— — — — — —
The enormous underground chamber felt almost endless.
A hazy golden mist filled the air. It was so thick that as soon as the doors opened, it spilled outward like steam.
Even though she'd been prepared, Natsuki still accidentally breathed some in.
"RYOOO!"
She couldn't help shouting, cheeks flushing so red they looked like she'd been hit with stage makeup.
"Didn't I tell you to have your familiar clear out this magic first?"
Natsuki turned, only to find Asagi glued to Ryo's side, arms wrapped tight around his like a koala.
Her expression went dull. "Hurry up. Pull back the charm already. Nobody in their right mind would have the mood to do anything romantic in a place like this."
The 10th Familiar: Capricornus Dekatos, the Goat of Glinting Eyes.
The familiar representing Capricorn had a very simple ability.
Charm. A spiritual and mental manipulation ability.
Pure, singular, and terrifying. If Ryo ever unleashed it fully, he'd make the legendary femme fatales who toppled kingdoms look like amateurs.
Natsuki squeezed her thighs together and snapped, "Move. Now."
"Alright, alright, I'm collecting it. I just didn't expect you all to overdo it this badly."
As he muttered, the hazy gold mist stirred, swirled, then rushed toward Ryo in a flowing current, disappearing into him.
"Done."
With the air finally clear, Ryo shrugged like nothing had happened. Then he glanced down at Asagi, who had instantly frozen in place, still clutching his arm.
"You can let go now."
Asagi jolted, yanked her hands away and glared at him, face bright red.
"Unbelievable. You're worse than a beast."
Ryo's eyebrow twitched. He literally didn't even touch her and somehow he was still the beast?
Natsuki huffed beside them. "I knew Dekatos was the type who couldn't sit still for five minutes. She actually piled up this much mana down here."
It had been Ryo's idea to use the 10th Familiar, Dekatos, to influence Glenda slowly over time.
But even she hadn't expected Dekatos to dump this kind of quantity into the chamber.
Judging by the density, Natsuki suspected Dekatos had been coming down here every day with nothing better to do than fill the place up.
At this scale… you could wipe out dozens of Itogami Islands. Meaning she'd been sleeping on a giant mana bomb for a year and a half.
Natsuki's mouth twitched. She shot a cautious look toward Glenda, then turned to Ryo.
"You better use whatever method you have to force people to calm down. After soaking in charm magic like this for a year, that dragon is gonna swallow you the second you get close."
Glenda had been sealed for thousands of years, then force-fed charm mana for over a year. At this point nothing that dragon did would surprise Natsuki.
"I know how serious this is."
Ryo rolled his eyes. Did she think he was some clueless virgin protagonist?
But when it came to The Cleansing, romance was irrelevant. Mission first.
He stepped forward toward Glenda.
At the same moment, Glenda lifted her head. She stared at him without blinking, and drool slowly dribbled from the corner of her mouth.
For a second he felt like a crispy roasted chicken leg doing a seductive dance in front of a starving corgi.
He shook his head sharply, banishing the dumb thought, and kept walking.
"No reaction?" Natsuki stared. Ryo was already standing right in front of her.
"No way. Do dragons have charm resistance that strong? She bathed in that aura for a whole year and nothing?"
Asagi watched carefully, but a moment later her eyes widened. "Natsuki, her legs. Her legs..."
Natsuki blinked, looked again, then made a complicated face.
"You've got to be kidding…"
Seeing Ryo instantly had her legs turn to jelly? That was terrifying on a whole different level.
"Why exactly is that happening? Do you know?" Asagi asked.
Natsuki's mouth twitched hard. She turned away and said quickly. "Just focus on opening The Cleansing."
"Tch…"
Asagi clicked her tongue.
By now Ryo was right in front of Glenda.
The small dragon girl stared up at him, eyes wide and unfocused. After a long moment she lifted both arms slightly and whispered, "Hug…"
Her voice was muffled, like she wasn't used to human vocal cords yet.
Ryo paused. There was something clean and confused in her gaze that almost made him pity her.
But he still asked. "Before that, answer one question."
He took a breath.
"The Cleansing legacy. Is it in your possession?"
Glenda froze. Her face twisted like she was weighing whether an old contract mattered more, or Ryo mattered more.
The struggle didn't last long.
"Pri…estess…"
She finally answered, voice strained.
Even though she hadn't lacked mana for over a year, and technically had human knowledge thanks to the sacrifice from the Lion King Agency, she still wasn't used to speaking like a normal person.
"It needs the Priestess of Cain to receive it?"
Ryo nodded in understanding. He turned and looked at Asagi.
"Asagi."
"I know, I know!"
She grumbled, running over. She stared at Glenda's face for a moment, then hesitantly reached out and stroked the steel-colored hair on her head.
In a way, she was technically petting a dragon. And honestly, the hair felt even softer than a cat's.
The moment Asagi's hand touched her, Glenda's eyes went completely blank.
[Priestess of Cain confirmed... Mental frequency locked... Coordinates syncing...]
[Legacy commencing...]