Reincarnated as the Strongest Dragon

Chapter 37: Unorthodox Approach

I woke up with a pressing feeling on my chest. I opened my eyes to see Liz on top of me, her head and hands resting on my chest while her emerald eyes fixated on me.

“Good morning?” I yawned.

“Good morning!” She said with a smile and gave me a kiss. Did you sleep well?”

“Uhm, yes? You are awfully chipper this morning. Did something happen?”

"Just woke up feeling extra happy today, I guess! Plus, waking up next to you always puts me in a good mood."

“I see…” I studied her face. “Acting extra sweet doesn’t mean that I will let you train. You know that, right?”

“That wasn’t my intention!” Liz protested.

“Then I appreciate the sweetness,” I said, putting my arms around her.

“But… You did force me to rest all day yesterday even though you didn’t see [Mana Exhaustion] when we woke up,” Liz said, fidgeting with her fingers. “Maybe we can train just a little bit today?”

I shook my head. “I should have known.”

“I’m fine, honest! And sitting around doing nothing is so boring.”

“Alright then,” I sighed. “However, I will check your status after each session.”

“Guh, do you know how unpleasant that is?” Liz frowned.

“Would you rather rest for one more day?”

Liz looked at me with a look of defeat. “Look all you want.”

“Shall we order some breakfast then?” I smiled.

“Breakfast is already on the table.”

I squinted my eyes and looked at her. “You didn’t plan around me folding, right?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she smirked and got up.

After eating breakfast, we returned to the training area and Liz promptly continued training casting her new spells. I summoned my foxlings and sat down and leaned against Roxy.

Maybe I should go to the guild and see if there is anything to do? There is only so much spell research I can do every day without frying my brain. I would prefer to avoid the morning rush so I’ll go a bit later.

After two hours passed, Liz came over and sat down next to me. I used [Inspect], much to her displeasure, but everything was normal.

“You pass, this time,” I smirked. “By the way, will you be alright by yourself for a bit?”

“Are you sneaking off somewhere again?” she frowned.

“Going to the guild for a bit. I won’t be gone for long.”

“I’m sure I will manage. Do you want me to use the necklace?”

“Good idea. That saves me half a trip.”

After letting Liz rest for a while, I left her with my foxlings and flew back to the capital.

When I entered the adventurers guild, I was met with far fewer people than the usual crowd.

I should make a habit of coming here around this time. So much better when I don’t have to fight my way through. Maybe I should go have a look at the billboards where they post the quests? Might as well act like a normal adventurer for once.

I walked over to the billboard where they posted high-rank quests and looked at what they had to offer. I didn’t plan to take anything, but looking never hurt anyone.

Monster subjugation and material acquisition seems to be the standard among B+ quests. This one wants two minobull horns… I should have one of those from the dungeon. Might as well turn that in and get some quest points like a good adventurer. 

After ripping the quest paper from the billboard, I started walking to the B+ counter and noticed that people were stealing glances.

You guys never seen someone take a quest before?

The B+ counter had no queue so I casually walked up and was greeted by none other than Nadia and her beaming smile.

“Welcome, Miss Luna. What can I help you with today?”

“You can start by just calling me Luna,” I said and put the paper with the quest on the counter. “And I want to do this quest.”

Nadia picked up the paper. “Certainly. Would you like me to check for any information on where you can find minobulls?”

“Ah, no. I already have one with me. Can I drop it off by the dismantlers?”

“Of course. Let me accompany you.”

Just as Nadia was about to stand up, Saria took the paper from her hand.

“I will handle this,” Saria said. “You can stay here.”

“But,” Nadia's shoulders slumped down. “I understand.”

“Now, Luna. If you would follow me,” Saria said and started walking toward the dismantling area.

“Hello to you too,” I said, eyeing Saria. “So, what’s the occasion?”

“The guildmaster has a request for you.”

“Oh? And what might that be?”

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A personal request? Does he want me to blow up a mountain after all? I wouldn’t mind helping if it was something fun.

“He would be grateful if you stayed away from the guild for a few days.”

“I’m sorry, what?” I asked in a surprised tone.

A personal request to stay away? I have a sudden urge to spend all my time in the guild for some reason.

“It’s for a good reason. Do you know who Orzuz is?”

“No clue.”

“His nickname is The Berserker.”

“I assume that he is an S rank then?”

“That’s correct,” Saria replied. “He is a troublesome one, but he is one of the strongest S ranks in the country so we have no choice but to look the other way sometimes.”

“What does this have to do with me staying away?”

“Because he is in town at the moment. And If he thinks that you are strong he will fight you, regardless if you want to or not. He lives only to fight strong opponents,” Saria sighed. “Orzuz is also one of the S ranks that are closest to an SS rank promotion. He was on his way here when you cleared the dungeon. I doubt you getting SSS out of nowhere made him happy.”

