Dragon Across the Multiverse (Si-WC) (Patreon)

Chapter 24: Even Princesses Need Correction

“What’s the matter, Iris, scared of someone younger than you?” I teased when she froze, as if waiting for the guards to swarm in and drag me off. Her scowl only deepened at the taunt.

“Are you perhaps waiting for the guards?” I pressed, grin widening as the wide-eyed looks confirmed my suspicion.

They were just like Sherry at this age: terrible liars. It was a little adorable watching them sputter.

“H-How did you—?”

“Don’t bother,” I cut her off in a chiding tone. “They’re currently occupied trying to figure out how to get inside the barrier I erected.”

“Barrier?” Alexia muttered, glancing around but seeing nothing.

“Yes. And it won’t drop unless you defeat me. So, are we going to fight or what, Iris Midgar?” I raised an eyebrow, giving her a clear provocation.

Her scowl hardened into practiced haughtiness as she stepped forward, iron blade in her right hand. “What are you after?” she demanded, an oddly pompous tone for someone barely a year older than me at 13 years old.

I tilted my head and smiled. “Didn’t I already tell you that? To beat you, of course.”

“For that stupid reason you—”

I appeared in front of her in a blink and lightly smacked her on the head. She yelped, hand flying to the spot I’d hit.

“Enough talking.” I reappeared in my original place before she could react, watching her blink, unable to follow my movements. “If you keep babbling, the next hit will be on your butt.” The threat made her flush; she shifted her hand from her head to her backside.

“Y-You wouldn’t!” she protested, suddenly acting like a normal girl instead of a haughty princess. It was almost cute.

“Then let’s fight.” I said simply.

She realized she had no other option. Iris poured an absurd torrent of raw magic into her blade, though it was clear that there was to finesse behind that at all, pure power. Crude, unsubtle. Exactly the sort of thing I wanted to correct.

I made a relaxed come-hither motion with my free hand. Time to teach her the painful lesson: she wasn’t as invincible as she, and everyone around her, believed.

With that, our fight began.

Iris immediately lunged forward at a speed much greater than a normal human of this world. Her blade flashed, aimed directly for my head, intending to finish this in one strike.

Unfortunately for her, her form was sloppy, and the way she telegraphed her moves was painfully obvious. With nothing more than a simple step to the right, I completely avoided her swing.

Blinking at her miss, Iris didn’t let it deter her and swung again, only for the same result. The scene repeated itself several times, her frustration mounting with every failed strike, until she finally snapped.

“Stand still! Coward!” Iris shouted, scowling through heavy breaths.

“Hmhmhm, alright. If that’s what you want.” I taunted her with a superior smirk, knowing full well it would only make her angrier. “Next time you attack, I won’t move from this spot.”

Naively taking me at my word despite knowing practically nothing about me, Iris launched herself again, releasing even more magic and forcing it into her sword until the poor blade cracked under the strain.

As promised, I stayed rooted in place. I casually raised my wooden blade and met her strike head-on, stopping it dead without the slightest trouble. The clash sent a sharp gust of wind blasting out behind me.

“Wha—?!” Iris gasped, stunned that a simple wooden sword could block her iron one, even after she had poured so much magic power into it.

I calmly held her gaze for a moment before my eyes narrowed in amusement. Then, in the blink of an eye, I vanished from her sight.

She barely had time to blink before she yelped, her sword clattering to the ground as both hands flew to her behind. A furious blush spread across her cheeks and ears.

Whipping around, she found me standing out of reach with a cheeky smirk plastered on my face.

“D-Didn’t you say that you wouldn’t strike me in the butt?! Liar!” she shouted, eyes watery with indignation and embarrassment.

“Hahaha, I only remember promising I wouldn’t strike you if you stopped babbling. Not that I wouldn’t do so at all during this spar.” I corrected her in a mock-haughty tone.

Iris’s head dipped, her shoulders trembling, before she snapped her glare back up at me with blazing eyes. “…Y-You! I’ll get you for this!”

And with that, our spar resumed.

During the next thirty minutes, I laughed and taunted Iris as she chased me around the training field with her sword raised, trying, and failing, to land even a single hit. Each time she missed, I took the opportunity to lightly smack her on the butt, hands, or legs, alternating just to keep her guessing.

At first, it probably looked like I was bullying her, and honestly, I was enjoying myself a little, but that wasn’t the point. With every failed attempt, I corrected her stance, her form, or her technique, wordlessly teaching through action.

At first, Iris stubbornly repeated her mistakes, but pain is the best teacher. By the fiftieth smack, she finally adjusted her form properly.

The little gremlin was even grinning in the last stretch of our spar, her excitement shining through despite the bruises marking her body.

