Chapter 2 The Deep Dragon

So, these guys know how to deal with it.

Orphen crossed his arms, facing a tree from the road, five men were dangling with their

hands tied. Next to them was a carriage, it seemed they were preparing to make camp, but

due to an unexpected event everything was a mess. Cleo stood behind him, she said

profoundly:

This is really cruel

She was referring to the attackers who were hung up. Orphen responded, never looking

back.

Theres no need to take pity on them when they attacked us with weapons. Besides, you

were the first person who started hacking at them when they came charging, werent you?

I did not hackI merely didnt think I could swing a sword so fast.

Cleo remembered the previous event, it sent a chill down her spine. Orphen reluctantly said:

Relax, everythings fine now.

Then, Cleo relaxed her shoulders. She had replaced her soiled pants, putting on a new shirt

and pair of jeans. The shirt was a deep tan colour, it was Majics, she was worried about

splattered blood, so she looked back and forth several times.

After all, they had a bunch of short sticks and knives, it was hard enough.

Come on, with proper training you could have easily taken them all out.

Orphen said, trying to relax the upset Cleo.

You dont get it, Orphen. You arent the one who cant use magic, I mean look at the

damage you caused.

She pointed into the forest. There was a large number of trees which were uprooted,

scorched earth was visible for several meters in numerous directions. Orphen deliberately

didnt look at it, he said:

I was trying to protect you.

That sounds like a hypocritical lie to me.

Cleo was angry now, she put some distance between her and Orphen. Then, she

approached the sword on the groundit was covered in blood, she turned around and

said:

Dont you think you should clean the blood off the sword?

Orphen replied:

People are responsible for their own things.

ButIm not good with blood.

You used the sword so obviously theres blood on it, its not a big deal.

Well girls arent used to this sort of thing, Orphen.

Then please dont use a sword next time.

He was getting fed up with her whining.

Older people cant always forgive the misgivings committed by the young, deal with it.

Thats something my father would have said.

Stop moving that mouth of yours

Orphen said with his eyes half open. He looked at the five individuals that were hung up.

They were all passing outthey had been strung up for too long.

Cleo still didnt touch the sword, there was nothing else to do but continue talking.

Your daddid he say something like that before he died?

You only die once, make your last words meaningfulthough he actually said that after

getting the doctors diagnosis.

Cleo threw him a flirtatious look, then she began to move towards the blood stained sword.

It was very wonderful, he was very happy. He was so comfortable that this dead feeling to

last forever.

Safety! No cold! No heat! No hunger! No loan shark! Thinking about

those things, to live a life without the good things was unbearable.

Sohe cried for some time, until finally he realized one thing.

This isnt the most common thing in the worldit isnt

When he thought of this, it made him infinitely sad. Dortin wiped the crystal ashtray with a

soft cloth, he had a sudden chill, then wrapped his collar around him.

His type of people are about one hundred and thirty centimetres tallthey live only on

the southern part of the island called Masmaturia. Their traditional outfit consists of wrapping

themselves in fur and cloaks. This peculiar one wore thick glasses, and was seventeen

years old. Because of his physical stature, one wouldnt be able to tell his age.

Dortin looked around the room, it was neat and tidy, it was a reception room. He didnt know

why this place was geographically isolated, but the rooms furnishings looked very ordinary.

Dortin sighed, he had finished rubbing the ashtray and put it back on the table.

Brother...you never clean anything when you are finished.

What did you say?

His brother turned and looked at him.

Dortin, let me explain something to you.

Okay.

Dortin impatiently responded.

I am the Masmaturian Bulldog, how can I engage in such inferior work?

He held up on finger, then pushed it against Dortins head.

Brotherthink about it more calmly.

Calmly?

Out of all the people in the worldto claim that Vulcan could be calm would be to debate

whether the world was flat or round.

Try and act like you can get me to clean this place again and Ill drown you in soy sauce!

Vulcan shouted as he clenched his fist. Dortins eyes began to swell, he went back to

cleaning the placebut the ashtray had seemly disappeared.

Strange

Dortin looked around, obviously puzzled.

(What is it this time?)

He gave up looking and began to clean the cigar box, rubbing it gently. It was then that he

noticed a young man standing next to him.

Hey.

The man greeted them with a smile. He was wearing a wrinkled shirt, his coat had a badge

on it and looked military. There was a sword hanging by his waist, it was nothing like the one

Vulcan had.

Ah, hello, Sarua.

Vulcan suddenly spoke in a respectful tone.

