Taming the Evil Saintess

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Blackie ate a lot.

Not just a lot, but she inhaled everything in sight.

I’ve never heard that dragons are omnivores, but Blackie was devouring everything from weeds to grains to meat. I was even flabbergasted when I saw her crush and munch on an entire barrel filled with beer.

Well, for that massive body, she’d need an enormous amount of calories to keep her metabolism running.

The problem, however, was that we were in the Ice Palace, where food supplies were scarce and winter was just around the corner.

“Knight Elliot….”

“Yes?”

“The stable is empty.”

“It appears so.”

The repercussions were significant; the food storage in the barren Ice Palace was literally in shambles.

As a result, our dinner consisted of nothing more than a piece of bread and a tasteless blob of meat floating in an unidentifiable soup.

Given the state of the meals coming from the Ice Palace’s main hall, it was easy to guess just how much Blackie had depleted the food supplies here.

“What did the Tsar say?”

“She just laughed it off.”

At least there’s a silver lining; Tsar Ryudmila seemed to take this situation quite humorously.

I had the chance for a private report on this incident, and she was genuinely pleased that I had brought down the Purification Church.

“Didn’t you hate the possessors?”

“Yeah, my daughter is a possessor, so it’s unusual for me not to hate her.”

“Then….”

“However, I loathe the Demon King and his minions even more.”

“…”

“Hero, it’s not your concern. Just carry out your duties.”

In essence, it meant that if I killed Plague Lord Vermina, I would be forgiven for whatever I did.

Although that’s what we agreed upon, I couldn’t shake the guilt as Blackie seemed ready to uproot the pillars of the Ice Palace.

To make matters worse, Blackie wasn’t just overeating.

“Blackie wrecked the stable.”

“Um….”

“By the way, she also gobbled up two warhorses.”

“…”

“Well, at least we’ll save on feed costs for the horses.”

Cecilia muttered sarcastically, and I sneakily glanced at Ophelia.

“Why are you looking at me? You’re the parent! It’s your job to train the kids!”

“…sigh.”

Blackie was a true mischievous dragon, after all.

But I never thought I could train a dragon, especially a dignified and egocentric black dragon.

“At this rate, the Ice Palace will go bankrupt.”

“…ha, haha.”

“History books will record it as a ridiculous country that fell due to a dragon.”

Cecilia’s expression was utterly serious.

By the way, she had dark circles under her eyes, and it seemed the cause wasn’t solely the fallout from the Purification Church. Blackie probably had a hand in half of it.

Being pushed this far, I had no choice. I wasn’t someone like Ophelia who could keep a straight face.

“I’ll try training her.”

AS is important.

“Do you have a method? Dragons are notoriously untrainable creatures.”

“Sir Cecilia, there was a saying in the world I came from.”

“What is it?”

Ophelia, who was munching on the unidentifiable soup, tilted her head curiously.

“It’s a method I used on Ophelia once.”

“On me?”

I raised the corners of my mouth.

“Punishment is the best medicine.”

At those words, Ophelia’s shoulders twitch.

*

That afternoon.

“What the hell is going on with all this…?”

Archery Master Erwin propped his chin on his hand, staring out of the window at the garden and gaping.

Even though she had lived for several hundred years, this was her first time witnessing a dragon.

And it was also her first time seeing a human taking on that dragon with such force.

Wham!

The shockwave rippled through.

With a serious punch, Blackie went tumbling down.

Though an indignant roar escaped her lips, before that roar could end, another fist connected with her jaw.

“Hey, a human is beating a dragon.”

“…It seems so.”

Even Wuzmund next to me halted his activities at this bizarre sight.

Should I call it bizarre or cruel?

“So why is that happening?”

“It seems it’s called… training.”

“Training, you say? That’s what this is?”

Elliot had stepped out to train the troublesome black dragon Blackie, proceeding into the garden….

[Kiiruk?]
“Understand this.”

With those words, he delivered another punch.

Of course, there’s a concept of training in elven society too. Leaving children in the Great Forest’s vast floodwaters, allowing them to find their own way home while developing knowledge about the forest is a form of education or trial.

But even Erwin had never seen training that involved punching. After all, they aren’t trying to raise the dragon to be a martial artist, are they?

