Chapter 277: The Encounter (3)

The Unification Festival, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Continental Unification, concluded in grand style. From commoners to powerful nobles, everyone reveled in the four-day extravaganza.

Even before the afterglow of the festival had faded, two rumors began circulating among the nobles. One concerned the Second Imperial Prince.

“The Second Imperial Prince has withdrawn into seclusion.”

“He lost his voice from the shock of that day.”

“They say he’s suffering from lovesickness.”

“Apparently, he was rejected by the woman he adores.”

The Second Imperial Prince, who had abandoned his daily training and remained confined to his chambers, fueled these speculations with his prolonged absence.

However, the rumor that truly set the capital ablaze concerned a distinguished guest residing within the Imperial Palace.

“Distinguished guests are staying at the Imperial Palace.”

“They say they’re guests of His Late Majesty, the Emperor of Conquest.”

On the day of the Unification Festival party, everyone had witnessed the humiliation suffered by the Second Imperial Prince. And the one who had inflicted this disgrace was none other than a distinguished guest residing within the Imperial Court itself.

Even for a VIP, publicly insulting the Emperor’s direct heir, the Second Imperial Prince, was a grave offense. This was a matter directly tied to the dignity of the Imperial Court. Yet, the Imperial Court held the guest accountable in no way.

Naturally, people couldn’t help but wonder:

“Just who are these people?”

What could their true identity be that the Imperial Court would endure such disgrace to protect them?

Meanwhile, the Emperor remained silent even as the Empress threw a fit upon hearing of the Second Imperial Prince’s ordeal. The quieter the Imperial Court became, the faster the gossip spread.

Louis, the subject of these rumors, strolled leisurely through the Holy City.

Then something caught his eye.

”…What’s that?”

Louis was standing outside a garden on the outskirts of the Holy City. There, a long line of people had formed.

What struck him as particularly strange was…

Why are they all women?

Every single person in the line was female, and all were dressed in luxurious gowns.

These women clearly radiated wealth and noble status.

What’s inside the garden? Louis wondered, noticing something that had these noblewomen lined up in droves.

Intrigued, Louis crept toward the garden.

Suddenly, a woman blocked his path.

“Hey! Can’t you see we’re in line here?”

”…Do I need to line up to see the garden?”

“Huh? You’re a man?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Oh, really? My apologies. Go about your business.”

The woman’s venomous glare softened instantly upon realizing Louis was male.

Louis tilted his head further in confusion.

What is going on here?

Swallowing his questions, he resumed walking.

Even after walking only a short distance, Louis was stopped several times, each time declaring himself a man before being allowed to proceed.

Finally, after venturing deep into the garden, Louis reached the front of the line and witnessed a bizarre sight.

“Please, I beg you… This time, please let me have a son… Just one son, please…”

A woman stood with her eyes tightly shut, her voice overflowing with desperate longing for a son.

Louis blinked, surprised.

Hmm… well, I suppose that’s possible.

In his previous life in the modern world, the prevailing attitude was to raise children equally, regardless of gender. But in this world, the nobles strictly adhered to patrilineal inheritance customs.

In other words, they favored sons to carry on the family line.

For these noblewomen, having a son was akin to wielding power, as they would become the mother of the next head of the household.

That’s why their desperate desire for sons was understandable.

I understand… but still…

What Louis couldn’t comprehend was the object these noblewomen clutched so tightly in their hands, murmuring with such fervor:

“Divine Baby Dragon… Please, this time, grant me a son who bears your blessed likeness!”

Before them stood a massive statue.

Though weathered by time, the pristine white marble sculpture of a young dragon gleamed, its meticulous maintenance evident at a glance.

And there were the noble ladies, right there, fondling the tail of the dragon sculpture.

”…What is that?”

The sculpture’s tail was discolored and worn more than the rest of the statue, a testament to the countless hands that had touched it over the years.

As Louis blinked in surprise at this unexpected sight, a clear, melodious voice spoke from behind him.

“First time seeing it? It’s a famous landmark in our Empire.”

The surrounding noble ladies hastily lowered their heads.

“We pay our respects to Her Highness the First Princess.”

Princess Eiren, who had appeared suddenly, waved her hand dismissively.

“Don’t mind me. Carry on with your duties.”

The noble ladies lowered their heads even further, touched by the Princess’s respectful manner despite her royal status.

The public proclaimed Princess Eiren to be the most beautiful flower in the Empire.

But those who knew her better declared her the Empire’s most resilient bloom.

This was why the noblewomen regarded her with such trepidation.

Accustomed to this dynamic, Eiren remained impassive.

Then, Louis’s voice drifted toward them.

“A spectacle?”

Louis didn’t even turn around.

Eiren, momentarily stung, quickly regained her composure.

A memory flashed through her mind: the Emperor gathering the princes and princesses to address them.

“I should have informed you sooner, but it couldn’t be helped. From this moment on, any actions that might displease Him are strictly forbidden.”

The Emperor himself referred to this being as “That One.”

Eiren straightened her posture, approached Louis, and began to speak.

“Yes, Your Majesty. There’s a legend passed down through generations that touching the tail of that baby dragon statue will grant you a son.”

”…”

“Because so many people seek it out, the Imperial Palace makes an exception and opens this garden to the public.”

As Eiren spoke, Louis’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the baby dragon statue.

He stared at the stone sculpture and demanded, “No way… did Pablo make that?”

“Pablo? Ah! Yes, Your Majesty! I believe it was personally carved by His Late Majesty, the Emperor of Conquest.”

”…”

“Legend has it that His Late Majesty, the Emperor of Conquest, commissioned this statue while praying for an heir. Shortly after its completion, the Empress conceived. He was none other than the Unification Emperor who finalized the Continental Unification.”

