Chapter 161: A New Objective (5)

In the long-forgotten underground world, where silence had always reigned supreme, the echo of human voices finally reverberated through the chambers.

“Louis, where are we?”

“Isn’t this a lair? It must be, right?”

The twins chattered excitedly beside Louis, their voices bouncing off the stone walls and filling the cavernous space.

Louis nodded at their questions.

“That’s right. It’s a lair. Now abandoned…”

He hesitated as he spoke, feeling something wasn’t quite right.

Is this really an empty lair?

Too many things differed from what he knew about the original plot. At first, he had expected to find only broken fragments of statues—so how could he have anticipated encountering perfectly preserved stone sculptures, including one resembling his mother?

Louis was now genuinely confused about how much of the original story still held true. Unaware of his predicament, the twins continued circling him, their curiosity unchecked.

“Who lived here before?”

“What happened to the original owner?”

“How’d Louis find out about this place?”

The questions came in a non-stop barrage, causing Louis’s eyebrows to twitch from the assault on his eardrums.

Oh god, really?!

As they’d grown older, the twins had developed the ability to think for themselves, unlike their younger selves. While this meant Louis no longer had to constantly look after them, it also had its drawbacks. Now, whenever something piqued their interest, they would immediately ask him about it.

Of course, the target of these questions was inevitably Louis. As the deluge of inquiries threatened to make his ears bleed, Louis finally lost his temper and cracked down on the twins.

Crack! Crack!

“Ow!”

“Ao! Why are you hitting us?!”

“Stop! Before asking me something, use your own brains for once!”

“But…”

“Yes…”

The twins obediently received a gentle tap on the forehead and offered their cheeks for a kiss. Despite this, they didn’t harbor any resentment towards Louis. Although physically larger than him, it was clear that Louis held the upper hand in their relationship. Having successfully calmed the twins, Louis hastened his pace. He initially worried about what would happen if the lair wasn’t empty, but those concerns proved unfounded.

“There’s really nothing here,” Louis confirmed, echoing Kani’s earlier comment.

Their path was overly desolate, devoid of any danger whatsoever.

After walking for quite some time, they came upon a bright light up ahead, causing Louis and his group to pause.

“Wow…”

“It’s beautiful…”

“Ohh, wow…”

The twins and Fin were awestruck by the sight before their eyes.

“How was this created?”

“I wondering the same…”

They had clearly descended underground along a steep slope.

Yet there before them lay a forest.

Bright sunlight streamed down from the sky, and a brook flowed gently over pebbles.

In this vast space, a profusion of white flowers bloomed in a dizzying display.

Transparent crystals were scattered here and there amidst the flowers, adding to the beauty of the space. It was so exquisite that one might wonder if it truly existed underground.

Yet Louis’s face remained stony as he gazed at the center of the field.

It’s gone…

This field had definitely appeared in the original work, but what should have been in the middle of it was missing.

Gone! The dragon’s corpse!

When a dragon reached the end of its life, they would reduce their body back into mana, a unique burial ritual for dragons only. It meant that while witnessing a dragon’s corpse was rare, those who failed to complete this process remained as they were.

In the original story, there was such a body lying in this very flower field, with the restless soul of the dragon nearby, unable to find peace.

However, the flower field in reality was too clean. In other words…

There aren’t any souls left for the Dragon-Slaying Sword to absorb.

The truth about the Dragon-Slaying Sword was revealed in the latter part of the original story. It was a unique ability of the sword. The origin of this nameless sword, whose creator was unknown, was that it used souls as energy sources.

The higher the quality of the absorbed soul, the greater power it demonstrated. In the original work, after the seal was broken, the Dragon-Slaying Sword absorbed the souls of dragons that couldn’t find rest in this field of flowers.

By absorbing a dragon’s soul, the sword severed the head of the Mad Dragon and became the ‘Dragon-Slaying Sword’.

Louis didn’t like this at all.

A sword that absorbs a dragon’s soul to kill another dragon…

Moreover, he felt uncomfortable thinking that the souls of dragons unable to find peace even in death were being used to harm their own kind.

