[Alkelios’ point of view]

 The moment when I found myself walking around Toros with my sick girlfriend in search of a room to let her get some rest, my brain pressed ALL the panic buttons! It couldn’t have been just one or two... it had to be all of them!

Therefore, I was just walking like a robot with spinning eyes and trying my best to remain calm, but this in itself was nothing but a fleeting dream. Seryanna sneezed from time to time, but I could tell that many of the dragons here were afflicted with this condition. So far, no deaths occurred, or maybe it wasn’t something fatal to begin with.

Whenever I thought about a so-called magic illness, my mind went back and forth between the definitions. To think that a virus or bacteria could be enhanced through magic wasn’t an absurd idea to begin with, after all, other living organisms could do the same. The problem was how exactly did the Magic Energy affect the individual? In Brekkar’s case, I could more or less figure it out, but even then, I had no idea why or how in the world the cure worked on him.

“Are you alright?” Seryanna asked me.

“Me?! Of course! I’m totally fine! Of course!” I said nodding about ten times in two seconds.

“Alkelios... I’m over here. That’s a Khosinni you are talking to.” she patted me on the shoulder.

“Huh?” I adjusted my invisible glasses and squinted my eyes at the creature in front of me. “Yes, that’s definitely not you, Seryanna.” I spoke like I had just discovered something important.

With a bored look on his face, the Khosinni puffed once.

“No, seriously, are you alright?” she asked and then cutely sneezed again.

“Yes, I’m more worried about you... too worried maybe?” I said as I stepped away from the Khosinni and rubbed my nasal bone.

“I have a feeling I’m doing better than you.” she replied with a soft smile and took my hand.

“I’m just worried...” I showed her weak smile.

“I know... and that makes you cute.” she smiled back and gently touched my cheek.

Her hand was warm, but I couldn’t tell if she had a fever or not. Either way, I had to hurry with my search for a free room in a town packed to the brim with soldiers. Seryanna was depending on me. Even so, despite my humongous amount of Luck, I still felt like a chicken running around without a head.

“You blasted kids!” a dragon yelled.

Curious, I turned my head to look at him and saw this well-dressed old man waving his stick at a group of children who were running away from him. On a closer look, I noticed that his cart’s wheel was broken, and several crates inside were flipped over.

“I wonder if... Hm. Seryanna, I’m going to go talk to that old dragon. I’ll be right back.” I said.

She also noticed the old man and gave me an approving nod, so I approached him.

“Hello. Are you alright?” I asked him with a smile.

“Hm? What do you want? I have no coins to spare! Shoo! Shoo!” he waved me off.

“No, I’m not a beggar. I’m a passing by adventurer, and I noticed you were in trouble. Do you need a helping hand?” I asked him.

“Do I look that old to you?” he glared at me and puffed a flare from his nostrils.

So dragons can do that as well, huh? I thought when I saw this, then I replied to his question, while showing him a calm smile “I don’t think age matters when you need a helping hand.”

“Hmph! Wise kid. Very well, help me fix my cart then!” he told me.

“Sure!” I smiled.

Thanks to my strength, I was able to easily help the old dragon repair the wheel and fix the boxes in his cart. To his surprise, it didn’t take more than half an hour.

“Well! I’m mighty thankful to you, kid! You helped me out quite a lot! You are strong too!” he laughed as he patted my back.

“Thank you.” I smiled.

“So, how much should I pay ya for this?” he narrowed his eyes at me as if he was expecting me to scam him of the skin on his back.

“I don’t remember asking anything in return?” I told him and tilted my head to the left.

“You’re telling me you did this out of the kindness of your heart?!” he looked at me with big eyes as if I said something amazing.

“I shouldn’t have?” I blinked surprised.

“No! No! It’s just that... well... Most people who wish to ‘help’ me, usually want something in return.” he declared and shrugged.

“No, sir. Well... if there’s anything you could help me with, there is only one thing.” I told him.

“Hm?” he squinted his eyes at me.

“Do you happen to know anyone who could rent me and my girlfriend a room for the night?” I asked.

“Girlfriend?” he asked raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, the dragoness over there...” I said and when I turned my head to look at Seryanna, I saw her leaning against the wall, heaving.

“She doesn’t look too good...” he muttered.

