Chapter 446: Return (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 446: Return (2)
While Serdea was staring blankly, letting out a dazed sound at the sudden news...
Just as the Eastern Empire’s border guard captain had reported, Alon was receiving a proposal from Contanias.
To be precise, it wasn't so much a proposal as it was a plea.
“Please, allow me to serve you!”
Evan whispered a question. He had heard about what had transpired between Contanias and Alon, so the current situation looked bizarre to him.
However, Alon himself had no idea why Contanias was acting this way. Hadn't their last meeting ended on rather poor terms?
‘...Well, he was the one who decided to hate me out of nowhere, though.’
Behind his expressionless face, Alon felt a sense of absurdity. Contanias, who had been gnashing his teeth and vowing to slaughter Alon’s entire clan, had suddenly appeared groveling before him. It was something he could never have imagined.
Furthermore, the reactions of the vassals who followed Contanias were even stranger.
“Lord Alon, it looks like those people over there didn't expect this either, did they?”
“...Indeed.”
The procession lined up behind the bowing Contanias was struck with horror. From knights to vassals, everyone following him stood there with their mouths agape. The knight on the right was even blinking repeatedly as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
The vassals were frozen with expressions that clearly said, 'Why is that crazy brat suddenly acting like this?'
Alon, still struggling to process the confusion, pondered what he should ask.
“...What is the real reason you’ve come here so suddenly?”
He threw a direct question. Since the other party was a prince, it would usually be better to show some etiquette, but if their mutual favorability was already at rock bottom, there was no point in pretending.
But then.
“I have come to serve the Great Dragon!” Contanias shouted, bowing his head even lower.
Alon glanced up slightly. The vassals were still looking at their master as if he had lost his mind. One vassal was even circling his index finger near his temple, looking ready to burst into insults at any moment.
...Given the atmosphere, it didn't seem like a trap.
After a moment of deliberation, Alon decided to address the core of the matter.
“...I don't understand why you are describing me in such a way.”
Naturally, Alon was not a dragon. While there were various rumors—both true and false—circulating about him, there had never been a rumor that 'Alon is a dragon,' so he found this baffling.
Contanias peeked upward, his eyes darting around as if he were walking on eggshells. He looked like he was debating whether or not he should say what was on his mind.
Just as Alon began to feel the strangeness of the situation, Contanias nodded with a profound expression as if he had realized something.
“...The Guardian Dragon told me,” he whispered quietly as he approached Alon.
Alon’s confusion deepened.
‘The Guardian Dragon...?’
The Guardian Dragon of the Empire. The Crying Dragon. Alon knew of the Golden Dragon, but he had never met the Empire’s Guardian Dragon.
“...The Guardian Dragon said that?” Alon asked back.
Contanias provided a very polite clarification.
“Yes. I heard it from Lady Arculainisis, the Guardian Dragon of the Empire and your daughter.”
At the mention of that unexpected name...
“...???”
Alon’s mind was filled with question marks.
Ar?
Our Ar?
Why is her name coming up here?
The same question bubbled up hundreds of times.
* * *
Immediately after hearing the explanation from Contanias...
Instead of crossing the strictly closed border of the Eastern Empire, Alon decided to head toward the Northern Empire’s border over the course of three days. Although going through the Northern Empire was a bit of a detour, the priority was returning to the United Kingdoms.
As they traveled toward the North, with Contanias serving Alon with the utmost devotion under the bizarre gazes of his vassals...
‘...No matter how much I think about it, this is strange.’
Contanias was feeling a sense of dissonance.
“....”
He looked back at the people preparing camp. The one who stood out the most was Alon, who was sitting on one side of the campsite, reading and talking.
What Contanias found strange was Alon’s identity.
‘...He’s a dragon?’
The Guardian Dragon had certainly told Contanias so—that Alon was her father.
However, despite her endorsement, he felt nothing special from Alon now that they were face-to-face again.
‘...I can't feel even a hint of draconic energy.’
Others might simply feel pressure when standing before a dragon, but Contanias had faced dragons several times and knew the unique atmosphere they exuded.
Pressure and arrogance. A sense of helplessness, as if all the mana in the area existed for that one being alone. On top of that, one should feel the vast, characteristic mana of a dragon.
But the feeling he always got from the Guardian Dragon was entirely absent from Alon.
‘Could it be...?’
Contanias found himself imagining a certain possibility. Perhaps, just perhaps, the Guardian Dragon was mistaken.
Contanias was led to this thought partly because of Alon’s reactions. While Alon maintained his usual expressionless face whenever Contanias spoke, his eyes would occasionally widen slightly as if he were surprised. It made it seem like Alon didn't even properly know of the Guardian Dragon’s existence.
