Chapter 132
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 132
Common sense is a prejudice that shackles people, yet it also serves as a form of order.
Because of this, people instinctively feel a sense of rejection when someone tries to shatter that common sense. They do not want the order they have believed in all their lives to be destroyed.
However, that only applies when one attempts to break common sense with meager strength.
When common sense is smashed head-on by something overwhelming, people tend to feel awe instead.
To the tribespeople, Felicia was clearly the latter.
“Is she the King’s Great Warrior?”
“How rude! Bow your head!”
As Felicia walked beside Lucian, the tribespeople knelt in unison.
The attention that had previously been focused solely on Lucian was now shifting toward Felicia.
As they were showered with reverence from all sides, Lucian gave a small smirk.
“How does it feel? Being worshipped as the strongest warrior?”
“To be honest, it feels a bit strange. If they must offer worship, it should be directed toward Your Highness…”
“I’m getting my fair share. Look.”
Lucian gestured with his chin toward the tribespeople who were bowing to him immediately after Felicia.
A powerful warrior was, by definition, fit to be a ruler. It was only natural for them to think that a lord chosen by the strongest warrior must be just as great, if not more so.
“Well, it’s a bit less than what you’re getting as the rumored strongest warrior, though.”
“I am sorry, my lord.”
“What is there to be sorry about? Forget it. Don’t feel burdened and just enjoy it. This is a landscape you changed with your own pure skill.”
Felicia wore an awkward expression at Lucian’s words, but she couldn't hide the slight flush on her cheeks.
She was a woman who had been ignored by her own father and had her skills doubted simply because of her gender. Yet, with her swordsmanship alone, she had shattered the common sense of those who believed a woman could never be a warrior.
While it was overwhelming, it was also true that she felt a strange sense of joy and catharsis deep in her heart.
“…Still, it isn't good for me to receive more attention than Your Highness. Not just for my own sake, but considering the political implications as well.”
“It’s fine. I’m planning on setting off a massive explosion of my own today anyway.”
Lucian had no intention of letting this situation continue indefinitely either.
While he was happy Felicia was receiving recognition, it was a different matter if the lord appeared inferior to the retainer.
Lucian intended to display a presence no less impressive than Felicia’s in the second trial today. Only then would the tribes of the snowfields realize exactly what kind of person Felicia’s master was.
“You’ve arrived.”
As Lucian reached the Chieftain’s residence, Ivar, who had been waiting, muttered quietly.
He looked quite composed for someone who hadn't even been able to properly declare the end of the first trial.
“Now that everyone is gathered, I shall announce the details of the second trial.”
Ivar scanned Einar, Brunda, and Lucian before shouting in a loud voice for all the tribespeople to hear.
“I shall leave the second trial to our great ancestor in the Holy Land! The Dragon’s Heart shall personally test whether you are worthy of challenging for the position of the next Chieftain!”
“…!?”
The tribespeople were shocked by Ivar’s declaration.
It was surprising enough to allow someone who wasn't the Chieftain into the Holy Land, but to leave the trial to the Heart itself?
“Chieftain, what on earth do you mean? Are you saying the Dragon’s Heart will choose someone personally?”
“That is correct.”
“Pardon?”
“The Dragon’s Heart is alive. It even possesses a will capable of judging whether the one who touches it is a true warrior or a contemptuous rogue.”
“…!?”
Hearing this for the first time, the tribespeople stared at each other in a daze.
Until now, they had believed the Dragon’s Heart was merely a holy relic to honor their ancestor. But the Heart itself was alive and possessed the will to judge warriors?
Ivar continued his explanation calmly to the bewildered crowd.
“Infinite power dwells within the Dragon’s Heart. One who is worthy will gain power the moment they touch it. However, those who are unworthy will have their bodies explode and die on the spot.”
According to Ivar’s explanation, the position of Chieftain and the Heart’s selection were separate matters.
Because of this, past Chieftains had not laid hands on the Heart. While gaining power would be ideal, there was always the possibility of not being recognized by the Heart.
“However, I risked that danger and asked the Dragon’s Heart of my worthiness. And the Dragon’s Heart judged me worthy and bestowed power upon me. The very power you all know!”
