Chapter 436: O Dragon, O Dragon! Part 13

Author's Preface
Sorry for the delayed update, I went to take a bath in the Niagara wind for a bit... (Updating from a trip)

It seemed the small dragons' thought AI wasn't simply determined by kill score alone.
According to a few players I helped and asked, a hypothesis had been formed: "The more aggro you generate from Bryreinyego's main body, the more small dragons swarm you."
In other words, the person who was about to be ganged up on by the small dragons over there was apparently someone "standing out" in the eyes of the White Dragon Bryreinyego, and by stepping in to assist from the side, it seemed I had gathered enough aggro myself.

Well, naturally, considering...

"Hey! Are you listening to me!"

"I'm listening, I'm listening. I'm perking up my ears like a rabbit."

"Is that so! Then good! ...No, that's not it! That sword! That sword!!"

Considering the person who had been receiving passionate (hateful) glances (aggro) from Bryreinyego was following me around.

"You, don't tell me that's... the Areadbhair!?"

"No, no, Areadbhair is a spear, right? This is clearly a sword."

"Hm? Ah, you're right... but there's an anecdote that the hero Dordona, finding himself surrounded with no room to even swing a spear, purposefully broke the handle and used it as a sword, showing his adaptable intellect........."

Two seconds of silence. As if not wanting to miss the opening, the small dragons charged in. I cleaved down two human-sized ones, and the woman who had been following me around this whole time struck down the single Giant-sized one.

"No, it's definitely a sword!"

"Right!?"

What's with this Giant woman? Since she was obviously wielding a rather impressive sword, I figured she was a high-tier NPC among the Giants, like Vash or Ceecrue, but is her ease of being messed with also high-tier?

"Why do you possess it!"

"Why do you think I do?"

"Eh? Um...?"

Oops, a three-man cell? Sorry, but unless you use the "Shield, Step, Jump" style Divine Punishment, you ain't catching me off guard. What kind of Divine Punishment is that? Exactly as it sounds.

"I knew it, there's no mistaking it, the blade of brilliant hellfire that destroys dragons... I've got it, you picked it up!?"

"Corrrrrrect! That's amazing! You figured it out perfectly! By the way, what's your name?"

"Mmph, ah... I am Fione of the Mora Begalta...!"

Ooh, seeing someone fight with a height of around three meters really is visually impressive.

"Mora Begalta?"

"What, you do not know? The paired twin blades wielded by our forefather Odin... This is one of the halves, the Sword of Passion, Begalta!"

"Amaaaazing!"

Swung simultaneously, the two swords sent the small dragons flying. I see, one half of the paired swords... huh. Going by the name Mora Begalta, it sounds like there should be another sword named Moralltach.

"Fufun, I was acknowledged by this Begalta from birth, and together with my older sister who wields the Moralltach, we shall slay the dragons......... Wait, that is not it!!"

"Ah, hold on a sec, I need to change."

I felt like almost eight minutes had passed. Since it's just my internal clock, I don't know the exact time, but this kind of thing requires moving right when you feel a sense of urgency.

Taking out the pitch-black crystal, I swung Areadbhair with one hand and destroyed one enemy.
I followed up with a knee strike and then a backward flying kick.
Stepping on the blown-away enemy, I thrust Areadbhair into it, pinning it to the ground...

"Henshin!"

Ah crap, I just naturally yelled "Henshin." I guess I dragged out the tension from when I was using the Glitter Grit.

The Tsarina Series burst off my body, leaving me half-naked for an instant... Wait, since my head and waist equipment popped off too, does that practically make me fully naked...? Fully naked (I was wearing inner wear) me (female) was exposed.
But no need to worry, this was a magical girl-style transformation, meaning the important parts were conveniently obscured.

The shattered crimson jewels—now broken into pieces—fluttered in the air, sparkling... but suddenly, their light was dyed in the color of darkness.
The tiny jewel fragments transformed into a black smoke-like mist, and moving in a rewind-like motion that completely ignored physics, wrapped around my body and tightened. Right now, I'm standing confidently with my hands on my hips, but maybe I should have done a more girly reaction? No demand for that, huh.

Eventually, the clinging mist took the shape of clothes. Clad in an all-black dress and a veil hiding my face, I pulled out Areadbhair from the ground and readied my stance.

"Second Form... the current me has No Limits."

"W-What was that just now! That was cool!"

"Right?"

What is this... what is this feeling? It's different from how I handle Emul, and different from Saina too... I feel like I've dealt with someone like this before...

"Ah."

I got it. This feels exactly like dealing with a relative's little kid. Something I can't quite put into words is whispering that to me.

"Well whatever, look, enemies are coming, we'll talk later!"

