The duel between Leon and Vulcanus is not over after a day and a night of fighting.
The stadium is cracked and splintered, and not even the stands are safe. By the second day, most of the spectators had been evacuated to avoid being killed by flying stadium debris.
Only the strongest remained in the stadium to avoid being killed by the flying debris in the aftermath of the battle, and──
And so, on the third day.
Vulcanus crossed the line.
"Aaahhhhhhh!"
[Ugh, Vulcanus, you bastard! No way!!!]
Divine Descent
Despite Petos' protests, Vulcanus canceled the long-overdue savings account.
[No, no, no, no, no!!!]
Despite Petos' cries, the Holy Knight's flames grew stronger.
Of course, there are exceptions. He'll limit the use of holy power to single strikes.
With this holy sword, it's a one-hit wonder, and its power reaches the peak of the holy sword's brilliance. But──
"You used it first."
In the heat of the duel, Vulcanus hadn't thought about it. If he is a Holy Knight, a representative of the God of War, then──
Leon was the representative of all gods.
"Hmm— Why don't we call it off for a while and come to our senses? I've been thinking about it, and I don't think it's a good idea to waste the power of the gods like this–"
"I like that kind of shamelessness in you, my lord, but not now."
"——"
If there was a true loser in this duel, it would be Petos, who had blown half of the holy power he had accumulated through months of events such as the Holy Spirit Prayer Ceremony.
And so Vulcanus fell.
The suitors stopped coming.
-How the hell am I supposed to defeat such a monster?
-Ah, this quest is doomed.
Leon was a wall that could never be crossed, and while he still had over fifty suitors to defeat, there were none left to challenge him.
"Hmm."
"Your Majesty, you seem satisfied."
Beatrice noticed that after three days without a challenger, Leon's expression was more satisfied than ever.
"How peaceful the king's garden is now that the bandits are gone."
"Though it is said that you are a bit hesitant."
"Well, one who is king should not be concerned with the reputation of those below."
That may be the attitude of royalty, but is it royalty to interfere with your daughter's marriage?
Of course, Beatrice knew Leon's reasons for doing this.
"Are you sure your daughter will do as your Majesty wishes?"
"I hope so."
'Clumsy.'
When she had first heard Leon's self-deprecation, Beatrice had been surprised to realize that this perfect man had an ordinary flaw.
Just as Vulcanus had come up with a rather frivolous phrase, Beatrice admitted to laughing at Leon's behavior.
But what came next was pity.
He was a guilty father, unable or unwilling to deny his own choices, beating himself up over them.
He thwarts his daughter's plans and uses his authority to dictate her choices.
What a clumsy father.
He was a perfect knight, a great king, and a beloved seeker of the gods but even such a perfect demigod reveals his clumsiness in such an awkward and embarrassing way.
He only knows it's for the best.
"It's not going to happen the way you think it should."
"No, it must be this king's will. It's what's best for her."
She didn't know what Karina Dragonia would think of that.
* * * *
It had been four days since the suitor's challenge had ceased, and it was approaching twenty days since Ha-ri had been dropped off at the Imperial Palace.
The words she had learned as a young woman from historical dramas brought a modest smile to the faces of her superiors.
"So, have you eaten?"
"Your Majesty, I was waiting for you."
Karina found it unusual that Ha-ri had no fear or dread of her, even when she was being hard on her.
She had dragon blood in her veins and the heart of a dragon in her bloodline.
The stronger the power, the stronger the 'blood' that radiates from it, causing creatures to have an instinctive fear of it.
It was fine when she was in Lionheart.
No one had carried the dragon's heart as long as she had, but each of Lionheart's citizens had the power to resist the dragon's blood because of their faith.
Believing that the gods would provide for them as they deserved was the most powerful force to overcome the dragon curse.
And in this world, where the authority of the gods did not exist, she saw criminals who had to accept their existence as raw.
The unity and surprise of the Seven Kingdoms was born out of that fear.
In that sense, Ha-ri, a woman who finds herself challenged but not afraid, is a welcome addition to Karina's ranks.
"Well, Your Majesty. I hear that no new suitors have shown up today."
"Indeed."
Karina sighed softly. It was not unexpected since Vulcanus had been defeated.
"If it had been a physical fight, I would have had something to say about it, but it was a holy one, so it is what it is."
"Boo, how much holy power did Lord Vulcanus use?"
"Young one, Lord Vulcanus' opponent is the Lionheart King."