And above all, the Guardian Dragon’s words didn't actually add up. According to Contanias’s investigation, Alon Telia was simply the third son of a count; he wasn't some foundling brought in from elsewhere.
However, because the Guardian Dragon’s word was absolute, Contanias had rushed all the way to the Eastern Empire’s border to gain information on Alon and seek forgiveness.
“....”
If the Guardian Dragon had simply been mistaken...
“...Sigh.”
Contanias’s face darkened with irritation and hatred. The memory of his earlier behavior suddenly flashed through his mind—his pathetic, groveling self, bowing to Alon without a shred of dignity.
Just as he was stealing a glance at Alon with narrowed eyes...
Thud—
“?”
Contanias witnessed a strange sight. The objects near Alon’s campsite suddenly began to float into the air.
In the moment he was wondering at the bizarre spectacle...
Crack—! Crunch!!!
“!?”
The space that had been peaceful just a moment ago shattered, and everything in the vicinity began to be sucked in. Rocks, soil, nearby trees, and even weeds. As if gravity had been reversed, everything was pulled upward as if the world intended to leave nothing behind. Contanias and all his vassals, who had been preparing the camp, stared blankly at the sky.
Before long, everyone’s jaws dropped.
Above Alon’s head, a meteorite so massive it could easily obliterate everyone present the moment it fell had been formed.
“What in the—”
While Contanias managed to squeeze out a single word, the massive spherical meteorite slowly descended and then vanished.
“....”
...It didn't take long for Contanias’s expression to turn docile again.
Meanwhile, Alon, the one who had caused the commotion...
“Oh, Blackie can finally use his abilities?”
“Indeed. It seems that from the 2nd Stage onward, he doesn't just use the ability immediately; he has to learn it to some extent.”
“Still, the fact that he can use it at all is amazing. Well—it’s much smaller than what we saw back then. Hmm—but it’s still fascinating. Honestly, I wondered if Blackie could mimic it since it’s a Law.”
“It seems that unlike simply using a Law, Blackie has to use mana.”
“Hmm—so while that side can use Laws without any conditions by using Constraints, this side has to offer mana as fuel.”
“That seems to be the case. Of course, I don't know what it’ll be like for other types of Divine Blood.”
[Kyu—]
Alon was stroking Blackie as if he were proud of him.
* * *
Two days after Contanias’s face had returned to its submissive state...
Alon, who had crossed through the northern border as planned, gave a light nod to Contanias.
“Thank you for your hospitality.”
“Oh, no! Not at all!”
Contanias bowed his head, acting as if he were overwhelmed by Alon’s response. Alon was bewildered by the man’s behavior; he was making such a fuss that Alon wondered if this was truly the same person he had seen at the Tower of Seekers.
“Seeing him act like that is honestly a bit pathetic.”
“I think so too.”
Only after seeing a crack in Contanias’s smile—suggesting he had overheard Penia and Evan badmouthing him from behind—did Alon’s suspicions fade.
‘It seems it really is the same Contanias.’
In any case, they parted ways after a brief farewell. To be more accurate, they only managed to get away after repeatedly refusing Contanias’s insistent offers to escort them all the way to the United Kingdoms.
‘...I actually thought about meeting Ar before leaving.’
Alon recalled Contanias’s words—that Ar had become the Empire’s Guardian Dragon.
“....”
He didn't know how or why Ar had become the Guardian Dragon. However, if he stopped by the capital of the Northern Empire, it would mean he’d be returning to the United Kingdoms after being away for well over half a year. He decided to return home first and come back later.
“By the way, Lord Alon.”
As he was thinking, he heard Penia’s voice.
“What is it?”
“About Ar. How do you think she became the Guardian Dragon?”
“...How?”
“Yes, well... how should I put it... She was such a tender-hearted child, wasn't she? In many ways.”
Penia had brought up the same question Alon was pondering. Alon tried to recall Ar’s image.
...For some reason, he could only remember her always crying.
“...That is true,” Alon nodded instinctively.
A week passed as they moved through the Northern Empire toward the United Kingdoms.
“Lord Alon. While passing through the village this time, I heard some troubling news from the information guild members who were hiding as scouts.”
“Troubling news? What is it?”
“...Well, do you remember that group called the ‘Star Cluster’?”
“I remember.”
“It seems their faction has grown larger than anyone imagined.”
Evan brought the new update.
And at that same moment...
Princess Serdea of the Eastern Empire was...
“...Wait, is that truly the truth?”
“I... I checked several times just in case, which is why my report is late... but it seems that person is—”
With a dazed expression...
“...the father of the Guardian Dragon.”
“The Guardian Dragon’s... father...?”
...listening to even newer news.