With a zugon, I effortlessly pulled out the Memento Mori from where it was stabbed into the ground, hoisted it onto my shoulder, and took up a dual-wielding stance with Areadbhair Rebuild. It was the same against the Devouring Great Crimson Clad, but this is pretty much the optimal solution for fighting dragons... Or rather, since I can swing around a combination of pure firepower and specialized anti-dragon firepower, I just can't think of a better option.

"You... for your appearance, you possess great strength...?"

"Because my Girl Power is high."

"...?"

Girl Power is synonymous with combat power, and my Girl Power is over 500,000—those were Pencilgon's words. Because my Girl Power is so high right now, I can swing the Memento Mori around with ease.

"Master."

"Saina, huh."

"With the cooperation of the individual designated 'Emul,' a search for the corresponding next-generation primitive human was conducted, but at present, no results have been yielded."

"He's nowhere to be found, desu waー."

Hmm. I figured if a robot wrapped in 【Rising Waterfall】 was rampaging around, it would catch Rust's attention... Are they seriously over at a different dragon's location?
If so, what should I do? Heading over to another dragon is an option, but I feel like I've stepped on some Giant-race flag or something... And as the current owner of Areadbhair, ignoring the Giants right here doesn't seem like a good idea in terms of Vorpal Soul, or rather, my affinity rating with Vash.

"Can't be helped... Saina, let's stand out more. I authorize the use of all armaments available to the Enhanced Armor."

"I see... Intelligence Full Burst, correct?"

Is your intelligence made out of bullets or something? But I don't hate that kinda stuff. Gunpowder is a cluster of wisdom, after all.

"Emul! Don't use the 'you-know-what' I entrusted to you yet, got it?"

"Fufun, I know, desu wa! The 'you-know-what' is our trump card, desu waー!"

Damn straight. That's everything I scraped together from my piggy bank (Golden Scale Trading Company) and all my connections. I gotta save it for the main event.

"Fione, was it?"

"Fione of the Mora Begalta. A Giant's name exists alongside their weapon."

"Ah, so I'm supposed to call you by the full name..."

"Umu. I have heard it is an unfamiliar custom to your kind, but it is deeply important to us."

"Hm?"

I feel like something just caught in my mind... no, just my imagination?

"Bearer of the Areadbhair, it is coming!"

『Damn you! With that accursed blade, how dare you do this to my beloved children...!!』

What, you directing your aggro at me? Bring it on, I've had something I wanted to say ever since I checked your info.

"Since they're single-cell multiplying, they aren't your children, they're just you (clones)! Don't drag us into your twisted game of playing house!!!!"

『Wh-Wha—, whaaaaa...!!』

I'll Destroy every last one of you, ORAAAH!!

"Saina!!"

"Call... Non-Standard Armament: Piercing Spear Type 【Phalanx】, deploying."

"Eh, should I get ready for something too, desu wa?"

Here, have a carrot.

"Waaay."

A dual-wielding stance of scorching heat and death, a sword of passion, a massive piercing spear, and a carrot... Heh.

"You look completely out of place, Emul."

Oops, sorry, they're attacking, so I can't really react to your amazing facial expressions right now.
Alright, let's go! Assemble!!

Author's Afterword
Eh? What? There are two characters bearing the name Mora Begalta? Don't tell me you completely forgot the name you decided on first and accidentally created a second person by setting a new name?
Don't be ridiculous, there's no way I'd make such a stupid mistake!

The Mora Begalta is originally a pair of twin blades—the "Sword of Passion, Moralltach" and the "Sword of Emotion, Begalta"—but when the current owner, "Dirnadia," had a younger sister, for some reason, the ownership of Begalta alone transferred from the older sister to the younger sister, Fione.
If they were human, this would result in a messy, bloodthirsty development involving murder or extreme alienation, but for the Giants, being "chosen by a weapon" is an immense honor. So they decided, "For now, let's just have them actually fight, and we'll decide what to do based on the results."
As a result, by managing to strike down a small dragon at the tender age of twelve, she was acknowledged by the clan as the owner of Begalta, and currently, despite being a young thirty years old, she fights on the front lines as a hero of the clan.

Let's go with that!! (It was a rather unfunny blunder, but what a magnificent recovery, practically embodying the concept of falling seven times and standing up eight).

There is absolutely no problem. I whipped up the setting along with the background story, so Fione-san (30 years old—Giants' age divided by 3 equals human equivalent) is officially incorporated into the world-building of this humble work. There's no way I'd pass up a situation where a single weapon was split in two...!

Ah, by the way, Fione-san (30 years old) has clearly developed more than others her age thanks to Begalta's power. Her abs are completely shredded, and her height is closing in on her sister's, so from an outsider's perspective, they look exactly like twins. In reality, her sister is sixty years old—double her age!