"That's right— ahaha."
Vulcanus' talent and vessel could be said to be a freak of the era.
However, his opponent is also the strongest Lionheart King in history. In a purely holy battle, Vulcanus, who represents only one god, would not be able to defeat the agent of all gods.
"If it were a purely physical contest, I would have expected him to have pushed the Lionheart King."
Vulcanus is one of the strongest creatures on earth, and Leon is a natural fighter who embodies hundreds of years of warfare.
Leon knocked Vulcanus down thirteen times and let him go thirteen times, and in that last fight, the two fought day and night for a week.
'He must not have fought sincerely.'
If Vulcanus was truly serious, he would not have been subdued by Leon so quickly.
Leon's interference in narrowing her options aside, Karina laughed bitterly.
"Well, I'd rather talk about your world."
The reason Karina keeps Ha-ri close to her in the palace isn't just because she's immune to the influence of her aura.
She was also an important source of information about the other world connected to her empire.
Knowing about them is something the Imperial Emperor needs, no matter how she deals with them in the future.
"Our world is being invaded by demons, connected to many worlds, and there-"
Ha-ri unpacked the sack of stories Karina wanted to hear.
"In your world, iron horses and birds carry people around."
"They're called cars and airplanes."
"Yes, I can see that you are a very advanced civilization."
Emperor Karina was happy to hear about Earth and Ha-ri did her best to impress her, who listened with interest.
How Leon had come from a Black Gate, how the TTG Temple had been built and so many other things that had happened.
'I wish I could be close to His Majesty again.'
As one who had seen the end of the Lionheart Kingdom, it was a wish that would never be fulfilled, as Leon fought so long and so lonely against the demons.
"And by the way, is Your Majesty's world free of demons now?"
"They still try to cross over from time to time, but there have been fewer of them lately, and even then they are dealt with before they can cross the gate."
"Ah—then that——."
As the Hunters crossed the gate, they looked surprised as they realized that the gate phenomenon they had encountered had been caused by Karina's intervention.
"I, uh, thought a dragon did that— uh, how?"
If there was a power that could intervene in the passage of a gate, wouldn't it be easy to win the war against demons?
"It is the power of the dragon. I've set up several traps in the subspace between this world and the others using dragon magic. It's nothing to be overconfident about, but it's enough to make them lose if you try to rush in."
That alone was enough to change the course of a war. To which Karina added that it was a burden whenever she used it.
"Burden?"
Ha-ri's question made Karina look surprised.
"You, who inherited the heart of the first Grand Duchess of Leona, don't know the history of the Grand Duke of Dragonia?"
"Ah— well, that's——."
Of course, as an Earthling, Ha-ri's knowledge of Lionheart's history and story is limited to what Leon tells her.
Leon is also in charge of theological education, but there aren't many stories that are only told by one person. For now, Leon's focus is on combat training, not history.
"It's an old story."
In a distant age, it was the age of dragons, not gods.
A time of darkness, when humans were nothing more than dragon prey, when civilization was barely a thing, and when the gods themselves could not find enough followers to believe in them.
Three heroes were chosen by the gods.
"One of them was Archduke Zeke. He is known for many heroic deeds, but his most famous is his defeat of the dragon king Dragonia. He slayed an evil dragon and—well, let's just say he was rowdy."
"Your Majesty?"
"Yes. It's one of the dragon's tricks."
Karina stuttered and demanded more of Ha-ri's stories, which had been quite a journey, but after another couple of hours, it finally came.
"Your Majesty, I watched the final battle of the Lionheart Kingdom."
"——"
Karina did not see the fall of Lionheart since she was swept into this world in the midst of her battle with a Demon Archduke.
"His Majesty must have resented me greatly."
In that battle, Karina led 30,000 Northern troops to break away from the Alliance.
With the end of the world already assured, she marched north, leading the avengers of Ventasis, sworn to vengeance.
It was a choice that spoke to the North's desire for vengeance, but it was also a harsh choice by a daughter who had betrayed the Alliance and betrayed her father.
[Do as you will, Archduke of Dragonia! I don't want to see you! Disappear before this king's eyes!]
The last words she heard from her father. Even though she knew it was the last time, Karina led her army and abandoned Leon.
Naturally, she expected Leon to blame her.
"He doesn't!"
But Ha-ri's answer was different. She said what she saw.
"His Majesty was always thinking of you and he was sorry—he missed you."
When Leon heard of the kingdom's demise from his friends from the future, he was not discouraged.