“She came down with a cold...” I told him. “Hence my predicament. But if you don’t know anyone, there’s no problem. Have a nice day, mister...” I told him and then went over to the dragoness.

“Ah! Wait!” the old man said.

“Hm?” I turned and looked at him.

“I may actually know someone who so happens to have a spare room. Follow me.” he said and then jumped in his cart.

“We’ll be right behind you.” I told him and went over to Seryanna. “How are you feeling? Sorry for leaving you like this.”

“No problem... You wished for something?” she asked as she entrusted herself to me.

Thanks to my strength, I could barely feel her weight, but she was clearly in a weakened state.

“Status.” I said.

 

[Name]: Seryanna Draketerus

[Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Flame

[Awakened Status]: 2 of 4 Conditions met.

[Level]: 341

[Strength]: 1720+362.9 (-1390)

[Speed]: 1213+398.5 (-890)

[Dexterity]: 1105+357.95 (-759)

[Magic]: 946+268.72 (-610)

[Luck]: 12

[Magic Excellence]: 30%+4.48%

[Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero’s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.>

[Current Debuffs]: [Unawakened One] < -60% All Stats; -1000 Magic Energy; Elemental Attacks deal 20% more damage; Dragon Form Sealed; Half-Dragon form Sealed; 40% Less appealing to the opposite sex;> [Unlucky One] < -50% Luck>

[Weakened] <All stats are reduced by up to 85% for the duration of the Dragon Flu>

[Illness]: [Dragon Flu]: <Magic Illness caused by one of the many Magic Energy Enhanced Viruses responsible for the Common Cold. Causes: overworking, contact with an infected individual (Depends on the individual’s Luck), weakened immune system coupled with intensive Magic Energy consumption. Effects: high fever, shivers, coughing, sneezing, inability to channel Magic Energy, inability to regenerate at high speed. Cure: Vitamin Supplement, Good Rest, Rotiqus Potion >

 

It didn’t look that bad. It even said it was a form of the Common Cold, so there was no reason to freak out about it, although, if one didn’t get enough rest and proper food to eat, there was a high chance for this thing to get a lot worse.

I selected the Rotiqus Potion to see if I could make it.

 

Rotiqus Potion: Requires Grand Apprentice Alchemist to brew. Ingredients: Dragon Grass, Adeline Root, Salt, Water.

 

It was quite simple to make, and the ingredients could be found everywhere. I meant like literally everywhere! The so-called Dragon Grass was actually the grass growing on the ground and the Adeline Root was the root of every single tree around here.

With a sigh of relief, I closed the windows.

“What’s wrong?” Seryanna asked and then coughed once.

“I found out how to cure this affliction of yours. As I guessed, it’s nothing but a magically enhanced common cold...” I let out another sigh.

“Is this disease common on Earth?” she asked.

“Everyone gets it from time to time...” I shrugged.

“I see...” she then looked ahead and smiled softly.

She must have been relieved to hear that it wasn’t something too serious, but for me to actually help her get through this, I had to give her lots of fluids to drink, that Rotiqus Potion, some vitamins, and finally make sure she got plenty of rest.

“Kid, we’re here.” the old dragon stopped the cart after a while in front of what looked like one of the biggest stores around here.

“Fancy place...” I said.

“Thank you!” the old dragon smirked and rubbed the tip his nose with his finger.

“It’s yours?!” I looked at him with big eyes.

“Of course! I’m Rodrique Vanazalez, the great dragon who owns this store here! My goods are known to be the best in town!” he laughed as he held his hands on his hips and pushed his chest forward.

This must be why he acted like that before... I thought, then I introduced myself “A pleasure to meet you, mister Vanazalez. My name is Alkelios.”

I forgot to add my family name, but in this world, it wasn’t mandatory to have one.

“My name is Seryanna.” the dragoness introduced herself.

“A pleasure to meet the two of you, now follow me inside!” he said.

“The pleasure is ours, mister Vanazalez...”

I followed him inside together with Seryanna. There, several clerks bowed to him as soon as they saw him. I was surprised by their gesture, but if it was this respected dragon who was going to help us, then finding a spare room would be a cinch! My Luck had struck again!

“There’s a room upstairs.” he said as he offered me a key.

“Huh? Here?” I asked surprised, again.

“Of course!” he laughed.

“But... Well...” I took the key a bit dumbfounded.

“What’s wrong kid?” he asked.

