< Dragon Curse >
The duel between Leon and Vulcanus did not end even after a day and a night of fighting.
The stadium is cracked and splintered here and there, and even the stands are not safe. From the second day, most of the spectators evacuated to avoid getting hit by flying debris from the stadium.
Thanks to that, only the strong enough to not die from the debris from the aftermath of the battle remained in the arena——
three days like that.
Vulcan has crossed the line.
“Aye! It’s frustrating!
[Oh, Vulcanus bastard! no way!!]
Divine Advent <God of War>.
Despite Petos’ dissuade, Vulcanus closed the savings account with a long expiration date left.
[Noaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!]
In proportion to the screams of God Petos, the flames of the wrathful Holy Grail Knight rose fiercely.
Of course, there are cases too. The use of holy power is intended to be limited to one blow.
With this sword’s holy sword, the strongest blow limited to one blow. Its power truly reaches the apex of a holy sword. But–
“Kyung used it first.”
In the heat of the duel, he hadn’t thought of Vulcanus. If he is the Holy Grail Knight representing the God of War——
<Holy Sword of Extreme Light>
That Leon is the representative of the gods.
“Hmm… why don’t we cancel it for a while and regain our sanity again? Come to think of it, the divine powers of the gods are wasted in vain—”
“I like your brazenness. But not now.”
“·······.”
If there was a true loser in this duel, it would be Petos, who lost half of his accumulated holy power by holding various events such as the Holy Spirit prayer meeting for several months.
Even Vulcanus fell like that.
Then the suitors stopped walking.
-How the hell are you supposed to beat a monster like that?
-Ah~ This quest is ruined.
Yongje’s suitors faced a wall they could never overcome, and Leon had to overcome more than 50 suitors in the future, but there were no suitors to challenge.
“hmm.”
“Your Majesty, you look satisfied.”
Beatrice noticed that Leon’s expression, which had been without a challenger for the third day, was more satisfied than ever before.
“Now that the thieves are gone, the king’s garden is so peaceful.”
“There are many people who say it’s a bit of a joke.”
“Heh, the king should not care about the reputation of his subordinates.”
It may be a proper attitude for a royal family, but can it be said that even interfering with a daughter’s wedding activities is royal?
Of course, Beatrice heard Leon’s reasons for doing this and knew.
“Will your daughter really do what Her Majesty intends?”
“I hope so.”
‘A clumsy person.’
When she first heard all this from Leon, Beatrice was surprised to realize that even this perfect man had some common flaws.
It is also true that Beatrice laughed at Leon’s behavior, just as Vulcanus recalled a rather frivolous expression.
But what came after that was a pity.
A father with a sense of guilt can and should not deny his choice, so he behaves coercively as if blaming himself.
She thwarts her daughter’s plans and uses her father’s authority to force her to choose.
What a clumsy father this is.
He was a perfect knight, a great king, and a seeker loved by the gods.
However, even such a perfect half-body reveals his clumsiness by trying to hide his awkwardness and shyness.
I guess I just think that this is the best.
“It won’t just go the way Your Majesty thinks.”
“No, it has to be my way. That’s what’s best for him.”
well.
It is unknown what Karina, the solvent dragon Karina Dragonia, will think of.
* * * *
It was the fourth day since the suitor’s challenge had ceased, and the twentieth day had already passed since Hari fell in the imperial palace.
“Lungs haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The extreme respect law learned as a savage in historical dramas made the superiors smile appropriately.
“So, have you eaten?”
“Lung, I’ve been waiting for you, Your Majesty~”
Karina treated herself in a difficult way, but Hari, who had no fear or fear, was unique.
She is of dragon blood and has inherited the dragon’s heart.
The stronger the power, the stronger the ‘peer’ that is emitted makes living creatures have instinctive fear.
When I was at Lionheart, it was fine.
No one has been holding the heart of a dragon for a long time like her, but every citizen of Lionheart has the power to resist the fear of the dragon.
faith.
The most powerful force, believing that the gods would protect them, was the driving force behind the dragon’s curse.
And in a different world where the authority of the gods does not exist, she saw criminals who had to accept her existence as it was.
The unity and surprise of the Seven Kingdoms must have come from such fear.
In that sense, Hari, who is not afraid of herself even though she is difficult, is a very welcome talent for Karina.
“Hey, Your Majesty. I heard that no new suitors showed up today.”
“okay.”
Karina let out a light sigh. Nor was it unexpected that Vulcan was defeated.
“If we had gone straight to the physical fight, how would we have tried it, but since we rushed to the holy power fight, there’s nothing we can do about it.”
“Boo, Lord Vulcanus’ holy power usage was staggering?”
“Young one. The opponent of that Lord Vulcanus is the Lion Heart King.”
“That’s right… Ahaha.”
Vulcan’s talents and vessels are truly worthy of being called the monsters of the era.
