"Young Master?"
When that word crossed Cale's mind, Bailey, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, stepped forward.
"Your Highness."
"Why is the Minister here?" When young King Dennis saw Bailey, he was surprised.
Knock, knock.
Someone was knocking on the door from outside.
"Your Highness, is there any issue?"
It seemed like they had noticed a bit of commotion. The eyes of the young king and the old servant met, and Bailey shook her head.
Dennis opened his mouth. "No, there's nothing. Just bring the Prime Minister to the meeting room."
The knight outside the door fell silent for a moment. "...Understood." Soon, a low response was heard, and then Dennis said, "Make everyone in the palace leave. Leave only a few."
"Understood."
In addition to the knight outside the door, all the knights guarding the palace were Dennis's men. They were the minimal shield left by the previous king.
"Minister."
Bailey looked at Dennis, who then spoke. "We have six hours until the next shift change for the guards." After that, the guards will be a mix of those who support the Empire and those who support the King.
"Should that be enough time for a conversation?"
'Oh.'
Cale looked at Dennis, who was handling the unexpected situation calmly. And Dennis also looked at him. His gaze moved slowly, reaching Cale and Raon, and finally landed on Eruhaben.
"I didn't know even a Dragon would be brought by the Minister."
Cale looked at him with admiration again. Even though the king didn't recognize Eruhaben, he would have easily identified Raon. Cale was aware that Dennis was anxious—he noticed his hands trembling slightly. But the fact that a child who looked younger than Lock handled the situation this way already showed his capability.
Dennis spoke to Bailey in a relaxed manner. "It seems something happened in the north."
Knock, knock.
There was a knocking on the door, and the voice of the knight from earlier.
"Your Highness, The Prime Minister has been informed, and as per your instructions, the number of guards has been reduced."
Dennis headed towards the door. "Follow me. This is not the right place to talk."
Click~
The door opened, and a middle-aged knight with an impassive face looked inside. Then, upon seeing Cale, Eruhaben, and Raon, his serious eyes flickered. But the moment the king looked at him, his eyes focused again.
'Oh.'
Cale was surprised. Somehow, everyone he had met at Har Palace had given him a rather good first impression.
"This is the Commander of the Third Division of Knights of our Palace."
After thinking for a moment, the commander turned to the king and asked, "Can we check these two?"
Upon hearing that, Bailey looked at Cale and Eruhaben, and also at Raon. Eruhaben chuckled and opened his mouth. "Well, if someone suddenly breaks into the king's bedroom, they should at least check."
"That's right." Cale nodded calmly and extended his arms. "We don't have weapons, but feel free to check."
The commander nodded cautiously.
Tension filled the air.
It was then that Raon shouted from the air. "Me too!"
Raon extended his small round legs in the air and flapped his wings. "Commander, check me too! I don't have any weapons!"
Cale saw the commander's serious eyes break as he looked at Raon. But when the king looked at him, his eyes focused again.
"Sigh."
Eruhaben sighed.
Raon puffed up his cheeks and let out a dissatisfied voice. "Goldie Gramps, don't sigh! I'm a wonderful dragon!"
'Goldie Gramps.'
The expressions of the Commander and King Dennis hardened upon hearing those words.
At that moment, Cale spoke softly. "We have to follow the procedure."
The gazes of the king and Cale clashed.
Cale continued speaking. "Because we've come to talk."
Since we're here to talk, we'll follow the procedure. In other words, we have no intention of harming you.
"Commander. Conduct a quick superficial check."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The Commander remained silent and signaled to a pale knight who was waiting to lightly check Cale's body. Meanwhile, Bailey approached Dennis.
"We'll talk in detail later."
Given the advanced age of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, her face was quite worn. But her pupils were brighter than ever.
Dennis, realizing this, stared at her, and she gave him a surprising response. "I will contact the great elder. It's time to act."
"!"
When Dennis seemed confused about what was being said, Bailey clarified by saying, "It's a race against time, Your Highness."
Dennis closed his eyes for a moment. But he quickly nodded.
Bailey winked at her assistant. The assistant nodded slightly to Bailey and the King with a determined expression on his face and quietly left the room.
"The check is complete."
