TDAA Ch 60

Rifez said the blue dragon’s body should have already died. A dragon that loses its mate is supposed to wither away and die soon after, but for some reason, the blue dragon hasn’t died and is still alive, though it seems to be going mad instead. She said she couldn’t be certain since this was the first time a dragon had lost its mate before even meeting them, but she suspected it was slowly dying from madness.

She said his behavior of treating Siol like a mate was likely because he desired a mate so badly that he mistook him for one.

“There’s no need to be ashamed. You were only deceived by the dragon’s attitude.”

“…Yes….”

“If you wish to escape from the dragon, I will help you. We protect wolves, no matter what.”

“…I’ll… think about it.”

“Good. I hope you make the decision to protect yourself.”

Leaving the dazed Siol behind, Rifez left the room.

Siol looked up at the moon beyond the window. Coincidentally, it was a full moon. The pale moonlight shone down on him.

A lie, he wanted to think. Even though he knew it couldn’t be.

Anyone who spreads lies about dragons is fated to be hunted down by the Demon King. The people living in this land fear the Demon King so terribly that they would never tell lies about dragons.

Only a dragon can speak lies about dragons. No, considering Ryufen lied about Eorzen’s amnesia, it seemed only a dragon, or someone instigated by a dragon, could do so.

“So that’s why you looked at me that way….”

He could finally understand why she had frowned in displeasure every time their eyes met. Rifez had thought the dragon was toying with Siol. The reason Rifez hated the dragon must be because a young wolf under her protection had died just for being his mate.

But, this was a truth he hadn’t wanted to hear.

Siol hugged his knees and buried his face in them. He knew that Rifez had come to tell him the truth out of goodwill. Rifez came to protect Siol, worried that a wolf who wasn’t even the dragon’s mate would suffer for staying by the blue dragon’s side. She had even offered to help him escape from that great dragon.

“……”

But he really hadn’t wanted to hear it.

Siol’s eyes, dark as if light had settled and turned black, closed listlessly.

He could have chosen not to believe this story. He could have dismissed it all as lies, telling himself that the blue dragon who had cared for him until now was far more trustworthy than the wolf chief he had just met today. He could have just ignored the existence of the Demon King, seeing only what he wanted to see and hearing only what he wanted to hear.

The reason he couldn’t was the reality that he couldn’t guide Eorzen with his current power. The blue dragon was on the verge of rampaging at any moment. Even if the blue dragon believed him to be his mate, his unstable soul, his body on the brink of rampage, supported Rifez’s claims.

In the quiet space where only the crackling of firewood in the fireplace echoed, Siol stared into the darkness and organized his thoughts.

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

“Siol.”

A familiar hand wrapped around Siol’s shoulder, whispering. Siol flinched and lifted his head. He was in the same position, sitting on the bed with his knees drawn to his chest. It seemed he had fallen asleep while lost in thought.

“Lord Eorzen….”

As Siol called out in a husky voice, Eorzen sat on the bed and reached out to him with both hands.

“Siol, may I hold you for a moment?”

“…Yes.”

At the sleepy permission, Eorzen pulled Siol into a tight embrace and buried his face in Siol’s neck. Eorzen’s coat, from being outside all this time, was filled with a cold chill. Siol hugged Eorzen back, chill and all, and listened to the sound of his breathing. Only after the seemingly weary, trembling breaths turned into a sigh of contentment did Eorzen let him go.

“Siol. Why were you sleeping so uncomfortably?”

“I woke up a while ago… and was thinking for a bit….”

“I told Ryufen to stay by your side… It seems he was being lazy again.”

Ryufen said he was held up by the other wolves. It seemed Ryufen was the popular type among the beastmen. The dogs adored Ryufen, and it looked like the wolves were the same. Even Rifez, though she ignored and taunted him, didn’t seem to dislike Ryufen.

Though it seemed he would be made to pay the price for running away.

Siol quickly shook his head, as if he could see a future where Ryufen got a serious scolding.

“Ryufen said he was held up by the other wolves. And if Ryufen had been here, it would have just been a bother.”

“Still, you wouldn’t have been dozing off sitting up like this.”

“No, it has nothing to do with Ryufen. I was just… waiting for you, Lord Eorzen….”

“For me.”

When he lifted his head to look up, Eorzen was watching him quietly. Amidst the affection, there seemed to be something probing as well. Eorzen smiled and once again buried his face in the crook of Siol’s neck.

“If I had known you were waiting like this, I would have returned sooner.”

