Of course, that was not entirely an honest question. With Sha Nabqa Imuru, Kuro had already known the identity of the girl sitting before him from the very beginning.
However, he had no intention of revealing that fact and chose to ask like a normal person instead. Besides, whether he knew or not did not seem to be something the girl cared about.
The little girl remained silent for a moment. Rather than answering immediately, however, she calmly finished the piece of mousse cake in her hand.
After swallowing it, she finally opened her mouth.
"...I am Infinity." Her voice remained as flat as ever. "Ouroboros. You may call me Ophis."
Kuro's left eyebrow rose slightly.
"Hou?"
Ophis raised her right hand and pointed directly at Kuro.
"...And you are very interesting."
Kuro merely smiled faintly at the assessment. However, her next sentence made his expression turn slightly strange.
"Let's defeat Baka-Red."
Kuro blinked.
"Baka-Red?"
He thought for a few seconds before finally realizing who she meant.
"Ah..." Kuro leaned back against his chair. "You mean that old dragon, huh?"
Ophis nodded slowly.
"...Baka-Red."
Her tone was utterly confident.
Kuro himself fell silent for a moment as he recalled his encounter with Great Red the previous day.
Then he sighed.
"For some reason, I feel like he'd be extremely offended if he heard that nickname."
"...It doesn't matter."
"Why?"
"...Because he is Baka-Red."
Kuro stared at Ophis for several seconds, and Ophis stared back at him with the same expressionless face.
In the end, Kuro gave up trying to find the logic behind that particular name and picked up his coffee again.
"All right." He took a sip before continuing. "Then may I ask why you actually want to defeat Great Red?"
Ophis fell silent for a moment. Her hand reached for another macaron from the plate, and she took a small bite. After chewing for several seconds, she finally answered.
"...Because he exists."
Kuro blinked. "That's your reason?"
Ophis nodded.
"...I am Infinity."
"Hm."
"...He is annoying."
Kuro slowly rotated his coffee cup. "Because he lives in the Gap Dimension?"
"...Yes."
The answer came without hesitation.
Ophis took another sip of her milk tea before continuing.
"The Gap Dimension is mine."
"And?"
"He sleeps there. He flies around there."
Kuro waited.
"...He releases his aura everywhere."
Kuro slowly began to understand where this conversation was going.
"So basically, you're annoyed because he's squatting in your territory?"
Ophis nodded.
"...Parasite."
Kuro nearly choked on his coffee.
"That's a rather cruel way to describe the strongest dragon in the world."
"...Baka-Red."
"That's not any better."
Ophis seemed completely unconcerned. To her, perhaps the two terms meant essentially the same thing.
Kuro sighed softly.
"And you want me to defeat him?"
"...Yes."
"Why me?"
This time, Ophis did not answer immediately. Her half-lidded eyes studied Kuro for a while before briefly shifting toward the coffee cup in his hand.
When her gaze returned to Kuro, memories of the Gate of Babylon and the Sword of Rapture she had seen earlier resurfaced.
"...Because you can."
Kuro chuckled softly.
"That's not a convincing reason."
"...You are interesting."
"That's not a reason either."
"...You are strange."
"Oi."
"...I like strange things."
"That sentence sounds rather problematic coming from you."
Ophis tilted her head. Clearly, she did not understand what was problematic about it.
Kuro simply shook his head and gave up. But just as he was about to take another sip of his coffee, Ophis suddenly spoke again.
"...And."
"Hm?"
For the first time since their conversation began, Ophis's expression changed ever so slightly, becoming a little more serious—so subtly that it was almost impossible to notice.
"...If Baka-Red leaves." Ophis lowered her gaze toward the surface of her milk tea. "...I might be able to go home."
Kuro, who had been completely relaxed until then, fell slightly silent. For the first time, her reason no longer sounded like the complaint of a child annoyed because someone else had occupied her home. It sounded far more personal—and far lonelier.
"...I see."
Ophis did not answer. She simply picked up another macaron and ate it as usual. But this time, Kuro no longer regarded her request as merely a joke.
"But you know, right?" he continued. "If it's just me alone, that still won't be enough to defeat that old dragon."
"...Together with the white human, it can."
Kuro immediately knew who she meant.
Gabriel Michaelis. The white-haired boy who had fought him yesterday.