“I believe he thought you were just going to introduce us to someone...” Seryanna spoke on my behalf.

“Yeah... that. I don’t mean to impose on you, but if you are offering us this room, thank you very much!” I said with a smile.

“You helped me with my cart, and I can see you are an honest kid! Don’t worry about it! Oh, and I have some Rotiqus Potions here if you want to buy some. I heard they are good for this Dragon Flu of hers.” he smirked.

“That and plenty of rest, healthy food, and lots of fluids.” I said with a smile.

“Hm, I never heard of the others... Why are those things important?” he asked.

“I believe it allows the body to heal itself properly. This disease practically makes a dragon’s regeneration as slow as a human’s, so... if they heal at the same rate, then plenty of rest, healthy food to restore one’s energy, and lots of fluids to replace those lost through sweat are recommended.” I explained.

“Hm, I see... Never thought about that. I’ll keep it in mind.” he said as he rubbed his chin.

“How much for the Rotiqus Potions? Well, if you have some Dragon Grass, Adeline Root, and salt, I can make it myself.” I said.

“Oh? Are you an alchemist by any chance?” he asked curiously.

“Yes.” I nodded.

“What rank?”

“Grand Master.” I replied.

Technically, I was a [Bartender], but the level 3 equivalent was the Grand Master Alchemist.

“Oh! And so young too!” he said surprised.

“Do you know how to make Virlullian Potions?” he asked.

“Erm... If you show me one, I think I can.” I nodded.

“If you can make one, I’ll give you as many Rotiqus Potions, free food, and whatever else you need for as long as you stay here!” he said with as smile.

“Sure... Why not?” I smiled back.

“Then it’s a deal, kid! I’ll bring you one, and you can tell me what you need to make it. Meanwhile, go and take the young lady to your room. It’s on the first floor to the right.” he said and then walked to the back of the store.

“Again, thank you.” I told him.

The room itself was a simple one with one bed, a writing desk on the opposite side, a table with two chairs near it, and a window with a view to the front street. That being said, the furniture itself was a few levels above what I would normally find in a common inn. It looked more similar to a noble’s room than anything.

Looking at it, I wondered if it was normal for someone to rent out such a gorgeous room to someone they had just met on the street. Maybe this was a one-time occasion, so he didn’t really mind it that much. Although, to be fair, I was more surprised to find out that he let us inside his store even after he saw that Seryanna was sick.

Weird dragon... I thought, but I thanked him in my heart.

This room was just what we needed.

“Alkelios... can you help me with my armor?” the weakly dragoness asked.

“Sure.” I replied as I led her to a chair.

After she sat down, I helped her take off her armor piece by piece. It took me a while because it was tied tight so that it wouldn’t come loose during combat, but once I was done, she showed me a sweet smile. Placing the back of my hand on her forehead, I checked her temperature, which was pretty high.

“You need to get some rest and some food to restore your energy.” I told her.

“I’m going to need to take a bath if I am going to get into that bed...” she said.

“Yeah, me too...” I spoke with a low volume as I looked at the fancy furniture.

We haven’t bathed in almost three days, so the stench on us was noticeable, especially Seryanna, who was sweating constantly because of her condition.

“I’m going to go downstairs and ask them for a tub or something, if not, I’ll just bring a barrel.” I said as I looked back at her.

“Thank you.”

I left the room and went downstairs to ask one of the clerks about a bathtub. While doing so, I also met with mister Vanazalez, who showed me one of those Virlullian Potions. It was a hair rejuvenation potion that also worked as a health tonic. It required a Trusted Journeyman Alchemist to make, so it was completely within my ability. I told him the ingredients I required for it and that I will set up the lab in the room he offered us, afterwards, I was offered a metal bathtub, two towels, and two bathrobes from the spare stock he had. I thanked him for it and brought it up to the room. Filling it with water and heating it up was going to be a bit trickier than initially anticipated, but after a lot of splashing and switching between spells, I managed to do it. Seryanna guided me through as well.

“I’m going to go down and prepare something good to eat for you. I’ll be back in twenty minutes or so...” I told her.

“Very well...” she replied with a weak voice.

Judging from what I knew, twenty minutes was enough time for her to get cleaned up. I also made sure to close the windows so no perverts could sneak a peek at MY dragoness.

