Chapter 400
Chapter 400
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 400
>Chapter Title: The 31st Horse Overturns the Game Board
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The events that unfolded on Injung-ro served as one irrefutable proof.
That those who challenged the dragons were ultimately just ordinary humans.
And that by surpassing them, one could become a dragon.
Tae-yul's audacious figure and Sin-yo's flawless presence had ingrained in people's minds that dragon transformations were beings apart from themselves.
And... Seolhong's appearance, pleading for help while covered in filth before such exalted figures, made people feel that dragon transformations were just like them.
Seolhong was the only dragon who had approached the common folk.
And so, time passed.
The Deungnyongje, the festival where Hongcheon would pass on the title of Dragon Emperor, was now right around the corner.
More than a year had passed since Injung-ro.
The news that three dukes had succeeded Hongcheon in ruling Khan shook not only Khan but all of Pandea.
It was that shocking, yet utterly convincing.
Hongcheon was a transcendent great hero who had felled a dragon single-handedly, but his dragon transformations were of a generation that had never even seen a real dragon.
What one man could accomplish alone now required combined strength.
To keep this vast Khan breathing normally. In the end, that was why the three dukes had come to rule Khan.
"My goodness...."
"...Does it feel strange?"
"Oh, no. It's just... so... so fitting on you...."
The hem of the woman's robe cascaded luxuriantly. Yet it didn't look shabby.
On the contrary, it perfectly conveyed that she was a person of immense importance.
The fabric of the robe, the patterns embroidered on it, its very cut.
Everything revealed her status.
The woman was Seolhong, clad in dragon robes.
"Sob... sniff...."
Cheonju, watching her, finally burst into tears.
"What's wrong... Cheonju?"
"Everything... it's all passing by like a dream. Now it finally feels real."
"...Yeah, you're right."
Seolhong reminisced about the past.
How could she not love this old woman who had chased after her, grunting under a bundle as big as a person on her head?
How could she not embrace her?
"You've truly... become a dragon. It's real...."
Cheonju collapsed to the floor, mumbling.
"Yuhwa... look... your daughter did it... She's become a dragon...."
Chiwu helped Cheonju up and led her away.
He, too, was happier than anyone about Seolhong becoming a dragon transformation.
Like the long sleeves of her dragon robe, Seolhong's memories now trailed behind her lavishly.
Memories turned to reminiscences.
Reminiscences led to a lonely back alley.
"So much... has happened."
Abandoned by people, saved by people.
Hurt by people, healed by people.
Sent people away, gained people.
Even as a dragon, she would probably walk Injung-ro her whole life.
Even after fully becoming a dragon someday, she must never forget this stream.
"......"
Seolhong sat alone before the mirror. The mirror reflected not only herself but everything behind her that she couldn't see.
That empty space looked emptier than ever today. In Seolhong's heart, countless people had come and gone in that spot.
Sometimes it was Chiwu, sometimes Jinryeo, sometimes Cheonju.
And there was one who fit perfectly.
She didn't speak his name aloud now. Sometimes she wanted to shout it.
I have become a dragon.
And, thank you so much.
She wanted to say that.
Snapping out of her reverie, Seolhong glanced at the mirror and realized something was off.
The woman in the mirror wasn't looking at the mirror.
She was looking at her.
"What...?"
A lullaby whispered in her ear, the kind sung to soothe a child to sleep.
A song she'd never heard before.
*Sleep, baby... sleep, baby... grow up healthy....*
"Mother! Is that you?"
Seolhong frantically pawed at the mirror. She was clearly reaching toward it, but the woman in the mirror just calmly lowered her hand.
"...Have you been watching over me all this time?"
A soft crunch accompanied the song's final verse.
*The whole world will watch over you....*
"No... don't go... please don't go...."
Whoooosh...
The woman in the mirror was sucked into Seolhong's hand mirror. Yuhwa's keepsake.
Seolhong clutched the hand mirror to her chest and sobbed.
"No... why... why does everyone leave me...."
Seolhong wept for a long while, then forced a smile.
She looked in the mirror again.
This time, it was definitely her.
Even with Yuhwa gone, Seolhong hadn't changed. She was still herself.
Not the little child from back then.
