VIO Ch 19.1 – Dark Clouds (V)

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Translator: mii

editors: sleepchaser, ASplashofMusic, Katie_WanderingFujoshi

The sun shone brightly, as if last night’s downpour was but a figment of the imagination. And under the clear sky, Flora ran around the garden.

Vio enjoyed a cup of black tea, eyes trained on his little sister. A lovely girl among a colorful sea of flowers was the best remedy for a tired heart. He could feel his stress fading away.

“I’m glad that Lady Flora has recovered and is energetic again,” said Rille, a smile on her face. 

Vio nodded. “Yeah.”

One day, Flora would come to know all of the Lesserhains’ wrongdoings. But until then, Vio wanted to keep her ignorant of that sordid history. To let her continue smiling with such brightness and innocence.

Calia seemed to be having a hard time chasing after Flora. But it was good that Flora seemed as healthy as she had been before.

Then Vio shifted his gaze to Rille. “By the way, Legi’s acting strangely today. Rille, do you have any idea why?” 

Since this morning, Legion’s face would turn bright red every time he caught sight of Vio. Then he’d run off to some other place. Since his work performance wasn’t affected, Vio didn’t find it to be a problem. Even so, Vio felt uneasy. He hoped that Legi wouldn’t display such baffling behavior again in the future.

A sweet smile blossomed on Rille’s lips  Her words, however, dripped with venom. “Who knows? Maybe he hit his head somewhere?”

Seeing Rille’s smile, Vio could sense her hatred towards Legion. “…Do you hate Legi?”

“I don’t like him.”

With that, he decided not to ask any further. It would be troublesome if he stirred a hornet’s nest by mistake. “Rille, can I have another cup?”

“Of course.” she responded, turning to the teapot. “…Oh my, we ran out of hot water. I’ll have another pot prepared soon. Please wait a moment.” A bow, and she left the study with the tea utensils in hand.

After placing the empty cup back on its saucer, Vio let out a small yawn. He hadn’t had a good sleep since that nightmare. It was strange though. He had slept with the lights on last night, so he should’ve rested well.

He once again focused his attention on the peaceful scene in the garden. As his still-taut nerves relaxed even further, he grew more drowsy. He stretched his body, a low grunt leaving his lips. 

Flora stopped beside a flowerbed and turned to Vio, waving. The picture of cheer. He approached the window and returned her wave, causing her to laugh with even more delight.

Ah, how cute…

Following that thought, Vio felt as though he had a sister complex.

All of a sudden, the surroundings darkened. He looked up. Instead of seeing clouds passing by like he had first assumed was happening, he saw something fall from the sky. A dull but heavy thump upon collision with the ground. And a split second later, all the flowers and soil went flying.

Vio’s eyes widened out of shock. “W-what?!” 

The creature that had fallen from the sky roared.

A small dragon with rust-colored scales… An Equestrian Dragon.

Flora screamed and dropped to a crouch. In no time at all, Calia made her way in front of Flora and drew her sword.

“How could there be an Equestrian Dragon here?!” exclaimed Vio.

For a moment, Vio thought his father and brother might have sent him an urgent notice. But such a thought disappeared into a wisp of smoke shortly after: the knight riding the dragon did not salute him. He was clad in iron armor from head to toe. And due to the helmet, Vio couldn’t see his face.

“Who are you?! This is a mansion of the Lesserhains! Do you dare to continue causing a disturbance even with this knowledge?” yelled Calia.

But despite Calia’s warning, the knight did not respond. Rather, the Equestrian Dragon made a move in his stead. It forcefully swung its head which slammed against Calia.

There was obviously an overwhelming gap in power between humans and dragons. Calia had no way of defending against its attack. Thus, it had sent her flying. Once she had hit the ground, she rolled to the edge of the garden. She didn’t get up after that.

Rooted in place, Flora shouted, “Calia!”

However, Calia remained unmoving. The Equestrian Dragon opened its mouth wide as if mocking her. Then it opened its fangs wide, ready to swallow Flora from above.

Flora cradled her head, another scream tearing from her throat.

At that moment, Vio pointed to the space before Flora and chanted, “Heed my wish. Form thine supreme shield!”

A yellow magic circle expanded like a shield in front of Flora, blocking the Equestrian Dragon’s strike. 

Worry over Flora’s safety filled Vio’s mind. He stepped onto the window frame, jumped out, and broke into a desperate sprint as soon as his feet touched the ground. In those few seconds, time seemed to flow in slow motion. 

The Equestrian Dragon followed up with a second attack, shattering the magic shield. Fragments of light scattered through the air.

Mid-sprint, Vio raised his right hand toward the dragon, casting defensive magic a second time as he jumped the rest of the distance toward Flora and wrapped her in his arms. “Heed my wish—”

The dragon stretched its maw wide as it lunged at them.