The Commander's voice was heard at that moment, and the King stepped forward.
He passed by Cale and observed the Dragons before opening his mouth.
"Let's go to a quiet place."
"Your Majesty-"
As Bailey approached him quietly, he whispered softly.
"Not many have come to the Palace today, so it's very quiet here."
Only then did she realize that there were no Imperial nobles in the Palace to be wary of, and she followed Dennis quietly. Still, she thought.
'Despite his age, how can he have grown so well?'
Although he was the King, in Bailey's heart, Dennis was like a grandson to her.
The king entered a room smaller than a bedroom, with only a table and chairs. There were no windows.
"It's a suitable place to talk quietly."
Dennis smiled at Cale's comment.
And then he asked:
"Do you know who I am?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Then there's no need for me to introduce myself. And who are you?"
"I am Cale Henituse. I am a guest who has temporarily stayed near the Erghe Mountains."
Cale introduced himself and then immediately inquired about what piqued his interest. He asked, "Who is the missing Young Master?"
"Are you from the Grand Duchy Snow?"
The King asked him another question.
"No."
Cale shook his head. Dennis looked at Bailey. She also shook her head.
But the King, who had been with her for many years, noticed the doubt in her face.
He told Cale indifferently:
"If you are not from the Grand Duchy Snow, you don't need to know."
The corner of Cale's mouth lifted.
"I heard that all direct members of the Snow Family were exterminated. It seems that Young Master has also disappeared."
Dennis shrugged slightly.
And he spoke calmly.
"The Minister said we are in a race against time, so let's get to the main point."
Smile~
Cale liked the way the young King worked.
There were many people in Har who served the Empire, so he must have suffered, but his eyes were alive.
Of course, that face looked quite tired.
"We have kidnapped all members of the Eradication Team."
"...you?"
"Yes, us."
A young black dragon rested on Cale's knees. Next to him, a man with platinum blonde hair sat cross-legged, seemingly disinterested. Both were Dragons. Dennis, realizing this, spoke.
"We are in a crisis."
He said it with a dry tone.
"The crisis has reached the Har Kingdom."
Cale, seeing the King so sharp and intelligent, understood why the King was surrounded by people like the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, including the Commander.
This King had reliable skills. Therefore, Cale, with a calm smile, spoke.
"But it can also be an opportunity."
"Why?"
King Dennis asked calmly, despite saying that the kingdom was facing a crisis.
"Are you willing to stand against the Holy Empire?"
Smile~
Cale smiled instead of speaking. When his gaze suggested that was an answer, Dennis shook his head.
"Don't answer my question with a smile. I am a person who needs to hear it verbally and have it written down in a document to feel at ease."
Cale's smile subtly changed upon hearing this. Dennis continued to stare at him.
"If you're not very strong or capable, you need to be extra careful and take more basic precautions to stay safe."
Oh, this king is really good, isn't he?
Cale thought that wholeheartedly. This King was someone with whom it would be good to collaborate to face the Holy Empire and ultimately the Dragons of the Purple Blood Family.
He reminded him of a person named Alberu Crossman, whom Cale admired greatly.
"So, let's talk."
Cale decided to honestly answer his question as he spoke.
"Our goal is not the Holy Empire."
Bailey's expression stiffened. But Dennis still looked at Cale with an indifferent expression. Cale smiled even more broadly and said:
"Dragons. We have come to capture the Dragons of Aipotu."
Bailey's eyes shook with emotion, and the commander standing behind the King, not realizing it, nervously swallowed.
"Hehe."
And Dennis let out a rough laugh.
"Thank God there is no one around here."
The King raised his head and looked at the ceiling. As he looked at the black ceiling with nothing, he spoke.
"There has already been a problem in the Erghe Mountains, where the Beast People reside. We cannot avoid being involved in this. To avoid it, we would have to bow down to the Empire, but..."
The King's gaze slowly turned to Cale.
"...that way, we couldn't change anything, right?"
He pointed to himself.
"Would you like to get on our ship?"
Cale shook his head.
"No. I want Your Majesty to get on our ship."
In a way, it was quite a bold statement.
"Haha!"
Dennis burst into laughter.
"You're right. It's the truth. You have two Dragons by your side now. Your ship must be bigger."