The man took a quick glance around the room, checking if anything was missing. He looked

at Dortin, he couldnt see the ashtray. He ignored it for now, then said:

Your information was correct, Vulcanwe caught some sorcerer kid.

Ah, I see.

After listening to his brothers answer, Dortin thought about Majic.

(Poor guy, I hope they dont hurt him.)

Vulcan looked at Dortin, he eyes narrowed in on him like a snake ensnares his prey, with a

flattering voice he said:

What about the black sorcerer? You know, the one with the dragon pendant from the Tower

of Fang

Other people are responsible for his capture. Although I havent received a report yet, there

should be no problem. Five men were sent, all of them able bodied. He should receive quite

the surprise.

Sarua shrugged, he then put a hand on his chin and send on to say:

Since the information you provided proved to be true, the boss wants to reward you, but

youll have to wait until after dinnerhe wants that sorcerer kid to suffer first.

He smiled.

You do know that we and the boss hate sorcerers?

NoI didnt know.

Dortin answered, Vulcan was bewildered. He didnt expect Dortin to be listening to their

conversation.

Sarua laughed.

Its got to do with the terms of manand our noble religious teachings, you dont need to

know any more than that. This is for your own good, and youll stay here and clean in the

meantime.

Sarua then left the reception room. His soles dragging on the floor, then not long after the

sound of his footsteps were goneDortin slowly said:

Only five people were sent, I dont think thatll be enough to take out the loan shark.

Vulcan ignored him.

I dont care...if anything goes wrong youll get the blame anyway. Its divine retribution.

Ah, do you think theyll accept an apology?

Vulcan said with a shaky voice. Dortin coldly replied.

Probably notand if they do what I think theyll do to that sorcerer kid then what do you

think theyll do to us?

Ah......

Vulcan became aware of the severity of their situation. He struggled to groan, a chill went up

his back, he reluctantly said:

Wee-escape, but how?

This village is in the middle of the forest, we cant escape. We dont know the way out!

Dortin sighed, he looked at the walls of the reception room, one of the paintings on the wall

was a map of the surrounding villages.

The vast warrior towns of the forest of Fenrir. There is a red dot in the centre, these are the

great heart villages.

This is the place, this is where Majic was taken.

It is a dark night

Orphen said, his face hidden in the grass. Cleo was clutching his shoulders from behind, she

was wearing a dress and a long sleeved jacket. Although it looked very warm, it was better

than wearing a shirt in the forest.

She is standing behind him, looking into the forest.

You may be rightafter all I dont think those guys were lying, you did light a fire

underneath them.

Got any other snarky remarks?

Orphen asked. Cleo replied in a silly voice:

No. Though, even if worst comes to worst, even if the world is your enemy, I will always be

by your side.

You mean youll be by my side for your pocket money.

Ignoring Cleos protests, Orphen closed his eyes and listened to his surroundings. In

addition to Cleos breathing, the forest was silentof course it was impossible for a forest

to be totally silent, especially at night. Insectsbeasts and footsteps. The sound of

moving leaves. Then he heard it, the sounds of a village, as well as the sound of water.

Nowaccording to Orphens feelingsit was only a few hours away.

Orphen opened his eyes. The stars lit up his field of visionthe tall forest stretched

onward. Although there was possibly some guards nearby, he estimated that there was

probably someone or something stalking them. After a while, they finally reached the village.

Orphen took the time to get a good look. There was houses, no horses whatsoever, only a

pigsty and a small animal hut. The houses seemed pretty simple, most of them were

probably warehouses or small huts converted into housing. In the centre of the village there

was a big house, it seemed thats where the head honcho lived. This big house acted as a

church, it had a large steeple on topthe symbol of Kimurakku Church.

The Dragon!

Orphen whispered.

The symbol of the Fenrir Foresta sold black giant wolf, it stood there solemnly in front of

him. It shined brightly in the starlight, normally it would be as black as night itself.

This is trouble.

Orphen said, behind him Cleo asked:

Why?

Orphen pointed at the wolf statue on top of the steeple.

That is a statue of the deep dragonthat tells us that they have a strong faith in it.

Dragon faith? I remember hearing something about that before.

Cleo pondered for a moment. Orphen sighed, putting his hand on Cleos head, then he said:

I see that you dont understandthese people, they see sorcerers as some type of devils

and hunt them down whenever they see them.

Cleo thought for moment longer.

So you mean those five guys back there were of this faith? You know, calling you the devil

isnt that far from the truth.

