Three days had passed since we welcomed Guronde to the village.
Though she was nervous at first, she had finally begun to relax. On her first night here, the Mountain Elves built two wheelchairs for her—one for indoor use and another for outdoors—as she still struggled to walk in her human form.
Both were a bit heavy, but since Giral was the one pushing them, it wasn't an issue. She seemed to have taken a liking to the hot springs, which she visited frequently with Giral. In fact, the two of them headed there again this morning.
Regarding her meals, she preferred the meat of Fanged Rabbits and Giant Boars hunted in the forest. She definitely seemed to be a carnivore. As for her vegetables... she ate cabbage because Giral insisted, along with daikon and cucumbers, which she enjoyed dipped in miso.
She didn't drink much sake at the table. At first, I wondered if she disliked it, but it turned out to be the opposite. Guronde actually loved sake, but she simply couldn't maintain her human form once she got drunk. To accommodate her, we set up an outdoor drinking area where it would be fine for her to transform. The Sake Slime and the Dwarves were always on standby there. Apparently, she drank so much that even the Dwarves were left in awe. At dawn, Giral looked on with a gentle expression as Guronde slept in her dragon form, clutching a sake barrel.
She had suffered from those injuries for a long time. I was truly glad we had the World Tree.
Speaking of the World Tree, Dos came to see us.
"Giral, I am sorry. I knew your wife was injured, but I had no idea she required the leaves of the World Tree."
Since Dos knew the tree was here in the Village of the Great Tree, he offered a formal apology.
"No, don't worry about it," Giral replied with a hearty laugh. "I kept the nature of her injury a secret myself. It's only natural you didn't know."
Guronde had apparently shut herself away in the depths of their nest, refusing to let anyone but Giral and Gral even hear her voice. Even then, she rarely showed her form to them. Her crushed heads had begun to rot, and though the dragons' natural regenerative powers kept the decay from spreading past her necks, it wasn't a sight she wanted her husband or daughter to see. Guronde told me this with a light laugh, but it was such a heavy topic that I struggled to find a response.
Next were the angels: Malbit, Suarlou, and Razmaria. The Angel Race regarded the World Tree as sacred and had treated Guronde as an enemy ever since she burned it down. There had been many gruesome battles in the past. Eventually, realizing they couldn't defeat her, the angels shifted to a policy of non-interference. However, five hundred years ago, they provided magic weapons specifically designed to kill dragons to the Hero who attacked her. Those weapons were the cause of Guronde's long-standing injuries.
Malbit, acting as the Angel Race Leader, offered a formal apology for that intervention. Guronde, in turn, apologized for burning the tree. Both parties agreed to waive any claims for reparations. I thought my part was done once I provided the venue for the reconciliation, but Malbit grabbed my clothes and refused to let go, so I ended up sitting in on the whole thing.
I don't expect centuries of resentment to vanish overnight, but an apology is a vital first step toward reconciliation. I have high hopes for their future relationship. For some reason, I ended up being the one to give a self-important closing speech to wrap up the meeting.
Afterward, Suarlou and Razmaria expressed their gratitude to me, saying that I had finally removed a thorn that had been lodged in the heart of the Angel Race for ages. Though the three of them belonged to different factions, they seemed to get along quite well.
"I am just glad Guronde was calm," they noted.
Guronde expressed similar gratitude. While she admitted burning the tree was her fault, she found the way the angels constantly pestered her to be a massive headache. Being able to settle things with them had clearly made her heart feel a bit lighter.
"I am just glad the angels were calm," she added.
Well, as long as they've made an effort to bridge the gap, I'm happy. Their ideologies might still differ, but I made it clear that fighting is forbidden in this village. Civilized discussions are fine; violence is not.
That was the end of the World Tree-related drama.
Currently, the Village of the Great Tree is in a celebratory mood regarding Guronde. A few of the Civil Official Girls and the children are especially delighted. The girls are excited to record Guronde's countless heroic tales, making a fuss about how her stories constitute major historical discoveries.