“And Grahl doesn’t want me to meet him?”

Is Grahl worried about me?

Saria seemed reluctant to answer.

I tilted my head. “Is that a yes?”

“The guildmaster’s request was to avoid meeting Orzuz. If you by any chance happen to meet him, please don’t kill him. He is too important for the kingdom.”

I can only blame myself for thinking something ridiculous.

“Please don’t kill him? Just what is his mental picture of me? I don’t go around killing people for fun.”

“I’m just saying, we would appreciate it if you could avoid running into him.”

“What if he runs into me?”

“Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”

“Fine, I won’t kill him,” I shrugged. “Now, can I just drop the minobull here?”

Saria sighed. “I do wish you would take this more seriously. He is a dangerous man. And yes, just put it here.”

“Alright,” I took out the minobull and put it in the cold storage. “You might as well dismantle the whole thing and not just the horns while you are at it.”

“I understand. I can have the quest completed as soon as they are done dismantling.”

“Wouldn’t that mean that I have to come here again? What happened to staying away?”

“It would be great if you could wait a few days.”

“I'll think about it. Is there anything else before I take my leave?” I asked.

“No, that is all I had for you today. I’ll walk you to the exit.”

“No need. I’ll show myself out,” I said and used [Translocation] right in front of Saria to teleport to Liz’s telenode.

I wonder what kind of face she made when I disappeared.

When I teleported back to Liz I was met with an [Icicle] flying right at me. As it was only a few centimeters away from me when I arrived, I didn’t even have time to react. It hit me right in the torso and shattered.

“Luna!” Liz yelled. “Are you okay?”

I looked behind me and saw that I had teleported right into the line of fire.

I whistled. “I don’t remember the last time anyone properly hit me with an attack.”

Liz started touching the area where she hit me with an expression full of worry.

“Hey, aren’t you getting a bit too frisky with those hands?”

“You’re not hurt, right?”

“Don’t get cocky,” I smirked. “You need a lot more oomph before you can hope to damage me.”

Liz let out a sigh of relief. “I know. I just panicked when you appeared out of nowhere.”

“I’m sorry. When I lock on a telenode, it just puts me somewhere close by where there is space.”

“What happens if there isn’t any space?”

“I don’t know. I’m not keen on trying,” I laughed. “It’s the same with the teleporters in dungeons, right? They just put you close to the teleporter.”

“I guess so? I never really thought about that before.”

“Putting that aside,” I said and turned back to look at the pillars and bullboar statues, most of which were cracked or destroyed. “You’re running out of things to hit.”

Liz puffed out her chest. “Are you impressed?”

“You could say that. I think you are already at the max output for your magic level and stats.”

“That’s not even all! Look at this,” Liz extended her arm and made a [Glacial Spike] shoot out of the ground.

“Oh? You got a hang of it already?”

I've thought about this before, but her progress is just too fast. Even without experience training anyone, I can tell she's reached a level comparable to mages at least ten years older than her from the past. At least I think so. My limited interaction with people isn't doing me any favors here.

“I did!” she said proudly. Her face was filled with an expression that said ‘praise me’.

Without even realising it, I reached up and patted her head.

“What was that for?” Liz asked, confused.

I pulled back my hand and cleared my throat. “Ahem, never mind. Do you want to continue with the next lesson then?”

“What’s the next lesson?”

“Let’s have lunch first.”

My plan was to eat first, but after taking out some food and making ourselves comfortable, I caved from seeing Liz’s excited face.

“Now, lesson one was on casting without chanting and using a magic medium. Can you guess what the next lesson is?”

“I have no idea.”

“It’s okay to chant.”

“Eh?”

“You heard me.”

Liz frowned. “Didn’t I just spend days training because it was wrong to chant?”

“Yes and no. The attack and defense spells you regularly use are important to be able to cast without chanting, but sometimes you might have to chant regardless. You might not have realised it while training, but it requires a hardened mind to cast properly without chanting.”

Liz looked at me like she didn’t quite understand. “What do you mean?”

“Sometimes you panic. You might get ambushed, you might get hurt, you might fear for your life. Are you confident you would be able to properly cast without chanting if that happens? Chants are like a crutch. You aren’t supposed to use it to walk normally, but you should be prepared to walk with one if you break your leg.”

“Oddly enough, that makes a lot of sense.”

“What do you mean ‘oddly enough’?” I pouted. “Don’t make fun of your teacher.”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” she smirked. “Is there no way to train your, uhm, mind?”

“I have heard of a few ways,” I tapped my chin with my finger, contemplating. “But they are a bit much, even for my taste.”

“Bit much?”

“I have one method that will steel your mind… probably. I’ve never trained mental resistance myself, so I’m only going off things I have heard.”

“And what's that?”

I didn’t say anything and just smiled.

“I don’t like the look on your face.”

“Remember, you promised to do everything I say.”

“Now I really don't like this.”

