AIWON Mall Isekai Store, Grand Opening Today! - Chapter 121
Episode 10-23
“Does having a sandy beach here mean it’s connected to the sea after all?”
I muttered as I stepped firmly onto the sand under my feet.
I also approached the water, dipped a finger in, and tasted it.
Salty.
“Well, of course, Manager-san. After all, there’s a ‘Water Dragon Queen’ here.”
“No, even if you say that like it’s common sense… Since it’s ‘Water,’ it could be a lake, right?”
“Ugh. Well, that’s true.”
“GRRRROOOAAARR!”
A dragon’s roar made me turn around.
The body of Barbera, in her dragon mode, was glowing.
“Hey, wait, Barbera, wait! If you’re glowing, that means you’re transforming, so if you turn human here…”
“Toh!”
“Look, your clothes! Put on some clothes quickly!”
I offered a loose dress to Barbera, who stood proudly with her chest out and hand raised. I kept my gaze averted—after all, she was completely naked. No matter that she’s actually 140 years old, if she looks like a 10-year-old girl, seeing her naked is not okay.
By the way, the clothes were from a magic tool, the “Item Pouch,” which I borrowed from Anna-san.
Thank you, Anna-san, you’re like a real mom. Even though you’re undead.
It’s the 27th day since I became the manager of the Aion Mall Otherworldly Store.
This was my second business trip to another world, but I had come to an island instead of a port town this time.
Barbera’s homeland, the “Twin Dragon Island,” a habitat of the iguanas.
In the center of the island, there is a mountain with a crater, and the area around the mountain is sunken.
Apparently, part of it connects to the sea and forms a “bay.”
However, the island is surrounded by steep cliffs, so it’s unclear where the seawater comes from. Perhaps there’s a crack under the water’s surface.
Barbera, in her dragon form, landed near the center of the island, on the edge of a bay with a white sandy beach.
The island is covered in dense trees, like a tropical island.
There are no signs of human habitation.
“So this is Barbera’s hometown… It does have a bit of a dragon-like vibe, I guess? But it doesn’t seem to be so far from the mainland that it’s an isolated island.”
“Well, it’s not that far. But no humans come here.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Heh, well, Manager-san, who would want to be attacked by a pack of wyverns or lesser dragons while at sea?”
“Oh, right, that. A ship would be easily sunk by them, huh? So there are lesser dragons, too?”
“…I am a proper dragon. Strong.”
“You’re strong, and smart, and you can transform into a human. Very impressive.”
I patted Barbera’s head, and her tail thumped around in the sand.
She even managed to put on the dress properly—good job. By the way, Anna-san didn’t provide any underwear. I’m glad I didn’t have to hand over underwear to a girl who looks 10 years old. Was that really a good thing?
“So, what are we going to do on Twin Dragon Island? Also, we’re not going to be attacked by wyverns or lesser dragons, right?”
“…We’re fine.”
“Yeah, don’t worry, Manager-san. No one on this island would dare attack the Ojou. As for what we’re going to do—”
The iguana stopped mid-sentence.
The once-quiet island, filled only with bird calls, suddenly became noisy with rustling and splashing sounds.
“W-what’s that? Could it be monsters? Are we really under attack?”
I looked around frantically.
I could hear leaves rustling in the forest at the foot of the mountain and splashing sounds from deep in the bay.
“…They’re here.”
“Wait, Barbera, what’s here? This is not the time to be so terse! Oh, wait, is it your dad and mom?”
“…No.”
It certainly didn’t sound like a large creature like a dragon was approaching. It didn’t seem like someone in human form, either.
Feeling tense, I stepped in front of Barbera.
Even knowing she’s a dragon, it wouldn’t look right to hide behind a girl who looks 10 years old. After all, a manager protects his employees.
“Oh! We’re back!”
The iguana shouted towards the approaching group.
It seemed like the newcomers were not monsters.
“Welcome back, Anii!”
“It’s been a while, Ojou!”
“Ani, how far did you go this time?”
“Ooooooooh! The Ojou has returned!!”
The rustling and splashing noises grew closer.
A whole lot of iguanas.
“Wow, iguanas are fast when they run. Also, they’re kind of scary when there are so many of them. Them approaching in a group is like a horror scene.”
I tried to escape from reality and gazed into the distance.
I could see more iguana shadows flickering in the distance. I wonder how many there are. Since they’re all speaking members of the “dragon-kin,” I should probably count them as entities. Or is it better to call them people?
Faced with this unanswerable question, I quietly patted Barbera’s head.
By the way, the “Ani” from the port town is the only one wearing a small hat and a little backpack.
That really helps since they all look the same.
“Anii is amazing! We can only go as far as the bay, but big bro can run all the way to the port town on the sea!”
“Stop it, stop it, that’s embarrassing.”
“Huh? Did you say Barbera flew that distance, but you were running on the water surface? Magic is amazing…”
“Hey, cut it out, even Manager-san is saying it now.”
It seemed the group of iguanas had only come to greet the iguana leader from the port town and Barbera.
After a few words, they left, leaving only a few behind.
“Still, there are a lot of ‘dragon-kin’ on this island, aren’t there?”
“Haha, that’s thanks to Ojou here.”
“…Is that so?”
“The Ojou may say otherwise, but back when a harsh winter nearly wiped out our group, I was the best at magic, so I took a gamble and ran across the sea.”
“Huh, a harsh winter… Maybe I should think about some winter products. But then again, if a simple refrigerated case was enough to make them freeze, it might not be that cold.”
“But I ran out of magic and lost consciousness. I washed up in this bay and was saved by the Ojou here when she was still a baby dragon.”
“Oh, so she’s your lifesaver, no, dragon-kin saver.”
“…I just didn’t eat him.”
“Well, after that, Aniki and Aneki nearly killed me for being an intruder! I really thought I’d become dragon meat back then!”
“You seem weirdly happy about that. What happened to saving your group from a crisis?”
“But we don’t look like we have much intelligence, so we were allowed to stay here on the condition that we ‘monitor human intruders.’”
“Oh, so that’s how it is. Good to know I’m not the only one shocked by talking iguanas.”
“Being a pair of dragons from legend, normally they wouldn’t care how strong humans are. But back then, the Ojou was around, you see.”
“I see. They were worried that young Barbera might be targeted by adventurers looking for the ‘Fire Dragon King and Water Dragon Queen.’ This island is pretty big, so they might miss something.”
“That’s right!”
So it seems that the reason why the iguanas, or rather the dragon-kin, live on Twin Dragon Island is thanks to Barbera.
I see. So, iguanas don’t grow into dragons. And they’re not connected by some kind of reptilian kinship either.
While I was thinking about that, Barbera suddenly looked up.
She glanced at the bay and then toward the mountain beyond the forest.
“…They’re here.”
“Ah… um, is it Barbera Papa and Mama this time?”
“…Yes.”
It’s the 27th day since I became the manager of the Aion Mall Otherworldly Store.
Lately, I feel like I’ve been meeting the families of my employees a lot. Though, it’s mostly been Barbera’s parents.
As for Anna-san… that’s another story. Chloe’s family? Hmm, I’d rather avoid meeting them if I can.