With that, Eorzen simply rested his forehead or cheek against Siol’s neck and closed his eyes. Not inhaling his scent, just still like that. It seemed like he was confirming something, or perhaps feeling his warmth. Siol looked down at the top of Eorzen’s head and leaned his cheek against it. Then, he must have dozed off a little, because in a daze, he heard Eorzen’s soft chuckle.

“Shall we sleep?”

Siol couldn’t answer, busy rubbing his eyes. In that time, Eorzen tossed off his coat and slid into bed, next to Siol. He pulled Siol into his arms and buried his face in his hair. Through their joined chests, Siol could feel Eorzen’s heart thumping.

Siol’s heart was racing too. Just the fact that he was touching this man made his heart beat faster than usual. It wasn’t out of anticipation or nervousness for what might happen next. It was simply because he liked this moment.

After a brief, hesitant pause, Siol asked Eorzen.

“…Lord Eorzen, about me….”

“Yes. Please speak.”

“I… I….”

Do you like me? The question that couldn’t leave his lips swirled in his mouth.

“Siol?”

“…I will be sure to protect you.”

At that, Eorzen froze for a moment. He pulled Siol’s back into a tight hug and said in a trembling voice. No, was he imagining it? There was no reason for a dragon’s voice to tremble.

“You may do as you please, but you must not get hurt, no matter what.”

“…Yes.”

“Never.”

Looking into those earnestly pleading eyes, Siol felt as if he had received an answer to his unasked question. If these eyes, which wished for his well-being above all else, were not love, then what was?

However, even with the answer he wanted right before him, Siol grew gloomy. This profound expression of love was all the false heart of a dragon going mad without its mate? He couldn’t believe it, but he couldn’t not believe it either. Because even now, as they held each other so close, Eorzen, who looked at him with loving eyes, was unable to accept Siol’s guiding.

The time of delusion was short and sweet. The happiness he felt for a brief moment, believing himself to be the blue dragon’s mate, would become a memory he could never taste again. He recalled the night he left the human lands for this place, Atum. Siol had wanted to stop at the precarious line, not to be drawn into a deeper love. He wanted to love only as much as he wished, to build memories only as much as he wished, and to touch him only as much as he wished. In the end, Siol crossed the line. But unlike back then when he had trembled with fear, he now felt surprisingly calm.

It was a good thing I crossed the line, Siol thought.

He was not the dragon’s mate, and he could never be, but he could still be the dragon’s lover. Even if the dragon mistook him for his mate, he would love him forever, and Siol could protect the dragon up close by pretending to be his lover while hiding the truth. That alone was enough to satisfy Siol. As long as he could protect this man, it didn’t matter if that love was fake.

The blue dragon’s soul was unstable and trembling pitifully.

When Siol first met Eorzen, he had still been stable enough to accept another’s guiding, but at some point, his soul had rapidly become unstable, he grew increasingly mad, and now he had reached a state where he couldn’t accept guiding well. This man was slowly breaking.

Siol rested his head on Eorzen’s arm and quietly closed his eyes.

After counting to a thousand, then a thousand again, and repeating a few more times. Siol opened his eyes again. Eorzen was asleep, breathing evenly. Siol carefully slipped out of Eorzen’s embrace. The face of the man sleeping, knowing nothing, was still so well-defined and beautiful that Siol, without thinking, leaned over and kissed him. Siol kept their lips pressed together and glanced at Eorzen for a moment, and when he didn’t seem to be waking, he opened his mouth and lightly licked his lips.

“You can’t wake up….”

Siol whispered anxiously.

Siol pressed his lips to Eorzen’s. The energy of the rampage, not far from its limit, felt Siol’s guiding pheromones and lunged at them. It was a violent reaction, as if it couldn’t bear its hunger.

“Ngh…”

As severe as Eorzen’s condition was, the dizziness Siol felt was also intense. Siol barely kept himself from toppling forward. He propped himself up on his elbows on the pillow Eorzen was using, opened his mouth, and carefully licked the other’s lips. The moment their tongues touched, he felt a tingling sensation, both mental and physical. The joy of kissing Eorzen and the physical reaction of the rampaging energy shook Siol relentlessly.

Siol recklessly gave out his guiding pheromones, just as Eorzen’s body desired. It wasn’t the best way to handle it as a guide, but if he tried to control it for the sake of efficiency and Eorzen ended up rejecting even mucosal contact guiding, then there would truly be no solution. For now, he wanted to give the dragon whatever he wanted.