Once I was downstairs, I headed to the kitchen and with the help of the cook there, I prepared a quick meal. My Luck came to the rescue once more because there was some soup left. Besides this, I also made sure to take two bottles of Rotiqus Potion. It was dark brown in color and smelled like dirt, but I confirmed with my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill that it was the real deal.

Once I was done, I returned to the room. I knocked on the door, and Seryanna answered.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me.”

“Alkelios? Um, you can come in...” she said.

I opened the door and carefully entered while pushing the door with my back. In my hands I was holding the tray with the plates of food, so I had to be careful not to drop or spill them.

“I brought you some soup.” I told her.

“T-Thank you.” she replied.

When I turned around and closed the door with my foot, I found myself looking at the naked redhead dragoness who was still in the bathtub.

“Erm...” I was stumped, my eyes glued to her body.

“S-Stop starring... it’s embarrassing.” she looked away.

“I wish I could, but... damn, you look hot!” I said and then walked over to the desk.

I placed the tray on the desk and sat down in the chair.

“You are still starring.” she glared at me.

“I can’t?” I asked.

“Erm...” she refused to answer.

“Do you need help?” I asked again.

She was silent for a moment, but then, with a shy look in her eyes, she nodded once. I got up from the chair and walked over to her. The dragoness did well to hide all of her important parts, but since she gave the OK, I was going to scrub her clean!

Ten minutes later, I was on my knees with a shocked look on my face.

I actually did this in the most serious way possible! I didn’t try to peek! I didn’t try to grope her! Men all over the world, I apologize... I failed! I thought, albeit a bit exaggerated.

“This soup is good.” she said as she ate her food while wearing only a white bathrobe.

“Good to hear...” I said while trying to hold my tears in.

That was the lousiest time ever to go into my serious mode, but if she stayed for too long in there, she could have ended up getting worse. My needless worry for her health state made me miss a good ‘massage’ session with her.

Oh well, there’s going to be another chance in the future. I’m sure of it! I thought and then let out a sigh.

“I’m going to change the water...” I said as I lifted the bathtub and walked out.

If I still had a human’s strength, I wouldn’t have been able to easily lift that thing. Thank God for Magic and status points! Or was it ‘Thank the god-like?’.

Once I returned, Seryanna was still eating. By the time I had finished filling it with water, she was already done with her meal, and she tucked herself into bed. Before I got into the bath, I gave her the Rotiqus Potion to drink.

I allowed myself a few minutes to soak into the warm water. It did wonders for my joints and feet. Afterwards, I cleaned myself up and got out. I emptied the tub and then washed it. With this out of the way, I turned my attention towards filling my empty stomach with some veggies and dried meat.

Without anything else to do, I slipped into bed with Seryanna.

“How are you feeling?” I asked her.

“Better...” she replied with her eyes closed.

We were both sitting on our own side of the bed, but for some reason, I was a nerve wreck.

This is not good... I thought.

I was in a room with a beautiful woman who was also my girlfriend, and I was sitting there like a piece of furniture next to her. My brain was squirming around in my noggin, wondering what I should do.

It took me another ten minutes to get the hint. Luck didn’t save me this time... I just thought about what wouldn’t be polite to do. Obviously, suddenly embracing her wouldn’t be alright in my head for some reason, so I did just that.

When I pulled myself close to her and then wrapped my arms around her, she didn’t pull away, instead she simply opened her eyes and looked at me with a weak gaze.

“What are you doing?” she asked me.

“Acting as a pillow.” I replied with a smile.

“Good... I need one...” she said.

Closing her eyes, she tucked in closer to me.

It was then when her bathrobe was partially undone and skin touched skin. I gulped and froze for a moment. It was too good to be true, but I didn’t back away. This could have been a chance to lead me to Nirvana and finally cross the river to manhood. With a beauty like her in my arms, how could I refuse? So, I pulled her closer to me.

“Mm...” she let out a soft moan when one of my hands rested on her buttock.

The other was around her waist.

She snuggled close and didn’t care about the fact that there was no piece of cloth between us. However, despite how hot it was under that blanket, she was still shivering...

What am I thinking? She’s sick now... Sigh... At least, I didn’t get an unexpected raise of the flag. I thought to myself and moved my hands up.

“Sleep well, Seryanna.” I whispered to her.

“Mhm...” she replied.