A dragon was here now.
"Wherever you are, please keep watching over me."
She was one who had risen on her own.
* * *
"Hoo...."
The sole Eongan tribesman residing in the Dragon Palace.
Dalyeong, who read the heavens, was a man cherished by Dragon Emperor Hongcheon.
Anyone would be intrigued by a human reading the will of the skies, especially from the position of the absolute ruler.
"These are ill omens... ill omens indeed...."
Today, Dalyeong gazed at the heavens and was overcome with worry.
"What are you trying to tell me?"
The night sky was blood-red.
Comets visibly streaked past the great stars, which dimmed to a murky hue.
All unnatural phenomena.
And all happening at once.
Rumble...
Rain seemed imminent.
Soon, dark clouds blanketed the sky.
Dalyeong, biting his nails, immediately headed to the Dragon Palace's inner sanctum.
In this vast Dragon Palace, only two besides the Dragon Emperor could enter freely without restraint.
Prime Minister Banghyu and Astronomer Dalyeong alone could access the Dragon Emperor's sanctum.
Was this what it meant to be a lifelong guest?
Swish...
'...What?'
Before entering the sanctum, Dalyeong instinctively hid.
Someone besides himself was visiting the Dragon Emperor's chambers.
'Banghyu?'
What business could Banghyu have with the Dragon Emperor at this hour?
'I shouldn't, but....'
True to his Eongan heritage, Astronomer Dalyeong's skills were extraordinary.
Tiny ants entered the Dragon Emperor's chambers.
They became Dalyeong's eyes and ears.
Banghyu, prattling on endlessly to Hongcheon.
"Has the seizure improved at all?"
"...No issue. Sorry to worry you."
Seizure?
Dalyeong had thought the Dragon Emperor's recent seclusion was due to health issues, so this was news to him.
"My lord Dragon, in my youth, I beheld and heard of your majesty. Your tales became legends, passed from mouth to mouth, page to page."
"I've heard that from you before. Yes, you said that's why you wanted to enter the palace."
"Indeed. The great hero Hongcheon unlocked the ultimate mysteries as a mere human and stood before the evil dragon Hagrimu that plunged the East into chaos. And he declared, as all scrolls record."
Banghyu spoke bitterly, calmly.
"Dragon, I have come."
"......"
"Those words shook the heart of boy Banghyu, leading him here to you. And now, Banghyu is an old man who can barely chew his meat."
From boy to old man.
Time had passed until a life reached its end.
"When did it start?"
"Enough with the tedious back-and-forth. Speak plainly."
"When... did the great hero Hongcheon vanish?"
"......"
Dalyeong, eavesdropping, was stunned.
'What...?'
The reply came.
"The time has simply come."
"...Hagrimu."
Banghyu knelt.
"I served a human. Not some dragon like you!"
"You must know we won't exchange many more words. Who else knows?"
"I told no one. Even mentioning it before confirming with my own eyes would be blasphemy."
"...Loyal, yet foolish. For our bond... any last wishes?"
Banghyu smiled.
"Send me to my lord's side."
Fwoooosh-!
Banghyu's head floated lightly upward.
The ants saw it. Dalyeong saw it.
Dalyeong slowly turned and slipped out of the garden.
Only the ants remembered he had been there.
Dalyeong fled the garden and ran.
"Huff... huff...."
A dragon.
The dragon had revived.
A dragon dwelled within Hongcheon.
'So that's why the heavens...'
Banghyu was gone.
Rumors would swirl, and a fitting funeral held.
No one would know it was Hongcheon's doing. Or even if they did, they might not care.
Dalyeong pondered who to tell first.
His feet carried him there unbidden.
Bang bang bang!
He yanked and pounded on the door.
No response.
Bang bang bang!
Creaaaaak...
Opening the door revealed a maidservant.
Splash...
"Astronomer? You're not...?"
"Urgent... I must... tell..."
A voice came from inside.
"Did you get caught in the rain?"
A noble voice.
"Lady Seolhong...."
Dalyeong came to his senses to find himself drenched.
"The rain's fierce—why now of all times...?"
He answered.
"...Yes, but a far greater storm is coming soon."
"...Must be important."
"Nothing in Khan will ever be more crucial."
