The situation had turned strange.
Leighton, who had initiated the coup, and his soldiers were now unexpectedly surrounded by retired veterans and civilians.
Weapons began to drop one by one from the soldiers' hands.
It had been a coup without justification from the start. Due to the nature of the military organization, it was only that the reins had long been handed to Leighton, who had been the real power holder...
'Kkuk!'
Feeling the situation turn against him, Leighton gritted his teeth. The coup, which should have been resolved swiftly, had been delayed to this point, and much had already gone awry.
'It's not too late yet. If I kill the Duchess and seize the Dragonheart and Dragonblood...!'
The legitimacy of the Bringar Ducal family ultimately stemmed from the power of the dragon.
Lady Bringar was currently helpless against the Dragon-Slaying Sword, unable to exert her original powers.
If he could steal the remaining Dragonheart and Dragonblood from her, then becoming the 'Dragon,' as well as the next Duke of Bringar, was still possible.
The resistance of the civilians?
Such things could be crushed with absolute power...!
"Don't worry about what's behind, break through the front!"
Despite Leighton's command, most soldiers hesitated and were reluctant. However, Leighton didn't care and charged forward.
A few loyal knights and soldiers followed him.
It was a situation of riding the tiger after already participating in the rebellion. Rather than laying down their swords and giving up, they decided to fight it out with Leighton.
The retired veterans formed a wall in front of the queen with their bodies but were quickly slaughtered, spilling blood.
Leading from the front, Leighton brandished his sword to clear a path and dashed towards Lady Bringar.
'I will rip out your heart and devour it! Then I will, this country...!'
As Leighton cleared his last resistance with blood and finally reached Lady Bringar.
"...?!"
Gooooooo...!
Already there, her flaming crimson hair fluttering upwards—
The girl who had inherited the name Bringar stood there, eyes tightly shut.
***
When she was first stabbed with the Dragon-Slayer Sword, Lady Bringar was already on the verge of death.
Since escaping the palace, she had felt death looming behind her. She should have started the succession ritual and passed on the Dragonheart and Dragonblood to Dusk immediately.
But she gritted her teeth and endured death.
Before the succession ritual, she tried to control the rampaging Dragonheart and Dragonblood inside her... and her emotions.
The rage of being betrayed by a trusted subordinate surged to her head. She felt an immediate urge to transform into the form of a dragon and destroy everything.
But she endured.
She couldn't pass her angrily pulsing heart and blood to Dusk.
To ensure that the girl's small body and soul, and her future life, were not destroyed. It had to be passed on whole and precious...
"Dusk."
And finally, peace came.
The surging anger and grudge subsided as she looked into the girl's eyes, vanishing like a lie. Realizing she was ready, Lady Bringar smiled gently.
"Take my hand."
Dusk, as if enchanted, took the queen's hand.
The next moment, the girl's consciousness moved not to reality but into Dusk's mental world.
"This place is...?"
Dusk looked around in surprise.
It was a land where fires blazed on the ground. Everything was burnt to ashes and still the ground radiated heat from the flames.
On this charred earth, Lady Bringar smiled as usual. But only then did Dusk understand.
Why Lady Bringar had often appeared to be smiling.
She had always smiled to endure the boiling rage inside her.
This desolate scene was truly— the real mindset of the queen who had lived as a monarch for over a century.
"To become the Duchess of Bringar, you must first acknowledge."
Lady Bringar slowly began.
"That you are a monster."
"..."
"That you possess physical abilities far superior to ordinary humans, enjoy a lifespan several times that of ordinary humans, and govern while looking down on ordinary humans. Becoming a dragon from being an ordinary human makes you feel this difference even more."
Everything was burnt, ashes whirled to the horizon of her inner world, which Lady Bringar slowly scanned.
"You might not think it now... but once you stand atop a high tower, atop a high castle, your perspective changes. A sense of superiority and a chosen-people mentality can emerge at any moment."
"..."
"So Dawn Bringar had one criterion for selecting future dukes," she said.
