the art of seduction seemed like an impossibly high wall for me.

I started recalling countless video clips I'd watched, searching for any hint on how to perform a seductive act.

After pondering for a while, I came up with a decent idea.

'…This should work.'

I steeled myself and squeezed my eyes shut.

For the first time in my life, I decided I would try to seduce someone.

Taking a deep breath, I…

She lifted her palm and placed it softly on my lips with a kiss.

Winking with one eye.

She looked at the hatchling and blew a kiss—chu.

Then, immediately after, she shouted,

"E…Enchantment!"

Blowing a hand kiss to show affection to someone you fancy.

This was the best temptation I could muster.

So, for the first time in my life, I attempted seduction.

The result, however, was disastrous.

"…."

A profound silence filled the already quiet cave.

"…Hera… was that supposed to be seduction…?"

Sephir looked at me with a slightly pitiful gaze.

"Pfft!"

Athena burst into laughter while looking at me.

"Ugh…"

My mind went blank as their reactions hit me, and my face heated up, my cheeks turning as red as tomatoes.

An unbearable wave of embarrassment and shame began to torment me.

"Don't… don't laugh!!"

I shouted at them.

"Pfft. No, Hera, it was cute."

Athena, still unable to stop laughing.

"Y-yeah… well… with time, you'll get better…!"

Sephir looked at me with an unnecessary sympathetic gaze.

And then,

"Tweet-tweet!!"

The blue hatchling scurried over, excited, and climbed onto my shoulder.

"…?"

"Kyu… Kyu!"

The hatchling rubbed its head against my cheek, purring softly.

"…Huh?"

Both Sephir and Athena let out a sound simultaneously.

Their faces showed an unfamiliar expression of shock.

The hatchling kept gently rubbing its face against mine.

As I patted its head, it closed its eyes, leaning into my hand as if it was enjoying it.

"Did… did I succeed?"

"...."

They stared at me in disbelief, their faces frozen.

After a long stretch of silence, Athena, with a cold expression, began muttering in a small voice.

"As expected… Hera really is a she-wolf descended from the heavens…"

Beside her was Sephir, looking at me with eyes that trembled intensely.

"…T-this can't be…"

It seemed they were deeply shaken by the fact that I had somehow managed to charm the hatchling.

"Am I… useless?"

For some reason, I started feeling a pang of guilt towards Sephir.