He was willing to make way for the future, and in the process, he was reunited with Karina.
Ha-ri was sure that Leon would have been pleased to see her and be happy for her.
"I know."
Karina knew it was true when the usually coy Ha-ri spoke with such determination.
It was comforting, if only a little.
"How did it go, Lionheart?"
"He fought to the last man."
He won in the end, and now he was here.
"I see."
Karina looked bitter and said nothing more. Then Poma interjected.
[Do you have any intention of going back?]
"To where?"
[To a home that will embrace you as you deserve.]
Karina's homeland was not a name or a country.
"It's too late, I've been away too long."
[How long?]
"A few more years, if I'm lucky."
"Your Majesty, Poma, what are you both talking about?"
Ha-ri couldn't keep up with the story, so Karina clicked her tongue and scolded Poma.
"You should take care of the education of the new maiden."
[This is not a time of peace.]
Ha-ri couldn't understand what she was saying at first, so she inferred the context. 'A few years'. That was the easiest word to infer──
"Are you dying, are you on your deathbed?!"
"Well, something like that. Better to see it once than to say it a hundred times."
Karina began to unbutton her robe. The emperor's robes fell to the floor with a clatter, but Ha-ri didn't bother to look away.
The sheer power was overwhelming. An aura so powerful it made her skin crawl and made her shiver.
"Ugh—!"
Ha-ri gulped as he saw Karina's fully exposed upper body.
The heart. A throbbing aura pulsated around her left breast, and the skin around it was covered with steel-like scales.
* * * *
It is said to be a dragon curse that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Grand Duchy of Dragonia.
The Grand Duchess of Dragonia was bathed in the blood of the ancestral dragon, Dragonia, and used its heart as the essence of her power, but the more she used it, the more she was consumed by the dragon curse.
Karina has been Archduchess of Dragonia for well over two hundred years now. She had been carrying the dragon's heart for far too long when she should have been able to give birth to a child and pass it on.
"Your Majesty, then Your Majesty–His Majesty the Lionheart King knew that!"
She must give birth to an heir. Only then can Karina live. Knowing that, why would Leon interrupt Karina's soul duel?
"Well, follow me. I have something to show you."
Karina smiled wryly and headed off into the distance.
Inside the palace, servants and maids bow, soldiers salute.
No one dared to question or interrupt her progress.
"Do you know that dragons build nests and hoard gold and silver treasures?"
"Do they?"
Ha-ri had seen many monsters, but never a dragon.
"They are greedy by nature and love to glitter. They have a habit of collecting and hoarding all the gold and jewelry in the world as if it were their own."
That's what we call 'dragon rarities,' Karina said.
"Same goes for me. At some point, I became obsessed with gold and silver treasures."
"——"
Ha-ri was at a loss for words as the 'radiance' grew closer with each step and a path of pure white marble led to a palace clad in gold.
From the columns to the roof, there was nothing that wasn't ornate, and it looked like the golden palaces of legend.
-Gulp!
She swallows hard, overwhelmed by the exterior, Ha-ri is greeted by a giant door that looks like it could fit a giant.
When Karina opened it herself, Ha-ri stepped forward out of habit.
"I, I'll open it for you!"
The younger one takes care of the older one. It was something she'd learned to do while serving Leon. But despite the gesture, the iron gate that Ha-ri touched refused to budge.
"What? Why, why won't it open?"
The iron gate wouldn't budge, even with the strength of an S-class Hunter and Ha-ri wondered if there was some sort of lock, but when Karina touched it, the door gradually began to open.
"Huh? What, is there some kind of magical device?"
Ha-ri wondered if there was some sort of magic that could identify the user, like fingerprinting, but Karina's answer was simple.
"No, it's just the world's heaviest iron door, and the only person in the world that can push it open and close is me."
"——"
The world's heaviest iron door and an iron door that can only be opened with the power Karina.
What kind of treasure could such a thing be made to hold?
Ha-ri soon opened the door and realized what it meant.
It was a gigantic palace the size of a soccer stadium on modern Earth and inside it was──
"Huh—!"
Mountains of gold and silver treasures.
There was no word to describe it other than piles.
[Did you come?]
And amidst the splendor of the gold and silver treasures, a dark aura took shape that seemed so out of place.
She could not name the ominous being, but Karina knew it.
[My avenger, I have come to collect the price you owe.]
Ventasis, of darkness and vengeance, has come for his Holy Knight.