Chapter 7

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I would have to go to the Royal Capital soon.

 

Let me say it again.

—I would have to go.

 

I didn’t have a choice.

What made it worse, is that many of the town’s residents knew about it.

 

“…Hah… This is depressing.”

 

—The Dragon Mark appeared on the baker’s son. Fluffy Fenard, on 27th street.

 

It was something that many people knew about.

The rumor had spread all over town.

 

I had been on my way home after shopping for supplies.

Then I suddenly felt a pain in my head and ended up writhing on the ground.

 

I felt as if my head was going to split open.

It was as if my entire body was being ripped apart.

Pain. I just felt pain everywhere.

 

They say that when the Dragon mark appears on a person’s body, they feel a sensation that is stronger than anything they’ve felt before.

 

For some, it is a high fever, while others find it difficult to breathe.

Fatigue, the urge to vomit, shivering, and sometimes a burning sensation.

 

But for me, it was pain that racked my whole body. Pain. Pain. Pain.

 

And yet, there were some fortunate people who had the Dragon Mark appear in their sleep. Life really wasn’t fair.

 

“Aggghhhhh…”

I thrashed around on the street and shrieked maddeningly.

 

Apparently, some passersby found me and helped me.

But I don’t remember it too well.

 

I do remember people looking down at me and gasping.

They were looking at the Dragon Mark that had appeared on the back of my left hand.

 

“Whose child is this?”

“Isn’t he the baker’s boy?”

 

“Baker? Ah, the one on the main road.”

“No, the one on 27th street.”

 

“Ah, that one.”

“I know of it.”

 

“Alright, we must tell his parents.”

“But we can’t just leave him here like this.”

 

“Hey, a carriage is coming this way.”

“It’s dangerous. We should move him to the side of the road…no. We should have the carriage carry him. It’s an emergency!”

 

That was what was supposed to have been said.

But I was already unconscious by then.

 

The driver must have been shocked.

A crowd of people had stopped the carriage.

 

But still, the driver was kind and carried me to the bakery.

 

I was quite thankful for that.

Who knows how long people would have just stared at me had I not been helped.

 

That being said, you couldn’t stop people from talking.

And so word of the Dragon Mark that had appeared on my left hand spread throughout the town in just one day.

 

In Ryukoku, those who employed dragons and could control them as they pleased were called Dragon Masters.

 

Dragons were supposed to be like spirits.

They received physical bodies when coming to this world, and it was the Dragon Mark that was like a guide when crossing over.

 

The dragons were led by the Dragon Mark and appeared in this world.

 

“If only I didn’t have this…”

But there was no point in moaning about it now. And yet, I couldn’t help but wish that it hadn’t happened.

 

In Ryukoku, being a Dragon Master was a glamorous occupation. But you couldn’t just become one because you wanted to.

 

It was impossible to become one unless you were chosen by a dragon. It didn’t matter what titles, honors or fortune you possessed.

 

But on the other hand, it was mandatory to become a Dragon Master if the mark appeared.

You had no right to refuse.

 

I’ll say it again.

—No right to refuse.

 

The dragon comes by itself.

The mark gives away your location, and you cannot run from it.

 

“….Hahhh…”

 

All of this was known to the people of this country.

And the Dragon Mark was on my left hand.

 

I couldn’t stop sighing.

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Ryusousha ha Shizukani Kurashitai