Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: The True Threat
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"Relationship improvement. Improvement, huh... Yeah, that's not wrong at all."
Paon, who had been stroking his chin while quietly listening to Ian's response, suddenly let out a chuckle.
"Latent Dragon Squad, you've all worked incredibly hard. I assigned you what was supposed to be an easy mission to give you a break after all those grueling tasks, but an unexpected crisis forced you to suffer more than intended."
Smooth!
"And yet, you handled it brilliantly, rescuing His Majesty King Demure's precious princess wasn't enough—you even secured commissions from the envoys of foreign nations. I believe we should reward you generously for this... What do the other captains think?"
Paon rose from his seat and lightly met the eyes of the other strike team captains as he asked.
At his words, all the captains bowed their heads in unison and shouted.
""As the Patriarch wills!!""
Who would dare voice opposition to the Patriarch's words?
Besides, it wasn't just this mission—Latent Dragon Squad's recent exploits more than warranted rewards.
There were those who followed the Eldest Young Lord, but they too were leaders of their own strike teams.
No one was so petty as to oppose rewarding those who had earned their merits.
Thump, thump!
The Latent Dragon Squad members, listening to Paon, desperately tried to calm their hearts pounding like mad.
My god—the Patriarch himself was officially promising rewards!
No doubt, they wouldn't be light ones.
"Mountain of Fire, Birch Forest, Shurton... Good grief, you've succeeded at so many things in such a short time that I almost feel bad assigning more missions. For the time being, I won't give Latent Dragon Squad any special assignments. Go back and rest well. The rewards will be delivered through Captain Ian."
Smooth!
Paon addressed the other captains who had been conducting the meeting with him.
"We'll end today's meeting here. Captain Ian, stay. Everyone else, dismissed."
""Yes, understood!!""
At Paon's command, the Latent Dragon Squad and strike team captains slowly rose and exited the Patriarch's hall.
Now, only Paon and Ian remained.
Paon slowly opened his mouth to Ian.
"Good work. You even figured out exactly what I wanted, Ian."
"You're too kind, Patriarch. It was merely the result of doing my best in the given situation, with a bit of luck."
"Heh, is that so? Was it really just luck?"
Paon smiled lightly, clearly pleased by Ian's modesty.
"I've already heard from that friend Demure. He told you everything about the scheme we cooked up. I figured with how you've been lately, you'd piece it all together even without being told... Did I overestimate you too much?"
In this private setting, he dropped the formal title for Demure, asking Ian more casually.
As expected.
...This man had known everything from the start.
Pretending otherwise now would just waste time when they both already knew.
Ian responded directly to Paon's straightforward question.
"In that case, Patriarch, may I ask just two things?"
"Go ahead."
"You seem to have already known that beasts from the Northern Continent would strike. I'd like to know how you realized that. Second, I'm curious why you didn't tell me directly."
Paon's eyes widened slightly in surprise at Ian's bold questions.
"Hah? That's impressive. You even figured out that the ones targeting Princess Isabel came from the Northern Continent? The royals said torture yielded nothing—how did you know?"
Instead of answering, Paon countered with a question.
"...The beastmen's appearance and the fact they hail from the Northern Continent's polar regions were already noted in the memoir left by the Hegemon. I recognized their traits during combat and realized they came from the north."
Ian answered, mixing in a slight fabrication.
"Hmm, did that meticulous side exist in Lucas? It's a bit different from what I expected. I thought he was more reckless and straightforward."
Fortunately, Paon didn't probe deeper and addressed Ian's first question.
"Ah, right—you asked how I knew. Fine, I'll tell you. Ian, have you heard of Siegfried?"
"...Who in Agena hasn't heard that name while alive?"
"Kuk! True enough. It's impossible not to know it. Hero who felled the Hegemon, first emperor of the Dufer Empire, Hero-Emperor... How could anyone miss a name laden with such grand titles?"
For some reason, Paon nodded with a touch of loneliness at Ian's reply before countering.
"Then let me rephrase. Ian, do you also know that he's not the righteous hero the world makes him out to be?"
"......?!"
Ian's eyes widened at Paon's utterly unexpected question.
"...I'm not sure what you mean. Siegfried Dufer—isn't he the hero who saved the Northern Continent from the Hegemon's tyranny?"
After a brief silence, Ian feigned ignorance, unable to grasp the implication.
"A successor to the Hegemon's martial arts speaking well of the one who toppled its creator. That's a rare case."
"...Martial arts are just martial arts—they bear no guilt."
"Well, fair enough."
Whether convinced or deeming it unimportant, Paon nodded slightly at Ian's answer.
"To cut to the chase—it's all wrong. Siegfried Dufer isn't a hero. As far as I know, there's no one in Agena greedier than him."
Paon gazed north with distant eyes.
"Lucas, that friend... was just deceived by Siegfried's cunning agitation. He did ravage the Northern Continent, so he's not blameless... but he wasn't the type to go down so pathetically."
"......?"
Paon's expression resembled one reminiscing an old acquaintance, prompting Ian to unwittingly dredge up his past.
'Did I ever meet Paon in my previous life...? When?'
