This large temple is located northwest of the capital city of Lokak, and is called the Altar of the Pact.
It is called the Altar of the Pact, and it is said that when a dragon appears in this place, the princess priestesses pray to appease it by risking their own lives.

The pact with the earth dragon is a pact that is made every few hundred years with the princess priestess to offer her rich magical power and body to the earth dragon, promising not to overrun the land.
In the eyes of the earth dragon, we are just bait.
We have no way of resisting the overwhelming power of the earth dragon, and we've obtained peace of mind through our human sacrifice.

Nevertheless, the rituals of the princess miko are dangerous and can lead to death.
Naturally, there were times when there were no princess maidens, and during those times, earth dragons would appear....

In that case, it was said that the king alone had begged the earth dragon to please let the king sleep for a while longer........
However, that depends on Jiryu's mood and the condition of his stomach.
You can't help but be hungry or if you are in a bad mood, we are at an overwhelming disadvantage because of our pact with the powerful.

''........So why did old man come?
"Ho-ho. Coren-sama, we can't let you go out there by yourself. I'll go with you.
'Huh ... my old man is a drunk. Shouldn't he be assisting the next king?
I'm old enough to know better. I've lived a good life, you know. Coren and the princess have grown up very well.

Ever since he was a little boy, my grandfather has always been pushed around by me and my sister, so he should be able to do what he wants for the rest of his life.

Quite frankly, I'm scared to death.
But with this, I can finally repay your sister's debt of gratitude, defend my people and disperse like a king.
I'm extremely happy about that........

''........I hope the princess has escaped safely.
'It will be all right. Your brother-in-law is there, and he knows what he's doing and he's getting away with it.

Big sister was trying to help me again, but since your brother-in-law is there too, I'm sure he understands for once.
But big sister, after seeing you for the first time in a long time, you've completely changed into a woman's face.
.........Even such a good-looking older sister, she still has heat in her eyes from time to time......does anyone become like that when they are in love?

Ho-ho. "Brother-in-law"?
'....What is it?　Since you're going to be your sister's husband, you must be her brother-in-law, right?
No, no. From what I can tell, Master Coren was almost there, too.
''I'm fine with it. Either way, I'm going to be crushed here......... Hmm. If this is the case, you should have made an inheritance earlier.

Handing over the throne to a cousin would mean that they would be out of the legitimate royal family that has been going on.
However, this is not a matter for the people, and the cousin is a serious, kind, and family-oriented family, so there will be no particular concern in the future.

However, now that the ritual of the princess maiden has been banned on the continent, the bottleneck is that the king from now on will have to take into account that he will be sacrificed to the earth dragon.
........Can't we somehow end it with this pact?
However, if we also want peace of mind, we'll have to fight off that, and that's a difficult thing to do.

It's a good thing that you're not the only one who's suitable for this. The heavyweights who bring in a marriage proposal are not blind to it.
'Oh, didn't my grandfather want anyone to leave him an heir?
'No, of course not. You're still young, and it's a shame that the old woman wanted you to be free to fall in love with someone else. But only with people you can trust.
'Oh, I didn't know. I didn't know that.

Freedom, love....
Will the two of us go around the city of Lokak and look at jewelry and such?
He would hold the earrings up to my ears and say, "You look good in these..." and I would put my arms around him and spoil him, and we would eat and do that, too.　Oh, but you could experience that.
And if you get tired........why am I imagining your partner as your brother-in-law.......
.........Well, well, it's because your brother-in-law is the opposite s*x that you've been most involved with recently.

But if you go on a date with that man, even if it's on the street, he'll probably give you a squeeze on your ass.
And then I'm sure he would take me to an alleyway with him in heat.
.........haha!　What the hell am I doing?

"Fortunately, the Lord is a trustworthy seductress who is skilled in handling women. It's a rare thing, but worth entrusting with........Master Coren?　Can I help you?
Nah, it's nothing!
Have you been trained by the Lord after all?
I'm not!


It's a good thing that I got to know that heavenly pleasure I never felt before before I died.


Well, it looks like we're here........
...Yes. Well then, let's go to appease the earth dragon. Hopefully, you'll end up with one of my lives.
Hey. I'm here if you want more.

