Shoujo Hater-Chapter 58 - 53: Asaria and Escanor

In the Magma Empire, a part of the Continent of Sacred Majesty,

one of its training arenas blazed with a fierce clash between two dragons.

One was a young male.

The other was a fully grown female.

They collided in a fiery battle of molten breath, their auras crashing violently against each other.

Then boom.

The female dragon’s breath surged and hurled Escanor against one of the mountains.

She shifted her form and shot forward like a meteor. With a strike of both hands, she pierced Escanor’s abdomen and drove him deep into the mountain.

Escanor’s body slammed into the rock and he spat orange blood.

He returned to his armored human-dragon form to activate his defensive state.

But before he could complete it, Asaria appeared beside him. She opened her hand and summoned a small sun, placing it near him.

With a swift beat of her wings, she returned to stand behind him before the attack launched itself at Escanor.

The sun grew rapidly until it surrounded him and began burning his magma.

“Aaaah!”

Escanor’s scream echoed while his head wavered left and right.

His eyes slowly turned orange.

Then the sun that had begun burning him was absorbed completely into his body.

A moment later, he vanished from Asaria’s sight with a speed almost impossible to perceive.

Smash.

His fist crashed into Asaria’s face, making her spit blood.

But her energy surged just as quickly. Her expression sharpened and boom, she launched her fist toward Escanor. All he saw was her shadow and the blur of her unreadable punch aimed at his face.

He could not react at all.

Yet the punch did not strike him.

Instead, it passed beside him and gently pushed him from behind into a hug.

This strange behavior from his teacher made Escanor relax and return to his normal form.

“Well done, my dear student Esci.

You have begun to control the blessing of the Star of Iskania.

You truly are talented.

If you continue like this, you may ascend into the true realm of dragons one day.

But you are still far too weak, Esci.”

“Do not worry, Teacher. I will become stronger and reach the expectations you placed on me.

Then I can marry you and we can ascend to the higher world together.”

Escanor’s voice burst with excitement as if he were describing their shared future.

But before his imagination carried him any further, a sharp slap struck his backside and made him jump.

“Why did you hit me, Teacher?”

“I told you to stop this nonsense.

I am only your teacher.

And I am about to complete two thousand five hundred years while you are barely four hundred.

Just find a beautiful young dragoness and marry her.

Leave this old woman alone.”

“Do not say that, Teacher.

You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.

And you are the one who raised me since I was young. Without you, I would have died or become food for a dragon or some other creature.

You are the only woman I admire.

And I am willing to do anything you ask, Teacher Asaria.”

A smile appeared on Asaria’s face.

She seemed genuinely happy that there was a man who loved her, something she had never expected.

She had long given up hope of finding anyone who would care for her, because she was not beautiful.

Anyone who saw her real face, even dragons young and old, recoiled in disgust.

That was why she always wore a mask to hide her draconic features.

But the light inside her had been rekindled by a strange event on a strange day.

She had been on an exploration mission.

While flying, she found a dragon egg about to hatch while under attack by a flying greflin.

Her compassionate heart urged her to help.

She fired a sphere of molten breath that sent the greflin fleeing.

She shifted to her human-dragon form and picked up the egg.

Then she transformed into her full dragon form and flew to a tall yellow mountain.

She placed the egg there and slept upon it.

Several days later, she awoke to a gentle bite.

She turned, ready to kill whatever had disturbed her sleep, only to find a tiny dragon repeating,

“Ma... ma... ma...”

This was the birth of Escanor.

The strange thing about him was that he did not fear her face, the same face that even mighty dragons found revolting.

And so Asaria adopted him.

She trained him in the path of magma until he gained his blessing.

His form became similar to the magma dragon tribes thanks to his blessing and his environment.

Asaria trained Escanor to become stronger and stronger.

And as Escanor grew in power, his determination to turn their relationship from teacher and student into man and woman grew even stronger.

He had felt this way from childhood into youth.

Asaria thought it was only childish teasing meant to comfort her.

But he soon became serious.

Although she refused him, his persistence over the years began to move her heart.

She started to rethink her position.

“Hey, Teacher Asaria, what are you thinking about?”

“Nothing, Esci.”

“Alright, how about we leave and get something to eat?”

But before they could take flight, a flying dragon descended quickly in front of them.

“Lady Asaria, an urgent summons for you from the Emperor of Magma.”

“What happened?” Asaria asked, her face filled with concern.

“The exploration mission has failed.

Half of those who participated were killed.

Please proceed immediately to the emperor.”

The dragon then flew away to notify the rest of the summoned.

Asaria soared into the sky at high speed toward the palace of the Magma Dragon Emperor, her mask hiding her face.

Escanor followed behind her, watching the sharp expression that formed on her face.

After soaring for a few minutes, Asaria and Escanor arrived at the palace. Its massive doors, made of solidified magma, split open slowly, releasing a wave of intense heat.

They stepped inside, and their hearts trembled.

The hall was almost empty, with no trace of the rows of dragons that had departed on the expedition.

Only one dragon stood staggering in the center, having completely lost both of its arms. Molten blood dripped onto the floor in scattered streams.

Its body was covered in cracks and its chest shook with every breath as if it were about to collapse.

As for the rest, they had either died or vanished into some unknown place where no one knew whether they were alive or torn to pieces.

Before Asaria could take another step, a tall dragon appeared before her, covered in dark volcanic scales. His voice was filled with contempt.

“Asaria, I did not expect you to come with him.”

Escanor stopped, his eyes blazing with suspicion.

Asaria looked at him coldly.

“This is not the time for problems, Dragal.”

“The time for problems?” Dragal laughed sharply.

“We heard that you adopted this little one from outside the clan. Did you think you had the right to take a child who does not belong to the blood of the magma dragons? Or have you started to see yourself as a mother for anyone who happens to appear?”

He stepped toward Escanor and looked at him with clear disdain.

“This outsider. This newborn whose origin we do not know. Why do you insist on keeping him? Do you want to contaminate the blood of the tribe?”

Escanor clenched his fist, sparks from the blessing almost bursting out.

But Asaria raised her hand to stop him.

She continued with a hostile tone.

“Do not raise your voice at him. He is my disciple and my son, whether you like it or not.”

Dragal laughed mockingly.

“Your son? You are breaking the tribe’s laws for a child who may bring disaster upon us. We lost half the strength of the exploration squad, and now we discover a new hatchling under your protection. What exactly are you hiding, Asaria?”

She took a step toward him and the ground trembled under her feet.

“I am hiding nothing. But you, instead of searching for others’ mistakes, should try doing something useful for the tribe.”

For a moment it seemed the conflict would explode, but a heavy voice shook the hall.

“Enough.”

It was the voice of the emperor’s first guardian, who emerged from behind the massive columns, his wings glowing with magma.

“The emperor summons you immediately. Both of you will be sent to the Ma’hul to investigate the reason for the mission’s failure. Prepare yourselves.”

Dragal froze for a second, then looked at Asaria with burning anger.

“We will see who returns alive from the Ma’hul.”

He turned and left.

Asaria took a calm breath and headed toward the long corridor leading to the throne.

Escanor followed her in silence, but the fire inside him burned hotter than ever.