Type-Moon, Does a Small Cheat Count as a Cheat?

Having gained the power of dragon blood, only Siegfried and Avia, who had pierced through the Evil Dragon together, were drenched in blood that looked even more vivid and dazzling as it sprayed over them, like molten lava.

According to legend, the blood of the Evil Dragon Fafnir would grant Siegfried a body impervious to blades and spears. However, a Bodhi Leaf had stuck to his back, leaving one spot untouched by dragon blood—and that became his only weakness.

But now, there was no Bodhi Leaf on Siegfried's body, only the leaf Avia had given him. It had fluttered loose during their rapid movements in battle and stuck to his back. The difference was that the dragon blood had flowed over the leaf and soaked his entire body, leaving him with no weakness.

Meanwhile, Avia found something strange. It seemed that... the dragon blood enhancement gained from killing Fafnir had no effect on him at all...

Still, after killing Fafnir, the only remaining matter was the cursed Rhine Gold.

Siegfried had learned of this curse from Dwarf Regin, who had commissioned him, and he had also heard Fafnir's final words just now.

Now that it had lost its host, Fafnir, the Rhine Gold continued to emit light in order to attract its next host...

By all rights, Siegfried felt it would be better to cast it aside. Yet he knew full well that he bore the responsibility of protecting others.

Thus, in that instant, he had decided to take on the curse himself, ensuring that no one else—including his friend Avia—would be harmed.

"Avia, give that to me—"

"Siegfried, leave the Rhine Gold to me."

But Avia held the same thought.

The Rhine Gold,

Theoretically, was a treasure so vast that even if it were divided among everyone in the world, it would never run out: an enormous lump of gold that continuously increased its own brilliance in order to entice hosts into acquiring it.

Though it possessed a physical form that needed to be carried, it was also a conceptual thing. That concept clung to its host like a curse, allowing them to amass wealth through something akin to the Golden Rule.

In short, it was like a super-energy crystal with some traits of an inorganic intelligent life-form.

Yet its most troublesome aspect was still its conceptual curse. In legend, Siegfried's tragic end had partly stemmed from his own personality, but those traits were not enough to prove fatal.

Despite possessing overwhelming power, he would never act as he pleased. He acted only when he accepted the wishes of others. That was the kind of person Siegfried was.

There was no doubt that he was a man worthy of the name hero.

That was precisely why Avia did not want such a man to live like a wish-granting machine. He hoped Siegfried could use his own will to decide what justice meant to him.

Like Attila, he hoped Siegfried would not live solely for the singular purpose of fighting.

"No, Avia. Please, you must leave this to me."

Siegfried stared at Avia with an intensity he had never shown before.

Under that gaze, Avia recalled the look he had given Lucius when he was about to arrive in Rome in the first century AD. His feelings now were the same as Lucius's back then: he wanted this person to enjoy life to the fullest, rather than suffer through meaningless misfortune.

"Siegfried, tell me. During the battle against Fafnir, who contributed the most?"

Here, the light should have been swallowed by endless darkness, leaving only faint bioluminescent specks scattered throughout. The surrounding currents flowed slowly, bringing cool, salty sea air, as though it were the breathing of the ocean.

Yet under the glow of the Rhine Gold, the young man's hair shone like a golden torch.

"You, Avia."

Without the assistance of the Avia before him, he could never have so easily attacked atop the Evil Dragon's back and claimed victory.

Siegfried understood that clearly.

"Then doesn't that make things simple?"

Avia's tone was exceedingly calm, yet impossible to dispute.

"The one who contributed the most has the right to choose. I took the most valuable treasure. Is there anything wrong with that?"

Faced with those irrefutable words, Siegfried nodded somewhat awkwardly.

"But the curse—"

"Is that really something worth worrying about?"

Avia patted Siegfried on the shoulder, his voice brimming with laughter.

"It's just a legend. Who knows whether it's even true? Maybe someone made it up out of jealousy over this treasure. Right, it's nothing important. This thing is nothing important. Anyway, now that I have the treasure, I'll spend it freely and enjoy myself. Even if I do become unlucky, it'll still be worth it."