“Form thine supreme shield!” The moment he had shouted the trigger of the spell, a magic circle expanded into a shield again, repelling the dragon’s attack in the nick of time. 

A deafening bang reverberated.

“Flora! Flora, are you alright?!” asked Vio, struggling to catch his breath.

“Brother!”

In the midst of his gasps, Vio clutched Flora’s shoulders. Flora clung to him, eyes wet with tears. Though trembling, she had not sustained any injuries. 

Vio hugged her tightly. “It’s okay, Flora. I will protect you!” he reassured, shooting the Equestrian Dragon a stern glare.

Then he watched as the dragon stopped its attacks and straightened itself. The knight rose to his feet on the back of the dragon, bursting into pleasant laughter.

“It’s been a while, Lord Violant. Protecting someone, huh… Looks like you’ve grown into a surprisingly fine man,” said the knight.

Vio’s face twisted into a frown. “It’s been a while, you say? You bastard, just who are you?!”

The knight lifted the visor of his helmet. Though Vio was only given a view of his eyes, those familiar blue-grey orbs caused his heart to skip a beat.

“E… rik…?”

Such a nostalgic name. He couldn’t believe that it was that man standing before him. This seemed like the sequel to his nightmare.

Erik chuckled. “Oh my, you look like you just saw a ghost.”

Broom in hand, Rille dashed toward them. “Master!”

“No! Rille, step back!” shouted Vio.

Erik casually pointed his foot toward the maid, signalling to the Equestrian Dragon. As expected, Rille was forced to stop in her tracks. Jaws wide, the dragon lunged forward to rip Rille’s throat… But right at that moment, a shadow leapt out from the side.

“Burn!” shouted Legion. Fortunately, merely saying the spell’s trigger was enough to cast the offensive fire spell.

Upon collision with the dragon’s head, a small explosion. It pushed the dragon’s head back. Legion then slammed his baton toward its muzzle.

The Equestrian Dragon roared, arching its back and writhing. Erik shouted at the raging dragon, trying to get it under control, but the dragon didn’t obey him because of the pain.

“Are you okay, Rille? Any injuries?” asked Legion, sending a quick glance toward her. She had collapsed onto the ground, the strength drained from her legs.

“Y-yesss, I’m okeey…” Rille replied. The slurring was probably due to the shock.

A bit late, Jill rushed in their direction.

“Mr. Butler, please take her away,” said Legion. “She’ll just get in the way.”

“B-but!”

“Listen to me. Go!” said Legion, his tone strict and not accepting any refusal. And so, he was able to shoo away Jill and Rille back to the mansion. 

Now that the two were out of the picture, Legion made his way before Vio, casting wary glances at the rampaging Equestrian Dragon. “Lord Violant, are you alright?”

Vio concealed his unease, feigning as much calmness as possible. “Ah, yeah… I’m fine. But what are you going to do now? Your opponent’s a dragon.”

Legion looked back at him. Shot him a light smile. “Please rest assured, Lord Violant. Most animals would fall into a rage after a hit on their nose. And it’s only one dragon. One baton is enough,” Legion declared eloquently, voice serene. Vio was taken aback. He understood just how ridiculous Legion’s words were.

“Animals, huh…”

Never had he imagined someone would categorize a small dragon as a mere animal. Not to mention, there was a knight skilled in spirit magic on its back. It would normally take more than five people to defeat such a duo.

Paying no mind to the stunned Vio, Legion faced the Equestrian Dragon. “From your appearance, I assume that you’re a knight from another kingdom. To show such rudeness to the Lesserhain family, the spearhead of the Kingdom of Istiah’s defense, is the same as declaring war on our territory… no, our kingdom. Just what is your intention?”

After finally regaining control of the dragon, Erik replied to him in a composed tone, “I’m just a scout. I happened to come across a familiar face that I haven’t seen for a while, so I stopped by to greet him.” He laughed scornfully and added, “Who would have thought that such a vicious noble boy would have such a knight serving him? May I have your name?”

“How insolent! Why don’t you give your name first before asking for others’?” said Legion, voice dripping with irritation.

Seeing the rare sight of Legion breaking his cool, Vio felt odd. As he kept Flora in his embrace, Vio watched the knights’ interactions, heart pounding.

Erik let out another chuckle. Then, still standing on the back of the dragon, he bowed out of courtesy. “Now, where are my manners? I’m Erik Karland.”

T/N: Usually, I just ignore the author’s notes explaining difficult Japanese words since they’re pretty much meaningless. But since some readers have read the previous translations of this chapter and wondered what the author’s notes were saying, here’s the translation!

Author’s Note (Part 1): 

When Erik called Vio a vicious noble boy, he used ‘公子 (koushi)’. Historical danmei readers might be more familiar with “gongzi.” I think they almost have the same meaning. It basically refers to a son of a noble, not necessarily a lord’s son. As long as the family has high status, then their son can be called “koushi.” The author probably elaborated on this word due to how unusual this title is in Japan.