However, the opponent is also the strongest Lion Heart King ever. If you go to pure holy power battle, Vulcanus, who represents only one god, cannot defeat the representative of the gods.
“If it was a pure physical confrontation, I expected it because it pushed the young Lion Heart King.”
Vulcanus was a being with a body strong enough to be called the strongest creature on earth, and Leon was also a natural fighter who embodied the history of hundreds of years of war.
When Leon had defeated Vulcan thirteen times and let him go thirteen times, in that last fight the two fought bloodily seven days a week.
‘I guess it wasn’t a serious fight.’
If Vulcan had really made a life-or-death decision, Leon wouldn’t have been able to subdue it so quickly.
“To block the marriage of an old virgin daughter-in-law like this. Truly…”
Putting aside Leon’s interference in narrowing her options, Karina smiled bitterly.
“Okay, let’s talk about your world instead.”
The reason Karina stays close to Hari in the imperial palace is not just because she is not affected by her peers.
She was also an important source of information. Her own empire, the squire of this world connected to the world she rules.
Knowing about them is necessary for the Emperor of the Empire, no matter what response he takes in the future.
“Our world is being invaded by demons. It connects to many worlds, and from there—”
Hari unpacked the bundle of stories Karina wanted.
“In your world, iron horses and birds carry people?”
“It’s called a car and an airplane.”
“Yes, I understand that it is a very advanced civilization.”
Emperor Carina was happy to tell the story of Earth. Hari also did her best to Karina, who listened to my story with interest.
From there, Leon came over, and after that, the pantheon was built, and the many things that happened.
‘I wish I could get closer to His Majesty again.’
As a person who watched the end of the Lionheart Kingdom, Leon’s long-standing battle with the devil was repeated over and over again, a wish that never came true.
“Yeah, but in Your Majesty’s world, demons no longer exist?”
“Sometimes they try to come over. But lately, there’s been a noticeable decrease in movement. Even that was taken care of before crossing the gate.”
“Ah…, then that…”
When the hunters crossed the gate, they realized that the gate phenomenon they had encountered for the first time in their life was Karina’s intervention, and made a surprised expression.
“I-I guessed that it would be the case with dragons… uh, how?”
With the power to intervene in the passage of the Gate, wouldn’t it be possible to easily win the war against the devil with that power?
“It’s the power of the dragon. I set several traps in the sub-space that connects this world with the dragon’s magic. It’s not to the level of overconfidence, but it’s enough to ruin it if you rush to it.”
That alone was a force that could change the face of war. On top of that, Karina added that it was a burden whenever she used this power.
“Are you feeling burdened?”
In response to Hari’s question, Karina’s expression was rather surprising.
“You who inherited the heart of the first great saintess, Duke Renoir, don’t you know the history of the Grand Duchess of Dragonia?”
“Ah… well, that’s…”
Of course, the history and story of Lionheart that Hari, an earthling, knows is limited to what Leon tells.
Leon is also in charge of theological education, but there are not many stories that are told only by one person. Above all, Leon was focusing on combat training rather than history education.
“It’s an old story.”
The distant era, that era was the era of dragons, not the era of gods.
Humans were only prey for dragons, and even proper civilization was not achieved, and the gods were unable to find followers to believe in them.
Three heroes were chosen by the gods.
“One of them is Archduke Zeke. He is famous for many heroic stories, but the most famous one is for defeating Dragon King Dragonia. Defeating an evil dragon——It’s noisy. Yes, well, let’s make it violent.”
“your majesty?”
“Yes, it’s one of the dragon’s tricks.”
Carina rarely evaded her words and asked for more of Hari’s story. It was quite a long journey for her, but as she continued for twenty days, the story finally came out.
“Your Majesty, I watched the last battle of the Lionheart Kingdom.”
“·······.”
The Fall of Lionheart.
Karina couldn’t see that.
It’s because she flowed into this world during the battle with Grand Duke Gangyok.
“Your Majesty must have resented me a lot.”
In that fight, Karina led 30,000 Northern troops and broke away from the coalition.
In a situation where the destruction of the world had already been confirmed, he led the avengers of Ventasis, who swore revenge, and advanced to the north.
It represented the feelings of the North eager for revenge, but at the same time it was the heartless choice of a daughter who betrayed the Union and abandoned her father.
[Do as you wish, Grand Duke of Dragonia! I hate to see you! Disappear from Jim’s eyes!]
The last words I heard from my father. Even though she had a hunch that it would be her last, Karina led her own army and abandoned Leon.
Naturally, he assumed that Leon would resent him.
“It is not!”
But Harry’s answer was different. She said what she saw.
“His Majesty always thought of Her Majesty Karina. I was sorry… and I missed her.”
When Leon heard of the kingdom’s destruction from the future, Leon was not discouraged.
He was willing to pave the way for the future, and in the process he reunited with Karina.