And towards the girl who had obtained that qualification, Lady Bringar smiled faintly.
"A strong heart that will not give up on living as a human."
"...!"
"That is exactly what is necessary for a human to become a dragon. The qualification to become a descendant of the Red Dragon."
Lady Bringar, kneeling on one knee before Dusk, took the girl's hand and placed it over her own heart.
"True strength is not in this heart or the magic power flowing in this blood."
"Then..."
"It's the heart you showed me, the courage not to hate, that is truly strong."
Dusk's eyes widened.
"The courage not to hate...?"
"There is always a reason to hate someone. But you have decided not to hate even those who almost killed you. That's remarkable."
Lady Bringar nodded.
"It is because of that courage that people have saved you again... us."
"..."
"But such miracles don't happen often. What you have to protect as a queen in the future are not the weak and the good but the weak, cowardly, petty, and very occasionally good, ordinary people."
Just like you and me—Lady Bringar said with a smile.
"They will sometimes please you, but mostly they will use you, betray you, and hurt you. Many trials will come your way."
Lady Bringar pressed the small hand that came to rest on her chest.
"Anger and hatred will burn inside you. You will continuously face times when you want to give up living as a human."
"..."
"But love, Dusk."
In her own heart's world, burnt black.
"Even if your heart burns black as soot, still... do not hate, love."
Do not give up on living as a human.
Looking at her successor who must now inherit this burnt world, the former Duchess whispered so.
"I transfer this crown and this blood to you because... you are a child who can do it."
"..."
"I am sorry for giving you such a heavy burden."
Slowly, Dusk nodded.
"I'll show you, Mother."
For a very short time, the girl smiled at the woman who had been her mother.
"Because I was born blackened by soot from the start. Even if I burn a bit more, it won't show."
"..."
Watching the girl with tender affection, Lady Bringar suddenly grabbed her hand—
And pushed it into her own chest.
After a while, Dusk grasped something inside that chest and pulled it out.
It was a blazing red flame.
The flames that burst forth burned the girl's entire body. Gritting her teeth, she thrust the flame with all her might—
Into her own chest.
***
"..."
The consciousness that had entered the mental world resurfaces into reality.
Soot—no, Dusk Bringar opened her closed eyes.
Her amber dragon eyes shone in the swirling flames. Dusk Bringar slowly lowered her gaze.
"Ku, Kuk..."
Leighton was already bloodied and collapsed, with Dusk's foot on his head.
The Dragon-Slaying Sword, broken in half, was embedded in Leighton's stomach. Being a deadly weapon even for a dragon knight like him, Leighton trembled in pain.
"Save me... please..."
"..."
Fury filled Dusk Bringar's amber eyes.
The mortal enemy who killed the first person to ever show her love, not even worth chewing up.
With just a little force on her toe, she could easily evaporate this man's life. Dusk Bringar was engulfed in a fierce impulse.
"Dusk."
But when Lady Bringar's weary voice came from behind, she snapped back to reality.
Breathing heavily, Dusk Bringar looked around. The soldiers, realizing the situation was over, had all knelt and surrendered, and the citizens were tying them up.
All eyes were on her. Dusk Bringar slowly began.
"I am Dusk Bringar, who has officially inherited the dukedom from the great Dragon Lady, Lady Bringar."
The girl's voice trembled, but she did not hesitate.
"As the Duchess of Bringar, this is my first command. Imprison the criminals. And let them face the strict judgment of the law."
Priests rushed over and extracted the sword from Leighton's stomach and administered first aid.
Dusk Bringar spoke coldly to the gasping Leighton.
"This is not the place where you should die. It should be on the execution ground, in front of all the citizens. Until that moment, I will certainly hold onto your life."
"..."
The bound Leighton was dragged away, and Dusk Bringar turned around.
She saw Lady Bringar leaning against the collapsed stone wall.
As Dusk Bringar approached hurriedly, Lady Bringar smiled faintly with a pale face.