That’s why Louis had come to Balena’s Forest, hoping to free the dragon’s soul—just in case it might have been exploited someday in the far future.

But everything had unexpectedly resolved itself too easily.

No, “resolved” wasn’t quite right; the problem hadn’t even arisen in the first place.

Still, there was one thing…

A strange uneasiness kept pricking at Louis’s mind. After much agonizing, he decided to ask the twins, who were busily admiring a flower field.

“Khan, Kani.”

“What is it?”

“Huh?”

“We’re at a dragon’s lair, and the statues guarding its entrance look just like our mom. What does this mean?”

“Well, obviously, this must be Louis’s auntie’s lair, right?”

“That’s it!”

”…Isn’t it? You two think so too, don’t you?”

The twins nodded, but Louis remained lost in thought.

If even the twins think so…

The evidence at hand pointed to this empty lair being Valentina’s den.

“Alright… what’s the point of fretting over it? Asking the person herself would be quickest.” He let out a small sigh and pulled out his communication stone.

As he channeled his elemental power into it, a signal was sent, and soon a voice came through.

Son?

Both Genelocer and Valentina’s voices sounded simultaneously, prompting Louis to quickly grasp the essentials and pose his question:

“Mother, I’m curious about something. Was the mystic known as Valena who was active 1,500 years ago actually you?”

“In the center of this forest… was this lair also yours, Mother?”

“Are there any other dragons here who might know this place?”

I doubt it. You’re aware of it, aren’t you?

I just heard about it myself. Were you the one who tended Balena’s Forest?

Why wouldn’t I know that? I was quite famous back then, you know!

I must have been busy establishing noble families on the Fall Continent around the same time. But why were you doing such work?

Let’s see… Oh! I went out looking for someone to tend the flower garden, and before I knew it, I ended up bringing 200 elves here instead of just one or two.

In any case, you… So what happened to those elf children?

When we moved here, they came with me, and now they live in the Mac Mountains.

Meanwhile, Louis found himself trailing behind as Genelocer and Valentina became engrossed in reminiscing about their past. Thanks to their storytelling, Louis was able to verify certain facts, which in turn helped him identify the source of the lingering unease that had been bothering him.

His face hardened.

I suspected it, but surely not…

After awakening from his second slumber, Louis had grappled with a particular dilemma. Why was Genelocer the only Mad Dragon in the original story? Given Valentina’s personality, wouldn’t she have made an equally suitable candidate? What exactly happened to Louis’s mother in the original narrative?

These questions mingled with the events Louis experienced during his second hibernation period. He recalled Valentina, ever vigilant, monitoring the forbidden area for any unauthorized human presence. By her side stood Genelocer, ensuring her safety. And then, the moment when the human, caught in one of Louis’s lethal traps designed to defend against external incursions, met his demise.

From that point on, Louis began considering what would happen if he reversed all the conditions of that scenario.

They entered the forbidden area.

Valentina lowered her guard and left her post.

Genelocer failed to return from the Silver Flower Castle.

And the unsuspecting Louis, asleep and defenseless, was killed by a human.

That’s how Louis died in the original story.

If that had happened…

As a mother, could she have remained unscathed knowing her son died due to her own negligence?

She would have been consumed by guilt. And as a result, she would have died alone in that field of flowers, just like the dragon in the original story. Valentina’s soul, unable to find peace amid the pain of losing her son, would have wandered aimlessly.

Thinking about this, Louis felt even more uncomfortable.

The mother’s spirit, writhing in pain and agony, became the blade that severed the leash of the Mad Dragon—the father.

This was not part of the original story. But the backstory Louis uncovered was undeniably tragic—especially for him.

“Are you all right, Louis?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Hey, Louis, are you okay?”

Concerned by his serious expression, his companions approached him anxiously. Coming back to reality, Louis composed himself.

Relax. It won’t happen anyway since I’m here.

Everything had changed because he’d interfered with this world and survived. The Mad Dragon would never appear, and his mother wouldn’t die alone.

As he tried to calm down…

…his face once again hardened as something occurred to him.