What he was doing was guiding. But it was not a duty, nor a job. It was not merely an act to satisfy his own desires either. He wanted to save Eorzen. The blue dragon was dying from madness? Rifez said she would help him escape, but if that was the case, he couldn’t leave his side even more. Siol, who would hesitate to be greedy for his own sake, felt a precarious courage rise within him, as if he were standing on a cliff’s edge with no way back, now that he believed it was necessary for Eorzen.

Siol closed his eyes and focused only on licking and rubbing Eorzen’s tongue to ensure the widest possible contact between their mucous membranes.

Because of that, he didn’t see Eorzen opening his eyes and looking at him with a bewildered gaze, nor the sight of Eorzen’s hand reaching to pull his back closer before falling away limply again.

Because Siol had commanded him not to wake up, Eorzen could not ask anything and could only pretend to be asleep.

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

Waking up in the early dawn, Siol shot up when he found the spot next to him empty.

“Lord Eorzen…?”

He was alone in the room. Eorzen was gone, of course, and so was Ryufen, who he thought might have returned during the night. Siol scanned the room with a dazed look before getting up.

It was unlikely that Eorzen had left him behind. He probably went to meet Rifez for a moment.

Since they had to leave for the ruins today, it was probably about something related to that. Siol let out a long yawn and walked over to his bag, which had been placed in a corner. He took out a few gems hidden inside the bag, and after rummaging through the pouch connected to Ladie, he found more gems inside it. Seeing them unwrapped, it was clear that Luber had secretly stolen and put them there. Perfect timing.

Honestly, from a moral standpoint, he should have been scolded, but right now, it was a situation where he should thank him instead.

“Hmm… this should be enough….”

Siol arranged the gems on the floor and slammed both hands down. As usual, a glowing transmutation circle ran across the floor, and the courier, who had become much friendlier since he came to this world, greeted him. Siol smiled brightly at him and recited his order.

The courier showed a hint of bewilderment, but he didn’t refuse Siol’s request. Instead, Siol had to receive a firm pat that felt like his head was being pressed down. Should he count this as part of the offering? Siol rubbed his cheek, feeling a bit bashful.

For some reason, it felt like he had gotten much closer to the courier lately. Considering how much more generous their trades had become recently, perhaps the courier disliked witches too.

Siol brazenly ordered this and that from the lenient courier. The courier seemed a bit flabbergasted by his cunning, but thankfully, he didn’t refuse.

In truth, he couldn’t reveal his heart to this extent to either Eorzen or Ryufen, but with the courier, he could be a bit more insistent and childish. Perhaps he was the closest thing to a family Siol had.

Taking this opportunity, he also took out the unfinished compass and presented it, but the courier flatly refused.

It wasn’t a huge disappointment. In the first place, a trade could only be established for things the alchemist was capable of. Since Siol’s understanding of darkness and shadows was lacking, it couldn’t be helped.

“Sigh… I understand. It can’t be helped.”

When Siol’s shoulders slumped, the courier gave him a hint.

“What? Really?”

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

Early in the morning, Eorzen went looking for Ryufen. Ryufen was curled up asleep, stuck to the side of the chimney. He looked a bit pitiful in his messy state, but his expression was as peaceful as if he were lying on a cloud.

Eorzen kicked Ryufen hard in the side.

“Ugh…! Hey, why’d you hit me?”

“I left you to look after Siol, yet you’ve been wandering around outside this whole time. What do you think you’re doing?”

“Aish, what’s so dangerous around here?”

Ryufen let out a huge yawn, stretched, and shook his body once.

“You know how long it’s been since I’ve been back here. Everyone’s mad, asking why I only showed up now. You want me to just ignore them? If I told them I couldn’t hang out because I had to stay with Siol, they’d all flock to Siol and harass him. I can’t let that happen. I was just sacrificing myself so he could sleep comfortably.”

Hearing him out, he wasn’t wrong, but considering Ryufen was found sleeping hidden next to a chimney on the roof, it didn’t seem like his sacrificial act had lasted until the end. Still, Eorzen grudgingly accepted it. Noticing this, Ryufen enthusiastically continued his self-defense.

“And since he’s a wolf too, don’t you think he should learn a bit about how wolves live while he’s here? For that to happen, I need to make a good impression. That way, they’ll treat Siol well too. I had a whole plan, you see.”

“You always have one too many words to say.”

Even as Eorzen clicked his tongue and pointed it out, Ryufen didn’t seem to be listening at all.

“More importantly, Captain, you know I have good instincts, right?”

“Is something bothering you?”

“To be honest, ever since we were in the Meric estate, I’ve found the sight of you and Siol getting along strangely irritating, and now that we’re here, I can’t stand to look at it at all….”

