What Does That Evil Dragon Live For?

“If I kill everyone for hurting or angering me, there are not many people around me who can survive.”

[You can kill them all, what’s the problem? Even if you kill some of the humans around you, there are still many humans left.]

“The imperial family will send knights to catch me. I don’t want to get involved in such trouble.” 

[Then you will be the emperor. I can fully grant that wish.] 

“Huft…I don’t even want to be emperor.”

It was Elaine’s bad habit to keep sighing, but the sigh she let out in front of Rabes was a real sigh that came from the bottom of her heart.

“In the first place, I just wished you would not destroy the world, but why? Why did I come back at this time?”

Elaine asked with a slight resentment.

However, Rabes’ attitude was infinitely lighthearted. 

[Because this was the simplest way.]

“What?”

[After being released from the seal, I tried to destroy this country, but my strength was lacking. To make up for that shortcoming, I amplify my magical power with ether. Then my power is amplified.]

“Ether? What is that?”

[You can think of it as the devil’s power. And if you amplify your power with ether, it’s quite difficult to suppress your instinct to destroy.] 

“Well, so what?”

[If I don’t want to destroy this country, I have to purify my mana stained with ether, but it takes some time. About… 200 years? So I thought it would be faster to turn back time before it was completely contaminated.]

Elaine couldn’t find the words to answer, so she kept her mouth shut.

‘It wasn’t that I didn’t understand Rabes’s words, but for some reason, I felt very unfair.’

‘I barely endured the terrible days and had my freedom just around the corner, but it wasn’t enough to be offered as a dragon’s sacrifice, but now I was suddenly dragged into the past.’

Moreover, since the way this dragon grants wishes could not be predicted at all, it was scary to ask for anything.

In other words, if she wanted to make a wish, she would have to take some time to properly understand this dragon.

‘Bara, our God. What on earth have I done to deserve this ordeal?’ 

‘I thought about whether there was another way, but I couldn’t think of any right now, maybe because I’ve been through so much. The only thing left to do is to live through this terrible time once more…’

Then she suddenly realized.

‘Why do I think I’ll get hit again? In my previous life, I was beaten because I didn’t know anything, but that’s not the case now!’ 

She was already a 26-year-old adult. She no longer had feelings for Newt, she was no longer ignorant of the world, and she was no longer naive.

Most of all, she already knew what was going to happen in the next 10 years!

‘Maybe this time…I might be able to live properly.’

‘Maybe I’ll be able to get my revenge on the Newts for treating me so poorly, and set off to freedom, just as I had dreamed of doing in my previous life when I was scraping together a penny or two. Maybe even without the help of a dragon!’

It was the moment when she looked toward Newt’s mansion with such small hope.

‘Oh right! Emily…!’ 

A name she had forgotten for a long time suddenly came to her mind. 

Emily was the only maid in Newt’s mansion who took care of Elaine.

However, right after Elaine entered the temple, she was kicked out of the mansion without a recommendation letter, and Emily, who could not get a job as a maid elsewhere, was sold in a back alley bar by her drunken father.

‘How distressed I was when I heard the news and how shameless I had forgotten Emily.’ 

‘I couldn’t believe that I had forgotten about Emily, one of the few kind people in my life and that she had ruined her life for me.’

‘I have to save Emily somehow this time!’

Today was her 16th birthday, and she was only a few months away from entering the temple. But there must be a way.

‘Anyway, it’s better than before. Right?’ 

Elaine stood up and brushed off the dirt and weeds on her skirt, hopeful that she wasn’t a clueless 16-year-old girl, and that she had a dragon by her side who was supposed to make wishes come true, even if he wasn’t very nice.

“By the way…Rabes, are you coming with me?”

[What? You’re going to abandon me again?]

“What? Abandon you?”

[You abandoned me last time. Do you know how confused I was when I came out of the egg and looked around, but there was no one there?] 

“At that time, I didn’t Abandon you, I didn’t even know that Lord Rabes was there!”

When Elaine protested, Rabes giggled. Elaine then realized that Rabes was joking.

‘To listen to all the jokes the dragon makes, I live long enough.’ 