Come to think of it… How did the story end?

In the latter half of the original work, the protagonists killed the Mad Dragon.

Though the entity threatening world peace had vanished, the story wasn’t over. Moreover, Louis’s previous self had died before the webtoon reached completion. An unfinished masterpiece.

The thought sent shivers down Louis’s spine.

I… I don’t know how this ends.

And here he was, living within that very story. It wouldn’t matter if it concluded with a happy ending. But what if it didn’t? What if everyone died, marking the end of the world? There was no guarantee either way, as the original work’s conclusion remained unwritten.

Louis chuckled wryly at the thought.

“Phew… Why is life so damn hard?”

“Louis?”

“Sir Louis?”

”…?”

His companions exchanged befuddled glances at Louis’s muttered words. He dismissed their concerns with a wave of his hand, implying everything was alright.

The story didn’t end with the death of the Mad Dragon; there must be more to come.

Depending on what unfolded next, this tale could head toward a happy or terrible ending.

That’s why Louis needed to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

Sometimes having too much is better than not having enough…

Louis chuckled.

Perfect. I have a new goal.

The purpose of his journey was to locate two lairs, one hidden piece on the continent, and another in the other continent.

At first, he thought finding hidden pieces would be beneficial since he knew the future, but now things were different.

He had a clear objective.

I must find hidden pieces to prepare for the future.

So that he could face any situation equivalent to the end of the world and emerge victorious.

To achieve his goal, Louis had to find all the hidden pieces, make them his own, and become stronger.

Flash!

A new target ignited a fiery determination in Louis’s eyes.

While Louis was deep in thought, Valentina and Genelocer continued their chatter. Eventually, Valentina asked,

Of course, Louis’s response was simple.

“I’ll figure it out. I want to move into a new home.”

Louis chuckled at his parents’ dejected tones.

He spoke into the communicator stone, uttering words he would never say under normal circumstances—words only possible to express because he now knew of the original tragedy:

“Mom, Dad.”

”…I love you,” Louis said softly into the communication stone.

For a moment, there was no reply from the other end. Then suddenly, pandemonium erupted.

Feeling the commotion from the stone, Louis hurried to finish.

“W-Well then, I’ll be going now. I’ll contact you regularly!”

Fwip! Louis quickly put away the communication stone.

He had spoken impulsively, caught up in the moment, but now he felt embarrassed as the reality set in.

And then…

Heh-heh-heh.

Hu-hu-hu.

The twins snickered, reveling in Louis’s discomfort. Their mischievous grins widened as they say, “It’s so easy to mess with Louis.”

Seeing the twins grinning mischievously in front of him, embarrassment was followed by waves of regret.

Ah… I should have done it when they weren’t there.

It was already too late for such regrets.

“Khan, did you hear that? ‘I love you, mom and dad’!”

“I heard it! Sob*…*” Khan feigned a tearful voice mockingly.

“Oh, Louis, aren’t you just adorable!” Kani said, wrapping her arms around a blushing Louis with a big smile.

Louis’s face turned beet red as he cried out, “What?! What do you mean by that!”

“Yes, yes. Our Louis must feel lonely without his parents, huh? Don’t worry. Auntie Kani will comfort you! Come to me when you feel lonely!”

“Ugh! Get lost!”

Kani playfully nudged Louis while Khan’s eyes gleamed wickedly.

Then Louis emerged and shooed away those obnoxious creatures.

The three friends frolicked in the pristine white flowers, their laughter a joy to behold.

A few moments later, Louis panted out, “I-I’m done playing with them now. It’s time to go.”

“But Louis, didn’t you say you were looking for something?”

”…I’ve taken care of it already.”

”…?” Confused, the twins tilted their heads; nothing appeared to have been resolved when they last checked.

However, it was brief, and they quickly accepted Louis’s decision.

“If Louis says it’s fine, then it must be.”

“Alright, where should we head next?”

With their questions dismissed, the twins resumed clinging to Louis, chattering excitedly.

Louis smiled and replied, “We’re off to check how our babies are faring.”