Dragon Slayer Was a Profession...

The Dragon Race had ultimately wielded considerable power to forcibly sever the contract between the abducted dragon and its abductor. Naturally, the person who had done it paid an agonizing price, becoming a warning to anyone tempted to follow suit.

After that, no one tried the same trick again. Everyone wanted a dragon as a symbiotic partner or a magical pet, but not everyone could bear the cost.

Unless the dragon was willing, of course. Even then, the Dragon Race would only turn a blind eye if the contractor was strong enough. Anyone too weak was out of luck.

That made Zheng Yichen's situation rather unusual. "Let's go."

After finishing the book about the Dragon Race, Zheng Yichen spoke to Petty. From what he had read, there was good news and bad. The good news was that, as humanity's power grew and its population surged, dragons rarely ventured across the continent anymore.

The bad news was... rarely did not mean never. The book alone recorded three places where dragons had appeared. Twenty years amounted to only a few long naps for a dragon, so those dragons were probably still there.

And beyond those three confirmed locations, it listed at least five more where dragon activity was suspected...

Worse still, the book described historical events that Lolise had never mentioned!

Dragon Slayer really was a profession in this world. Its original purpose had been to hunt Cursed Dragons, and it had flourished during the era when they appeared. Dragon Slayers were granted power by the Dragon Race, power that seeped deep into their bloodlines!

So although Cursed Dragons seemed to have vanished, the Dragon Slayer profession had survived. It remained inseparable from the Dragon Race.

"What are you thinking about?" Zheng Yichen asked, noticing that Petty seemed distracted on the way back.

"I'm wondering if I should move out."

"Oh? Can you do that?"

"Mm..." Petty nodded gently. She was considering it because of Zheng Yichen. If she stayed in the dormitory, his presence might be exposed. As for her roommates, she had only recently enrolled and had yet to form any particularly close friendships.

But renting a place outside would mean another expense, and for someone whose family was not well-off, that was no small burden.

"Short on money?"

"Uh..." Petty nodded bitterly. Paying her tuition was already a struggle. Renting a place on top of that was... difficult.

"Go to the outskirts of the Illusion Demon Forest tomorrow or the day after. I left something there."

Back in the castle, Zheng Yichen opened his eyes. He felt a cool sensation on his back, but instead of getting up at once, he turned to look at the Ghost Maid behind him. He had no idea whether they were truly so idle that they enjoyed inventing chores for themselves.

Cleaning his scales was one thing. They were so bored that they would even take a needle and slowly scrape between each scale. Zheng Yichen suspected that if they had the materials, they might wax his scales too...

"Seriously, if you're that bored, I can find you something fun to do."

Zheng Yichen looked at the Ghost Maid on his back and spoke helplessly. She appeared fairly young, only a little older than Lolise looked. Appearances were hardly definitive, though. The youngest of these Ghost Maids seemed to be at least fifty years old!

When the Ghost Maid on his back heard him, she narrowed her eyes and smiled softly, then went on cleaning the gaps between his scales. She really was bored out of her mind!

Shaking his head, he rose, resisting the urge to give his body a good shake, and went straight to a room Lolise had assigned him. He had no idea how she had expanded it, but the space inside was far larger than it looked from outside.

He could use it as a bedroom or a storeroom. But after comparing how comfortable it was with the main hall, Zheng Yichen had chosen the hall. It had better ventilation...

So the room had more or less become a storeroom. Everything he had ever looted was dumped there. After rummaging around, Zheng Yichen emerged with a small bag. He set it by the door and turned to tell the little Ghost Maid on his back, "Don't mistake this for trash and throw it out."

The little Ghost Maid nodded gently.

She murmured into empty space, though no sound came out. It was how they communicated with one another; Zheng Yichen could not understand it anyway.

Then he left the castle and snapped a thick branch off a large tree. He examined the grain of the wood, which was as thick as an adult's thigh. It would do nicely.

Back at the castle, he tossed the wood aside and pulled an enlarged magic book from beneath the table. Holding it in one hand, he began slowly tracing with a finger of his other claw. Unnoticed by him, Lolise came out of her room and watched him quietly from the second floor.

Threads of magic took shape beneath his finger, weaving into a Magic Array Pattern. He glanced at the pattern, which had formed but had not yet been infused with magic, then compared it with the one recorded in the book. Once he was sure there were no mistakes, he poured in the magic needed to activate it.

A longsword took shape from the fully activated Magic Array Pattern. Basic Magic Weapon Creation produced a random temporary magical weapon, its strength dependent on the caster. It was an obscure spell: creating a magical weapon cost a fair amount of magic, and its power was another problem.

Rather than have a Mage use this spell, it would be more effective to cast an Explosive Flame Fireball. A Mage should stick to being a Mage. What was the point of taking a weapon into close combat? Besides, if the Mage was weak, the resulting magical weapon would be less sturdy than a kitchen knife. And with that damned randomness, who knew what kind of weapon would appear?

Even if the aim was to help a teammate, there were spells that could temporarily grant weapons special effects. There was no need for this one!

This was his first time using the spell. Once he had a certain foundation in magic, he could cast basic spells simply by following the pattern: get the Magic Array Pattern right and have enough mental power. He did not know whether it worked that way for anyone else, but for him, it was quite simple.

"That's strange... Didn't it say random?" Zheng Yichen muttered as he stared at the longsword in his claw. He waved his claw, dispersing it, then used Basic Magic Weapon Creation again. The result was once more the exact shape he had pictured. Oh? Now that was promising!