Even after the bandits retreated, people were still moving around the village.
Hans, who had been cut, was carried home, his wound washed and wrapped in cloth. He was a little relieved to hear that his injury wasn't life-threatening, but it didn't look like he would be able to return to work that required his arms right away.
I drank water from the stream outside the fence and washed the blood off my front legs.
No matter how many times I washed them, the red colour that remained between my claws bothered me.
It wasn't that I had forgotten about the man I killed. Still, in the village there was no time to stand still and simply look at the bodies of the bandits.
There was a possibility that the ones who ran away would come back.
Some people went to check on the destroyed sections, while others went to check on the state of the forest. Dario and the others took turns guarding the outside of the village, and the village chief walked between them, issuing instructions one after another.
The dull pain in my right hind leg had returned from running around.
It wasn't that the old wound had opened.
It seemed better not to push myself too hard today.
"Val."
When I looked up at the voice, Lina was on the other side of the fence.
She was holding a small pail filled with water.
“I’ll put it here.”
Instead of coming right up to me as before, she set the pail outside the fence and took a step back.
I thought that was fine.
She had just seen a human die.
What's more, I was the one who killed him.
It would be unnatural for a twelve-year-old child to approach me with nothing changed at all.
When I approached the pail, Lina smiled, looking a little relieved.
“Is your leg hurting again?”
I looked at my right hind leg once, then nodded.
Lina's eyes widened.
"He does understand after all."
"At this point, even I don't doubt it."
Dario came from behind.
I looked at him, a little surprised.
“What’s that face?”
I don’t know what kind of face it looked like.
Dario stopped in front of the fence without leaning on it.
"You're the one who told me it would be three days from now. Taking me to the slope, and being around the village before the bandits arrived — you can't leave all of it as coincidence."
"That's what I said from the beginning."
"You trust him too quickly."
Lina puffed out her cheeks.
I listened to the exchange while drinking water from the pail.
At least it seemed there was no longer any need to argue every time over whether I could understand what was being said.
The problem was that I couldn’t respond with human words.
"Val."
This time I heard the village chief’s voice.
He was walking towards us with several villagers.
There was no sign of Hans.
Of course — his arm had just been cut.
The village chief stopped a little away from me.
"I said earlier that I had something to ask of you, but before that I would like to confirm something."
I looked up.
“Do you understand what I’m saying?”
I nodded.
A small commotion broke out behind the village chief.
Lina and Dario knew, but it seemed the other villagers hadn't understood.
The village chief asked one more question.
"Not just roughly. Do you understand the content of what we're talking about?"
I nodded again.
“I see.”
He didn't try anything further.
The village chief looked at me for a while, then sat down on a stump near the fence.
"In that case, I think it would be best not to speak to you as though I'm dealing with a beast."
Much appreciated.
My appearance might be a dragon's, but being treated like a beast when the inside wasn't was irritating.
“First, I would like to thank you for helping the village.”
The village chief bowed his head.
The villagers behind him didn't do the same.
Some of the faces were still wary of me.
That was fine.
The village chief looked up.
"You saved us with the Tusk Boar, with the Horned Wolves, and today as well. I can't forget that."
I listened silently.
"However, the bandits ran away. It would be dangerous to think that they will never come again."
I thought so too.
"And it isn't just them. Magical beasts may come from the forest, or other bandits may approach. It's difficult for this village alone to prepare for everything."
The village chief's voice was matter-of-fact.
He wasn't pleading, and he wasn't trying to flatter me.
"So, Val, I want to ask a favour of you."
The surroundings became quiet.
"Will you become the protector of Rue Village?"
It wasn't that I hadn't expected it.
Still, when the words were actually said, it wasn't something I could simply nod my head at.
Up until now, I had been acting on my own.
The reason I defeated the Tusk Boar was because Lina was in danger.
The reason I drove away the Horned Wolves was because I couldn't ignore the livestock being attacked.
As for the bandits, I took action because I knew that if I left them alone, the village would be destroyed.
However, if I decided to "become a protector," the meaning would change.
I would no longer be in a position to decide, each time something happened, whether or not to help based on my mood.
It seemed the village chief knew that much as well.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm not asking you to fight to the death no matter what happens."
I looked at the village chief.
"If it's an opponent you can't defeat, tell us first. The villagers can either run away or seek help elsewhere. Even today, you didn't fight the bandits alone."
That’s right.
The villagers repaired the fence.
They set up lookouts.
Dario fought with a bow.
I didn’t do everything.
“What’s needed to protect the village is not just you being strong.”
The village chief turned his attention to the broken fence.
"Simply knowing the danger early makes a great difference."
If that's the case, I can do that too.
My nose and ears are better than a human's.
When I walk in the forest, I notice footprints.
In the future, if my wings grow more, I'll be able to see the surroundings from the sky.
Though I can't fly now.
"In return, we can't simply do nothing."
