Chapter 30
“That… that can’t be…….”
Upon hearing that Ruth had broken through even the final trial, Wolfgang forgot all dignity and gaped openly.
The exalted ancient dragon had proven it herself. He knew it couldn’t possibly be false and that he shouldn’t doubt it, but……
‘If it weren’t for Lord Entur’s words, I would have roared at him not to spout nonsense. Not only the trial of the neck, but even the trial of the skull? That young boy?’
Wolfgang, having experienced it himself, knew exactly what the skull trial consisted of.
Enduring the breath fired by Entur’s illusion.
The memory from that time flashed through his mind.
The moment the trial began—no, precisely the instant an enormous storm of cold energy gathered inside the illusion’s mouth.
Wolfgang had declared his surrender, convinced he was truly going to die.
It wasn’t a trial that could be overcome with skill or luck.
‘It was practically designed so that no one could break through it…….’
Yet that boy—Ruth—had done it.
He had no idea how Ruth had endured the ancient dragon’s breath, but he had.
In any case, it was a truly earth-shattering event.
The fact that his seemingly unbreakable record had been shattered.
And that a new star who had faced the end of <Trial of Entur> for the first time on the continent stood right before him.
“Hah.”
Wolfgang felt a sense of awe surge within him for the first time in a long while.
‘I must live as long as possible.’
So he could witness with his own eyes what kind of winds of change this new star would bring to the continent.
***
It was right after that when Wolfgang realized there was no time to leisurely marvel.
Ruth’s condition had been far from normal for a while now.
After accepting the spiritual power, his complexion had grown increasingly pale like a corpse, and his breathing had become labored and rough.
Entur also recognized the seriousness of the situation. She immediately sent every human inside her remains out.
And naturally, among them was—
“Is this the place where the third trial is conducted? Come at me anytime!”
“The trial is already over, so stop making a fuss, Edan Vilroct.”
“……Lord Mayor?”
Edan, the man who had been momentarily forgotten by everyone, was there as well.
While Edan—completely unaware of the great catastrophe that had occurred—was enthusiastically chiming in with belated bravado.
The guardian knights waiting outside were practically ready to faint.
How could they not be shocked when their lord returned in such a battered state?
They hurriedly rushed forward to escort Wolfgang, Ruth, and Edan back to the castle, but……
“Please go ahead first.”
Someone pushed away the knights’ hands.
It was Ruth.
“Go ahead? Have you lost your mind? Don’t you know very well who among us needs urgent treatment the most?”
“Yes, I know… but the ancient dragon said she wished to speak with me alone.”
“……I have nothing to say to that. Then I’ll wait nearby. In your current condition, you absolutely cannot descend this steep snowy mountain by yourself.”
After Wolfgang departed with Edan and the guardian knights,
Ruth was left alone before the mountain-like remains of the ancient dragon.
Goooo—
Before long, a fine snowy wind rose, and Entur appeared before him.
Perhaps because she had been freed from <Balmun>’s suppression and regained her freedom, her expression looked refreshed and light.
-Thank you. This body that suffered pain for an entire lifetime because of humans has, in the end, attained the liberation of its soul thanks to a human.
“…….”
-Since I have received the grace of salvation, I must repay it. You haven’t forgotten the promise that if you removed the sword, I would give you a piece of this body’s heart, have you?
In exchange for pulling out <Balmun>, Ruth had demanded two things from Entur.
One was to allow him to proceed to the next stage of the trials without forfeiting the rewards.
The other was to receive the ‘heart piece’.
-……There is nothing I wouldn’t give to the benefactor who granted me freedom. But you truly are a peculiar human.
Crack—.
Entur summoned a petal-like heart piece above her neatly gathered hands and spoke.
-If it were the heart of a freshly dead dragon, I could understand. But why would you desire the heart of a dragon like myself, dead for thousands of years… and only a fragment at that?
“It’s a personal preference.”
-…….
Entur’s expression turned awkward, as if she would have said something like ‘What terrible taste’ if he weren’t her benefactor.
Of course, in truth, Ruth had no hobby of collecting heart scraps from dead reptiles.
He had simply taken the ancient dragon’s heart piece because it would be useful later, regardless of how long it had been dead.
‘This isn’t my preference—it’s the Night Merchant’s personal preference.’
The Night Merchant.
An NPC who appeared randomly once a month in specific regions.
True to his name, he traded special items with players, and every single item he sold was extraordinary.
Whether in performance, value, or aesthetics.
He was the NPC who carried unique items that could not be obtained from any merchant guild on the continent.
‘And the currency required for trading is far from ordinary either.’
When selling his goods, he demanded neither money nor items.
Corpses.