“Nonsense.”

“No, don’t take it so badly…. I’m telling you, there must be a reason for this-!”

Ryufen desperately shouted at Eorzen, who was leaping off the roof, but Eorzen completely ignored him. Ryufen went to the edge of the roof, confirmed that Eorzen had entered the mansion, then scowled and turned over with a huff.

“This is really strange….”

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

Atum was famous for its wolf knights with formidable military power and their coordinated attacks. They could be described as possessing the powerful force of most beastmen and the cooperative skills of the dogs living in human lands.

They were already prepared to shatter the ruins to pieces. They were also ready to thoroughly stomp on Nathaniel, who had dared to kidnap Chief Rifez’s son. The only reason they hadn’t done so until now was because monsters were packed so tightly around the ruins that they couldn’t advance. With hundreds of monsters, undead ones that never die at that, gathered together, even the knights of Atum were completely helpless.

There was no other way but to summon the blue dragon, whose very existence had the power to repel monsters.

In other words, no other preparations were needed besides the blue dragon. Because they were already prepared.

When the ready Eorzen and Siol stepped outside the mansion, the knight order, already prepared for deployment, was lined up in formation.

Rifez was in the middle of giving some final instructions to the black wolf who would protect the city in her absence. Siol saw Ryufen, who was sitting near them, get smacked on the back of the head while letting out a huge yawn, and clenched his teeth to keep from laughing.

“There are a lot of wolves.”

Siol took a step closer to Eorzen, pretending to be scared. Without him having to do anything more, Eorzen wrapped an arm around Siol’s shoulder and pulled him closer. It was a relief that Eorzen was an easy dragon. If he had been a difficult one, Siol couldn’t imagine what kind of excuse he would have had to make to initiate contact with him.

When he sneakily sent some guiding pheromones through the point of contact, Eorzen still repelled the guiding. Siol pressed his lips together in annoyance.

“You don’t need to be afraid, Siol. As long as I am by your side, no one will be able to harm you.”

Looking into the warm eyes of the dragon who mistook him for his mate, Siol nodded.

Siol had already made up his mind last night. Even if this man’s body became completely unable to accept his guiding, eventually leading to repeated rampages and complete madness, Siol intended to stay by his side.

“You don’t need to be afraid either, Lord Eorzen. Because I’m here.”

Siol pulled Eorzen’s hand from his shoulder and pushed his own hand inside the sleeve. Eorzen’s arm flinched. Siol paid it no mind and lightly brushed his fingertips from the inside of Eorzen’s wrist upwards.

“Ngh…”

Eorzen looked at Siol with eyes full of confusion. A few days ago, Siol would have been startled by that look and backed away. But the current Siol met Eorzen’s gaze calmly. As if nothing had happened.

“What are you doing…”

Siol was willing to accept the role of the fake mate. He couldn’t say there were no ulterior motives in the contact that would arise in the process, but since he was prepared to die with him, wasn’t it okay to take that much of a side benefit?

Just as their eyes met and a strange atmosphere began to form.

“Master!”

Burdril came running, waving his hands wildly. As soon as he ran out of the mansion, he had rushed over to Rifez and Kadion to talk for a moment, and it seemed his business was now finished. Siol, still holding Eorzen’s hand, turned his body slightly towards Burdril. He could feel Eorzen’s arm, wrapped around his shoulder, tremble slightly.

“What were you talking about for so long?”

“I caused quite a bit of trouble, didn’t I? I apologized and offered to help with anything if they needed it.”

“…Burdril, why are you acting so sensible? That’s not like you.”

At that, Burdril grinned and crossed his arms.

“That’s because you don’t know what a huge benefactor and generous person the chief here is, Master. Do you know how much support I received for making prosthetic arms and legs for people? You have to be polite to these high-ranking people who give you money so you can secure a bigger budget later on.”

Burdril boasted with a somewhat cocky expression.

He had a point, but hearing it like a lecture from the usually not-so-sensible Burdril somehow hurt his pride. No, wait, a person who knew that has been acting like that until now? As if reading Siol’s question, Burdril said.

“Before you, Captain, nobody wanted me and I didn’t know anything, so there was no point in groveling. But it’s different now. Uhuhuhu. I am an alchemist. Master Siol’s one and only disciple, Burdril! That person is me, you hear.”

“…Don’t brag about weird things.”

“No. I’m still not enough. Master Siol’s first disciple, Burdril! That person is also me.”

“You’re not the first. I disowned him, but Nathaniel was the first.”