The children were simply thrilled by her dragon form. They didn't know how to express their excitement at seeing something so "cool" and "amazing," so they resorted to shouting and dancing around. Urza and Hiichiro were especially captivated, their eyes sparkling with wonder. Giral looked immensely proud of the reaction, while Guronde seemed a bit bashful.
However, a problem soon arose. Because Hiichiro praised Guronde so much, two others became quite upset: his grandmother, Raimeiren, and his bride candidate, Gral.
At first, Raimeiren watched Hiichiro's admiration for Guronde with a smile, but before long, she had transformed into a dragon herself to try and win back his attention. Gral was also happy for her mother at first, but she eventually started glaring at her with terrifying eyes. That's not the look a daughter gives a mother; that's the look you give a love rival.
I wondered if Hiichiro's mother, Hakuren, was okay. Was she fine because I was there? I'd like to think so, but Hiichiro always returns to his mother in the end. I suppose if he ever didn't, she would probably sulk even worse than the others. I decided not to dwell on such ominous thoughts.
Regardless, things were on the verge of escalating into an unusual tag-team standoff between Guronde, Raimeiren, and Gral. I really wanted them to avoid fighting in their dragon forms, as the collateral damage would be immense. At the request of Dos and Giral, I intervened by throwing the spear form of my Universal Farming Tool right between the two sides. That finally settled them down. As a sign of peace, the three of them stood in a line with their arms around each other's shoulders. They didn't really need to prove it to me that way; I just wanted them to be friendly.
Also, Hiichiro... you're still a child, but you need to learn that the time and place for praising the opposite sex is very important. It can cause all sorts of trouble. When you're a little older, I'll have to sit you down and teach you a few things. That goes for Alfred, Lilius, Rigul, Ratte, and Torain, too. This is vital life advice.
...And Urza, I appreciate the effort, but no matter how hard you try, you can't grow eight necks.
After talking with Guronde, several of my questions were answered. I had been curious if she had eight distinct personalities to match her eight heads. It turns out she does. However, there is one main personality, and the other seven are sub-personalities. These sub-personalities are controlled by the main one and can even be integrated if necessary.
It's the same in her human form. However, because those other personalities had been dormant for so long, their sudden revival made it difficult for her to coordinate her body. She said just flying to this village was a struggle. Apparently, it will take about ten years for her to fully adjust. When I tried to ask about how she and Giral first met, Giral stepped in and blocked the question.
The one who gained the most from talking to Guronde, however, was the Demon King.
"So, Lady Guronde, you are saying that words alone were not enough?" he asked.
"Of course," she replied. "It is lovely to hear stories about beautiful scenery or delicious food, but hearing those things only makes one want to experience them firsthand."
"I see... Then perhaps my wife also..."
"She likely wouldn't voice her dissatisfaction, but I believe that is how she feels."
"Is that so..."
The Demon King had apparently promised his wife that she wouldn't have to be involved in politics when they married. That was why he hadn't brought her to the village yet. Does bringing her here really count as politics? I suppose if she's the Queen, her every move carries political weight.
"I have invited her several times, but she never gives a favorable answer," the Demon King admitted.
"Even if she refuses, sometimes a woman wishes to be taken out by force," Guronde advised.
The Demon King fell into deep thought. Soon, he and Beezel began huddled together, formulating a plan to finally bring his wife here. I've heard about her personality from the three beastmen boys who attend the Academy... I honestly think just saying, "Politics aside, let's go have some fun while you're free," would be enough.
While the Demon King was deep in his planning, Giral, who had been listening in, looked quite flustered. He leaned over and whispered to Guronde.
"W-was it better when I took you out by force?"
"Fufu. You brought me here, didn't you?"
"T-that's true. Hahaha!"
It's good to see a married couple getting along so well.
"Gral, why don't you go over there and join them instead of holding back?" I asked.
She said she didn't want to get in her parents' way. A child is never in the way—though I suppose late at night might be an exception. No, never mind that. It's fine now, so go on.