Chapter 112
Chapter 112
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: Chapter 22 To the Demonic Realm (3)
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Azel considered giving the Cup of Lament to Kairen.
But if Laura harbored ill intentions, Kairen—who had no experience handling Dragon Demon Armaments—might be taken down before he could even react.
In contrast, Azel already possessed his own Dragon Demon Armament and had ample experience inheriting and wielding another’s. Even if Laura handed over the Cup of Lament with malicious intent and something went wrong, he was confident he could handle it somehow.
‘She doesn’t seem to have any sinister motives, but I’ll have to watch and see.’
Since he had embedded a mana force wedge into Laura’s spirit veins, he could tell she harbored no malice and that everything she had confessed was sincere. But human hearts were unpredictable. Just because he could read some emotions didn’t mean he knew everything, so he had to stay vigilant.
“Still, it’s a tricky item for me to use in many ways. It’ll take a lot of research. Then again, its original owner was a mage, and all the successors after were mages too, so it’s only natural it synergizes well with them.”
Azel spoke after confirming the Cup of Lament had properly settled into his spirit veins.
“Well, you didn’t exactly use it properly yourself.”
“…That’s a first.”
Laura had never received such criticism in her life. Everyone had always said she possessed exceptional talent and praised her skillful handling of Dragon Demon Armaments. In terms of controlling them, she had even received higher praise than Kirien. And now this harsh judgment?
Azel said,
“Well, I’ve only ever seen you use the Cup of Lament defensively. Saving Niberis with the Labyrinth of Lament was certainly impressive.”
The true terror of the Cup of Lament, as Azel remembered it, lay not in defense but in offense.
Aunsor had used the Labyrinth of Lament on the battlefield to shatter enemy lines. He would isolate designated forces with spatial distortion, then slaughter them in overwhelmingly advantageous terrain, or twist their advance directions into chaos with spatial distortion, sowing total disorder.
Imagine a cavalry charge barreling toward the enemy—only for their lances to suddenly turn on allies. They thought they were charging straight ahead, but spatial distortion reversed their direction entirely, and the sense of distance collapsed, leaving them unable to turn back. Aunsor was the kind of opponent who made your blood run cold.
“Above all, the scariest part is the ‘Cup that Holds Heaven’s Tears.’”
It was Aunsor’s nickname as well. He created a massive spatial distortion in the sky, gathering the vast expanse of sunlight into a single beam and firing it. It was a technique that took considerable time, but once completed, it was an unstoppable miracle of mass destruction.
Laura asked in confusion,
“You… seem to know more about the Cup of Lament than I do.”
Aunsor had lost his life to Kallos’s hands during the Dragon Demon War. Atein’s wondrous magic had preserved only the Cup of Lament for his descendants to inherit, but no one could teach them how to use it. They had to research based solely on records of Aunsor, and Laura was no exception. Especially since the previous Aunsor successor had been killed by the Guardian Shadows, she couldn’t even inherit his research foundation—a truly poor situation.
Azel nodded upon hearing the explanation.
“I see. No wonder your handling of it falls short.”
Such techniques typically advanced by quickly passing down the trial-and-error foundation established by predecessors, then building upon it. So it was only natural that Laura’s skill with the Cup of Lament lagged behind Aunsor’s.
Azel said,
“Then I’ll have to research the Cup of Lament slowly… Hmm. Yuren, Letitia, I have some questions for you two.”
“You seem to have a hobby of questioning others. Without answering theirs.”
Letitia sneered. But Azel just grinned and brushed it off.
“If it bothers you, take control of the conversation.”
“What a shameless man.”
“I’ve heard that plenty. Anyway, setting Yuren aside—Letitia, it seems you’ve been fighting Dragon Demon Worshippers nonstop since you died?”
“It’s been about seven years since the fighting started.”
“That’s quite a while. But you’re not with the Guardian Shadows?”
“No. From the way you say that, are you one of them?”
“Not me, but her.”
Azel pointed to Kairen. Interest flickered in Letitia’s eyes.
“I see. In any case, I’ve clashed with the Guardian Shadows as enemies but never been accepted as allies.”
“Why is that?”
“Like Yuren, I used to be a Dragon Demon Worshipper.”
“I figured as much.”
Azel made a face like he’d expected it. Letitia asked,
“…You saw that coming?”
“Excluding the fact that you were once a Dragon Demon Worshipper—which I just learned—there was one thing you and Yuren had in common.”
The thick aura of black magic clinging to them. A Dragon Spirit Art user who wasn’t a mage yet carried such a black magic aura—that oddity had led Azel to suspect she’d once been a Dragon Demon Worshipper.
Letitia nodded.
“You have annoyingly sharp eyes. You’re right. I was created by the Dragon Demon Worshippers in the past and subjected to black magic experiments. That ended up being the trigger for my betrayal.”
“What kind of experiments?”
“I have no obligation to tell you that.”
“Fair enough. Then can I ask what you meant by ‘created’?”
“…Hmm.”
Letitia frowned, showing displeasure at Azel’s prying. She seemed to realize she’d slipped up.