But that laughter soon disappeared.
"But our ship is not small either."
Dennis thought Bailey's judgment was correct.
'We need to call the Great Elder.'
He hadn't heard much about it before, but now the Har Kingdom was being pulled into a major conflict involving the Holy Empire. He wasn't sure if they would benefit or suffer from it, but something needed to be done to prevent the Empire from taking everything away.
"A big ship is good."
A red-haired man said, chuckling under his breath. Seeing him, Dennis recalled when the previous King called him before dying. Beside him were the Commander and Bailey.
'Dennis.'
'Father.'
'Listen carefully.'
At that moment...
The previous king, who was mentioning the Great Elder and the secret weapons hidden in the Har Kingdom, spoke for the last time.
'I'm not sure, but the last Young Master may be alive in the Erghe Mountains besides the Wolf Tribe.'
'If he survived, his lineage must have continued in the Erghe Mountains. Prime Minister, bring the portrait.'
A portrait brought by the Prime Minister.
It displayed the faces of the people of the Grand Duchy Snow. From the last Grand Duke Snow to his wife and children.
'If the Young Master's lineage is similar to these faces, remember it.'
'Because the Grand Duke Snow will definitely know where the Blue Wolf has disappeared.'
The lineage of the Grand Duchy Snow.
Blue Wolf.
And finally...
'And Dragon Slayer. We are Hunters who catch dragons. Remember this.'
Dragon Slayer.
Dennis has never forgotten these three things.
'Cale Henituse.'
This person's face resembled the people of the Grand Duchy Snow, not just in hair color but also in atmosphere. After more than two hundred years, it was difficult to say who he resembled.
'No. His appearance is a bit similar,' Dennis thought casually.
He continued:
"From what I see, the Empire will contact us tonight or tomorrow."
He asked Bailey.
"Who do you think will contact me?"
"I'll prepare a list."
Dennis nodded and looked at the Commander.
"Ask them to bring us something to eat and drink, please. It seems we'll have a lot to discuss. After all, we must learn a bit about each other, don't you think?"
At that moment, Raon raised his head and said:
"King! I want cookies! I want to know how Har Palace's cookies taste!"
The king was surprised.
'...How can a Dragon behave like this?'
But he didn't let it show externally.
"Cookies too," he told the Commander.
The King calmed his mind and then asked Cale:
"How do you plan to face the other enemy Dragons?"
Certainly, Cale had mentioned that his goal was the Dragons.
"I don't know," Cale replied with an enigmatic smile.
The King spoke to him seriously:
"After the Catastrophe Era, the world has become much weaker. Magic and Aura, in particular, have nearly vanished."
Cale also felt it. That's why the white-haired king told him while nodding.
"But Dragons are different."
The eyes of the Dragon Eruhaben shone, but the King didn't notice and continued speaking:
"They have become stronger."
Then he added:
"And more cruel."
He warned Cale.
"They are judging Humans. Like Gods."
It was at that moment that something inside Cale reacted.
- ...Judgment?
The Ancient Power that was once called the Water of Judgment began to react within him. She was now an existence that pointed to the sky.
* * *
That night.
In the center of the Holy Empire, in the Central Temple.
"We lost contact with the Eradication Team."
Pope Casillia knelt on the floor and spoke with her mouth open.
"You'll have to go north."
Hmm.
A tremulous whisper was heard. A person with long silver hair toyed with their hair while speaking.
"Orders from the Lord?"
"Yes. Oh, God of Victory."
The person stood up from the floor and stretched slightly.
"Good. Let's do it. Where to?"
Pope Casillia looked at him and opened her mouth.
"In the north of Har Kingdom, in the Erghe Mountains."
"Fine, understood."
With a light response, the person's pupils elongated vertically.
In that person, there was both childlike innocence and unavoidable cruelty.
Ten living Gods who rule Aipotu.
Among them, Kendall, the Dragon in charge of Victory, looked at the location on the map that the Pope had indicated.
It was the place where Cale's Black Castle was.
The Temple began to move faster than expected by Cale and Har Kingdom.
* * *
If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.
Thank you for reading!
[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]
[Translator – Anowa]
[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]