Chapter 22 - You, Too, Want to Believe

GRRRRR...

The sound of a savage beast echoed from deep within the lair.

Had anyone heard it, they would surely have described it as a chilling rumble of rage.

But Luri, standing in the lair, knew what that sound meant.

It was Valdrova's groan.

She was suffering.

She should have been lying coiled upon herself, but instead she lay flat against the floor.

She scraped at the innocent floor with her sharp claws and trembled.

-Luri...

Valdrova carefully called for her attendant.

As always, Luri answered calmly.

"Yes."

-Are there... no monsters... coming today either?

Luri shook her head.

"Unfortunately, no."

-Is that so? A difficult time has begun...

Valdrova carefully raised herself.

Her mind felt as if it were walking through a fog so thick she could not see an inch ahead.

Wanting to turn it elsewhere, even if only for a moment, she asked.

-What... is my fiancé doing?

Luri answered.

"He is meeting every lord in the Grand Duchy's territory. Though in truth, calling it a meeting is generous. It is closer to threatening them. He is telling those incompetent bastards that he will report everything they have done."

-Is that so? It seems he is doing well.

A strange smile bloomed on Valdrova's face, which had only been full of pain.

A happy yet sorrowful face.

A face Luri had never properly seen before Ferda came.

"Lord Ferda seems to have noticed."

Valdrova's face hardened.

-What do you mean?

"That you harm yourself, Master. Last night, when you struck your body hard, it seems the entire castle shook once. I believe he guessed what you were doing from that."

-Is that so?

"So... I think it would be best if you were careful this time."

-Yes. Thank you for telling me.

Valdrova turned her head and withdrew.

-You have worked hard. You may go now.

"... Yes."

Luri gave a slight bow and turned away.

Her steps were not light.

She knew what Valdrova would do from now on.

She would ravage herself with the power overflowing beyond her control.

-Luri.

Valdrova called her once more.

"Please speak, Master."

-No matter what happens... do not let my fiancé enter here. This is... an order.

A dignified voice.

What lay within it was deep sorrow.

Luri could feel it.

The specter of the 3rd Prince was still lingering around her.

"I understand."

A loyal attendant merely obeyed her orders.

* * *

Late at night inside the castle, Luri stood still before the entrance leading to the lair.

ROOOOAR!

A roar came faintly to Luri's ears.

Strength tightened into the two hands she held together politely.

She put strength into them so her hands would not go elsewhere on their own.

'I must not cover my ears.'

Luri found that roar difficult to bear.

It was not the sound of a warrior charging toward the battlefield, but something like the screaming cry of a woman who had lost her child.

Having to simply listen to her master's screams was painful even for Luri, a loyal attendant.

'There is nothing I can do even if I go in anyway.'

Luri had worked hard to become a capable attendant.

She kept Valdrova Castle in the best condition so it could always be used.

She constantly kept track of politics and trends so that Valdrova would not fall behind even if she returned.

She had lived for Valdrova without wasting even a single second out of the twenty-four hours in a day.

'Even after all that... there are things I cannot do.'

There was nothing Luri could do about that killing intent Valdrova gave off.

All Luri could do was go in after Valdrova finished harming herself and treat her.

Luri had no way to stop that from happening in the first place.

ROOOOAR!

The scream rang out again.

'That is why I must listen.'

It was the punishment given to an incompetent attendant who could only stand by and watch her master's pain.

Luri's hands, which had been clutching the hem of her skirt, were somehow clasped together.

Luri knew what that shape was.

'A prayer...?'

How ridiculous.

Dragon spawn did not believe in gods.

Their gods were dragons.

As great rulers and Aspects of the continent, they were living, breathing gods and idols.

Luri was the same.

Silverwind, who had shared his blood with her, was her god, and at the same time, Valdrova was also her god.

One was dead, and one was powerless.

Luri asked herself.

'Then to whom am I supposed to pray?'

No answer came.

She simply prayed quietly to some nameless god she did not even believe in.

Please.

Let someone end Master's pain.

It was then.