"That kid is troublesome," Kuro replied, shaking his head. "I wouldn't recommend it."
"...Together, we can."
"You're really stubborn." Kuro slowly rotated his coffee cup. "And even if we managed to get rid of that old dragon, who would guard the Gap Dimension?"
Ophis blinked slowly.
"From what I've seen, aside from sleeping and wandering around whenever he feels like it, Great Red also keeps watch over quite a few things. Threats from parallel worlds, extraterrestrial creatures, and who knows what else."
He glanced at Ophis.
"Do you really want that job?"
Ophis fell silent again, and for the first time since their conversation began, she seemed to genuinely consider the matter.
"...I can do it."
"Yes, you can." Kuro nodded before continuing. "But the problem is, you don't want to."
Ophis froze.
Kuro couldn't help smiling.
"My guess is right, isn't it?"
Several seconds passed before Ophis turned her gaze aside.
"...It's tiring."
"Yap."
"...I like being quiet."
"I know."
"...I like peace."
"I know that too."
"...I don't like working."
This time, Kuro genuinely laughed. His laughter flowed freely, making the coffee in his cup ripple slightly.
"That's the most honest reason you've given me since we started talking."
Ophis did not seem to think there was anything wrong with her admission. To her, it was simply a straightforward fact.
Meanwhile, Kuro raised his coffee cup again and took a slow sip. Silence descended for a moment, as calm as the surface of a lake without so much as a ripple.
A little while later, Ophis looked at him again through her half-lidded eyes.
"...Then become a new dragon."
Kuro nearly spat out his coffee. He hurriedly lowered the cup before pointing at himself in disbelief.
"Why me?"
"...You're strong."
"That's not a reason."
"...You're strange."
"That's not a reason either. Please don't start all over again."
"...You have a ship."
Kuro massaged his temple.
"What does that have to do with the ship?"
Ophis thought for a moment.
"...It looks suitable."
Kuro stared at Ophis for quite some time, hoping to find even the slightest hint of logic in that expressionless face. No matter how hard he looked, however, there was none.
Ophis's gaze remained as calm as a cloudless night sky, making it nearly impossible to tell what was going through her mind.
In the end, Kuro could only let out a long sigh. Somehow, for the first time, he was beginning to understand why Great Red preferred sleeping over having conversations with the Dragon God of Infinity.
"I think I understand now," he said. "Why Great Red would rather sleep than talk to you."
Rather than answering immediately, Ophis took another bite of her macaron. She chewed slowly, as though the question was not important enough to interrupt her meal.
Only after swallowing did she answer,
"...Because he is stubborn."
Kuro stared at Ophis.
Ophis stared back at him with the same expressionless face. Several seconds passed in silence before Kuro slowly raised a finger toward her.
"You do realize you're stubborn too, right?"
"...No."
The answer came without hesitation.
Precisely because it came so quickly, it became the most convincing proof that Ophis really was just as stubborn.
Kuro chuckled softly before raising both hands in surrender.
"All right, all right. I'll think about your offer."
Ophis merely gave a small nod, as though that was exactly the answer she had expected from the beginning.
The atmosphere fell silent again. Kuro finished the rest of his coffee before slowly placing the cup back on the table.
"Well, then," he said casually, "since you're here, there's actually something I've wanted to ask you."
Ophis raised her gaze.
"Hm?"
"I'd like to ask for a few scales from your true form. If you have any teeth that have naturally fallen out, I'd like those as well." He paused for a moment before adding, "Of course, I don't intend to ask for them for free. I'll pay you with something of equal value."
Ophis stared at Kuro for quite some time, seemingly considering his request.
"...What will you trade for them?"
Kuro smiled faintly.
"Anything you want." He leaned back in his chair. "As long as you don't ask me to defeat Great Red."
Ophis remained silent, listening.
"For example..." Kuro glanced at the table covered with various snacks and drinks. "All the food and drinks you've enjoyed today. Or anything else that's within my means."
Silence once again settled between them, and this time it was Ophis's turn to think.
___
Author's Note:
Oh? Turns out yesterday's chapters didn't get posted after all. 😅 Sorry about that—I didn't get the chance to check.
Anyway, here are 5 chapters as compensation! 😎
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Keep creating, even when writing fanfiction isn't easy! 😎