Meanwhile, the other gremlin, this one with platinum hair, had made herself comfortable under the shade of a tree. Alexia sat cross-legged, watching with wide-eyed enthusiasm as she nibbled on food she’d gotten from somewhere, perfectly content to watch her sister get treated like a training dummy.

After our latest clash sent Iris sprawling, I finally let my wooden sword dissolve into shimmering particles of light. Iris, who I was starting to suspect was either a battle junkie or maybe a bit of an M, scowled in confusion at my sudden disarmament. Honestly, it kind of fit, since Alexia leaned a little more towards the S side from what I remembered.

“Huh? Why did you put your weapon away?” Iris asked, scowl deepening, not even noticing she was no longer looking at me with suspicion, only frustration.

“That’s enough playing for today.” I said simply, dusting off my sleeves as though bored. Tilting my head with a small grin, I added, “Besides, weren’t you the one trying to get me to leave earlier?”

Iris blinked, realization dawning, and quickly looked away to hide her red cheeks. “R-Right.”

“Hmhmhm. Don’t tell me you were having so much fun getting smacked around that you forgot?” I teased further, earning sputtering denial.

“O-Of c-course not! Why w-would you even think that?!” Iris flailed, hands waving as her sword lay forgotten on the ground.

“Are you two finished?” a cute sounding voice piped up from the side, interrupting the moment.

We turned to find Alexia’s bright red eyes fixed on me, brimming with stars. She bounced slightly on her heels, fists balled in excitement. “Your swordsmanship was beautiful~ Where did you learn it?”

“Alexia, right?” I asked, and she quickly nodded, looking even more delighted that I knew her name. “Thank you, little one. As for where… it’s actually a style I created myself, combining techniques I’ve learned over the years from several others.”

Unable to resist, I reached out and ruffled her silky white hair, earning a pout and a quick smack of her small hand as she tried to shoo me away.

“A-Alexia! Get away from him!” Iris exclaimed, suddenly remembering she was supposed to see me as a threat. She darted in front of her sister, arms spread as if to shield her. “He might be dangerous!”

“But sister, you looked like you were having fun with him during your spar,” Alexia said innocently, tilting her head.

Iris went red again. “T-That’s—”

“I’m not here to hurt either of you. You know that by now,” I cut in with a deadpan tone, placing the blame squarely on Iris’s overreaction. Her sputtering only made it better.

“That’s right, sister,” Alexia chimed in cheerfully. “He could’ve killed you a bunch of times during your fight, but instead, you kept going back for more!”

I nearly lost my composure as Alexia, unknowingly, teamed up with me to roast her sister.

But then I felt the number of people gathering outside my barrier and inwardly frowned. Seems I couldn’t keep teasing Iris today.

As the two sisters kept bickering, one defending me and the other insisting I was suspicious, I shook my head in amusement. Then, before either of them noticed, I reached out and patted both of their heads at once, grabbing their attention instantly.

Once more their reactions were the exact opposite: while Alexia immediately slapped my hand away, Iris on the other hand started sputtering and got all shy and embarrassed.

“Stop that!” Alexia exclaimed with an annoyed pout, crossing her arms.

“D-Don’t treat me like a kid! I’m pretty sure I’m older than you~” Iris whined with a blush, but made no move to remove my arm.

“Seems like our time today has come to an end. There’s a bunch of people still freaking out outside my barrier about your wellbeing, including your father.” I explained, then finally removed my hand from Iris.

Remembering that they were inside a barrier again, both sisters widened their eyes and then adopted worried looks. They glanced at each other for a moment before looking back at me.

“I-I’m sure we can explain to our father that it was all a misunderstanding.” Iris exclaimed, looking panicked with her gaze fixed on me.

“C-Can you get away without getting caught?” Alexia asked with different worry in her tone.

I winked at both of them and retreated a few steps. “Don’t worry, you two. They won’t even know I was here.”

Both sisters visibly relaxed, then Iris’s face clouded when she realized I was leaving and that I might not return to spar with her again.

“Y-You’re finally leaving, huh? Just like that? You’re not going to ask for a ransom or anything?” Iris asked, trying for an impassive expression but unable to hide the sadness in her eyes.

“I’m plenty rich, so I have no need for money,” I said with an unconcerned shrug, smiling teasingly at them. “Besides, I already got what I came here for.”

“And what is that?” Alexia asked, tilting her head while Iris listened in silence.

“Kicking Iris’s butt, of course~” I chirped with a grin, focusing on Iris, who immediately flushed.

“W-Why you!” she snapped.

“Anyways, before I go, I have a present for you two.” I reached behind my back and pulled out two wooden cases from my inventory, surprising them as it looked as if I’d pulled them from thin air. “Here, these are for you.”

“What is it?” Iris asked, stepping forward as she accepted the box. Alexia did the same seconds later, both naive to the possibility of a trap.