Rare Gaia, an earth dragon that stomps through the desert with a thumping thump.
Big ... tremendous.
The altar was designed to be in the view of the earth dragon.

But..........

"Is it Mr. Rare Gaia the Earth Dragon?
"Um, Kita.
You're awake early today, I see. Not even 100 years have passed yet, have you?
"Harakhetta, yenni ku.

Rare Gaia takes a glance at me with a voice that seems to sink into my stomach with every word.
A dragon is a terrifying existence and one look at the shin, and my body cowers...........but as a queen, I must remain resolute.

''.........Himemiko, inai?''
Yes. I'm sorry, but we were unable to provide a princess miko this time. Therefore, in accordance with the pact, would you be satisfied with the body of Queen Coren, myself?
"...can't, Harakhetta.

Well, that's what happens........
Because she is a princess priestess with a rich and mellow magical power to begin with, she was satisfied with just one sacrifice and was able to sleep for hundreds of years, so my level of magical power is probably not enough....

You have to follow the pact. A dragon's breed keeps its word, right?
"Mayak, Mamoru, Talilmadeh, Kuu.

.........Since hundreds of years have passed since the last time there was no princess priestess and the king was sacrificed, I was wondering if we could successfully misrepresent the contents of the pact and do it with one of the king's lives.......
We have prepared for them........but I feel bad for them.......

'Hoho........ Well then, I guess I'll follow the pact!　Pawpaw knuckles!
Mentor?

The old man fired a powerful blow at the tip of Rare Gaia's nose.
The heavy impact with a thud showed just how powerful it was.

Mentor is a licensed master of the 'Crushing Meatball Fist'. But.........
It was supposed to be a blow that could easily shatter even a rock, but Rare Gaia remained in place and did not move, neither frightened nor feeling any pain.

"The pact says this as well, doesn't it? If I send you away, I will return to sleep again..... I will resist, will you?
"Kamawanu Kako, HIMEMEMIKO, SOUSHITECITA, TADA...

You can afford to have a blow put in........
Do you think it's just a bug that has stopped?
The words that bothered me more than that........just what is it?

"Wagakomo harakhete, kokonikiteyl.

'Oh no!　Master Coren!
Oh, my God!

Suddenly, the old man held him and jumped off the altar, and the altar was destroyed at the same time.
However, Rare Gaia himself must not have done anything to it.
Wagako........Rare Gaia's child!

'Hyah!　A building bigger than me is cheeky!
My brother is so cool!
You're kidding, right?

One, two, three ... no, I see one of the earth dragons slowly coming towards us at a slight distance ... four?
Including Rare Gaia, four earth dragons........four...?

When you're satisfied with four hungry bodies it affects the people...
This.........we're going to have to do something about it.......
''Well yes. I will fight too. If I don't defeat at least one of them at least I will destroy Lokak........
"Ryuha, Chikara naru, Chikara wo shimese.

It's not going to be possible to kill the rare Gaia as it is........
If the old man's paw knuckles didn't even damage him, and he didn't have a single scratch on him, it would be better to focus on the child.
However, even though it's not as bad as Rare Gaia, how much can you fight against a ground dragon with scales harder than a ground dragon....................



'Master!　The location is probably the temple northwest of Lokakuk!
Oh. For God's sake, desert parasauro.
Ummm....just in time...

The Desert Parasauro was advancing at full speed with a curling cry.
In the distance, residents from the city of Lokakkaku had begun to evacuate the city with their household goods, and the military guys were escorting and guiding them.

'Is White okay with a knife?'
Hmm. This is the best.
''However, considering the size of the Earth Dragon, isn't it hard to inflict a fatal wound?　Wouldn't it be better to use my spare weapon?
It doesn't matter how big your weapon is, as long as you have a Hisso-Tenpi. It doesn't matter who you are, no matter what size you are, they will chomp you. But ... I'm worried about the hardness. Aina and Sorte might break the weapon if you hit it straight.
'Well maybe I should put some oil on it too...'
''Sorte is a spear, you know. I might be able to sew up a gap in the dragon scale, and slipping is probably better than getting stuck. On the other hand, I'd be quicker to smash it. Would it be better to get something sturdier...