Whoosh.
With a harsh wind, a flame-like haze shimmered around Ivar’s body.
As the intense heat mixed with the wind and brushed past the tribespeople, they all trembled in surprise.
“The Blue Dragon’s Flame…!”
“That power was granted by the Heart?”
“Was it not a blessing only the Chieftain possessed?”
Lucian scanned the murmuring tribespeople.
Judging by their reactions, they knew of the power’s existence but hadn't known it was obtained through the Heart.
‘Interesting. So that’s the mana coming from the Dragon’s Heart.’
The mana being faintly emitted was incredibly crude.
If Felicia’s mana was like an exquisitely carved statue, Ivar’s was like firewood roughly hacked apart with an axe.
However, the unique form of the emitted mana and the sweltering heat were enough to give the impression that it was something special.
‘It’s all well and good, but it’s like casting pearls before swine. With a user like that, it’ll be hard to grasp its true value until I use it myself.’
Even powerful strength is useless if the user doesn't know how to utilize it properly.
Since Ivar could do nothing more than emit the mana, Lucian couldn't tell much about it other than the fact that the mana itself possessed heat.
What would happen if that mana was refined through circulation and swordsmanship?
As Lucian pondered, Ivar’s shout reached his ears again.
“I have kept this hidden until now. The moment this fact became known, the unworthy and the greedy would have swarmed the Holy Land. We could not allow the Holy Land where the Dragon’s Heart rests to be defiled by blood and flesh, could we?”
“Th-then why are you revealing it here and now?”
“Because an outsider has challenged the position of Chieftain.”
At the mention of an outsider, the tribespeople’s gaze instantly shifted to Lucian.
Ivar glared at Lucian with narrowed eyes and spoke.
“I granted him the right of succession according to tradition. But is it truly right for one from a foreign land to rule over us? Does he have the worthiness? Should he have been given the right to challenge in the first place?”
“…”
No one could answer Ivar’s question.
Lucian was the first person to challenge for the Chieftain’s position as an outsider. Before they could say whether it was right or wrong, there was no precedent to speak of.
“I, too, do not know the answer to this. Therefore, I wish to ask the Heart of our great ancestor! Today, you shall see the Dragon’s selection with your own eyes! You shall see who is more fit for the position of Chieftain: this outsider, or my sons!”
At Ivar’s thunderous shout, the tribespeople nodded as if convinced.
If the Dragon’s Heart truly had a will, there could be no fairer judgment.
However, to Lucian, the words were laughable.
‘Dragon’s selection, my foot. It’s just power you can get if you meet the conditions.’
It was easy to see what Ivar was aiming for.
He intended to use this opportunity to gloss over the fact that he had touched the Dragon’s Heart while simultaneously deifying himself and his descendants. Conversely, he intended to clear the tribespeople’s delusions by showing them Lucian exploding and dying.
If things went according to plan, it couldn't be better for him.
However, Ivar was overlooking one fact.
The possibility that Lucian, despite being an outsider, might receive the Dragon’s recognition.
Lucian was deeply looking forward to seeing how this tyrant would react when Lucian stood out even more than the Chieftain’s sons, who were born of the snowfields.
*
After finishing his speech, Ivar led his two sons and Lucian toward the tribe’s Holy Land.
The tribespeople followed behind them like a brood of chicks.
Seeing as they moved immediately without any travel preparations, it seemed the Holy Land wasn't far away.
Sure enough, after climbing a few hills following Ivar’s lead, they soon arrived at the Holy Land.
“We are here.”
“…A shack?”
Lucian was at a loss for words at Ivar’s declaration.
The only thing at the location they called the Holy Land was a shabby shack.
It was absurd enough that the shack was worse than a hut, but its condition was even more appalling. It looked so old that Lucian worried it might collapse if he gave it a firm poke.
However, no one else besides Lucian’s group seemed to find anything strange; they all wore reverent expressions.
“Stop here. Only those permitted may pass beyond this point.”
With a solemn declaration, Ivar raised his hand to stop the people from advancing. He then gestured only to his two sons and Lucian to come forward.
Feeling the bizarre nature of the situation as they tried to maintain reverence in front of a shack, Lucian took a step forward.