Hari was confident that Leon must have been happy and pleased with Karina.
“Is that so?”
Karina guessed that it was true when the usually hesitant Hari spoke with such a determined gaze.
A little bit, it was comforting.
“How was it. His Majesty the Lion Heart King?”
“You fought to the end.”
Because we finally won, we have this moment now.
“is it.”
Karina put on a bitter expression and said nothing more. Then, Foma intervened in the conversation.
[Do you have any intention of going back?]
“Where?”
[A hometown that will embrace you as you deserve.]
Karina’s hometown.
It was not referring to place names or countries.
“It’s too late. You’ve been back too long.”
[How far has it progressed?]
“I’ll be glad if I can hold out for a few more years.”
“Your Majesty? Poma-sama? What are you both talking about?”
Hari can’t keep up with the story. To Hari, Karina clicked her tongue and scolded her poma.
“Take some priestly education separately.”
[Because this is not an era of peace.]
Hari couldn’t understand what he was saying at first, so he guessed the context. ‘a few years’. That was the easiest word to guess—
“Lung, is Your Majesty dying? Are you terminally ill?!”
“Well, it’s similar. It’s better to see it once than to say it a hundred times.”
Karina took off her top at first and started tearing it apart. The emperor’s regalia untied and fell to her floor, but Hari didn’t even think to look away from her.
An immense amount of magical power that can be felt even when only one coat has been removed. Her energy, powerful enough to make her skin tingle, made her tremble.
“Suck…!”
Hari catches her breath as she witnesses Karina’s fully exposed upper body.
heart. Red aura pulsated around the left chest, and the skin around it was covered with steel-like scales.
* * * *
Yonghwa.
It is said to be the curse of the dragon that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Grand Duke of Dragonia.
It was the Grand Duchess of Dragonia who had been covered with the blood of the progenitor dragon, processed its heart, and used it as the essence of power, but the more she used that power, the more she was eroded by the dragon’s curse.
It has already been over two hundred years since Karina became the Grand Duke of Dragonia. Originally, she had had a dragon’s heart for too long, when she should have given birth to a child and passed it on to the next generation.
“Your Majesty, then Your Majesty… Your Majesty the Lion Heart King knows that!”
must give birth to an heir. Only then can Karina live. Even knowing that, why did Leon interrupt Karina’s soul duel?
“Well, follow me. I have something to show you.”
Karina smiled bitterly and headed somewhere.
Inside the imperial palace, the attendants and maids prostrated themselves, and the soldiers saluted.
No one asked or hindered Yongje’s path.
“Did you know that dragons build their nests to accumulate gold and silver treasures?”
“is that so?”
You must have met a dragon. Hari has seen many monsters, but he has never faced a dragon.
“They are greedy by nature and like flashy things. They have a habit of collecting and hoarding all the gold and jewels of the world as if they were their own.”
Karina said that we call it ‘Dragon Rare’.
“It’s the same with Jim. From a certain point on, he became obsessed with gold and silver treasure. He fell under the curse of gold.”
“·······.”
Hari was at a loss for words at the ‘glow’ that was getting closer with every step she took.
You can see the palace covered with gold on the road made of pure white marble.
From the pillars to the roof, there was nothing that was not splendid, and the golden palace, which was described only in legends, was majestic.
-gulp!
I involuntarily swallow my saliva. Hari, who was overwhelmed even by the exterior material, was greeted by a huge door that seemed like a giant could enter and exit.
When Karina opened the door herself, Hari stepped forward as usual.
“I-I’ll open it!”
The inferior takes care of the convenience of the superior. It was a etiquette that I learned naturally while attending Leon. However, apart from such an admirable act, the iron door Harry had touched showed no signs of opening.
“Huh? Why, why doesn’t it open?”
An iron gate that does not budge even with the brute strength of an S-class hunter. Hari wondered if there was a lock on something, but when Karina touched her hand, the door slowly opened.
“Huh? What kind of magical device is there?”
Is there some kind of magic that distinguishes users, such as fingerprint recognition? But Karina’s answer was simple.
“No, it’s just the heaviest iron door in the world. Only Jim can push it and close it.”
“·······.”
The world’s heaviest iron gate. Is it an iron gate that can only be opened by the monster power of the dragon?
What kind of treasure do you have to make and keep?
Hari soon opened the iron door and understood its meaning.
A huge palace the size of a football stadium in modern districts. Inside it–
“Heo-euk…!”
Gold and silver treasures were piled up like a mountain.
It’s not like paraphrasing, it’s really a mountain… There were no other words to describe it.
[Are you here?]
And in that splendid gold and silver treasure, a dark aura that doesn’t suit it forms a shape.
Both Hari and Karina knew the name of that ominous existence.
[My avenger. I have come to receive the price you have to pay.]
Ventasis of Darkness and Vengeance.
He came looking for his Holy Grail Knight.