Or parts of corpses.
He only accepted those two things as currency—a truly unpleasant NPC.
‘If I give that guy the heart piece of an ancient dragon, no less…….’
He would be able to obtain ‘that’—considered the absolute best among the items the Night Merchant possessed.
It was an item he absolutely had to get his hands on, no matter what it took, if he wanted to survive in this damn game world that felt like it was made by a cat.
While Ruth was drawing out his future plans and carefully storing the heart piece in his bosom,
“Ugh…….”
-Ruth!
Without any warning, he suddenly vomited a pitch-black substance from his mouth.
An unknown, strange liquid—whether it was blood or something else.
His throat burned as if he had swallowed hydrochloric acid, and his vision began splitting into five branches like a shattered camera lens.
‘Advanced Curse’ and ‘Advanced Decay’ were still devouring Ruth in real time.
-It’s… it’s because of my spiritual power…….
“…….”
-Why would you do something so foolish! If this continues, I will be crushed by the guilt of having caused my benefactor’s death!
“There is no need for the ancient dragon to feel any responsibility.”
-That’s just what you think! I have heard that among humans there are those called saints. Starting today, go find them immediately and ask them to erase the traces of death clinging to your body!
“Saints are not people one can meet just because they want to. And even if I did meet one, it’s already too late.”
-Late……?
“I know my body’s condition better than anyone. I will rot and die within today.”
-What kind of… human are you to speak of dying so casually…….
Even though she was a thought-form, Entur felt a chill run down her spine.
However, she was somewhat misunderstanding the situation.
Ruth was not facing death with indifference and maintaining such a calm expression.
He was calm because he was certain he would not die.
“If it’s a thought-form that has formed a servitude contract with a human, you should be able to completely erase the remaining traces of spiritual power in my body right now.”
-……?
A servitude contract meant a connection between souls.
It was possible to transfer the aftereffects of spiritual power that one side was enduring to the contracted thought-form.
‘In any case, a thought-form is a being outside the material world’s flesh. Even if afflicted with status ailments like curses or decay, there’s no problem.’
In other words, it was the only solution to resolve the aftereffects of the spiritual power without seeking a saint.
Entur understood this fact perfectly the moment she heard it.
But somehow, considering the context, the nuance in Ruth’s words sounded as if……
-……Are you perhaps telling this body to become your subordinate?
“…….”
Entur let out a sigh and frowned with a meaningful expression.
It seemed like she found it troublesome, or perhaps she felt anger. It was likely both.
-The grace you bestowed upon me is great. But as you know, this body has already sufficiently repaid it. I promised the rewards for all the trials and even gave you a piece of my heart.
“Yes.”
-As for the spiritual power issue, this body also feels regret. I feel a certain sense of responsibility. But in the end, that was your own choice.
“Yes.”
-I have kept every promise I needed to keep, so there is no reason for this body to submit to you by giving up ascension. No. Leaving all that aside, how could an ancient dragon become a human’s subordinate? We serve no one except the primordial dragons!
“The Knight King is still alive.”
-…….
Silence fell.
Entur, who had been gradually raising her voice, froze like a statue with her brows still furrowed.
Ruth quietly looked into her eyes and then,
“The man who stabbed a blade into your heart and stole your freedom for thousands of years is currently—”
He spoke with strength in his voice, as if to make sure she heard clearly.
—“enjoying eternal life as one of the Seven Great Evils of the continent.”
***
Kugugugu-!
The moment he delivered the news of the Knight King’s survival, a terrifying pressure crushed down on Ruth.
Even Entur, who had shown miraculous patience upon hearing the proposal to become his subordinate, could not hide her fury at this point.
-You’ve gone mad with the idea of a servitude contract and now dare touch even this body’s reverse scale.
‘Damn anger-management-issue dragon…!’
The dragon’s aura carried a pressure on par with divine power.
He endured it with <Authority of Resistance> like he had against the Watcher, but the situation was slightly different this time.
Because of the various harmful status ailments still ravaging his body, maintaining his sanity was far more difficult than before.
-Knight King Simon. It has been roughly three thousand years since the battle with that bastard reached its conclusion. Yet you claim a human Knight King is still alive today, three thousand years later? Even dragons do not live that long.
“That’s why I told you. Simon ascended to the position of one of the continent’s Seven Great Evils and received eternal life… or more precisely,”
Ruth continued with difficulty, feeling frost biting deep into his throat.
“In return for inflicting thousands of years of pain upon you, he was granted eternal life by the Constellations.”
-……W-what?
“It is known that Knight King Simon single-handedly subjugated you under the mission of hunting all dragons on the continent, but the truth is completely different.”
