Book 1 Chapter 842
842.
Humans, Elves, Beastfolk, Dwarves.
Retin, where diverse races gathered.
Everyone in Retin was looking up at the sky.
Whoooosh-!
“Gasp! Dragons?”
“So many dragons appearing at once!”
Above Retin.
This was because a flock of dragons was soaring across the sky in an orderly formation, like performing formation flying.
Soon, the dragons rushed towards Retin's central plaza.
Just as people were startled and instinctively tried to scatter.
With a bright light, polymorphed dragons landed lightly.
Tap, tap, tap-!
People watching the dragons land in the central plaza swallowed dryly.
Outwardly, they appeared in the forms of various races.
However, their eyes clearly showed that they were dragons.
“Why are so many dragons….”
“They must have come to escort the Dragon Lord.”
“Right?”
Everyone looked at the dragons with tense eyes.
Dragons were not particularly a threatening race.
Since the Age of Heroes began.
Dragons had never caused significant damage to the world.
Before the Age of Calamity.
It was a stark contrast, considering that beings like evil dragons had appeared before.
This was the result of dragons meticulously pursuing order as descendants of the King of Wisdom who saved the world.
Of course, the fact that they were the strongest race and more secretive than any other race on the ground remained unchanged.
Dragons did not carelessly reveal their true identities on the ground.
They had always blended in, concealing their forms, in preparation for times when the world might fall into chaos and crisis.
In a sense, they were more clandestine observers than shadows.
Those who choose and lead heroes.
Such noble dragons had revealed themselves.
Therefore, people realized once again.
That this moment was a decisive page in history.
The festive atmosphere was instantly filled with silence.
Just then.
The man at the forefront, who had been surveying the crowd, walked towards a street vendor conspicuously placed.
Everyone who saw this tensed up.
At that moment, the street vendor, smiling brightly, shouted cheerfully.
“Welcome!”
Everyone was dumbfounded by the vigorous voice that erupted in the quiet silence and stared at the street vendor.
He was someone who had pulled his hood down deep, adopting the concept of a mysterious alchemist.
“What is this?”
The dragon, showing curiosity, picked up a small candy jar on the street stall.
“This is a specialty of Lumern Academy! It’s the fatigue-recovery candy sold at Kael's General Store! It’s a popular item that Lumern students love to use every exam season! Recently, demand has even surged in Seyrun, Azonia, and Demian!”
Kael, the street vendor, gave a thumbs-up and said.
There was still a little time left until the coronation.
Kael, stating he couldn't miss this good opportunity, had set up his stall since dawn.
“Oh? Is this something even the King of Beginnings, Leo Plov, favors?”
“Of course! It’s an essential item for Lumern honor students!”
‘Hey! You human! Don't you have anything else to con but a dragon?!’
People screamed internally as they watched the scene.
In fact, it was the truth itself, but to those who didn't know Kael's true identity, it looked like Kael was brazenly scamming a dragon.
It couldn't be helped.
No one could imagine that someone of hero status would be running a street stall in a place like this.
As everyone was sweating nervously.
“Daddy! Daddy! Please buy me this as a gift for passing the Wisdom entrance exam this time!”
At that moment, a girl who appeared from behind the man said in a bright voice.
The man chuckled, looking at his daughter whose eyes were sparkling.
“Shall I?”
The man, having said that, handed a wad of money to Kael and said.
“Give me all that's left.”
“Oh my! Thank you!”
“It is I who should be thanking you. The items from ‘The One Who Prepares for the Beginning’ are quite famous even in Dragonia.”
At those words, the dragon girl's eyes widened, and Kael scratched his cheek.
“Oh my? You knew?”
“Because you are famous.”
The man's dragon eyes gleamed.
In his eyes, Kael's face under the hood was visible.
At the mention of "The One Who Prepares for the Beginning," the surrounding people began to murmur.
While the man put the fatigue-recovery candy into his subspace, the dragon girl stood before Kael, clasping her hands.
“You're The One Who Prepares for the Beginning! It's an honor to meet you! My name is Ran!”
“Nice to meet you, Ran. I'm Kael Thomas.”
Kael grinned and took off his hood.
“Wow! You're even cooler in person!”
“Hmph. I hear that a lot.”
Kael wore a slightly smug expression.
“By the way, you're quite composed even though so many dragons suddenly appeared?”
“Well, my school life wasn't exactly smooth-sailing.”
It was certainly surprising for dragons to suddenly appear in a group.
But Kael had been through too much to freeze up that much and miss out on such a jackpot customer as a dragon.
“And aren't you just here as tourists to watch the coronation anyway?”
“Oh? How did you know that?”
Kael's words were true.
The dragons who came here now weren't here on a special mission or command.
They were literally tourists who came to watch the coronation.
“Did you hear it from the Lord?”
The fact that Kael was Leo's best friend was already a well-known story.
As such, she thought he might have heard about the group tourism from the Dragon Lord.
Kael shrugged at Ran's question.
“No. I just figured it would be that way.”
Those officially participating in the coronation are already at the royal palace.
Moreover, Kael knew what Leo was pursuing.
‘Harmony among all races.’
Dragons are forbidden by their rules from carelessly revealing themselves before humans.
But if the country Leo desires is like Gardslon, where he once lived in the world of heroes…
‘He would surely want to show a country where dragons could freely roam without being bound by such rules. Although Gardslon at that time wasn't entirely bright….’
Kael recalled memories from that time.
‘Because the atmosphere of a city where all races lived in harmony was more dazzling than anything else.’
Kael tidied up his stall and smiled gently at Ran.
“Then, have a pleasant trip.”
Kael pulled on a transparent cloak.
Kael's figure vanished instantly.
“Wow! Wow!”