No matter how he racked his brain, no memory surfaced.
Even a fleeting encounter with such a powerhouse would have been unforgettable.
He swore he'd never crossed paths with Paon before, yet this man mourned Lucas's death so deeply—it was baffling.
Regardless of Ian's recollections, Paon continued.
"I got sidetracked. Anyway, Siegfried's ambitions aren't confined to little Krohoka in the Northern Continent. It's merely a starting point for him. Demure and I, having seen through his vast greed early on, planted spies across the north. This incident was just caught by one of those hidden eyes."
Smooth!
Then, he scanned Ian's body from head to toe.
"......?"
It felt like he was gauging Ian's cultivation level, and just then, Paon spoke again.
"Siegfried's endless greed... the Four Heroes at Kairun Plains during the Northern Continent conquest probably all saw through it. Even granting the saintess might have missed it due to her insensitivity there, the Sword Saint of the Khan Empire couldn't have—the man's cut from the same cloth."
'...He saw through Kaido Ballak's movements too.'
Ian suspected Paon even knew why the orc chieftain Urk at the Mountain of Fire possessed the Khan Empire's White Ghost Unit.
"Well, the details are still too early for you. Just know the Khan Empire has keen interest in the Southern Continent. With Dufer swallowing the entire Alexandr Empire, they probably think those bastards' heads have swollen too big. To protect their vested interests in Agena, they'll deem subjugating the south necessary."
Paon rubbed his temples, as if his head ached even while speaking.
"In the end, they're all thieves, big and small. Agena looks peaceful on the surface... but inside, it's a powder keg ready to blow anytime. Crawling with scum just waiting for a chance to stab each other in the back."
Ian couldn't help but ask.
"Patriarch. If all that's true... why aren't you doing anything?"
Ian couldn't comprehend.
Paon's strength was no trifling matter.
No—in Agena, few if any surpassed him.
'Top three... no, top two fingers aren't enough.'
Even his past self couldn't guarantee victory, so there was no reason to sit idle for such petty schemes.
If it were Lucas, he'd have exacted bloody vengeance on all involved.
He couldn't fathom why Paon just sat there like a fool.
"Pfft! I respect the patience you've shown, enduring the 'halfwit' stigma while secretly mastering the Hegemon's arts... but that question falls short. Even as a direct descendant, did you overlook the absolute precept our clan must uphold?"
"......?"
Paon shook his head slightly at Ian's baffled reaction.
"From that look, it's not oversight—you truly don't know. You're my son, but really clueless sometimes."
Chuckle!
"The Lichtenauer Martial Clan must protect this land from all external threats, including the Great Disaster. That is our reason for existence and our mission."
Ian already knew that. So, shouldn't he block the Khan and Dufer Empires' schemes too?
Paon understood Ian's expression but didn't give the answer outright.
"You should be able to grasp what I mean."
Then he fell silent.
'He wants me to figure it out myself.'
Realizing Paon's intent, Ian began pondering.
'The Lichtenauer Martial Clan's mission is to protect this land.'
Then there was no reason for Paon to ignore the empires' ploys. Yet he did... which meant...
Ian soon arrived at the answer.
"...There's a greater threat. One so massive we can't even concern ourselves with the empires' games."
A foe Paon deemed a threat wasn't easy to fathom, but...
Nothing else made sense.
"Correct."
Satisfied, Paon smiled faintly.
"You've heard of the Great Disaster's three major forces, surely."
Of course.
The massive orc power dominating the southwest, led by Golden Heaven, which Ian had direct and indirect ties to in missions.
The Takryu, who crossed the massive central Amatres River to fully conquer the western seas, even raiding the southern West Continent.
And the Great Desert ruling the barren northern highlands and wastes.
The superpowers of the Great Disaster that the Lichtenauers always kept watch on.
"Actually, that's a misnomer. They're called the three major forces, but really, it's one dominant and two subordinates."
Ian intuited it.
The dominant force Paon referred to now.
That was the culprit pinning him down.
"...The Great Desert?"
"Yes."
Paon nodded at Ian's words.
"The Great Desert's monster, dormant for so long—the Earth Dragon Karaktus. He's stirring again."
Earth Dragon Karaktus.
Records on Karaktus were scarce.
Some called it a dragon from legend, others a colossal serpent millennia old.
But one thing all agreed on:
Karaktus was an absurdly powerful monster.
"Hundreds of years ago, our ancestors mobilized the clan's full might and barely managed to seal the rampaging Karaktus. But sealing him cost us seventy percent of the clan's forces."
The clan's power was never insignificant.
It wasn't for nothing that even the Alexandr Empire needed total national mobilization to conquer the Southern Continent back then.
No matter how different the past clan was, Lichtenauer was Lichtenauer. For a single entity to shatter seventy percent of that power spoke volumes of Karaktus's might.
A strength beyond words. That was Karaktus's power.
"So, the reason you can't move, Patriarch..."
"Exactly."
Paon stated firmly.
Unlike the bored expression Ian had seen before, a fierce resolve rode his words.
"I intend to hunt the awakening Earth Dragon Karaktus."