“It’s similar to what Aunsor’s successor mentioned. In my case, it was the Almaric bunch.”
The Almaric clan, like the Aunsor clan, had chosen mad methods to produce an exceptional successor. Letitia had been one of the candidates, but after failing the trials, she was discarded as a black magic test subject.
“That’s plenty.”
Letitia’s eyes gleamed fiercely now, as if she’d fight tooth and nail if he asked more. Azel didn’t press further.
“That’s enough. Next question.”
“Still more curiosities?”
“A ton. Don’t we both?”
“I haven’t satisfied any of mine yet.”
“Answer this, and I’ll let you ask yours.”
“You’re skilled at dangling bait. Makes me want to beat you to death someday.”
“Thanks. What I’m curious about is the master who taught you Dragon Spirit Arts.”
“Hm?”
Letitia’s eyebrows shot up. It was a completely unexpected question.
“Why ask that?”
“It didn’t seem like you learned it from Dragon Demon Worshippers. Am I wrong?”
“…You’re right. After escaping them, I met my master and trained for about two years. How did you know?”
“Watching how you handle Dragon Spirit Arts, I thought your master might be someone I know.”
“Someone you know… Not impossible.”
Letitia wasn’t particularly surprised. She said,
“My master… was a Dragon Demon named Gisel. I don’t know his origins or age. He lived in a rural village in the eastern part of this country.”
“‘Lived’—meaning not anymore?”
“After teaching me for two years, he left. I don’t know where he is now.”
“Hmm…”
“Know the name?”
“No, it’s unfamiliar. And… did he live among humans?”
“He did.”
“Openly as a Dragon Demon?”
“Yeah. The villagers were wary at first since he was a Dragon Demon of unclear status, not nobility. But he stepped up to solve their headaches, played with the kids… and eventually, they accepted him naturally.”
“Then I must’ve been mistaken.”
If it were just the name, Azel might’ve suspected it was someone he knew using an alias, since the Dragon Demon part matched. But living among humans, actively helping with their problems, playing with kids—zero similarities.
Letitia asked,
“Who were you looking for?”
“His name is Reshu.”
Azel spoke, reminiscing about the past for a moment.
“A Dragon Demon who taught me how to wield dragon power.”
4
The group spent the night in the ruins of the old fortress and set out at dawn the next day, before sunrise. Kairen found Azel’s decision puzzling.
“I thought you’d stay longer.”
“I wanted to, but…”
Azel gave a wry smile as he gazed at the ruined Karzark Marquisate.
“If I start getting sentimental, it’ll never end. I’ve seen everything I wanted to.”
And he’d learned everything he wanted to know. The next time he returned to this land, it would be to drive out the forces of darkness lingering here and restore it for people to live in.
He’d even considered taking time to search the land more thoroughly. Maybe Kallos had left something behind.
But he abandoned that lingering thought. It wasn’t just because Laura and Yuren had said the land was under the surveillance of the Dark Snowfields. If Kallos had left anything, the land wouldn’t have remained a Demonic Realm this long—nor would the Karzark marquis’s descendants have been wiped out.
“We’ve already exposed our presence to the enemy here, so we can’t afford to linger leisurely.”
“True enough.”
Azel was already a marked man in the Dark Snowfields. With the traitor Yuren—who they were desperate to capture—alongside him, they wouldn’t stay quiet.
“Plus, even if I wanted to scout around, it’s dragon territory, so I can’t just poke around freely.”
The Karzark Marquisate was home to many dragons. Beyond those that had rampaged during its initial devastation, more had migrated in over the years. Poking around carelessly risked a fight with one.
“But…”
Azel started to say something, then froze. He looked up at the dim predawn sky in surprise. Kairen asked curiously,
“What is it?”
“Just a moment…”
Instead of answering, Azel headed outside the fortress walls. He climbed to the top of a tower and gazed toward the eastern sky. Staring westward at the forest with a dazed expression, Azel muttered,
“It’s still alive…?”
From beyond the dark forest, atop a mountain peak, a being unfurled its wings and took flight. With the sun not yet risen, the darkness and distance made it look like a massive bird in silhouette. But Azel knew no such enormous bird existed.
“Flying dragon…!”
As dawn broke, a creature dozens of times larger than any raptor—so colossal it seemed impossible for it to fly—soared over the ruins of the old Karzark Marquisate. A scene from before the devastation flashed in Azel’s mind.
Long ago, three dragons lived in the Karzark Marquisate. One was a flying dragon that always took flight at sunrise, hunting eastward before returning to the western mountains at sunset. Watching it, Azel—no, everyone in the marquisate—felt the day begin and end.
Suddenly, Azel’s eyes met the flying dragon’s.
Though it flew hundreds of meters above, both knew they saw each other. Azel stared, speechless, as the flying dragon—with a mind incomprehensible to humans—held his gaze, circled once over the ruins, then flew eastward and away.
“Haha…”
Watching the flying dragon turn its gaze from him and depart, Azel burst into laughter unbidden.
“Hahahahaha!”
Amid all he’d known destroyed… this flying dragon alone remained unchanged. It filled him with such joy it nearly brought tears.