"What are you doing here?"

Luri woke from her prayer and raised her head.

Soft moonlight spilled in through the window.

In that pale light stood the figure of someone she knew well.

It was that man.

The man who had recklessly forced his way into her master's life.

"Go back."

As always, she warned him coldly.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot do that. The place behind you is where I need to go."

The man, who had been quiet for several days, was suddenly making such a demand.

He had realized that Valdrova was suffering now.

'He heard that sound? Even I can barely hear it.'

How had this man noticed it when he could not even hear it?

Setting her question aside, she answered once more.

"You cannot enter. This is Master's order."

"Did the Grand Duchess say not to let me in?"

"That is correct. She said she did not want to see a human like you."

She ended up adding words Valdrova had not said.

That was how deeply shaken Luri's heart was.

"Yesterday, I stepped back, so today, you step aside."

"This is not a transaction."

"Nor am I saying it is."

Ferda instead took one step forward.

"Do not move any farther."

A moonlit gleam appeared in Luri's silver eyes.

A pure white wind coiled around Luri's body like blades.

Ferda instinctively knew.

The moment that wind touched him, his body would be cleanly cut away like late-autumn reeds.

"I can stop it."

Ferda said.

"What exactly are you going to stop?"

"Your master's self-harm, and my fiancée's."

"...!"

Luri's eyes widened for an instant.

But she soon regained her composure.

"This is not a problem that can be solved so easily. How can a mortal like you suppress a dragon's nature?"

"It is possible."

"No. You are simply trying to see what you want to see."

"Yes. I run forward while seeing only what I want to see."

He moved another step.

"Is that not what life is?"

"I told you to stop!"

The sharp wind wrapped around Luri's arm flew toward Ferda's right hand.

Ferda's arm jerked violently.

Ferda's arm hung loose and ragged.

At the sight, Luri was startled for a moment.

'I meant to strike him as lightly as a tap...?'

.

The sharpness should have vanished just before it touched him, and a heavy blow should have struck Ferda's body.

She had hit him with no more force than would leave a slight bruise at most.

"Look."

But Luri pressed on.

He must have realized that she was not a woman he could easily handle.

"I can beat down someone of your level with my own hands. This is my final warning. Go back quietly."

Ferda looked down at his dislocated right arm.

"... Are orders that important?"

"I am an attendant. I have a duty to obey Master's orders."

"I see."

When Ferda raised his head again, Luri flinched in surprise.

Ferda moved forward one step at a time.

"Then this time, make sure you cut me."

What dwelled in his blue eyes was resolve.

Luri prepared the blades of wind again.

"Do not stake your life on something pointless."

"You say that without even knowing what value there is in what I am trying to do."

"You are nothing more than a mere human. How could someone like you solve something dragons failed to solve even after researching and trying to learn for eons?"

Logically, it made no sense.

Mortals could not defeat immortals.

They were pitiful creatures who would die frailly if an immortal so much as lifted a finger.

Living always in gratitude for their mercy was what mortals ought to do.

How could such a mortal solve the problems of immortals?

"I once asked you, did I not? Whether you believed humans could suddenly attain insight."

"..."

"What did you answer then?"

She knew.

But she did not want to answer.

And so Ferda answered.

"You said they survived because they had flashes of inspiration that could not be matched by accumulated knowledge."

Again.

This man was again returning her own words exactly as she had said them.

Ferda, who had been far away, now had only three steps left.

If she fired, his arm would be cut off.

There was no room to adjust her strength.

Luri's hand began to tremble.

The sharp wind coiling around her hand scattered.

"Why..."

Luri looked up at him.

It was not the expressionless face she always wore, nor was it a face of contempt.

"Why... do you keep coming closer?"

It was the face of a powerless child.

"It is simple."

Ferda placed his hand on Luri's head.

"If you had truly meant to stop me, you would have done so long ago."

Luri's physical abilities surpassed the frail Ferda's by several dozen times.

Knocking him unconscious or throwing him far away before he ever reached her was already no difficult task.