"...Step down, Hwiya."
Seolhong called Hwiya curtly.
"Attend to your duties."
Nod...
Hwiya vanished, and Seolhong pressed the wall. It shifted momentarily.
Rumble...
"This doesn't seem a place for words. Let's go down."
* * *
The basement's layout was quite unusual. By palace rules, such a structure couldn't exist in the Dragon Palace.
It looked newly built, less than a year old.
Descending, they entered a space draped in curtains, with a round table at the center.
Dalyeong excitedly spilled everything he'd seen. If anyone heard Hongcheon had been possessed by Hagrimu, they'd faint from shock.
Yet Seolhong listened calmly.
Her composure made Dalyeong's agitation seem odd.
"Hongcheon... Hongcheon is already gone. Only the evil dragon sits on that throne."
"......Who else have you told?"
"Lady Seolhong was the first I sought."
"...Why?"
"You're the only one I can trust."
"Me?"
"I've watched your struggles for so long. You've... always been alone, haven't you?"
Alone, thus trustworthy.
A thought befitting Dalyeong, another loner.
"Khan's founding hero Hongcheon is no more. Devoured by Hagrimu, reduced to a puppet. It... hid in Hongcheon's body, biding its time. It... it...."
Swish...
Seolhong raised her hand to halt him. Also to calm him.
"Must I believe this tale?"
"I can prove it. If you wish, a vow sorcery...."
The sorcery Great Sorcerer Wangju had used on the dragon transformations before Injung-ro.
Failure to uphold the vow brought a grave curse.
"I see. Wangju, are you here?"
"What...?"
Wangju couldn't possibly be here. Why would the Dragon Palace's great sorcerer be in this basement...?
Yet a voice came from behind the curtain.
"Yes... my lord Dragon."
Someone joined them at the table from behind the curtain.
"Wangju... why are you here...?"
"Heh heh... We'll interrogate why you didn't come to me first later... Let me verify."
Snap-!
Wangju cast sorcery, delving into Dalyeong's mind.
"Urgh...."
"Bear with it a moment."
The jumbled sanctum events flowed from Dalyeong to Wangju.
"Good heavens...."
"Well?"
"How could this be... It's all true. As Dalyeong says, Dragon Emperor Hongcheon... is Hagrimu. Since when...?"
"......"
Seolhong's brow furrowed deeply at Wangju's words.
"I can't resolve this alone."
"Lady Seolhong!"
"Didn't you come here trusting me?"
Dalyeong nodded cautiously.
"Then trust me to the end."
Swish...
Two shadows fell behind the curtain.
"Human trust leads to more trust."
Rustle...
The curtain parted.
"I trust my brethren."
Behind it were Sin-yo and Tae-yul. They approached the table.
"If this is true, why hasn't it awakened yet?"
Tae-yul asked, and Great Sorcerer Wangju replied.
"Perhaps... it can't awaken."
"...Hm."
"It lost its body once before and has gnawed at Hongcheon's mind, but the old body won't return. What it seeks... is probably its own flesh."
Sin-yo said.
"Shouldn't we request aid?"
"With a dragon in Khan's heart, demanding everyone unite—they'd never believe it, and if we act suspicious, Hagrimu strikes first. We must never let on we know. That's our sole advantage."
"Makes sense."
"Perhaps striking first before it moves is wisest."
"What does it seek... Why stay dormant, planning to rise at a specific time...?"
One event, soon to occur, flashed through all their minds.
"Deungnyongje!"
"It's Deungnyongje!"
"It must be targeting Deungnyongje...."
All dragon transformations gathered, with imperial citizens watching.
Hongcheon had to appear personally for the event.
Tae-yul said.
"Two paths. Cancel Deungnyongje and flee Hagrimu... or...."
"Abandon the citizens?"
"We can't!"
"I'm stating options. The other is... we target Deungnyongje too."
Tae-yul spoke carefully.
"With all dragon transformations together that day, even a dragon could be slain in a moment of carelessness."
But one problem remained.
How to deal with Hagrimu.
Neither Hongcheon nor Hagrimu had equals.
They needed an ambush so fierce it couldn't respond.
Then, Seolhong smiled faintly.
"There's one way."