Chapter 606

That man’s not getting any sleep tonight.

Ian hid a faint laugh behind his cup as he watched Fael leave the room.

"I’ve always found it strange, come to think of it," Simon murmured from across the table. "I have never once met Lady Ingrid in person. Her name only ever comes up in social circles. So I was wondering— We’re not finished talking yet, sir. Please wait a little longer."

Simon whipped his head around and snapped at the middle-aged knight who had entered as Fael left. The knight let out a heavy sigh and turned back around.

As soon as the door closed, Simon’s voice started up again. "As I was saying. Could it be that her name is Her Highness the Princess—"

"We’re done with all the talk," Ian cut him off, setting down his cup. He looked at the startled Simon and nodded toward the door. "So you can go now, too, Simon."

"Just like that?! No, but... Okay." Simon, who had protested with wide eyes, bowed his head under Ian’s icy gaze.

He clearly had a mountain of questions left to ask, not only about the Princess but about the Dark Prince as well. Of course, that was precisely why Ian had ordered him out.

"You too, Mukapa," Ian added, ignoring the dawdling Simon and looking toward the opposite wall.

Mukapa rose immediately without a word. Though it was the first time he had heard the detailed story of the Dark Prince, his face was as impassive as ever.

"Well then, I will see you tomorrow, Agent of the Saint," said Mukapa.

His eyes, however, seemed to shimmer strangely as he looked at Ian. It was unlikely to be just from the candlelight. As Ian nodded, Mukapa gestured to Shahin with his eyes and turned to leave.

"I’ll head out first." Setting a bottle down beside Ian, Shahin caught Simon’s arm and steered him toward the door. The boy shared a room with Mukapa.

"Have a good night," Simon mumbled as he was pushed out the door, repeatedly looking back with an expression full of lingering curiosity.

However, Ian knew he wouldn't reveal what he heard to Brennen. A storm of nagging would surely follow. That was likely why he hadn't wanted him in the room in the first place. He had a few screws loose, but he wasn’t a fool.

"Finally, some peace," Thesaya murmured as soon as the door closed, propping her feet up on the table as if she’d been waiting for the moment. She stuck a cigarette in her mouth and clasped her hands behind her head.

Feet on the table...

Ian clicked his tongue and picked up the bottle to refill their cups. With just the three of them left, a soft orange light flickered across the spacious room and the now-empty table.

After a leisurely sip, Ian finally asked, "Is Moro still doing well?"

Orendel had become a blessed land. It was the worst possible environment for a demonic beast, yet surprisingly, Moro was holding up just fine. It showed no signs of pain, nor did it seem to be rapidly consuming its stored chaos.

"Yes. I went to see it during the day, and it was still doing fine. It seemed a little lethargic, though," Lucia, who had been sipping her drink, lost in thought, answered quickly.

She looked at Ian. "If the goddesses aren’t shielding it directly, it means it's adapted to divine energy or learned to mimic perfectly."

So it leveled up, huh?

Ian nodded slightly, pouring another drink.

After all, that thing had swallowed chaos and evolved over and over again. Perhaps it had adapted enough to survive even outside the demonic realm. On their journey here, it had devoured not only his chaos but plenty of the monsters they’d slain.

"Still, let me know right away if any problems come up."

"I will. Don’t worry. I’ve already told the keepers not to approach it unless necessary and to inform me immediately if anything happens," Lucia added readily and brought her cup to her lips.

She’s a reliable one,

Ian thought with a chuckle.

"You gave His Highness control because the central regions kept their word, right?" Lucia asked softly after a sip.

When Ian turned toward her, she smiled faintly. "I mean, Prince Hyked. You hadn’t planned to tell them at all, right? But you told them so they could prepare."

"Well, thoughts are bound to change," Ian said, setting down his cup. Lucia wasn’t wrong, though that wasn't the sole factor.

"Orendel has received a heavenly blessing. Word will spread to the Empire soon enough, and the royal family won’t take kindly to it."

"You think the Empire will try to crush this place?" Lucia asked, pausing.

Ian shrugged. "If I were the emperor, I probably would. If I couldn't do it myself, I'd use someone else's hands."

"True. It’s another sacred land, after all. And people always gather near sacred lands," Thesaya chimed in, rocking her tilted-back chair.

She took a new cigarette from her case. "We don’t know how the Princess will use the information, but in the end, she’ll have no choice but to report it to the Emperor. You played your cards well, Ian."