They gasped when they opened the boxes and pulled out the contents: swords, beautiful blades made just like the ones I’d given Liriel and Yukime, with a hidden surprise I’d reveal later.

“It’s beautiful~” Iris murmured as she inspected her sword, testing its balance with a few swings.

“And so light~” Alexia added, holding her own blade without any trouble.

“Iris,” I called, getting her attention. “I expect the next time we spar, you’ll have improved your technique. You have plenty of strength and power, but you lack finesse.” My tone was lecturing; she nodded unconsciously, then widened her eyes as the meaning of my words sank in.

“Y-You’re coming back?” she asked, failing to hide the hopefulness in her voice.

Ignoring that for now, I turned to Alexia. “Alexia, don’t be discouraged by your swordsmanship or what anybody else tell you. I saw you practicing earlier, and I could tell that you worked really hard in it. Keep at it, alright? I see potential in you.” I gave her a genuine smile.

“…R-Really?” Alexia asked tentatively, unsure she’d heard me right. When she read the sincerity on my face, a small smile bloomed and she wiped a stray tear from her cheek. “Okay! I will!”

“Alright, then, until next time.” I said with a grin and slowly rose into the air to their surprise. “Iris, remember what you learned today. Alexia, I want a spar with you next time.” I waved as I lifted off.

“Next time, I won’t lose!” Iris declared, fists clenched.

“See you next time~” Alexia cheered, waving back.

“One last piece of advice for you two: beware the darkness hidden in history, it’s much closer than you realize.” I said, a touch ominous, then shot straight up through the clouds and dismissed the barrier as I flew past it.

Below, I could hear the panicked shouts of guards as they rushed toward the princesses to check if they were alright.

‘Well, only time will tell if my actions had any effect. For now, I’ll focus on searching for the remaining main members of Shadow Garden and bring them under my banner,’ I thought, smiling at how much fun I’d had with the two gremlins.

“…Master enjoys bullying others, doesn’t he?” Ciel asked from out of nowhere, making me almost trip mid-air.

“Come on, Ciel, don’t ruin my fun,” I whined, not really bothered. “Besides, you know as well as I do those two brats need some tough love.”

“But Master never received any tough love when he was growing up, and he was a brat by his own standards.” Ciel teased smugly.

“Don’t air out my dirty laundry, Ciel. That’s in my dark past, why bring it up now?”

We bickered playfully as I flew back to Alexandria, enjoying the banter and each other’s company.

=====

Six Months Later

Half a year had passed since Ciel and I first arrived in this world, and to be honest, not a whole lot had happened.

Other than continuing my spars with Iris and Alexia every month, randomizing the day I visited each time to keep her guards guessing, I mainly focused on training Liriel and Yukime properly. When we went searching for the other members of Shadow Garden and they eventually joined us, I wanted those two to handle most of their training.

And yes, I was being a bit lazy by handing the training off, but they’d agreed, so I didn’t feel too bad about it.

Lukreia continued her artifact research in the safety of Alexandria with Sherry helping whenever she wasn’t busy, and she’d even begun studying advanced technology I’d given her from the HOTD world. Marie kept working as my personal maid, devoted to her duties and always asking for new recipes, which I happily provided.

The Spirit Fox tribe that had moved in settled down and helped tend the fields of fruits and vegetables I’d secured. They were happy to have a constant supply of food and shelter and, thankfully, they hadn’t been a problem.

Kumiho, Yukime’s mother, had even, not so subtly, asked if I wanted to marry her daughter. Yukime blushed and Liriel seethed with jealousy when they learned of it. I turned Kumiho down at the time but hinted at creating a harem and told her Yukime was already on the list, along with Liriel. She didn’t seem to mind.

After that, Yukime and Liriel went a week without being able to look me in the eye without blushing, which I found adorable. Of course, when Sherry heard about it, she promptly declared herself my future bride as well, to her mother’s amusement, and Marie shyly nodded next to her.

With Liriel and Yukime now at a level I was comfortable with, it was time to head out and recruit the others. I also wanted to track down the therianthrope Yukime had helped in the past while still a prostitute, but that would come after we gathered the other elves.

“Are you two ready?” I asked, turning to Liriel and Yukime. They wore black-and-white outfits similar to their originals, with tweaks to match my demon-lord aesthetic. A pair of facemasks hid their identities.

“Yes. I already know a few who might need help,” Liriel said with a serious nod.

“I’m ready too. I want to help those rejected by society, just like you helped me and my tribe,” Yukime said, her ears and three tails twitching. (Two more tails had grown under my training.)

“All right. Let’s go.” I rose into the air; Liriel and Yukime activated their Shrouds and followed. Flying still surprised them the first few times, but they’d gotten used to it.

‘Slowly but surely, my dream of a harem with elves and kemonomimi girls is coming true,’ I thought, smiling.