Elaine chuckles along after Rabes, who quickly climbs up to Elaine’s shoulder and tickles her neck with his tail.

[Anyway, I should be by your side before I grant all three of your wishes.] 

“But others will be surprised when they see you…”

[Don’t worry. You are the only one who can see me and hear me now.”]

Elaine nodded and trudged toward the mansion with Rabeth on his shoulder.

“By the way, now, does that mean that Lord Rabes’s magic is not contaminated by ether now?”

[Yes.]

“So that means you won’t continue to destroy the empire in the future?”

[what are you talking about, I have to make a sea of fire after you die.]

“But what if you don’t have enough strength? Are you planning to imbue your mana with ether again?” 

[That’s none of your business, kid.]

Rabes wrinkled his nose in displeasure. However, Elaine did not give up and asked. 

“Why do you want to destroy this country so badly?”

[People in this country deceive me. They’ve locked me up for 500 years! How can you forget that grudge overnight?] 

“But it was 500 years ago…I don’t think that would be very good for you either. I heard ether is the power of the devil. The power of the devil, it doesn’t sound good from the beginning” 

[Of course, I lose something in the recoil, but you have to give something to achieve something, and if you don’t like that, you can try raising me as a good dragon.] 

Rabes said it sarcastically, but at that moment, a thought flashed through Elaine’s mind like lightning. 

“Therefore…Are you saying that if I raise Lord Rabes to be kind, then Lord Rabes will not be stained by the ether and will not destroy the world?”

[In theory, yes, but do you really think you’ll change my mind?] 

Rabes reacted as if he heard a joke.

However, with that answer alone, Elaine assumed her hunch was correct.

「Bara has assigned a mission to all human beings, and those who complete that mission and return to Bara’s bosom will rest in the heavenly kingdom of utmost peace and happiness.」

It was because a verse from the scriptures that she had memorized habitually came to mind.

She thought that her mission was only about working to death in a slum kitchen for the poor, organizing bookshelves, doing all sorts of laundry, and sweeping leaves.

But that has just been completely redefined with a word from Rabes.

‘It was my mission to raise evil dragons to be kind and save this world! I didn’t know it would be such a big mission.…’

‘It was absurd, but when I thought about it, it Made Sense.’

Growing up poorly in her uncle’s house, entering the temple instead of another cousin, being ignored by everyone in the temple, and eventually being chosen as the dragon’s sacrifice, all of these things may have been self-mortification to realize the big mission.

‘But who knows how many years it will take to raise this dragon to be good! Then what about my freedom?’ 

The courage she had gained earlier had faded slightly. 

‘This was a very unpleasant mission.’

However, one cannot reject the mission given by God. Elaine let out a big sigh and accepted her fate.

‘After raising this dragon kindly, I must make sure to set myself free as my last wish.’ 

Disappointing, yes, but that was in the distant future. It was unlikely that correcting this dragon’s personality would be done in a day or two.

Now, the first step was to become friendly with the dragon. 

“Well, that’s what you’ll know if you try.”

[huh? What are you saying now?] 

“First of all, I will greet you again. My name is Elaine Newt.”

[Well, yes, I am Rabes.] 

Elaine thought positively that Rabes returned her greeting. At least it’s proof that he wasn’t completely without social skills.

“I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

[Hurry up and make a wish. There are only two left, so I think I can get rid of them right away, even today.] 

“However, how can I let go of such an opportunity so easily? I will ponder for a long time and then make a wish.”

[You’re pretty cunning too.] 

“Cunning enough to know that Lord Rabes has other plans.” 

Elaine had said it without thinking, but Rabes flinched.

[What are you talking about? Do you treat divine beasts the same as humans?]

“Because you are divine beasts you’ll understand my desire to make a very precious and true wish, right?” 

[Hmm… after all you are human…!] 

But the expression wasn’t that bad. No, it seemed rather pleasant.

“Even dragons have facial expressions too.”

It was the first time she knew about it.

In any case, the first button to create a friendly relationship with Rabes seemed to have gone well.

The next task was to stay safe in Count Newt’s family until she entered the temple.

* * *