When Siol, fed up with his excessive pride, coolly corrected him, Burdril pouted. However, he quickly started grinning again and whispered in a small voice.

“Then if Nathaniel is gone, I’ll be the first disciple, right?”

“That’s not how it works.”

“Aii, if he’s dead, let’s just count him as gone. Huh?”

Siol narrowed his eyes and glared at Burdril. He didn’t know what he was thinking, but he could bet his entire fortune that it was definitely not a wholesome or moral thought.

“I’ll say it again, I won’t teach you anything until you complete the alchemy ethics course.”

“I know, I know.”

“You don’t look like you know.”

“I said I know~.”

He totally doesn’t seem to know.

Siol eyed Burdril with a look full of suspicion. Could he trust this person? Back at Eorzen’s castle, he had trusted his passion for alchemy and taught him diligently, but he was realizing day by day that excessive passion was also a big problem. Seeing that delinquent attitude, it seemed he would have to teach alchemy ethics very thoroughly.

With such an untrustworthy rabbit, would it really be okay?

Without hiding his distrustful expression, Siol took the compass out from his pocket and held it out as if he had no choice.

“What’s… this?”

“This is homework.”

“Homework?”

“My courier said that Burdril can solve this problem better than I can. That Burdril has a talent for darkness.”

Catching a glimpse of hesitation in Siol’s anxiously shaking eyes, Burdril quickly snatched the compass. It simply looked like an unfinished compass, with no markings on the face and no needle.

“So? What do I have to do?”

“You heard yesterday that Nathaniel revives even if he dies, right? When Nathaniel is killed, his body scatters into shadows, and those shadows carry his soul and memories, and are drawn to where his new body is. So if you kill Nathaniel and trap the shadow inside this, the shadow will become a compass that points in the direction of his clone.”

Siol fell silent for a moment before continuing.

“…Though I haven’t finished it yet.”

“Should I finish it?”

“I have zero talent for darkness or shadows, so I wasn’t making much progress. Please do it for me, Burdril.”

“Your master’s courier said I have a talent for darkness….”

Burdril’s eyes sparkled, unable to look away from the unfinished compass. Looking at him like this, he seemed like a passionate and excellent budding alchemist.

“Don’t do anything dangerous. It’s totally fine if you can’t do it. We can just research it together from now on. Got it?”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry. I’ll work hard.”

“I told you not to do anything dangerous, so why is that your answer?”

“I have to get it done! If I do, you have to praise me, okay?”

“Only if it’s ethically sound.”

Siol emphasized strictly once more, but Burdril showed no sign of taking him seriously. Burdril grinned slyly, put the compass inside his coat, waved goodbye, and ran back into the mansion.

Will it really be okay? Siol was worried, but he didn’t have time to clean up after Burdril right now. For now, he had no choice but to trust him.

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

The group rode for about an hour and arrived near the ruins. Other monsters, feeling threatened by the movement of the wolf pack, fled on the spot, but the undead remained, loitering around. He had heard that the undead were difficult to deal with because, being already dead, they had no hearts and thus no fear, and even if scattered into nail-sized pieces of flesh, they would simply reassemble into their original forms and relentlessly charge at their enemies. Seeing the scene before him, he understood exactly what that meant.

The knights stopped behind Rifez, who had halted a short distance from the undead, and made way for Eorzen. Eorzen, who had been traveling at the very back because of his wings, followed the path the knights made and went to the front of the group.

As he approached, Rifez pointed towards the ruins.

“The undead begin to appear from this point on.”

“Alright.”

Eorzen nodded and, still holding Siol, began to walk forward.

With each step he took, a strange wave flowed out of Eorzen. It was like the wind, like a scent, and like a temperature. That formless something swirled through Siol’s body, passed out of him, and spread into the space outside.

When the dragon’s aura entered his body, Siol felt a strange sensation, as if his insides were pulsating strongly, or as if something was touching and passing through a part of his body he never knew existed. As Siol startled and fidgeted, Eorzen gently rubbed his back. Following that, a series of stifled groans erupted from behind them.

“Kuh…”

“Heok…!”

The mere act of the dragon spreading his aura had made the strong knights groan. It seemed that Eorzen had been marking his territory alone in this way on the journey from the human lands to Atum as well. Siol, who had been curious why he was always sent into the tent first, nodded in understanding. So this was why.

Held in the dragon’s arms, Siol watched the amazing event unfold before him from the safest place possible.

Even before Eorzen revealed himself, the undead were already staggering and fleeing. As if they had encountered an overwhelming disaster they could not face, like people caught in a hurricane frantically trying to escape.