Thats not what Im worried aboutthey have Majic, theres no telling what theyll

He thought about Cleo for a moment, if they caught either of them they would probably be

tortured or worsedeath.

This opened up a wound in Orphens heart. He might not have much time to rescue Majic.

Besides, it may already be too late.

(Damn it......)

Hopefully theyll think hes just some idiot who got lost in the forest, Im going to teach him a

lesion when he gets back.

Last time you made him do a thousand squats, he was miserable and you made him cry.

He was crying while doing the squats, you fed him some peaches when I wasnt looking.

I did no such thing.

Cleo said, then she asked:

But, Orphenwhy do members of the Dragon Faith hate sorcerers?

Overlooking the village, Orphen silently watched children play. In a low voice he said:

Thats just how things are, and didnt you hear what I said before?

Ahin ancient times, the power of magic was stolen from the gods, right?

Yeah

In ancient timesaccording to the records found by the Dragon Race, thousands of years

ago, during the reign of the kingdom of the gods, there was a universal force called magic

on the continent of the giants. Six races rose up and stole this power from the gods. They

are the worlds most dangerous mammalsthe Deep Dragon race, the Fairy Dragon race,

the Mist Dragon race, the Red Dragon race, the Wheeled Dragon race, and lastly, the War

Dragon race.

To escape the wrath of the gods, the six races fled to this continentKiesaruhima.

However, people were sent by the gods to deliver their punishment for stealing the magic. A

great battle ensued, and afterwards the Dragon Race chose this place as their habitat. Then

our human ancestors arrived on the continent, which dates back three hundred years

ago

Humans acquired magic from the Dragon Race, right? I think you mentioned that before.

Yes, the humans and the Dragon race inbred with one another and thus we have the magic

users we call sorcerers today.

He gestured towards the statue.

Those of the Dragon Faith believe this to be disrespectful behaviour. In fact, in the past,

sorcerers were hunted in Alenhatan. This is only one example of the hatred towards us,

remember the Killing Doll too.

So its not about the usage of magic, its about those who are descended from the Dragon

Race?

I guess you could say that, but theres many underlying reasons for their actions.

Maybe their jealous.

Cleo said. This made Orphen smile, then it disappeared quickly.

From the beginning, this continent has been dominated by the Dragon Race.

Cleo pouted.

I still dont understand why the Dragon Faith hate sorcerers.

Who cares anyway, even Im not sure.

Upon hearing this, Cleo slumped her shoulders.

It was currently nightin this summer forest, the temperature was very hot. An intense

wave of moisture flew through the forest, quaking all the leaves in its wake.

Orphen looked into Cleos eyes with impunity, both of them moved forward into the

night.

From the trees outside the village, to the nearest livestock shednone of those areas

were lit up, they sneaked into the village along the road from the garbage dump.

Cleo wore dark clothesshe wore a dark purple jacket, her sword quietly wrapped around

her chest. She thought that this sort of jacket was important, after all it had a coat of arms

which was very similar to her families.

Orphen quickly moved through the road, advancing into the depths of the village. Although

he didnt know where they were hiding Majic, he knew the best place to start looking was at

the heart of the village.

In the centre of the village there was a few domed buildingsthey have chimneys, it

seemed they were some sort of factories. He thought that it was suspicious that these

buildings were built beside a church, captives were probably not kept in a factory. Torture in

a place of worship would be out of place, so that leaves either the basement or the tower,

one of two of the places is where Majic should be.

They stopped in the shade of a hut, Orphen said to himself:

We are in real troubleit doesnt look like theres anyone on watch, Id normally use

magic to open the front entrance but this time its different.

Cant you just steal the keys off a guard?

Cleo whispered, she was also hiding in the shadows. Orphen shook his head.

Getting in there should be simplebut we dont want to make any noise. Im going to

have to shout in order to open the lock using magic.

After listening to Orphen, Cleo clenched her fist.

Okay, that leave us with one choice. You cause a fire with your magic and well charge in

and rescue Majic during the confusion.

You morontheres no way well be able to get in and out without getting caught.

I was joking, besides its better than nothing.

That would wake up the whole village, theres a high chance wed get burned alive trying to

escape.

If we need a distraction to get inside then the fire idea is the best option.

Fine, but well need a big enough distraction to cause the most confusion.

Well, I dont know

Cleo put a finger to her mouth.

Orphenyou could get naked, a laughing mad man running around the village is sure to

get their attention.