Instead of threatening him with wind magic and arguing like this, she only had to use force.

"You, too, wanted to believe in what I believe."

In the miracle brought by a mortal.

Ferda passed Luri and descended the stairs.

Unable to refute him, Luri watched him disappear.

The click-clack of his shoes faded down the passage.

* * *

'It hurts like hell.'

His hand tingled because of the deadly wind Luri had launched.

The impact had traveled all the way up to his shoulder and dislocated it.

'Dislocations were common enough for me in the past.'

He was used to setting bones as well.

Ferda pulled on his own arm and set the bone back into place.

CRACK!

"Ugh, whew..."

He took a deep breath and pulled himself together.

He still had something to do.

Ferda raised his head and looked up.

A huge iron door entered his view.

'This is... very different from usual.'

Ferda recalled when he had first stood before this door.

Back then, he had been weak, and he had not drunk the engagement liquor.

But now, it was even more severe than then.

Ferda felt as if he stood before the gates of hell.

If he entered this place, he would undoubtedly die.

ROOOOAR...

The sound sent a chill through his bones.

Just because he no longer feared dragons did not mean even that killing intent had been completely erased.

'Worthy of an Aspect of Power.'

Ferda opened the small door and stepped inside.

The inside was similar to an ordinary cave.

It was a dry, pleasant, and dark space.

-Luri... Why have you come here? I told you not to come here...

Her words broke off.

She realized that the one who had entered was not Luri.

He heard the sound of her body jolting greatly.

-Why... are you here?

Bewilderment flowed from the sovereign's voice.

-Why... have you come at a time like this?

At that question, Ferda opened his mouth.

"I will not say... that this is our first meeting."

Ferda looked ahead.

His naked eyes could not pierce that darkness.

"My night vision is too poor to see your face."

-Get out of here at once!

A thunderous shout laced with Dragon Fear rang out.

But it was not enough to shake Ferda.

"Your Majesty, I have found a way to resolve your pain."

-I do not need it. Who said I wanted such a thing from you?

Ferda stepped forward.

He heard Valdrova shifting.

She had retreated.

-I... I do not wish to harm anyone. So please, do not come closer!

Valdrova pleaded.

"I cannot allow that."

Ferda refused.

-Please...

"I do not care who dies or who is hurt."

-Do not come...

"But I cannot stand by and watch you harm yourself."

Golden eyes flashed in the darkness.

-I told you not to come!!

The bloodlust she had been suppressing burst forth.

Along with Valdrova's rough roar, something pierced through the darkness.

It was Valdrova's claw.

It flew toward Ferda's small body.

THOOM!

The claw struck down where Ferda stood.

-Ah!

Valdrova came to her senses too late.

But the water had already been spilled.

-Aah...

Valdrova let out a sigh of despair.

The specter of the 3rd Prince whispered in her ear.

You have killed your fiancé once again.

She fell into confusion.

The voice of Valdrova, a Red Dragon, an immortal who had lived for eternity and soared through the heavens, trembled.

-I... did not mean...

The bloodlust that had aimed at him wrapped around her body.

Beyond self-loathing, it led toward a rampage.

But then, she saw something standing between her claws.

It was Ferda.

He stood still in that place, looking down at Valdrova's foot.

"Thank you."

He said.

"I did not think you would reach out your hand like this before I even asked."

The exact moment Ferda had hoped for had arrived.

He placed his own hand on Valdrova's.

* * *

-There is a rational basis for why it can be you, Ferda Valdrova.

Mori explained to Ferda.

-Lord Ferda, you activated your Red Circle by recalling your emotions toward the Red Dragon Valdrova. Is that correct?

"Yes, that is correct."

-The reason the Blue Circle is called cold mana is that it provides a consistent effect to all magic. By contrast, the Red Circle is specialized toward specific elements, so its effects differ significantly depending on the nature of the magic and the ideology of its creation. The reason is that the mana is not completely pure, but contains emotion.

He knew that as well.

That was why Ferda's destructive magic was more powerful than that of other mages.