Whoosh.
“…!”
At that moment, a light pressure, like being submerged in water, weighed down on Lucian’s body.
Lucian was startled for a brief moment, but he quickly identified the source of the pressure.
‘Is this… residual mana?’
The traces left behind temporarily when intense mana is emitted in battle. It was similar to how embers remain for a short while after a campfire has been lit.
Naturally, such traces usually vanished quickly, and at most, one would feel a slight sense of dissonance.
However, the remnants left here showed no sign of disappearing and were so powerful that they were felt as physical pressure.
‘It’s not even a real dragon, just its corpse—and only the heart at that—yet it emits such a powerful aura?’
Lucian couldn't help but be impressed.
At the same time, he understood why they considered this shabby shack a Holy Land. No matter how dilapidated it looked, the moment one approached, they could feel the immense power on their skin, forcing them to be reverent.
“Stop.”
When the three had made it halfway, Ivar, standing before the shack’s door, spoke in a low voice.
It was a signal for them to come forward one by one. He didn't ask who would go first, as if the order had already been decided.
“Einar.”
“Yes.”
At Ivar’s call, Einar moved his feet again. He entered the shack through the door Ivar opened for him.
Lucian crossed his arms and waited quietly for the process to finish.
Whirrr.
‘What is this?’
When about ten minutes had passed, a light heat tickled Lucian’s entire body. Simultaneously, the surrounding pressure shifted slightly, like a ripple.
Just as he thought something had changed, the shack door opened.
“The—the Blue Flame! It is the Dragon’s power!”
“The Dragon has recognized Einar!”
The tribespeople standing further back shouted in surprise.
Just as they said, Einar was emitting a blue, flame-like haze, just as Ivar had shown.
Seeing Einar emerge with a slightly tired face, Ivar gave a faint smile.
“Well done.”
At his father’s praise, Einar bowed his head slightly and withdrew from the Holy Land.
Despite gaining power from the Dragon’s Heart, Einar didn't look happy. In fact, he even avoided Lucian’s gaze like a person who had committed a crime.
‘Why is he acting like that?’
Lucian felt suspicious, but the atmosphere wasn't right for asking questions.
Once Einar had left, Ivar immediately called the next person.
“Brunda.”
“Yes.”
Brunda, called second, stepped forward with a determined expression. He seemed to feel a sense of crisis, perhaps because he had been pushed behind his rival brother in the order.
However, it wasn't long before Brunda also emerged from the shack with a face full of confidence. Naturally, he was also emitting the same blue flame-like haze as Einar.
“Brunda has also gained the Dragon’s power!”
“Both of them have been chosen!”
The gazes of the shouting tribespeople turned toward Lucian, the only one remaining.
Of the three candidates, the two born of the snowfields had been chosen. So, what would happen to the man from a foreign land?
“…Outsider.”
Ivar called Lucian in a voice that sounded truly reluctant.
Faced with such blatant dislike, Lucian gave a snort and stepped forward.
As Lucian reached the shack, Ivar whispered beside him.
“Even now, give up the challenge and return to your homeland. A thief who tries to steal a treasure that already has a master is destined for a miserable end.”
“We’ll see. We’ll soon find out who the thief is and who the rightful master is.”
With a mysterious smile, Lucian passed Ivar and entered the shack.
However, unlike the two sons before him, Lucian did not emerge even as time passed.
At the end of the tedious wait, a sudden explosion erupted from the shack. Along with the sound, a vibration that shook the earth caused the shack to rattle violently as if it would collapse at any moment.
Seeing this, Ivar wore a cruel smile and addressed the gathered tribespeople.
“Now, behold! The Dragon’s wrath has fallen upon the outsider who did not know his place—!”
BOOM!
Before he could finish his sentence, an explosion occurred in the middle of the Holy Land that guarded the Dragon’s Heart.
The shack, which had preserved its ancient tradition until the very end, shattered, and Lucian emerged from within.
He was wreathed in massive, roaring blue flames that seemed to reach the heavens.
As everyone’s gaze fixed upon him, Lucian tilted his head and spoke to Ivar.
“What was that about the Dragon’s wrath?”