Reincarnated as a dragon’s egg ～Lets aim to be the strongest～

xistence, and provide the power to maintain that state.
And, once the divine skills are lost, monsters become unable to maintain such a body.
The Hero Irushia had his maximum level drastically lowered.
The slime Demon Lord became degraded and had its stats substantially decreased, before eventually forcing through an evolution and taking on the [God of Destruction] status condition.

『…Surely even you can’t do anything after being reduced to this state.』

I say to Lilixira.
Her eyes regard me for a moment, then turn back to the skies above the valley.

“…Ahh, that’s right.
I’ve lost.”

Lilixira mutters as if it were another person’s matter.
She might not even have the energy left to even muster up emotion.
Her state is that haggard.

“Even though I understood what the shield could do… to think that I’d fall for such an obvious trick.
Since you were the user, I might have been a little careless.”

『…What did you see?』

I had planned on killing her straight away.
And yet, I find myself suspending the foreleg I raised, and spontaneously starting a dialogue with her.

Maybe it’s because I’ve clearly won.
Right before taking the life of Lilixira who I’ve detested this much, strangely enough, I’m perfectly calm.

Because the scale of the battle had gotten so overwhelmingly large, perhaps I’ve been resenting the image of Lilixira that I had built up in my mind, rather than Lilixira herself.
From the start, without knowing anything about her objective, I stood in opposition to her sudden betrayal and attempt to dispose of me.

After quietly hesitating for a moment, Lilixira speaks softly.

“I didn’t think I would have to turn my blades against that child for a second time.”

Hearing her words, I understand.
The [Oneiros Flugel] showed Lilixira an illusion of Alphiss.
At the time, I had no idea what she could have possibly been shown to make her unconsciously lower her swords… But if it was Alphiss, I can begin to understand.

It stood out that Lilixira, who’d fought in the opening phase with reliability foremost on her mind, gradually started taking crude actions towards the end.
I believed that she probably had no choice but to attack due to the time limit from [Chakra Awakening]’s continuous HP and MP consumption, but that alone won’t account for it.
Right at the very end, I was even suspicious that Lilixira had an ulterior motive behind deliberately fighting without bothering to cover up her weaknesses.

In hindsight, once Alphiss arrived, Lilixira clearly broke down.
Her breakdown was even more obvious once she’d killed her with her own hands.
If Alphiss didn’t come, I might never have been able to land so many attacks, with her being so pathologically focused on her risk-averse way of fighting.

『If she was that important to you, it’d be much better if you didn’t bring her along! Of all people, why ask such a…』

“She’s an excellent person, and above all, a holy knight.
She had hoped for such a way of life herself.
She must have been fully resolved, even if things were to end this way.”

『That’s why I said…!』

“I’ve sacrificed thousands of lives up till now, but my friend is special so I don’t want her to die – there’s no way I could say something so selfish.
The weight of one’s life isn’t a matter of their station after all.”

Hearing her speak, I can only stare blankly.
I ponder over her words for a moment, then partially lower the foreleg I had raised.

『…Is that… so.』

I respond, weakly.