As he spoke, Avia struck the Rhine Gold with his spear, producing crimson sparks that traced an arc before going out at the bottom of the river.

"Besides, I'm a Hun born with evil intentions. Even if I've slain a dragon, my nature will never change in the eyes of the world."

In these deep waters, the tremendous pressure rendered everything exceptionally still. Only the occasional low cries of sea creatures broke the silence. Now, Avia's voice slowly echoed through it.

Though they were discussing cursed treasure, the silver-haired youth spoke as though it were something utterly insignificant, as though he did not care in the slightest.

In the end, Siegfried could only nod silently. He realized that although his expression and words were no different from usual, he always felt as though he were enduring something.

"If that's the case, then this is goodbye, Siegfried."

"...Mm. Until we meet again, Avia."

Siegfried silently watched Avia's departing back as he took the Rhine Gold away, until he vanished completely from sight.

Their adventure had left behind an experience worthy of a place in the annals of history, but it had also left behind a profound regret.

So, besides returning, what was there left for him to do?

Siegfried thought desperately as confusion rose within him.

If he had any wish at all, it was simply to keep the Rhine Gold's curse of misfortune to himself and not let it reach anyone else.

Though he could not make sense of it for the moment—

As he watched the friend he had known for only fifteen days depart, the great dragon-slaying hero wore a remarkably gentle expression.

For Avia, although killing Fafnir had brought him no great gains aside from the cursed Rhine Gold,

No matter what, his next destination had to be Britain.

After all, Avia had learned a little about the current state of affairs over the years.

Though the Holy Church was growing increasingly corrupt, it had been established early and had served as Rome's state religion for centuries. Its power was truly terrifying. Not only had it nearly driven the Dead Apostles to extinction, but in the original history, the Clock Tower had at least possessed its own magical cities scattered across the land to oppose it in this era. Now, however, it had made a deal, accepted protection, and huddled upon the island of Britain.

Perhaps it was because he had returned the body of the Dragon of Albion in the first century AD. In any case, the Clock Tower was having an utterly miserable time now.

But in order to set the Church back on the right path, Avia had no choice but to do this.

After all, he already knew that even Kouhaku, who had worked diligently within the Church ever since its founding, had been mercilessly hunted by it because he was a Dead Apostle...

Avia pondered this. He had never done something as heartless as killing the donkey after it had finished pulling the millstone, had he? So why had the Church grown ever more corrupt ever since they had joined forces to kill Crimson Moon in 300 AD?

But since the changes that had occurred were caused by him, he needed to take responsibility for them. He had that much self-awareness.

So, aside from the corpse of the planet's Strongest Dragon, what else remained in Britain, where Mystery still lingered?

Naturally, it was the strongest fantasy that had appeared thirteen thousand years ago, after the planet forged humanity's desperate wishes in the face of the world-destroying Titan Sephalus—

The Star Sword, which the Lady of the Lake would later give to the King of Knights in King Arthur's era.

And in the Type-Moon world, the Lady of the Lake Vivian was Morgan, and also Mahgous—the three were one. In any case, she had not yet been born in AD 418.

Regarding that, Avia had a bold idea—

Was the Star Sword currently beneath the lake of the fae, beneath Avalon, the counterpart of the Inner Sea of Stars?

No matter what, that alone made a trip to Britain worthwhile.

This Is My Father!

On the island of Britain, where remnants of Mystery endured, there was a misty forest in the southwest cut off by rivers.

In later generations, this place would be described as King Arthur's final resting place—Glastonbury, or rather, the island of Avalon upon the surface of the modern world.

At this moment, as the morning mist slowly dispersed, sunlight poured through the sparse shadows of the treetops onto the shoulder of Avia, who lay on the ground as though asleep, dancing there like a natural pattern.

Branches and leaves swayed gently in the breeze, rustling like soft whispers. The forest air was fresh and damp, carrying the scent of soil and grass. Listening silently to the birdsong rising and falling among the trees, Avia felt a trace of ease and slowly surrendered his entire body to the embrace of sunlight.