“The monsters… are really running away…?”

Eorzen laughed at Siol’s words, who looked not just dumbfounded but utterly bewildered.

“Didn’t I tell you that dragons have the power to repel monsters?”

“…I didn’t know it would be to this extent.”

“Come to think of it, Siol, this must be your first time seeing it.”

“Yes. I heard the city is maintained by your presence, Lord Eorzen, but… I never imagined they would flee in such fear….”

Actually, he had seen it once. When Eorzen proved his identity with his dragon’s aura to have the knights open the gate to Burdril’s laboratory in his city. But it wasn’t in such an intense form back then.

Eorzen simply looked at Siol as if he were cute and walked slowly, not bothering to chase the undead. The dragon’s aura flowing from Eorzen’s body grew stronger and stronger, spreading farther and farther. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see with his own eyes how far the aura’s influence reached, because the undead soon fled beyond the forest and disappeared from sight. Eorzen now stopped emitting his dragon’s aura, but the aura that had filled the space remained, densely occupying the area like a territorial marker.

For Siol, who had lived his whole life on Earth plagued by monsters, it was a sight that felt nothing short of miraculous. A power that could make even the undead, who should have no fear because they have no hearts, flee.

Eorzen, who was crossing the clearing towards the ruins, suddenly stopped.

“What is it?”

“Something is here that wasn’t here last night.”

Eorzen narrowed his eyes and kicked a pebble on the ground towards the ruins. The pebble, imbued with magic, flew towards the ruins before suddenly hitting something and bouncing off.

“It seems that sometime during the night, Nathaniel used that ancient creature to cast a barrier.”

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

A dark room. A fox, draped like a scarf over the shoulder of Nathaniel who was reading a notebook by the light of a dim candle, flinched.

“So they’ve finally come.”

Nathaniel muttered under his breath, glanced briefly in a certain direction, then returned his gaze to the notebook. This notebook, filled with elegant handwriting, was the diary of his mother, the witch.

The witch enjoyed recording the achievements she had accomplished in detail. This trait was not unique to her but was like a tradition passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, this diary was not a simple diary but a precious record book filled with the family’s history, research projects, and data on potions they had developed.

“You were written about in here too.”

He whispered, patting the fox’s head, and chuckled. The fox listlessly turned its head in another direction.

That’s right. If not for the witch’s records, how could he have known that a creature of such immense power was sleeping in these ancient ruins?

And that wasn’t the only important record.

Nathaniel flipped to the back of the notebook, opening to a section with more recent entries.

“Thankfully, you wrote everything down in such detail, Mother.”

Nathaniel whispered nostalgically, stroking a bookmark made from a few strands of hair.

The warm expression did not last long. He flipped a few pages further to the one he had practically memorized over the past few days, and traced the words with his finger as he read it once more.

“On the full moon night as autumn deepened, I succeeded in driving the blue dragon’s mate out of Atum. I chased her to another world and sealed the gate, so unless she gets help from a being like a dragon or a god, she will never be able to return. Now all that’s left is to break the blue dragon and make him kneel at my feet….”

Unfortunately, his mother had not succeeded in her plan and lost her life. However, Nathaniel intended to carry on his mother’s will and make the blue dragon kneel at the feet of ‘a witch’. His mother’s unfulfilled wish, with his own hands.

Nathaniel stood up and approached the bed. He smiled as he stroked the face of the boy lying on the bed as if asleep.

“Mother, please wait just a little longer. This time, I will surely get my hands on the dragon and fulfill your wish.”

In the darkness, the fox shifted its position. The fox, its eyes darting about anxiously, looked back and forth between Nathaniel and the boy, then squeezed its eyes shut and enveloped the two of them in its darkness.

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

A barrier preventing outside intrusion surrounded the ruins.

Even to Siol, it was hard to see this barrier as Nathaniel’s power. It didn’t mean Nathaniel lacked the power. If Nathaniel had activated this barrier, the area near it would have been strewn with animal carcasses and bloodstains. Because the witch’s power Nathaniel possessed came from the power of life.

“I hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but it’s not entirely unexpected. It’s fine. However, we’ll need a moment….”

KWAAAANG!

A sound like crashing metal struck the air.

Startled, Siol looked in the direction of the sound to see what had happened and saw Ryufen on the ground, steadying his stance. It was clearly a back kick. Ryufen had just kicked the barrier with his prosthetic hind leg.

“Ryufen! What are you doing?”

“Oof, this thing’s super hard.”