Overwhelmed by the continuous shocking revelations, Entur finally withdrew her oppressive aura and stood in a daze.
“The truth is that Simon was instigated by the Constellations of the [Sword God Society] to hunt you.”
-……[Sword God Society], those bastards?
Even in the Divine Temple, the world of the Constellations, various factions existed.
The [Sword God Society] was the faction most hated by the dragon race.
It was the place where those who had made dragon subjugation their achievement in life gathered after death.
“Simon received recognition from the [Sword God Society] for the feat of inflicting permanent suffering upon you and obtained immortality. However, as time passed, Simon gradually lost his emotions as a human……”
-You mean his soul fell into darkness and he became one of the Seven Great Evils?
“Yes.”
-How am I supposed to believe those words… This is truly perplexing.
“I am not a sage, but I am not a foolish idiot who would tell obvious lies just to make an ancient dragon my subordinate.”
That much was true.
Normally, a servitude contract established a one-sided dominance where one side ruled the other. However, when the one being subjugated was an existence on the level of an ancient dragon, the story changed completely.
If she felt displeased, she could destroy the contracted human’s soul at any time.
In other words, there was no reason for Ruth to deceive Entur using the Knight King as bait.
-‘Simon… that damnable enemy who deserves to be torn apart and killed is truly still alive?’
Now that she was convinced Ruth’s words were true, Entur grew even more confused.
She herself had let go of her resentment toward Simon long ago.
What was the point of continuing to hate a human who had surely died of old age?
But.
If he was still alive, the story was different.
-‘And on top of that, he acted on the instigation of those damn [Sword God Society] bastards…!’
The killing intent that had grown faint now began to stir once more deep within Entur’s chest.
“If you wish to let the past be and ascend, then do so. The choice is yours, Lord Entur.”
-……For three thousand years I wandered in isolation on this frozen land. Can you even imagine how cold and lonely that time was?
“…….”
-I want to see Simon… and those vermin of the [Sword God Society] pay the price for the loneliness I endured. No matter what it takes!
“No matter what it takes, you say.”
Even if it meant becoming a human’s servant?
At Ruth’s gaze that seemed to ask exactly that, Entur nodded willingly.
-But why do you want to subjugate me, who is already dead and has become a spirit? What benefit does this bring you?
‘What benefit? Of course there’s benefit.’
Even as a spirit, gaining the strongest possible supporter in the form of an ancient dragon—how could there be no benefit?
Of course, Ruth phrased it more delicately.
“My family was murdered by the Seven Great Evils. If I am to erase those bastards from the continent, I need the help of a supreme being like you, Lord Entur.”
-Ah… I see.
(With a bit of exaggeration mixed in.)
“You and I share the same goal. Therefore… please come with me.”
-Wait. If this body is to follow you, we must form a servitude contract. Do you know how?
“Yes.”
-You do?
Entur looked at Ruth in surprise.
Forming a servitude contract with a spirit was not something done easily. It required an extremely complex shamanistic ritual.
But fortunately,
Ruth had just obtained the perfect skill earlier today after completing the torso trial.
【Blood Mark】
Once only, imprints a blood mark on a designated target.
- The target imprinted with the Blood Mark can be summoned into battle as your servant.
- The Blood Mark can be imprinted regardless of whether the target is living or dead.
- When the Blood Mark is imprinted with mutual consent, the ‘Soul Resonance’ effect activates, enhancing the servant’s abilities.
A servitude contract skill. Just what couldn’t a Blood Mage do?
This was why Ruth couldn’t help but be astonished when he first read the information for the <Blood Mark> skill.
Drip—.
When he activated the skill, a reddish blood droplet formed on the back of Ruth’s right hand, tracing a rune.
Just like with his other skills, the method to form a contract using <Blood Mark> naturally surfaced in his mind the moment it activated.
-……Imprint magic? How surprising. To think you even possessed such a talent.
Seeing Ruth fully prepared for the contract, Entur widened her eyes in admiration.
Ruth spoke.
“I will kill all of the Seven Great Evils.”
For the peace of the continent.
And for his own safety.
“Will you join me? O great ancient dragon.”
Ruth extended the back of his hand, where the <Blood Mark> rune had formed, toward Entur.
-…….
As a dragon who had seen the pinnacle of magic, Entur easily understood what the gesture meant.
Their goals aligned.
And Entur had no way to achieve her revenge without the boy before her.
There was no other path to make those who inflicted three thousand years of suffering pay the price.
From the beginning, there had only ever been one choice she could make.
-Gladly.
Chu.
Entur gently took Ruth’s hand, drew it closer, and kissed the back of it.
It was the moment the legendary ancient dragon of the north wind became Ruth’s subordinate.
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