A choking sound.

　Huh, huh, and a lustrous sweet breath that seems to melt your reason.

　A sweet scent tickles your nostrils as the warmth of a young child's body runs directly through your skin, which makes your body burn and makes you want to keep smelling it.

Phew. ...... It was delicious. Thanks, big guy!

　You drink my blood until you are satisfied, wiping your mouth and smiling at Iruna. The blood dripping down your mouth is creating a devilishly charming atmosphere.

...... Oh, hey. You're welcome.

　I, on the other hand, looked a little weary as I subtly looked away and replied, "This time is always the devil.

　This time is always a tragedy.
　What's annoying is that I don't mind being sucked by Iruna, in fact, I'm happy about it. My patience and mental strength are being eroded.

　I'm not supposed to be a pedophile gentleman, but to put me through this kind of pain, Iruna, you are a horrible girl: ......

Iruna is happy to drink her brother's delicious blood.

　When I was shivering by myself, I looked a little sissy and said something like that to Iruna.

Hmm? Does blood have any difference in taste?

There's a big difference!

　The Iruna's whole body stretches out in a single movement from a curled up position to express "Zen Zen" to the fullest. Cute.

You know, your blood is so mild and delicious that you can't stop drinking it! It's like having an oni-chan inside of me, and it makes me feel so happy and warm!

Really. Well, it's nice to hear you say that. ...... Well, it's nice to hear you say it's that good, too.

　But Iruna, you'd better be careful not to say that out there. You might get caught in trouble, big brother.

Then, big brother, Iruna is going to go outside to play!

I love you. Don't go far because there are demons out there. And don't go far before it gets dark.

"Yes!

　With a cheerful reply, Iruna left the throne room.



　--Then, when it was dark outside, she did not return.


　　　* * * *


"Lil, did you find Iruna?

　The moment Lil came into the room, I asked her to wind up so, but she shook her head from side to side with an apologetic look on her face.

　It's not good to be too overprotective of them, so I let them do as they please. ...... I was wrong about that.

　I grit my teeth and a worried look on my face as Shi snuggles up to me.

...... It's okay.

　When I regained my composure for a moment at the sight of Shi, I let out a deep breath and cooled my head.

　...... Calm down, panicking won't help the situation. 　

"Lil, I'm sorry, I didn't get a chance to tell you. To be continued.



　
　--It seems that Iruna has been kidnapped by humans.

　Lil, who was following Iruna's scent, came across several human body odors.

　He followed the scent and eventually passed through the forest, and when he found a relatively new carriage rut ahead, he decided it was best to come back to report.

　That's a good decision. I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world.

　...... The one good thing is that Iruna wasn't attacked by a monster.
　It's disgusting ...... but if she was only kidnapped, we can help her.

　We can save (・・・・・), we can (・・・・・).

　I'm sure you're aware of the fact that I'm not the only one who's been in this situation.

　That is to say - the one who got away.

　I can't be certain, but I'm pretty sure it was them this time.

　As I checked the map, Iruna stayed in the vicinity of this dungeon as I told her not to leave the vicinity of this dungeon and never to go too deep into the forest.

　According to Reffi, this area is one of the most unexplored places in the human world. The fact that they deliberately went deep into such a dangerous place and kidnapped Iruna means that ...... they must have been confident that Iruna was here.

　The only people who would have been able to do that would have been the ones who got away.

　The reason they are so obsessed with Iruna is either because they think they can make a lot of money if they sell it as a top item - or they already have a buyer (・・・・・・) in mind (・・・・・・).

　In the latter case, it's very bad. Tomorrow, it could be out of reach.

"...... Refi, where are the human settlements in this neighborhood?

If I recall, there was one about two hours away, flying southeast from here.

　...... two hours or so.
　It's closer than I thought. --Or maybe that's more appropriate, since it's a flying distance.

............

　...... You've got to be kidding me.

　I'm going to make you regret to death that you ever messed with my kid.

　I pulled a ruggedly built sword from the item box and grabbed its hilt.

　This is a new one I made a while ago after the flower blade. Its shape is simple, but it has the weight and thick blade that I had long requested, and it has a sufficiently powerful killing ability.

　It's the second generation of this knife, and its name is 'Purple Knife'. The magic granting skill level has been increased by one, and one of the magic circuits learned through this has been given a special effect called "Poison: Weak". By pouring magic power into the blade, the blade is poisoned, weakly poisoning the opponent you cut.

　However, this "weak" means that the effect is "weak" for a certain amount of magic, which can be strengthened by increasing the amount of magic that is poured into it.
　It's been confirmed that by pouring my excess magic power into the big sword to strengthen it, it can make the cut turn purple in an instant. I'm looking forward to the time when the effect that can be granted is greater than 'weak'.

Lil, follow me. Follow Iruna's scent. She can go to ...... and I know how you feel, but you're going to stay here. Don't worry, Iruna will be there for you.



　So I called out to the two animals, and then turned my head to the next Reffi.

"...... Leffy, please. You can come too.

　When you say that, Reffi cowers her shoulders, looking rather uncomfortable.

What are you talking about. It's natural. The girl is like family to me now. If you mess with her, she must get the just punishment she deserves-just wait a minute.

"Huh? Why--

You'll know--whoa, I think I came from beside you. Okay Yuki, follow me.

"......?

　With a dubious look on my face, I walk out of the cave with Reffi at my prompting.

　--And soon I noticed some dots floating in the sky.

　The dots continue to grow in number, one by one, until they cover the sky, growing in size as they approach us.

　The dots were a horde of dragons.

　Not a sub-long like the wyvern. They were large and strong looking. As for their status, they're on par with the strongest west area demons around here.

This is--

My ......, well, that's my guy, isn't it? I called you earlier to tell you that you would need to find Iruna. Well, the purpose has changed, but there are a lot of fools who don't even know the difference in strength. Then, wouldn't it be better to have a few so that we don't get licked?

　Then, he grinned and lifted one cheek with a grin.

　I've been thinking that ...... has been silent ever since I realized Iruna was gone, but ...... I didn't know she was doing this for me.

You're a good woman, Leffi .......

"Huh, you just figured that out now? You're a little bit late.

　Yeah, ...... right.
　You've always been a good woman.

Well, Yuki. Shall we go get our sister?

You can count on me, buddy.

　Then Leffi said, "Kaka," and laughed cheerfully.


　--Wait for me, Iruna.

　I'll come for you. I'll come for you.