The village chief continued.
"If you are injured, use the medicine available in the village. If you kill a magical beast that attacks the village, we'll decide together how to divide the meat and materials. If the village has enough to spare, we can also give you food."
He didn't say they would prepare food every day.
That was fine.
I knew that this village didn't have that kind of luxury.
Basically, all I had to do was look for food in the forest.
In fact, if my body grew larger, the village's food alone would no longer be enough.
"When it comes to medicinal herbs and the forest, there are things we know better than you. On the other hand, there are things only you can do."
It wasn't equal.
What humans and dragons could do was too different for that.
Still, it wasn’t a story where only one side benefited.
"I have a favour to ask of you too."
Dario opened his mouth.
He looked at me.
"Villagers go into the forest. They collect firewood and hunt. They also go to gather wild vegetables and medicinal herbs."
I nodded.
"I don't want people who enter the forest treated as enemies just because they're near the village."
I nodded again.
"Livestock aren't prey either."
Of course.
"And don't take things from the village without permission."
I nodded at that as well.
Dario added after thinking for a while.
"On the other hand, it would be better if people from the village didn't come into your den without permission."
I couldn’t help but look up.
I didn't expect him to think that far.
"It'd be strange to only tell you not to enter our territory, wouldn't it?"
Dario said it looking a little uncomfortable.
I nodded.
I was grateful for that condition.
The rock shelter I was currently using had already been found.
I didn't intend to use that place as my den forever, and I wanted to find a safer place to rest.
I pointed to the forest and drew a circle on the ground with my claws.
I made a gesture of curling my body into it.
"A nest?"
Lina noticed right away.
I nodded.
The village chief looked at the forest.
"We'll choose a place that isn't too far from the village and that the villagers don't normally go to. Is that all right?"
I nodded.
"I'll tell everyone not to enter it without permission unless it's an emergency."
With this, I could secure a minimum amount of space on my side.
The village chief stood up from the stump.
"Then, I'll ask you again."
The villagers on the other side of the fence were also watching us.
Not all of them welcomed me.
There were some worried faces.
Even so, there was no one shouting for me to be driven away.
"Val. Will you become the protector of Rue Village?"
I didn’t answer right away.
I turned my gaze into the village.
Lina waited silently.
Dario didn't say anything either.
Behind the village chief were the men who had fought the bandits and the women watching from a distance.
There were many faces I didn't know yet.
I knew almost nothing about this village.
What did they make a living from?
How much food were they short of?
Who did they trade with?
To begin with, I didn't even know what kind of person ruled this land.
And I was promising to protect a place like that.
When I thought about it, it was quite a big thing.
However, I didn’t feel like pretending to be a complete stranger and returning to the forest now.
I looked at the village chief and slowly nodded.
A faint light appeared at the edge of my vision.
《A target of protection has been registered》
《Territory: Rue Village》
《Part of the evolution conditions has been met》
I stared at the display.
Territory.
It hadn't appeared when I defeated the Tusk Boar.
It hadn't come out when I drove away the Horned Wolves either.
If I had only thought, "I'm going to protect this place," nothing would have happened.
The village asked me, and when I accepted, it was registered for the first time.
If so, perhaps this power isn't something that can be obtained by seizing land.
The display disappeared.
It wasn't as if my body had suddenly become stronger.
My wings were no different.
It wasn't as if the wound had healed.
However, when I focused on the direction of the village, it seemed strangely clearer than before.
It wasn't that I could see an exact line where the territory ended.
Even so, there was a place I had decided to protect.
That was what it felt like.
“How’s it going?”
the village chief asked.
I nodded again.
This time, a few voices rose from the people around.
"He accepted…?"
"Maybe."
"He nodded."
"He really can understand…"
That didn't mean the unease had gone away.
Still, the tense atmosphere loosened a little.
"Thank you very much, Lord Guardian Dragon!"
Someone shouted from behind.
I couldn't help but look at him.
The village chief made a sour face.
"Don't go adding strange titles without permission."
"But he is the protector, isn't he?"
"Val will do… well, I don't know whether he'd be fine with it."
I snorted a little.
Lord Guardian Dragon was a bit of an exaggeration.
Lina laughed.
"Val is Val."
That's best.
I bowed my head a little in front of the fence.
When I was a human, it was a gesture I would have made naturally when accepting a job.
The villagers stirred again.
“He bowed his head.”
"He really does act like a person."
"He's a dragon."
"You can tell just by looking."
The voices were a little more ordinary than before.
I looked up.
The fence was still there.
It wasn't as if I could freely enter the village from today onwards.
It wasn't as if I had become friends with all the villagers.
That was fine.
There were many things to do before crossing this fence.
Since I had promised to protect the village, I first needed to know what was around here.
I turned my attention towards the forest.
I also needed to find my own den.
It seemed that I, who had only been looking for a place to survive, now had one more place to come back to.
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