The Black Dragon Lady Refuses to Be a Mount

Thinking of the Magic Beast attacks occurring throughout the Empire, Ailolin no longer dared to imagine the worst.

She had never expected to reunite with Likaro in such a way, but this reunion was destined to be anything but happy.

Ailolin had previously said she did not care about any strangers, so she had been indifferent to the Empire's war and the various methods behind the Magic Beast attacks. But if it was her friend, someone she cared about, going through something like this, there was no way she could avoid worrying.

"Alright, the little girl still isn't awake. Keep practicing sensing magic power." Vidian urged Ailolin to continue her magic practice, then asked, "Now that things have come to this, can you tell me the little girl's name?"

"Likaro." Ailolin answered without hesitation. "Her name is Likaro."

"Oh, I'll remember that."

Vidian committed the name to memory and decided to ask in her next letter to her friend which noble family the child belonged to.

Of course, she could also ask Likaro directly after she woke up, though she did not know whether Likaro would be willing to say.

"When will I finally master this completely..." Ailolin muttered as she sensed the magic power around her.

"Focus! Stop thinking about all that random nonsense!"

"Got it..."

Ailolin did not want to be knocked again. Faced with Vidian, who was also Dragonkind, even her seemingly highly defensive body could not withstand Vidian's knocks.

"I'll tell you some good news in advance. Once you can perfectly master magic power, you'll be able to start learning all kinds of magic."

"Mm."

"Transformation Magic is one of them too."

"!!!!"

Ailolin immediately grew excited. If she was a genius, did that mean she could learn Transformation Magic very quickly?

But Vidian seemed to have already guessed what Ailolin was thinking and mercilessly struck her down. "Don't think that being compatible with every kind of magic power makes you exceptionally gifted. By Dragonkind's average standards, you've already failed at the very first step of mastering magic power."

"...Alright. I'll work hard."

Although Ailolin could now sense magic power, she could not yet make it serve her. What she needed to do was "comprehend" it—or, in Vidian's words, continuously forge deeper connections with that magic power.

This process could not be helped by external forces. She had to rely on her own effort to succeed.

Once Ailolin could mobilize the magic power around her body, she could begin trying to mobilize the magic power within herself and inject it into Dragon language characters.

To give Ailolin a more intuitive understanding and motivate her to patiently continue learning, Vidian decided to personally demonstrate what Dragon Language Magic was.

Since Likaro was still resting in the house, Vidian and Ailolin went to an open area far from the building. Then Vidian began her demonstration.

"Wind."

Vidian spoke the word "wind" in Dragon language, but nothing happened. Then she said, "That was ordinary language. Next, I'll infuse wind-element magic power into it."

"Wind."

Vidian spoke the word again. A violent gale suddenly rose across a vast area centered on her, whipping the flowers and grass on the ground into a frenzy.

Ailolin was stunned. So this was how Dragon Language Magic was used.

"Keep watching." Vidian added another word. "Wind, spear."

The magic released by the two Dragon language words was completely different from before. This time, the wind gathered into a spear shape visible to the naked eye, then shot forth in accordance with Vidian's will and blasted a massive boulder apart.

Could the power of wind become this terrifying after being infused with the wind element?

"Well? Impressive, isn't it?"

"Impressive, very impressive!"

Unfortunately, Ailolin's claws could not clap. If she had hands, she would definitely have applauded Vidian enthusiastically.

Dragon Language Magic was power unleashed through Dragon language. It was seriously cool!

At that moment, a mischievous smile suddenly curled Vidian's lips. She abruptly said to Ailolin, "Wind, prison."

By the time Ailolin reacted, she found herself trapped inside a Wind Prison.

"Y-you, what are you doing!?"

"Hehe, of course I'm testing your strength. Don't worry, I didn't infuse much wind element into it. If you work hard, you should be able to break through. Good luck."

With that, Vidian headed back toward the house.

"Hey! Wait!"

"If you haven't come home by nightfall, I'll come find you. Don't embarrass yourself."

"..."

After Vidian left, Ailolin looked at the cage made of wind and slammed into it with all her strength.

It hurt!

Could she really break the Wind Prison with her own power?

PS: Book recommendation qwq!

Miss Illusory Dragon Doesn't Want to Be Ridden

Also dragons, also yuri—what reason is there not to read it?

Let me post the synopsis again.

=====================

Illusory Dragons had no physical bodies, but they could transform into other dragons.

At first, Bai Yuan could only transform into her father, mother, older brother, and older sister. Ever since she ate a "system," the types of dragons she could transform into had become much more varied.

Five-star transformations: Osiris the Sky Dragon, The Winged Dragon of Ra, Ultimate Crystal God—Rainbow Dragon...

Four-star transformations: Half-Dragon Maid—Radiant Dragon Maiden, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon

Besides those, there were Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Light and Darkness Dragon, Black Rose Dragon, and more... Staring at the thousands upon thousands of dragon species illustrated in the catalog that the system had somehow procured for her, Bai Yuan gave up thinking.

—and began her peerless rampage!

Childhood Friend

Likaro slowly woke up and found herself lying in a warm bed. Looking over the room's decorations, she realized they were even more luxurious than those in her own home. Could the kind older sister who had saved her also be a noble?

Just then, the door opened, and Vidian entered carrying a steaming cup of milk.

"Um... hello?" Likaro politely greeted her first.

"Mm, hello."

Vidian walked over to Likaro, helped her sit up, and said gently, "Have some milk first. You can eat something afterward."