“I told you to be careful with it! If you treat it so roughly, it could break.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine.”

“It might be fine now, but what if the parts wear down and it suddenly stops working at a critical moment?”

“I said it’s fine.”

“It’s not fine!”

Siol shouted and tapped Eorzen’s shoulder insistently. When Eorzen obediently set him down on the ground, Siol ran to Ryufen and began to thoroughly inspect the prosthesis he had put so much effort into making. He looked ready to check every single component.

Watching the scene, Rifez asked Eorzen.

“Wait, wasn’t Burdril the one who made that?”

“Ryufen’s leg was the first prosthesis Siol made. Since Siol couldn’t make prostheses for all the beastmen who lost limbs by himself, he passed the method on to Burdril to also teach alchemy to the beastmen.”

“……”

It seemed Rifez had been mistaken all this time, thinking Burdril had made Ryufen’s prosthesis. The prosthesis business was certainly conducted under Siol’s name, but since Burdril was the one who took the lead in handling the work, it seemed the information had been misconstrued. Eorzen thought that after this was over, he should emphasize Siol’s name more in the prosthesis business.

“It’s scratched!”

“It can get a little scratched.”

“This isn’t a normal wear-and-tear scratch. Please use it with care. If you keep doing this, I won’t make you a new one even if it breaks.”

Siol threatened with a stern face.

“So what if you don’t make me one. I’ll just hop around in front of you on three legs. You’ll feel so sorry for me you won’t be able to resist making one.”

“…Aren’t you ashamed of making threats like that?”

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of for the sake of a cool new leg.”

“No, just stop treating it so roughly….”

Siol nagged, dumbfounded, but Ryufen was unfazed. He knew full well that this was not a wolf who would reluctantly agree no matter how much he nagged, but he never expected him to be so shameless.

No, at this point, it felt like it might be his own fault. Was Ryufen talking so freely because he was being too nice to him?

As Siol tightened a screw that had loosened slightly from the impact, he spoke gloomily.

“I’m worried you’ll get hurt again.”

“Like I told you before, worrying about me and the captain is…”

“I decided to do as I please about that, didn’t I?”

“…You did…. Aish, fine. I’ll be a little extra careful, just for you.”

“Good. Please do.”

Although Ryufen’s reckless attack had made Siol uncomfortable, it did provide the group with one piece of information. The path to the ruins was blocked by a barrier, but the barrier itself did not attack the outside.

Eorzen watched the fighting Ryufen and Siol with amusement, then placed his hand on the barrier.

The darkness covering the barrier lunged to grab Eorzen, but was repelled by his magic.

“It seems Nathaniel wants to set the stage.”

As he spoke, Siol and Ryufen ran over.

“…Set the stage?”

“Nathaniel likes to set the stage to his liking at the crucial moment. What I mean is…”

“No, I know. I’ve been a victim of the witch before.”

Siol remembered the story Rifez told him last night and looked up at her. As if she knew Siol would look at her, Rifez’s gaze was also on him. She gave a slight shake of her head. As if telling him not to speak. Siol swallowed hard and gave a shallow nod.

“Then this will be easy. This barrier is a means to invite only the people he wants onto his stage. Unfortunately, I don’t know if the knight order will have a chance to play a part.”

“And we won’t know who can enter, either.”

“It seems I’ve been invited. And you, as the person involved in this matter, are likely an invited guest as well.”

“Ryufen probably isn’t. He was fine earlier.”

Ryufen stomped the ground with a dissatisfied expression, only to be grabbed by the tail by Kadion and thrown towards the knights. Kadion didn’t care how Ryufen acted towards him, but he was merciless if Ryufen acted presumptuously in front of Rifez.

“I’ll be invited too.”

“…Siol, you?”

“I was also involved in Nathaniel’s death. He probably dislikes me a great deal, don’t you think?”

In reality, if Nathaniel was targeting anyone, he would be the top priority, but Siol went along with the lie for the sake of Eorzen’s pride, who had lied for him.

Rifez simply nodded and said.

“Be careful. We don’t know what kind of tricks Nathaniel will pull.”

There was no time to analyze how the barrier’s invitation worked, or by what rules. How many actors Nathaniel wanted, what kind of stage he had prepared, everything was a mystery, but for now, they had to accept the invitation. So, the group decided to each place a hand on the barrier, one by one.

Standing before the barrier, Siol took a deep breath and unconsciously looked at Eorzen, their eyes meeting. He and Eorzen were fated to be the protagonists on this stage created by Nathaniel. Because Nathaniel wanted them. As Siol smiled nervously, Eorzen leaned over and rested his forehead on Siol’s shoulder. Surprisingly, Eorzen also seemed tense.

