Book 12 Chapter 2

Prologue: Side Story Part 2

- Let's go find some prey, ■■!

Though I cannot be certain myself, I feel as if my soul is searching for something.

Is this a desperate craving…?

Or is it a yearning…?

Though I cannot affirm it myself, the true nature of that feeling manifests in my dreams, yet even dreams fail to accurately depict its form.

- ●※★★★★☆!

Even in dreams, when I try to listen to that sound, noise interferes…

And even in dreams…

Its form is indistinct, making it impossible to recognize…

"We have arrived, Your Excellency, the Archmage."

Ah, I hate this…

I don't want to wake up…

At any time, at any moment… the curtain of reality that cruelly descends upon the delusions of dreams…

"Your Excellency, the Archmage… I'd prefer you not call me that anymore. I retired last month."

Swan, the guardian knight of the family who had now entered middle age, smiled faintly from beyond the carriage window.

"Yes, former Archmage Your Excellency."

"Oh, stop it already!"

"Then what should I call you?"

Yonghyeon (Dragon Sage) Rein Ludwig lightly leaped from the stopped carriage.

Other nobles would install a portable set of steps to maintain their dignity when boarding or alighting the carriage.

In contrast, Rein disliked such trivial things and never employed attendants even during his tenure as Archmage.

For Swan, serving such a master was the pride of his life.

As Rein put on the fur-lined gloves offered by Swan, he exhaled a cloudy breath.

"It's always cold here, no matter when I visit."

The place Rein Ludwig visited after relinquishing his title as Archmage was <Snowy Fortress>.

The northern limit of the civilized world…

Repairs from the last war were underway, but as it was originally built with the lives of the White Dragon Legion as sacrifice, the day of complete restoration still seemed distant.

"Your Excellency, Archmage!"

"You've arrived, Your Excellency!"

Among the white wolves guarding <Snowy Fortress>, several officers and soldiers were waiting in formation.

Fur armor, showing a distinct difference from Swan, who wore heavy central plate armor.

That could be called the standard northern armor.

"I'm retired and unemployed now, you know."

"So, does that mean I can speak informally, like before?"

Kiran Wolf Blood, commander of the wall, said.

"Kiran!"

Rein lightly embraced his long-unseen friend and shared their reunion.

"I've come to see the memorial stele. Would you mind stepping aside?"

"Of course. How could a mere wolf pack leader possibly block the path of the Dragon's Great Sage?"

"Ah, stop it already."

The title of Yonghyeon still made Rein feel ashamed. Was it perhaps due to his awareness that he wasn't such a great being?

"Then I'll see you again when you leave. And don't leave without a word again like last time."

After Kiran left, Rein headed to the center of the White Bone, accompanied only by Swan.

Rein looked up at the memorial stele, which rose to the same height as <Snowy Fortress>, exhaling white breath. It was something Rein himself had created.

Due to the guilt he felt towards those who died in the war against the old king, who reduced mortal fates to mere transient white bones.

"The memorial stele, the product of the deaths that occurred here that day…"

Those who fell were born with a mortal lifespan, but their names are engraved here, making them immortal.

"While walls can be renovated and repaired, lives cannot. It's all my fault."

"Young Master, you did what you had to do."

Swan declared.

Rein offered a self-deprecating smile.

"No, I did what I wanted to do. It was out of greed. All in the name of protecting the futures of Akina, Nen, and Mir."

"Thanks to Your Excellency, humanity was able to achieve victory because they were battle-ready and released the seals. A plague caused by the Spider Lord was already spreading even before that."

"In times like this, you're supposed to empathize, not refute."

"I do not empathize with matters I cannot empathize with."

"Do you realize, you're sounding more and more like my old self?"

Every year around this time, commemorating the day the war ended, the Dragon Sage always visited this place…

Miria had also accompanied him every year, but currently, due to the auspicious reason of carrying the Dragon Sage's child, she could not join him.

Just then, one of the white wolf officers appeared, accompanied by his subordinates. Without even making eye contact, he courteously stated his business.

"This is an urgent letter that just arrived from the Papal Curia. It is addressed to His Excellency, the Dragon Sage."

As Swan's armor clinked, and he stepped forward to receive the letter, a moment of fear coursed through Rein's mind.

He didn't know why.

Or why such fear had taken hold. It was a fear almost akin to an instinctive premonition.

'Nen.'

Rein pushed past Swan, stepped forward, and took the letter. Without a moment's hesitation, he broke the seal, unfolded the letter, and scanned its contents.

"What in…?"