Oh, forget it.

Since the whole village is asleep youll need a nose ring, that should wake them up.

Why cant you be serious for a moment? We have to rescue Majic.

Orphen sighed.

Come on, lets get a move on.

They marched to the depths of the village, at this point

Whoosh

A large volume of compressed air flew by them

Thud!

In the centre of the village, a huge pillar of fire shot into the sky.

What the!

Orphen was speechless, he covered his face with his handbehind him Cleo screamed.

The blast of wind blew dust everywhere, it whacked the nearby huts creating lots of noise.

The pillar of fire never disappeared, in the centre of the villagethe chimneys were

burning, the village slowly lit up.

(Im sure of itthat wasnt a gas explosion)

This is a magical fire

Orphen instinctively shouted out loud. The village was now abuzz with activity, people ran

out of their houses to look at the pillar of fire. However, none of them were bothered by

Orphen and Cleo.

Magic? Do you think Majic did this?

Cleo asked, Orphen retorted:

Heck, if that guy can use this level of magic then I dont have anything to teach him.

Huh?

This isthis isnt human magic!

Orphen shouted.

What the hell? Could it be that doll?

Cleo cried, she readied her swordOrphen stopped her, and said:

Stop. Do you have any idea whatll happen?

Come on, stop treating me like a child.

Cleo complained. Right now, Orphen wanted to give him a thump on the head.

Take a look.

He pointed towards the pillar of fire. The bright flame was disappearingthen it went out,

and the village went dark once again. In the darkness of the night, a vague shadow

appeared.

There it washundreds of meters from the village centre stood a giant figure. The

moonlight was raining down upon it, it was clear as day, it wasa giant wolf.

The Deep DragonFenrir!

Orphen trembled as he called out its name. He had heard about the legend of the Deep

Dragon, but seeing it in the flesh made a chill run down his spine.

The Deep Dragon is one of the most powerful races!

Orphen shouted as he stared at the large figure. The giant wolf was covered in dark hair, if

there was no moon tonight it would be surrounded by total darkness.

He wanted to explain to Cleo just how dangerous the Deep Dragon was, however, he knew

that there wasnt enough time and that she wouldnt understand.

Orphen was about to grab Cleo by the shoulders. She took a step towards the giant wolf, a

mischievous grin appeared on her face.

Run!

Huh?

Everyone in the village was now setting their sights upon the giant wolf. However, no one

noticed Orphen and Cleo, there were too preoccupied by the appearance of the Deep

Dragon.

Orphen stared into Cleos eyes.

I left signs in the forest, can you make your way back to the carriage on your own?

What? But

Get to the carriage and alert the authorities. Explain the situation to them and wait for me,

understand?

A-Alright, but Orphen

Just go! I will try to rescue Majic, Ill meet up with you later!

But

Dont talk nonsense.

Orphen angrily waved his arm. Cleo looked unhappy, she started to retreat towards the

forest. While walking back she thought about the situation.

Orphen.

She didnt forget to leave before getting in the last word.

Next time itll be me who will be commanding you.

Im getting sick of this!

Standing there, Orphen was sickened.

(Even if I am just a human, its going to be very difficult to save lives)

Orphen was holding his dragon pendant in his hands, he made a gesture which looked like

he was praying. To who exactly, no one knows.

(Majic, that moronand I thought taking care of Cleo was enough.)

He ran to the centre of the village without much trouble, he knew thats where Majic was

being held.

Meanwhile, the Dragon stood there motionlessly. It looked as if it was looking at

somethingOrphen noted this, it was looking at the tower.

(He may be dead.)

Orphen though as he made his way through the commotion in the village.

The village was no longer dark, lit torches were everywhere. He listened closely, it appeared

the appearance of the Deep Dragon didnt cause mass panic among the villagers.

(This is hardly surprising, the Dragon is their patron saintor at least they think so.)

Thenhe heard a voice.

Isthatright?

?

Orphen stopped, he began to wonder. Was that a voice in his ears

(What was that?)

He stood in the shadow of a hut. It couldnt have been one of the villagers. He looked along

the road, he could see villagers out with torches, they hadnt noticed him. In fact, all of their

attention was focused on the giant wolf.

(You wont find the answer here)

Orphen smacked his lips, continuing to run ahead. The villagers were all moving towards the

Dragon, people were all around him. It seemed that rescuing Majic was nearly impossible at

this point.

(That bastard, Ive done so much damage alreadyIve got to get you back.)

He heard a voice.