How could that possibly be called training? Wouldn’t it simply instill a hatred of humans in the dragon? Erwin was left utterly astounded.

So she cast a glance at the girl next to her.

“What do you think?”

The question was directed at Ophelia, who was in the same room, but…

“Why are you looking at me?”

Strangely, Ophelia was huddled with her shoulders drawn up, keeping her mouth shut tight, with an expression in her eyes that seemed filled with empathy regarding Blackie.

As if she had some painful past…

“Ah.”

Erwin quickly guessed the reason.

This little saint in front of her shared a similar past with the black dragon, getting beaten like a dog on a hot summer day.

“Such a despicable creature…”

Erwin could only think those sentiments.

*

[Kiing…]
“Good girl. That’s it.”

I thought the training had gone well.

Blackie was no longer rampaging and instead crammed into a corner of the stable, panting heavily.

Of course, the gaze she gave me wasn’t particularly fond, and her docile behavior might simply be due to exhaustion, but…

“Well, is this the resolution?”

In any case, I achieved my goal, so that’s a win.

Despite her demonstrating resistance as a dragon, she still couldn’t stand up to me since I wasn’t yet at full maturity.

“Sir Elliot….”

“Yes. It’s all over now. She’ll be quiet for a while.”

“Well, that’s true. She shouldn’t move.”

Cecilia stared at the fainted Blackie for a while before turning to me.

“By the way….”

“Yes?”

“Is training the Saintess done in the same way…?”

“…”

I cleared my throat and nodded before saying what was true.

“Only in the beginning…”

“Ah, yes….”

And thus, the conversation came to an end.

It wasn’t summer.

*

“Emily, long time no see.”

“I almost died…”

“You almost died?”

“I was bored….”

A few hours later, I was finally face to face with Emily, who had been under house arrest by Ophelia for a week.

In just this short time, Emily had become quite gaunt, and upon seeing me, she couldn’t contain her excitement. However, a curious look appeared on her face when she noticed the object I brought.

“So, this is the list that the possessor had?”

The possessor Ian disappeared, leaving behind only his lower half. The Maleficarum, which hung from his waist, naturally fell into my possession.

I had come to visit Emily to analyze the Maleficarum. I had previously attempted it with Ophelia as well, but she had discovered only that it was an artifact.

Emily placed her hand on the scripture and infused it with mana. It seemed to be emotion-based magic.

“Can I take this?”

A few minutes later, Emily opened her eyes, having just awakened.

“Isn’t this dangerous? It was a tool used by a Dark Mage.”

“No, it’s not dangerous. This is a magic book. An incredibly rare one at that.”

“A magic book? But it’s a list of possessors?”

“Yeah, it’s just a list overlaying an existing magic book.”

Emily flipped through the cover of the Maleficarum.

“I can’t use it as a magic book, but its value as an artifact is excellent.”

“Let me ask, what’s the effect?”

“Strengthening the power of summoning magic and evocation magic.”

“Oh.”

That definitely aligned with Emily’s areas of expertise.

Of course, the Maleficarum was still a prized possession from the Purification Church and the Demon King’s forces.

I would need to get permission, but no leader would refuse to give something to Emily Barried, a member of the Hero party and future Archmage.

“Alright, you can keep it.”

“Yay!”

Emily nodded and tucked the Maleficarum away in her drawer, locking it up.

Simultaneously, she gazed at me with sparkling eyes.

“So, what happened?”

“What do you mean what happened.”

“Since then! With the Saintess!”

“…With Ophelia?”

“You said ‘I have no one but you’! How romantic! Isn’t it sweet?! Love is in the air!”

“…”

She was probably referring to the not-so-innocent affair from that day.

Because of this sly girl, my declaration toward Ophelia ended up plastered on the front page of the newspaper.

My fist clenched.

Of course, right after beating Blackie, I didn’t end up smashing Emily’s face.

Instead,

“Ophelia.”

“What?”

I called out to Ophelia, who had been eavesdropping from behind.

I rose slightly and casually mentioned it.

“Let’s add another week of house arrest.”

“That’s quite a deal, Elliot.”

Ophelia raised an eyebrow, glancing at Emily.

“I just happened to think the same thing.”