A blush rose on Ran's face.
“H-He's cool!”
Ran, covering her cheeks, wriggled her body, at a loss.
Starting with that, the dragons naturally began to blend into the festival.
They bought goods and food from the street stalls.
They watched clown performances, laughed in wonder, and asked passersby about things they were curious about.
People who had been at a loss at their appearance soon began to naturally accept the dragons.
“…Well, I never imagined I'd see a sight like this.”
“……”
A woman, watching them from an alleyway with her hood on, spoke with a sense of wonder.
All races gathered in one place, in harmony.
They didn't exclude each other.
Everyone was simply enjoying this moment.
This nation, just about to begin, possessed a strange magic.
“Isn't that right, Eliza?”
Cheon Shia turned around and asked.
“Kael Thomas-ssseuk! That bastard! Seducing another woman?! I'll just…!”
There, Eliza was grinding her teeth on a whip.
“Eliza.”
“What is it?”
“I'm hungry.”
“Why are you telling me that?”
“Go buy some food.”
“Why me?!”
“Because I know your secret, Eliza~”
At those words, Eliza flinched.
“Eliza~ and Kael~ started a secret relationship~ since last night~”
Eliza crossed her arms, watching Cheon Shia hum a song with a silly smile.
“Threatening me with something you secretly overheard. How vulgar, Cheon Shia.”
“Secretly overheard? You two were the ones who came to where I was.”
“Oh? Go ahead and spread rumors then!”
“Oh? Look, Illiana is on patrol over there? Illi… Mmph!”
Eliza hastily covered Cheon Shia's mouth, who was about to call Illiana.
If this news reached the ears of the garrulous Illiana, it would surely become famous not only among all the students but worldwide.
Cheon Shia removed Eliza's hand from her mouth and smiled gently.
“Just kidding.”
“…You're a devil.”
Eliza, who answered weakly, trudged towards a street stall.
Seeing that, Cheon Shia headed to another street stall to buy something to drink.
‘Eliza is cute, really.’
Cheon Shia chuckled, thinking of Eliza, who for some reason stimulated her sadistic tendencies.
She bought a drink and observed the street's atmosphere.
‘…No disrespectful movements.’
Leo had already told his trustworthy friends and retainers, led by Cheon Shia, about the Hero Hunters.
Kael running a street stall and observing the atmosphere, with the coronation approaching.
And Cheon Shia and Eliza guarding the surroundings in the alley.
All of it was to prevent terrorism by the Hero Hunters.
‘How dare they disrupt whose coronation?’
As she returned to the alley with two drinks, Eliza had just arrived.
“Drink this.”
“It's not poison, is it?”
Eliza accepted the drink, despite speaking suspiciously.
Cheon Shia took a bite of the sandwich Eliza had bought.
“When will they make their move?”
“Soon, I suppose.”
It was when Cheon Shia narrowed her eyes.
Wheeeeeee- Pow! Pow!
The celebratory cannon fire, signaling the start of the coronation, began to erupt.
People passing through the streets looked up at the sky.
The situation in front of the royal palace appeared on a magical screen in the sky.
The royal palace balcony, overlooking Retin.
Leo appeared there.
Whooooa-!
The cheers of the people began to echo.
***
Whooooa-!
Leo, perched on the top of the royal palace, looked down at Retin.
-Aren't you disappointed? To entrust your coronation to a stand-in?
Elesi, perched on his shoulder, asked cautiously.
Peep- Peep-
-Dee-nix said he wanted to be noticed by people.
Peck, peck, peck-
Fiora pecked at Kirian's head, who was calling her strangely.
Leo chuckled, looking at his usual summoned spirits.
“My coronation was over at that time anyway.”
Just before Lisinus disappeared.
When she entrusted the world to him.
“This is just a show to inform the people anyway. It doesn't really matter whether I use a stand-in or not.”
The Leo currently at the coronation was Enkinas.
Leo silently looked at the people gathered in Retin.
‘Perhaps… if we had finished the subjugation and returned to Gardslon… it might have been this kind of atmosphere.’
A new beginning.
‘When we set off on our last journey. We didn't know then that we would be revered for 5000 years.’
5000 years.
Enough time for history to become legend, and for even that legend to be forgotten.
However, through an item called the Hero Record, great heroes and countless heroes have existed as 'history'.
‘Someday, our story will also just become a legend.’
Leo stood up from his seat.
‘Still… I want to leave behind some form of the era we lived in.’
Those times when all races truly lived in harmony.
Something only possible due to the unique circumstance of the world's destruction.
“Kael.”
“What.”
“What will you do once Erebos is subjugated?”
“I'll probably live by wandering aimlessly. Because I have nowhere to go.”
“Then.”
Lisinus smiled shyly.
“Won't you live with me in the dragon's domain?”
The conversation with Lisinus from a long time ago came to mind.
“I'll be your future.”
“What?”
“If you can't draw your future, I'll be your unchanging dream.”
Luna, her face slightly flushed, said primly.
“So that your life can connect to mine.”
The conversation with Luna also came to mind.
‘Come to think of it… both were marriage proposals, weren't they?’
Leo let out a hollow laugh.
‘I have no right to complain even if I get cursed at.’
Shaking his head, Leo stood up.
‘Lisinus had hoped that I could settle down with peace of mind.’
Leo looked down at his hands.
‘Luna must have wished that I could become someone who could dream.’
The day we meet again will surely come someday.
Then…
‘Now I'll be able to tell them.’
That I've subjugated Erebos and created a place to stay.
That I can now dream.
“So, on this good day.”
Leo's red eyes gleamed.
“Don't spoil it, you damn Legion Commander brat.”
Leo's gaze precisely pinpointed the Dark King among the people.