"It's regrettable, our first autumn festival together..."
Lady Bringar slowly took off her silver diadem and placed it on Dusk Bringar's head.
"I was looking forward to the days ahead with you... to part like this."
"..."
"Don't cry, my child. We shall meet again."
Lady Bringar gently stroked the weeping Dusk Bringar's head.
"Legend has it that the Red Dragons at the end of their lives gather at the coast at the world's end, waiting together for the last sunrise... I'll wait there for you, so take your time. You understand?"
"Yes, Mother."
Now blind, Lady Bringar lifted her fading eyes and asked in a fading voice.
"It's quiet around here. It's the autumn festival... are the citizens enjoying the festival?"
The citizens surrounding the dying queen were sobbing quietly.
Dusk Bringar, wiping her tears, lied with a smile.
"Yes, Mother. The whole city is filled with laughter and song."
"Haha, as it should be for an autumn festival. And what else...?"
"People have gathered in the squares like clouds with food and drink, praising you for this year's good harvest."
"When I ordered the dam construction, everyone grumbled... See? Things go well when they do as this old lady says... Haha. What else do you see?"
Dusk Bringar looked up at the clear sky.
"Fireworks are lighting up the sky."
"I told them only on the last day so many times, but these people... they never tire year after year..."
"The sky is blooming with fireworks of various colors. Look. That one resembles a flower bud, and that one looks like an umbrella, and that one..."
As she described the nonexistent fireworks, Dusk Bringar tightly grasped Lady Bringar's cold hand.
"...The citizens are now waiting for your words, Mother. What have you prepared to say this year? Please go ahead."
Then Lady Bringar, with cracked lips, faintly smiled and said,
"To all the good people of this country."
To all the citizens who fought against the soldiers to save her, she once again delivered the words she repeated every year.
"Live every day like a festival. Eat, dance, sing, and... love."
The queen's voice slowly faded.
"Love, my children. Love..."
Those were her last words.
Lady Bringar's head dropped. She breathed no more.
Amidst the citizens turned into a sea of tears, Dusk Bringar, who had been facing her deceased mother, also slowly lowered her head.
***
...A vast amount of time has passed since that day.
Had she lived as kindly as her mother had advised?
Dusk Bringar thought she had not.
The crown suddenly placed on the young girl was too heavy. The citizens continuously compared her to her predecessor.
Neighboring countries underestimated the young queen, and swindlers tried to manipulate her.
Governing was arduous, and wars were incessant. She was merely struggling to survive.
Mired in inertia, she struggled painfully, thus surviving over a hundred years.
The courage not to hate had long been burnt away.
Dusk Bringar had come to hate many people.
Many nations had come to hate Dusk Bringar. She had killed many and lost just as much.
'I'm sorry, Mother.'
Suddenly, she surveyed her mental world, now as black and grotesque as her mother's, if not more so, and muttered softly.
'I did not live as you had wished.'
She had been trusted and had tried to live uprightly...
But looking back, only her long, crooked, ash- and soot-covered footsteps remained.
Looking down at her own hand, stained black under her nails, Dusk Bringar clenched her fist tightly.
'So, at least...'
She must protect that child, who held the same warmth as you...
***
"..."
Dusk Bringar suddenly opened her eyes.
A cool breeze entered through the gap in the curtained window. The feather pillow was soft, and the blanket was warm. A fresh fruit scent wafted from somewhere.
Having dreamt a long dream of the distant past, she couldn't tell if this was reality or an illusion.
"...What is this, have I finally died and gone to heaven?"
As Dusk Bringar murmured blankly,
"With such a handsome angel flying around beside you, I suppose it would be questionable whether it's heaven or not."
A familiar voice came from beside her. Dusk Bringar, startled, looked in that direction.
"Unfortunately, Duchess, this is still the earth."
The young man with jet-black hair sitting beside the bed—Ash, closed the book he was reading with a thud and smirked playfully.
"How was it, sleeping for so long? Did you have any nice dreams?"