After hearing the information about the earth dragon from me and Renge, there's a lot of time to prepare armor and recovery potions, strategies and precautions in the back.

''Yes!　It's a simple one, but it's ready for dinner!
Hm!　Wendy Quicksilver!
''I just served the meat that the master prepared for us, though. ...Eat a lot and come back safely.
Hm. Mugging. It's all right. Muggy. White's really gonna mug himself.
'Well I hereby swear to you that when the time comes, I will get serious about it.

I'm just relieved to see my guys.
I'm going to a dangerous place, and I'm feeling strangely safe.

I'm going to.........

And for some reason, Solte glances at me after stagnating.
I say, "Hmm? When I asked Solte with my eyes without understanding, Renge held out his hand from the side and clenched his fist.



A red pattern appeared on Renge's hand, and it spread throughout his body.

''Renge!　...Are you sure?
It's okay. Your husband saw it one more time... and he was the master after all!
I see.
Well, but you should properly decide for yourself, you know. Above all, for your own sake....
Well I'll do my best.

Well?
Solte stared into my eyes, so I nodded for now.
Yeah. Hang in there?　Is that right?

'Mr. Renge that's....'
I've never seen Wendy before, have you? This is a byproduct of receiving the princess maiden's ritual.

Wendy means Wendy means White has seen it once.
No wonder she reacted so poorly, I thought she was still stubborn on her flesh.

''Is this ... magic ... thick?
You're good at that. You saw through it all in one go? That's right. There's a rich magical power in the body. .........Perhaps this is what rare Gaia loves, and that's what they're looking for.
I see..... So that's why the princess miko was sacrificed........

Hmm?　But wouldn't it be funny if it did?
If you're coming for the thick magic power of a princess maiden, isn't Coren-sama's normal magic power not enough?

Hmm. Do you need anything?

When I looked in the direction that White pointed while chewing on his meat, I saw something that looked like a small rock sitting plopped in the desert.

''Is that.... a person?　Why are we here...?

And those are the members of the military's magic unit.....
If you look closely, you'll see several people sitting in the distance, gaping at the end of the road.

''Hey!　What the hell are you guys doing!
''Wha........princesses!　Why did you come back!
That's because I'm going to take down a ground dragon!
'What!　I know you people are strong, but this is reckless!　We should turn around and run away now!
'That's what I'm talking about!　So what are you guys--

I realized that I was about to say it.
My doubts about whether Coren-sama's life alone would be enough would be cleared up here.

''........Are you guys here for the time when Coren-sama wasn't enough?''
''That's right. We are lined up from the old ones to be closer to the altar. We don't know how much of them will be eaten while kneading their magic to the maximum extent, but if we don't do this, our people will be harmed.

That's why they're all magic troops........
To be honest, the amount and quality of magic power is too different between Renge, a princess maiden, and Koren-sama.
I thought that no matter how much, there's no way that earth dragon would be sufficient for Koren-sama, who is only an ordinary magician, but.......

''........Are you going to throw away your life?''
No I have no intention of throwing it away. We will keep them alive. We will use our lives to protect as many people and families as we can.
Well we're going to beat them. What do you think?　Do you want to come with me?
I'm sorry.
Well....
"....because spacing it out like this buys us more time than being eaten all at once. ...and good luck.

We sit back down and meditate, leaving the man waiting to die, and we proceed.
As we get closer, we pass by a number of men, all of whom seem ready to die with their eyes closed and focused.

''........Master.
Hmm?　I don't think anything of it. It's just that these guys are also desperate to protect their people and their families.

Realistically, they're probably thinking about how to buy more time and less damage rather than challenging us....
And he's probably thinking that he can't win even if we challenge him.

I'm sure they think it's stupid to even challenge us in the first place.
Just like I think it's stupid to sit and wait for death.
So.....

"Well, let's make it a funny story to tell later in the bar. We'll have a drink and a laugh about how I was prepared to die.
.........right. We're going to beat them ourselves and say it's over!


But I don't have time to question and answer........

'Lord, I hear a sound. Probably.........two people fighting.
'Mr. Kuduro and Master Koren.... All right. I'm going to run into them now but don't you all die.
You mustn't take any chances, Master, okay?

Yeah, I know.
If any one of us is missing, it's useless.
I'll be vigilant.