“You don’t have to be so scared.”

After we were done eating and had taken a short rest, I got up, remade the targets, and turned to Liz. “Right then, are you ready for your next lesson?”

“Would there be a point in me saying no at this stage?”

“Nope,” I said with a mischievous expression . “Now, take your clothes off.”

“Huh?” Liz looked at me like she heard me wrong.

“Get naked.”

Liz frowned. “Is this really training?”

“Yes.”

“What was the other training option?”

“I throw you in a dungeon naked.”

Liz stared at me for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. “Can I at least keep my underwear on?”

“I’ll let you choose.”

“Thank y-”

“Top or bottom.”

“What?” 

“You can keep one of them on,” I smirked.

Liz gave in and reluctantly took off her clothes until she stood in the middle of the forest clearing in just her panties.

“Now go back and start casting again. You are under no circumstances allowed to stop casting or cover yourself, understood? Also, no chanting.”

“I understand,” Liz sighed and resigned herself to her fate. She walked back to the targets and started training again.

“What are you doing? Your casting is all off!” I shouted as I saw one [Icicle] miss the pillar and another one easily shattering against a target that should at least crack by now.

“It’s hard, okay!” She yelled back.

“If you lose your concentration over something like this you will die if you try to fight monsters.”

Over the next session Liz gradually got used to standing almost naked and managed to mostly get back to casting normally. I yelled for her to come to me when two hours had passed. 

“Can I put my clothes back on now?” She asked with pleading eyes.

“You can get dressed during the break if you want, though I would prefer if you didn’t,” I smirked.

“Do I have to take off my clothes again after the break?”

“Of course, you were almost there so after the next one we can probably move on.”

“I might as well not bother then,” Liz said with a deep sigh and sat down in my lap. “At least give me some body heat, look at my nipples.”

“Oh, I suppose I can do that much,” I grinned and put my arms around Liz, putting my hands on her breasts.

“Not what I had in mind when I said I wanted to train today,” Liz muttered.

I used [Inspect] to make sure that everything was normal.

“Eeep!” Liz yelped. “Please tell me before you do that.”

“Where is the fun in that?” I giggled.

“This will be the last one for today,” I said after the break was over.

Liz groaned and reluctantly stood up. “So just go back to casting?”

“Yes, same as the previous session, no chants, no covering up, no stopping casting and all that.”

Liz sighed. “I will get to it then.”

Since she didn’t seem to have any problems anymore I decided to move on to the next part. “Hey Liz, you remember the rules right?” I shouted.

“Yeah?” She asked while firing off her spells, making sure not to stop.

“Good, because someone is walking this way. They might come by.”

“What?!” Liz yelled and turned towards me.

“Hey, don't stop!” I yelled.

“But other people…”

“Keep casting.”

“Yes…” Liz whimpered.

After ten or so minutes three people did appear, it was the adventurers that I met in the line at the guild.

“Eeep!” Liz yelped and tried to cover herself.

“Hey! Ignore them and go back to casting.”

Liz looked like she was about to cry but tried her best to get spells firing again but her lack of concentration made some spells miss.

“Focus up! You don’t have to pay attention to these people!” I yelled and turned towards the three adventurers and had a small chat before they sat down and watched as well.

After the two-hour session was over Liz had regained her composure. She was still red as a tomato, but the tears in her eyes were mostly gone. She did however manage to cast her spells without issue at the end.

“You can stop now,” I shouted from where I was sitting.

Liz stopped and covered herself before turning around. “Huh, when did they leave?” she asked.

“When did who leave?” I asked with a quizzical look.

“Those three?”

“You mean the illusions?”

“The what?” Liz yelled.

“You think I would let some random adventurers, let alone men, come close to here? They would lose their heads before they even had the chance to see you naked.”

“But… what…” Liz looked at me, dumbfounded.

“If something like this would rattle your concentration, do you think you would be able to cast spells after losing an arm? I know you are uncomfortable with being naked, which is why I made use of that.”

“That’s so mean!” Liz pouted.

“It’s crucial to train your nerves. Your life literally depends on it.”

“I can’t believe you,” Liz whimpered and dove into my chest. 

“Maybe I overdid it a little,” I murmured. “So, any new skills?”

“Huh? Uhm, let me check,” Liz opened her [Status]. “My mental resistance has leveled up. It’s at level two,” she said, surprised.

“Two?” I asked, equally surprised. “Any passives?”

”I got [Emotional Resistance] and [Trauma Resistance]. I already had [Fear Resistance] from before.”

Not only did her mental resistance level up to two, but she also picked up two passives related to that skill? What did I force this poor girl to experience? I’m the worst.

“I’m sorry,” I said and hugged her. “I went too far.”

“I forgive you, this time,” she replied and hugged me back. “But can I put my clothes back on now?”

“Yes we are done for today. Let’s go back to the inn.”