-The Red Circle is usually formed based on negative emotions. That is why contact with that mana is forbidden.

"Because it can cause mental contamination."

Mori nodded.

-If your mana is made of emotions toward a dragon, I believe it may be effective if you inject that mana into a dragon.

Ferda thought it was absurd.

He could solve it with mana made from this emotion even he did not understand?

"Is there no other way?"

Shake, shake.

Mori denied it firmly.

Only one possibility had been given to him.

"I see..."

Then he had no choice but to believe.

* * *

Ferda released his mana.

He poured all his focus into making it dig from his fingertips into Valdrova's skin.

-What are you doing?

Valdrova, who had asked that, felt something climbing up through her body.

When that backward-flowing something reached Valdrova's heart, her golden eyes opened wide.

-What... in the world is this?

Valdrova's voice, which had been distorted by pain, became clearer.

-The thing inside me... the thing that had been boiling over is disappearing. Ferda, what in the world is this?

"I do not know either."

Ferda quietly stopped her mouth.

"But if this benefits you, then all you need to do is accept my mana."

-Very well...

Valdrova focused on the change in herself through her skin.

The pounding of her violently beating heart subsided.

The uncontrollable bloodlust softened.

The urge to destroy, her very essence, all of it sank beneath the name of peace.

'It seems the hypothesis was correct.'

The mana generated by Ferda's Red Circle could suppress Valdrova's bloodlust.

'There is something I can do for her.'

If he could suppress her bloodlust, she would no longer have to destroy herself.

'And... she does not have to suffer.'

She did not need to drag up a painful past and torment herself with it.

'To do that... I have to pour in as much of my mana as possible.'

Meanwhile, the Red Circle inside Ferda's dantian was spinning violently.

Mana was being generated several times faster than usual.

Ferda released that mana toward Valdrova's skin without holding anything back.

-Ferda...!

Valdrova cried out in shock.

-You are bleeding!

Blood flowed from Ferda's nose.

Mana burnout was coming over him.

-Stop now. I am all right!

Normally, Ferda would have stopped before that point, but not now.

'Just a little more...'

He wrung out every last drop and gave it all to her without leaving anything behind.

Ferda did not stop until she entered complete stability.

Even if it meant he died.

"Ah..."

At last, overload came.

His vision blurred as if covered by a hazy fog.

Driven to a point where willpower could no longer sustain him, Ferda would become a body unable to rise for several days.

'I had already decided to do this.'

So he had no regrets about this impulse or recklessness.

Ferda was about to close his eyes just like that.

It was then.

The thing touching Ferda's palm was shifting.

The information conveyed by that movement was one thing.

'Is she getting smaller?'

It was not his imagination.

The rough, hard leather of the dragon's skin was gradually softening and shrinking.

It grew smaller little by little, until finally it took a shape similar to a human hand and touched him.

'Small.'

So small that the little hand could not even fully wrap around Ferda's hand.

'And soft.'

That information made Ferda's heart race in a way he had never felt before.

'She polymorphed into a human.'

It was the moment he could see her bare face.

"Why..."

Her sweet voice was damp with tears.

She spoke in a voice that sounded as if she would cry at any moment.

"Why won't you listen to me...?"

A frail question unlike Valdrova.

But even if she asked, it did not reach Ferda's ears.

His mind had been pushed to the edge as though hanging from a cliff.

It was all he could do to hold on to his blurred vision.

What held his consciousness was an intense longing.

'No matter what...'

And a selfish desire.

'I want to see her.'

Ferda wrung out the last of his strength.

He grasped the hand touching his.

He laced his fingers tightly through hers so he would not let go, and pulled her by the waist.

Between his blurred focus, a woman with red hair came clearly into view.

"Ah."

Ferda let out an exclamation.

That sound was everything Ferda felt.

It was a sigh of repentance for how shallow and arrogant his imagination had been,

and the joy of realizing that this world contained a beauty he had never even imagined.

"Now I can finally see you."

Ferda smiled.

"It is a pleasure to meet you at last. My heart."