"Um, thank you." Likaro wanted to reach out and take the cup, but discovered that she could not exert any strength at all. "Huh? I-I, what's wrong with me...?"

"Your body suffered severe damage because of Magic Outburst. Although I injected magic power into your body and kept you out of mortal danger, you'll need a long period of recuperation to recover."

After hearing Vidian's explanation, Likaro was somewhat confused. She did not know what Magic Outburst was, but she knew Vidian had saved her life.

"Kind older sister, can you tell me your name?"

"You should drink the milk first." Vidian supported Likaro's body with one hand and brought the cup to her lips with the other.

"Gulp..."

"Drink slowly. It's still a little hot."

"Mmm..."

"My name is Vidian, and I already know that your name is Likaro."

Likaro stared at her in surprise. Could this older sister be one of her father's friends? But she had never met her before.

"You'll find out how I learned your name later." Vidian kept her answer mysterious.

In truth, Likaro was already starving and thirsty. Ever since escaping the enemy attack, she had not replenished even a scrap of energy. Combined with the tremendous physical exertion caused by the earlier Magic Outburst, she quickly drained the entire cup of milk.

Thinking of what had happened during the enemy attack, large tears slid from the corners of Likaro's eyes.

"Why are you crying?"

"I-I miss Mother, sob..."

"..."

Vidian did not particularly like meddling in other people's business, and she had only helped Likaro because of Ailolin. But seeing such a small child crying before her, the compassion in Vidian's heart was awakened.

What a pitiful child. She must have experienced immense despair earlier, or she would not have triggered an eruption of the Magic Spring.

Although asking about the past was like driving a knife into someone's heart, Vidian needed to understand the situation. "Can you tell me where you came from? And what you experienced?"

At the same time, Vidian took out a handkerchief and wiped Likaro's tears.

"Mm..."

Likaro trusted this kind older sister. She told her about her identity and everything she had experienced while fleeing.

"I see. Don't worry, your mother was most likely only captured."

In wars between nations, nobles were walking ransom tickets. Especially great nobles and their families—they could be exchanged for considerable ransom money or used as hostages to make threats. Unless someone had rocks for brains, they would try their best to capture nobles alive.

What surprised Vidian was that scouts from the Pivent Empire had actually penetrated deep into Silver Eagle Empire territory. Did that mean there was a problem with the Northern Frontier Defense Line?

Surely they had not entered through a Teleportation Array again? If the Five-Nation Alliance had truly mastered a method of directly setting coordinates for one-way teleportation, it would mean that future warfare would be completely overturned. Even sturdy fortresses and strongholds would instantly lose their purpose.

Though there had already been precedent with teleporting Magic Beasts, Vidian still did not believe that one-way fixed-point Teleportation Arrays could exist. Teleportation required arrangements on both sides. If only one side was set up, how could a Teleportation Array simply appear out of thin air on the other side? And where would the energy to sustain it come from?

Though Vidian had little interest in worldly affairs, even she could not understand something like this. She had to find a way to satisfy her curiosity.

Grrrr~

Likaro's stomach suddenly growled, and her cheeks instantly turned red.

"I'll get you something to eat."

"Thank you."

"..." Vidian paused, then her tone shifted slightly. "It's nothing."

Vidian temporarily left the room. Likaro could not make any large movements while lying in bed, so she painstakingly turned her head toward the window, wanting to look at the scenery outside. Yet what she saw was a huge dragon head.

"Eek!"

Likaro was immediately startled out of her wits. After she recovered, she met the gaze of Ailolin, who was crouched by the window.

Ailolin blinked. She had just returned after breaking Vidian's Wind Prison when she saw Likaro awake in bed. But instead of calling Likaro's name, she silently stretched her head before the window and watched her.

Likaro quickly recognized that the "peeping" creature was Little Black Dragon. She looked at her in delighted surprise, never expecting to meet Little Black Dragon this way, in this place.

But Likaro's joy was soon swallowed by sorrow. Reuniting with her good friend was naturally wonderful, but she had no idea what had become of her father and mother. Then again, if her father and mother were safe, they must have been desperately worried after being unable to find her.

At that moment, Vidian entered carrying a plate piled high with food. She seemed to have some special method of storing food, because the ingredients she used were highly varied and all extremely fresh.

After placing the plate on the small table beside the bed, Vidian noticed Ailolin at the window and walked over to open it.

"Go say hello to your little friend."

After saying that, Vidian moved aside and gave up the space before the window.

"Little Black Dragon!"

Likaro called Ailolin by her nickname. For a moment, Ailolin did not know what she should say, so she answered, "Mm."

"How did you end up here? What did you do after we parted last time?"

"A lot happened. If you want to hear about it, I can tell you everything."

"Mm-hmm... Huh? Little Black Dragon, the way you speak..."

Likaro realized that Little Black Dragon's Human language had become remarkably good.

"Very fluent, right?" Vidian interjected from the side. "Ailolin has been studying very hard."

"That's amazing! Little Black Dragon, you're so diligent. Do you want a kiss as a reward~?"

The moment Likaro said that, her own face flushed crimson. She had forgotten Vidian was present and blurted out something like that without thinking.

Because Likaro had kissed Little Black Dragon before and knew that Little Black Dragon became very shy about it, she loved teasing her with it.

But if someone else heard it, even Likaro felt utterly embarrassed.

Sure enough, the way Vidian looked at Ailolin changed. "You two have done that sort of thing before?"