It has only just begun.

This time he heard it clearly.

(So Im not delusional!)

Except it wasnt a voicethere was no vibrations in the air, no sound. It was a message

communicated directly to his brain

(Is this the magic of the Deep Dragon?)

Deep Dragon magicits almost the same as the humans white magic, the only

difference is that it can also effect things which arent alive. For example, trees, soil, air,

water and so on.

Orphen started to panic.

When using human magic you need to use your voice as a medium. However, Orphen

wasnt even within range of the Dragon. Even so, he was still affected by its physic

message.

(Why has the Deep Dragon chosen to appear in this village?)

According to legends, the Deep Dragon has been a guardian of the forest of Fenrir for a long

time. Supposedly it aims to rid all humans who enter or live in the forest, within a minute it

can destroy a village completely. However, nothing is happening, its standing still.

(Thisis this really the patron saint of the village?)

He repeated the question in his mind, he then turned the corner and suddenly

Who are you!?

That voice made Orphen stop in his tracks. He looked back, a tall man was standing there.

The man was holding a torch in his right hand, in his left hand there was a mace. The bright

torch lit up his face, he was bearded and middle-aged.

Behind the man was two other men, the first was most likely another villager or an attendant.

The second was differenthe was armed, wore a military jacket, and had a smile on his

face. He looked to be in his twenties or possibly thirties.

The man holding the mace spoke again, his voice rough yet crisp.

Who are you? Are you one of the villagers?

Me? I

Orphen was ready to say something, but it seemed the men were ready to actthe man

with the mace whacked it off the ground.

Meanwhile, the man pulled a black iron object out and put it into his left hand. Orphen

jumped backwards, the black object made a loud noise.

A pistol!

Orphen screamed. Because it was night time, the bullet missed.

Great, first a Dragon now a pistoldidnt the royal family ban that sort of thing?

Orphen muttered, the armed man smiledthe lower half of his face covered by his beard,

his eyes fixed on Orphen.

Human laws are useless in our forest! We are the Dragons messengers, the heart. Im their

leader, Makudogaru.

Orphen knew the second shot would probably him, he had to act first.

Sword of light

Hes a sorcerer!

Makudogaru cried, as more men approached his location. Orphen decided to continue

casting the spell.

Whom I do

He clearly intended to cast the spellbut suddenly the incantation was hampered.

Ahhh!?

Orphen felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, he didnt know when someone stabbed him with a

knife. If his arms werent raised for the incantation, the knife would have stabbed him in the

neck.

He groaned out aloud as the knife was removed.

Bang! The sound of a shot rang out, but it missed. Orphen couldnt hold back the pain

caused by the knife, he lowered his shoulders, ready to cast the spell again

Then, suddenly someone else attacked himthey took their torch and swung it at him,

Orphen was unable to avoid it.

Damn it

Orphen yelled as he fell to the ground. The attendant stepped towards him with murderous

intent. Orphen knew he had to make a move right away, he lunged towards him and struck

him in the chest. Then chanted:

I let thou flow, angel's breath

Suddenly, the air around the men began to swirl. Its pressure intensified and flung the men

towards one another, Makudogaru received a direct hit.

(This is itIve got torescue Majic)

At that time

(What?)

Orphen was stunned, he couldnt move. Right in front of him was the giant wolf, the Deep

Dragon.

Ohhh

He heard Makudogaru exclaim behind him.

My Lord, the Holy Spirit!

Orphen repeated what Makudogaru said.

The Dragonit was watching them.

The Deep Dragonlegends call it the silent Dragon warrior. Its residence lies within the

forest of Fenrir, foolish humans from around the continent came here trying to beat the

strongest warrior. Even the King and Queen fear its destructive power, naturally they sent an

army to deal with this threat.

It was foolish of them to think that they could win, none of them made it back alive.

Taking a closer look at the black wolf, he could feel its overwhelming power. It had quiet,

beautiful, green eyes, they were staring right at him. It was probably just a glance, but it was

enough to make a human turn into dust.

It was the continents most beautiful beast, the Deep Dragon, Fenrir.

Under the moonlight its dark coat gave off a magnificent sight,

Whydo you look at me?

Arent you a human? Your kind always wants things.

(?)

It seemed the Dragon didnt understand what Orphen said, or that Orphen didnt understand

what the Dragon was saying.

You protect your own things, yet you want to borrow my power?

(No!)

Orphen clenched his fist, ready for anything.

Then, as if darkness was descending upon himsilence.