Siol whispered quietly, so only Eorzen could hear.

“Lord Eorzen, are you okay?”

“…No.”

“Um… if you’re very scared, I could…”

“I’m afraid you’ll get hurt.”

“…What?”

“If I were to oppose you touching that barrier…. No, never mind.”

Eorzen smiled bitterly and rested his ear against Siol’s neck. As if to check the pulse of the artery beating there. It was strange. He knew the story of checking for life or death by touching that spot when a person was dying, but why now?

After a moment, Eorzen, still leaning his head on Siol’s shoulder, turned his head to look at Siol and whispered.

“Even if we get separated, I will find you right away.”

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

KWANG!

Ryufen kicked it for about the hundredth time, but the barrier didn’t budge. He ground his teeth, looking at the barrier that didn’t even have a scratch, let alone a dent. It seemed there was no way to destroy it using magic to amplify his destructive power. It looked like they needed a beastman who knew about incantations or magic to dispel the barrier, but according to Kadion, there were no such beastmen around here. Except for one person.

“This is driving me crazy! Why won’t it budge?”

“Calm down.”

“How can I calm down? Only the captain, Siol, and my sister went in! Who knows what that dog-like, no, trash-like thing will do!”

“And how do you think getting so worked up is going to help this situation!”

Kadion rebuked him in a chilly tone. Faced with the anger emanating from the man who was always smiling, Ryufen shut his mouth. Kadion clicked his tongue and gestured to the knights, calling one over.

“Go to the mansion right now. Go and…”

Glancing at the barrier, Kadion continued.

“Fetch Burdril.”

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

About an hour later, the anxiously waiting wolves were indeed able to meet the rabbit, carried in the mouth of a wolf knight. As soon as the rabbit was set down from the wolf’s mouth, it transformed into its humanoid form and, without even glancing at Kadion or Ryufen, ran to the barrier and placed a hand on it.

Burdril slowly savored the tingling sensation that spread from his fingertips. This was not a physical sensation. This tingling feeling was the result of the darkness composing the barrier reacting with Burdril’s magic.

“Gramps, how is it? Think you can do it?”

He recalled what Siol’s courier had said. That he had a talent for darkness. Touching the barrier made of pure darkness, he could understand what that meant.

Burdril had been so engrossed in the Tower of Survival that he had once snuck into the inactive Tower of Survival and tried to smash the magic stone inside. He wanted to uncover the secrets held within the Tower of Survival. He thought that if he learned the secrets of the Tower of Survival, he could somehow change the lives of the weak beastmen who had to live confined within the tower’s domain. At that time, that’s what he thought.

But upon coming into contact with such immense darkness, Burdril realized that what he had been fascinated by was not some righteous ideology or a desire to protect the weak beastmen, but a desire for the unknown that he could not see into. The tower was also a mass of tightly wrapped secrets and unknowns, but the darkness had a more intense allure.

Burdril, as if possessed, embraced the barrier with his whole body.

As if in response, a faint light flickered on his neck. The light ran across his skin, drawing a transmutation circle. Seeing that, Ryufen said, aghast.

“B-Burdril? Your neck, it’s weird again?”

“Mmm…”

“Gramps, Siol’s going to scold you again if you keep this up.”

Burdril, who had been caressing the barrier as if he had fallen in love, froze. Anguish could be felt from Burdril’s back.

Tension flowed among the knights, wondering if the incident in Atum would repeat itself. At that time, it was a space where it was okay to cause some trouble and there was nothing urgent, so they could afford to watch and let it be, but now was different. If the same thing happened, there would be no room for mercy this time.

Kadion stared at Burdril’s neck with cold eyes. He had called for Burdril because there was no one else to consult, but if this was the wrong decision….

“Gramps, don’t you remember you can’t move on to the next step until you complete the alchemy ethics course?”

“…Of course I remember.”

Burdril retorted, turning his head and flicking his hand at Ryufen. The darkness shot out from his fingertips and embedded itself between Ryufen’s legs. Ryufen jumped back to avoid it.

“Didn’t I tell you not to call me gramps?”

“Hey, I only said it because it looked like you were about to cause trouble!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You’ve been calling me gramps since before that.”

When Burdril pointed it out with a snort, Ryufen fell silent. But he soon scooted right up next to Burdril again and asked.

“So what do you think will happen? Can you break this? Siol is trapped inside. We have to go protect him quickly!”

“Can’t break it.”

“What? Then what do we do?”