Avia was not truly asleep. He was deliberately waiting to see whether any fae would become interested upon seeing him like this and take him to the doorway leading to the far side of the world.

Although most fae had left the surface after the Age of Gods ended, choosing to go to the Fae Realm, only Giants and magical beasts that despised and hated humans remained here.

They could not break free from their physical shackles or become spiritual bodies like the fae, so they could not move to the far side of the world. They could only remain on the surface in constant unease.

However, Garden of Avalon revealed that there was currently still a doorway capable of freely traversing between the front and back layers of the world. Though it theoretically would not last much longer, it at least endured until King Arthur's era a hundred years later.

After all, half the builders of the City of White Chalk, Camelot, had been Earth Fae pretending to be human, while the other half had been human craftsmen who knew they were Earth Fae yet pretended not to know and continued working.

Moreover, the fae of Britain were beings whom King Richard the Lionheart had still encountered in the twelfth century.

Even in modern times, a few still existed. For instance, Genmu Gotsuki in Kara no Kyoukai had been abducted and altered by fae, which was how he learned Unified Language, the common language from before humanity split apart. Hartless, Faker's Master in The Case Files, had also once been taken away by the fae, who did something to him.

All in all, the fae of Proper Human History were not as rotten as those in a certain Lostbelt. They merely liked to pull reckless pranks without considering the consequences.

Although being taken away by fae was clearly an incredibly dangerous affair, the rewards it brought were likewise exceptionally generous.

Yet Avia had already spent four days and three nights lying here with magic. During that time, horned white horses had passed by, and little birds with white feathers had flown overhead.

But not a single fae had come. If none appeared soon, he would have no choice but to think of another method.

To think that even I, with the Rhine Gold, couldn't interest them. What a—

Just as he was thinking that, a light breeze suddenly swept through. The rustling leaves masked the sounds in the grass, and when the wind stopped and the leaves fell still, everything returned to silence. The sun climbed higher, and threadlike rays of sunlight intertwined, casting warmth upon the dew-soaked earth.

At the same time, within this forest teeming with ancient life, many tiny creatures emitting faint magical light flew toward the reclining Avia.

So they finally came. My wait wasn't in vain.

Countless thoughts surged through Avia's mind, but he suppressed his emotions and kept his inner state steady.

"Human."

"Why is there a human here?"

"There were no humans here before."

"Mm."

The fae with transparent, insect-like wings discussed among themselves. From their conversation, it seemed Avia was the first human to arrive here.

"Did he get separated?"

"Human, so pitiful."

"Please do your best."

Though the voices and words of these fae were all so gentle and kind,

Avia became incomparably vigilant.

Because at that moment, he suddenly found himself unable to make a sound or move his body at all.

"Smells good. Don't play with him. Let's eat him."

"Take him home and eat him."

"Mm."

"Everyone, eat together."

"Scrape off the meat and eat it."

"Roast him and eat him."

"Raise him and eat him."

Before Avia could even lament how bizarrely the fae's topic had changed—from curiosity to encouragement, then suddenly to eating him, a process with no logic at all—he felt his body being dragged by many things and gradually lifted into the air.

If an uninformed person saw this, they might think of a parable in which little angels carried a righteous man into heaven. In reality, however, the fae were merely taking their food home.

Soon, Avia, dragged through the air, vanished into the mist formed from the magical light emanating from the fae's wings.

In that instant, his consciousness seemed to enter darkness, cutting off briefly. Then, something unlike the magical energy of the modern world began nourishing his body.

Even so, Avia could not react at all. He could only remain with his eyes closed as the fae dragged him onward.

"I'm here because I wanted to rest. It just happened, that's all. Relax, relax. Don't mind me."

Suddenly, Avia heard a childlike voice. But because he could not open his eyes, he could not determine the speaker's appearance. From the tone alone, he could only guess that it belonged to someone with a somewhat aloof personality.