”…”

“Thanks to that legend, this place is constantly visited by people seeking blessings for their own future offspring.”

As Louis listened to the tale surrounding the baby dragon statue, his expression grew increasingly cold.

Before long, a low growl escaped his lips.

“That bastard Pablo…”

A chilling silence hung in the air.

Whoosh.

Louis vanished without a trace.

”…?!”

Eiren, who had been watching the scene unfold, widened her eyes in shock.

She stared blankly at the spot where Louis had stood, then snapped out of her daze and muttered softly, ”…He didn’t even spare me a glance before leaving.”

A hint of disappointment tinged her voice.

While Louis was in the garden, Pablo was chatting with the Emperor. It was Pablo’s first private audience with the Emperor outside of formal occasions.

The Emperor asked Pablo about his life, and Pablo recounted his journey as if telling an old tale to a grandchild. He spoke of leaving the stifling palace to roam the world, eventually returning to his homeland, the Winter Continent. There, he had lived as a great warrior of the Order.

With each episode Pablo shared, the Emperor murmured soft expressions of admiration for his ancestor’s life.

As their conversation flowed, the topic eventually turned to Louis.

“How did you come to know him? Is he truly… the Guardian Dragon of this nation?”

“Haa…”

Pablo sighed at the Emperor’s question.

Where on earth do I even begin to explain all of this…?

After a moment of hesitation, Pablo decided to simply tell the whole story.

He started with his birth and the revelation that he possessed dwarf blood. He recounted his meeting with Louis, the complex relationship between dwarves and dragons, and how he ended up on the Summer Continent, eventually meeting Page. He explained how Louis’s help had enabled the Frenche Kingdom to come into existence.

As Pablo shared stories unrecorded even in the Imperial Court’s secret histories, astonishment flickered in the Emperor’s eyes.

“So, that means he’s not actually the Guardian Dragon of Frenche?” the Emperor asked.

“I have no idea why he became the Guardian Dragon in the first place, but… for now, that seems to be the case,” Pablo replied.

The Emperor let out a long sigh.

“Rather than a Guardian Dragon, isn’t he a dangerous being who could seize control of the Imperial Court at any moment? After all, dwarf blood flows through my veins and the blood of the Imperial family.”

“That’s probably true,” Pablo replied.

“Hah…” the Emperor sighed.

“Don’t worry too much,” Pablo reassured him. “Seeing your reactions, it seems the power of that blood has been diluted by time, freeing you from its shackles. If the true blood curse had been activated, your second son wouldn’t have dared to defy Louis so brazenly. One glare from him would have made the boy piss himself and crawl on the floor.”

“If that’s the case, then that’s a relief,” the Emperor said.

“Still, even without the blood curse, you should still be cautious around Louis.”

“What do you mean by that?” the Emperor asked.

“What good could come from provoking a dragon who has reached the Zero Rank?” Pablo replied.

“Did you just say… Zero Rank?”

The Emperor’s face hardened into a rigid mask.

The Empire currently possessed a Top Tier mystic of the wind attribute. He knew all too well that beings who reached the Top Tier had transcended the limits of humanity, becoming extraordinary monsters beyond measure.

But Zero Rank?!

Seeing the Emperor’s frozen expression, Pablo warned, “The moment Louis loses his temper and rampages… that will be the end of Frenche.”

The Emperor’s face grew even stiffer at these words.

Pablo offered a faint smile. “Still, don’t worry too much. Louis isn’t as fearsome as he seems. Surprisingly… he has a somewhat kind side.”

“Is that so?”

“He can be a bit… no, quite reckless at times, but he cherishes those who fall within his sphere of influence. So, you too should do your best to please Louis. Then Frenche will have a true Guardian Dragon, not just a pretender, backing it. Heh heh heh.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’ve learned a few secrets from living with him…”

“Oh? What are they?”

“Well, you see…”

Pablo leaned closer, as if about to make a clandestine deal. Just as his lips began to move, ready to share his secrets…

“PABLOOOOOOO!”

Louis burst onto the scene with a thunderous roar.

“Huh?!”

Startled, Pablo leaped from his seat just as Louis’s fist came flying.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

“How dare you…”

Splat!

“Gah! Why?!”

“You…”

Crack!

“Argh! Why, why are you hitting me?!”

“Trying to turn me into some damn grandmother spirit?!”

“G-grandmother spirit? Cough! W-what’s that?!”

“It exists. Just shut up and take it!”

“S-spare me…”

“Shut your mouth. Unless you want your tongue cut out.”

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

“Kuwaaah!”

Frozen by the sudden brutality unfolding before him, the Emperor discreetly shifted his gaze out the window.

He recalled Pablo’s earlier assessment of Louis:

He’s surprisingly kind…

That’s it?

Where on earth did he get that impression?

Thwack!

Crack!

Splat!

The relentless sounds of violence served as background music as the Emperor sipped his tea, resolving:

I will never end up like that.

Meanwhile, a bizarre rumor began circulating in Eibout Port, a harbor city on the western edge of the Summer Continent.

The rumor originated with the survivors rescued from a passenger ship that had been shipwrecked en route to the Summer Continent.

The survivors, miraculously rescued by a passing warship, unanimously claimed to have witnessed the appearance of a Black Dragon.

Initially dismissed as nonsense, the rumor gained credibility as more and more people repeated the same story. Even those who had dismissed it outright began to waver, suspicion creeping into their minds.

The rumor that had thrown Eyebout into a frenzy quickly spread to neighboring domains.

From there, it leaped to other territories.

And then to more.

Thus, the tale of the dragon began to ripple across the entire Summer Continent.

Meanwhile, one of the rescued men departed from Eyebout Port, heading eastward.

Toward the Islet of the Frenche Empire.