Chapter 172

The next day.

After packing my meager belongings, I finished preparing to set off on a journey with Tia.

With various anxieties in my heart, I was departing relying on the letter from Mom.

To be honest, the thought “Will this really be okay?” kept swirling around in my head… But what can I do? I have no choice but to leave.

When I was younger, I resented her for leaving me behind and going away… But if Mom had her reasons, if it was to ensure my safety… then it must’ve been an unavoidable choice.

And now that she’s in danger… It’s my turn to help her.

Even though I’m just a country girl who barely has any experience wielding weapons…

Tia, who is both a massive dragon and the partner of the legendary hero from stories. With Tia by my side… I feel like we can save Mom.

So I forced myself to muster up some courage in my heart.

Towards the world outside the village. Towards the unknown.

I took my first steps.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – –

I woke up during one of my centuries-long hibernations due to a small sound nearby, only to find a tiny ash rat beastman trembling right in front of me.

Thus, through what seemed like something straight out of a web novel, I ended up traveling with Maybel, the gray-haired little ash rat.

To be honest, it wasn’t absolutely necessary for her to come along… But after sleeping for hundreds of years, I did want to see how much the world had changed.

During my hibernation, the fragments handled everything for me, so nothing fell behind.

Therefore, I now have the leisure to take a look around the world.

And… I became somewhat interested in Maybel and her mom’s story.

Even without my interference, the way their tale was unfolding on its own was quite fascinating.

Speaking of which, Maybel’s mom… Wasn’t her name Ella? Ella Cinder.

It obviously reminded me of Cinderella. She was in the exact same situation of being oppressed by her stepmother and two sisters.

Though unlike the original story, there were no glass slippers or ballrooms involved. She reclaimed her inheritance purely through her own strength, without any midnight magic spells expiring.

Hmm. Let’s move past her story for now.

“Huff… haa…”

“Are you alright?”

“I-I’m fine…”

Maybel trudging up the rugged mountain path with a huge bag strapped to her back.

“At least thanks to gaining more strength, it’s manageable.”

“Is that so?”

The sight of Maybel carrying a backpack larger than herself looked incredibly unbalanced.

Honestly, if she were an ordinary human, she wouldn’t have been able to walk far with such a heavy load.

Even during marches, people don’t usually carry packs that heavy.

“Shall I take it for you?”

“No, it’s fine! It’s my luggage, so I should carry it!”

“Then may I just take a look at your hammer for a moment?”

“Hammer? The Ground Shatterer?”

I nodded slightly, and Maybel hesitantly handed over her hammer.

I’ve been curious since I first saw it. I wanted to know how the dwarves’ enchantment methods had evolved compared to the past.

So I examined the Ground Shatterer carefully.

“It’s well-made, but the part where it converts mana feels a bit rough.”

This way, consuming 10 mana results in approximately 4 units of enhancement, meaning about a 40% increase in strength – not insignificant, but could be improved.

With optimization, it could reach 8 units of enhancement with 10 mana – twice the efficiency.

“Here, I’ve made some adjustments. You should feel it’s become stronger.”

“Really?”

Maybel took back the modified Ground Shatterer and her eyes widened in surprise.

“Woah? It really has gotten stronger? How did you do it?”

“I merely refined the dwarven enchantments. By smoothing out the mana flow and reducing waste, such improvements are possible.”

“That doesn’t sound simple at all…”

Well, there’s nobody who understands manipulating mana as well as I do.

These days, I can control mana as naturally as my own limbs.

“Thank you very much!”

Maybel bowed deeply to me, then began examining the newly improved hammer.

She definitely felt the difference, as a smile appeared on her face.

Satisfied with her upgraded weapon, Maybel finally looked up at me and asked:

“So… Why does Tia help people like this?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re a dragon, aren’t you? A massive mountain-sized dragon at that. From your perspective, humans probably seem like bugs crawling on the ground. So why help them?”

Hmm… Why do I help humans?

Thinking about it, I don’t necessarily have to… If it weren’t for the believers who worship me as the Goddess of Life… Would I have ignored humans?

No, probably not. Since I used to be human myself. As long as those memories remain, I couldn’t turn my back on humanity.

Of course, I can’t say that. Nobody would believe a dragon’s previous life was human. Not even my own children would.

“Is it because of the Goddess of Life? Are you doing this because she told you to protect humans?”

Technically, I am the Goddess of Life… I’m not about to follow orders from myself.

I do these things because I want to.

“I do it because I want to.”

“But… I still don’t understand. Don’t dragons generally ignore humans like bugs?”

Hmm… Perhaps.

I do these things because I want to. If I hadn’t cared about life in the first place… Maybe I wouldn’t have created life in this world at all.

In that sense… Am I taking some responsibility for creating life myself?

“There may be reasons, or there may not be. When a small animal is shivering from cold, some hunt it, some ignore it, and some help it. I’m simply like the person who helps the animal.”

Well, I’m not saying humans are equal to animals. It’s just a similar kind of compassion.

“Definitely… People do take in abandoned baby animals. Thinking about it that way makes sense.”

Strictly speaking, it’s different, but whatever.

“Understand it that way for now.”

Explanations get tiresome after a while.

“Come now, let’s keep moving. We need to reach the village before sunset today.”

I could use spatial movement to arrive instantly, but that would be too convenient.

Even though I could teleport across the continent in an instant…

It wouldn’t feel like traveling that way, would it?

“Yes, yes. We need to reach the next village before sunset.”

That’s how Maybel and I continued our journey along the difficult mountain path.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – –

We arrived at a moderately sized village.

A village situated beside a small river, with golden wheat fields swaying in the wind surrounding it – likely their main industry.

“In that case, where should we go now?”

“First things first, let’s find an inn when arriving at a new place, right?”

Wherever you go, securing lodging is basic. Travel becomes exhausting without a proper place to rest.

“The inn? Actually, I’ve heard about a good one from the priest. I’ll show you.”

“Did you hear about it? Do you know the exact location?”

“Yes! I’ve heard plenty about this village from the priest, so if I organize the information properly, I know everything about this place!”

“Then please guide us.”

We could ask the villagers, but Maybel seems so confident…

Let’s trust her.

So I followed behind Maybel as we began walking through the village.