"It wasn’t my intention from the start. The situation just unfolded that way," Ian said, raising his cup.

Lucia narrowed her eyes and nodded. "No one can say when the war will begin, or how long it’ll last, but at least the kingdom’s bought itself some time to build its strength."

"By the time the war is over, the Empire might not be the same as it is now. It might even split in two." Thesaya shifted the cigarette to her left hand and looked at Ian. "So, have you decided yet, Ian?"

Meeting his gaze, she smiled, waving the cigarette in her hand up and down. "Whether you’ll help the Empire or support the Dark Prince. From the looks of it, your choice could completely change the situation. Or are you hoping they both fall to ruin?"

"Neither," Ian snorted.

She’s strangely sharp when it comes to things like this.

"I have no intention of getting involved in someone else’s family squabble."

"So you just want to keep your friends from being dragged into it?"

"For now." Ian nodded and took another drink. The great current of events wouldn’t leave him be, of course, but he had no desire to be swept up and forced to choose from the very beginning.

"Well, if that’s what you want. In any case, you’ll have plenty of time to set things right in the North," Thesaya said, lighting a new cigarette with the butt of the old one.

"I have no intention of making an enemy of the Archduke, either," Ian said, setting his cup down.

Unless the Archduke had directly harmed the barbarians, there was no need to shed blood unnecessarily. There were already plenty of other conflicts waiting.

Besides, the Hope City he’d seen through the illusion had thrived beyond recognition. Such growth would be impossible without external support, which likely meant not everyone in the North shared the Archduke’s ambitions, even if they obeyed his commands.

"Yeah? Well, that’s a shame. I was hoping to give that petty bastard a good spanking." Straightening her posture, Thesaya stubbed out the dying cigarette on the table. Despite her words, she didn’t sound disappointed.

"Seriously..." Ian’s laugh trailed off into the quiet that followed. For a while, the three simply drank and shared their cigarettes in silence.

"I hope the coming war is the last one," Lucia’s murmur came when her newly lit cigarette had nearly burned down.

Outside, the sky was pitch-black, and the city had fallen silent.

"There are already mountains of other problems to solve. To think we’d be shedding our own blood amid all this..."

Lucia’s eyes, looking between Ian and Thesaya, suddenly curved into a bitter smile. "Then again, maybe as long as civilized races exist, war will never really end."

She brought the cup to her lips again. A faint, wry smile touched Ian’s lips as well. Lucia’s eyes had grown deeper, like those of someone far older than her years.

Even by this world’s standards, she had endured far too many terrible things for her age, most of which had happened while she was with him.

"Maybe you’re right," Ian murmured, draining his cup in one go.

Lucia looked at him, and he picked up the bottle. "Big waves swallow the smaller ones as they roll on. If the war between the Empire and the Dark Prince serves as that wave, the lesser chaos will settle on its own."

He slowly filled her cup, meeting her eyes.

"Not forever, of course. But for a while, at least."

"I hope so. At least until the continent finds stability again." Lucia shrugged softly.

Just then, Thesaya, who had been listening quietly, said, "Well, at any rate, tonight is peaceful, isn’t it?"

She raised her cup with a grin. "So let’s drink. We’ve got nothing else to do until Redhead gets back anyway."

Her eyes were already quite drunk. It was no wonder, given she had been sipping all day. Of course, there was no reason to refuse. Once they left Orendel, there was no telling when they would have a moment like this again.

"Well, I’m not exactly tired anyway—" Ian began, holding out the bottle, but suddenly froze. His head dropped, and a faint chuckle escaped his lips as he stared at his chest. "Looks like I’ve still got a guest left to meet tonight."

"What’s that all of a sudden—" Thesaya, cup in hand, raised an eyebrow. She had felt an unfamiliar magic emanate from Ian’s chest.

"Sir Ian, is that by any chance?" Lucia asked, her eyes wide as she stared at his chest.

Ian put the bottle down, rose from his seat, and answered, "It seems the Platinum Dragon has awakened."

Tucked inside his shirt, the dragon talisman still rested in its leather pouch. He had never taken it off except when he washed.

Swoosh—

And now, the dragon’s magic was spreading from the amulet. It wasn’t burned, nor was it inside a church, which made its sudden activation all the stranger.

Maybe it’s stopped caring about the gods altogether.

Ian brushed the thought aside as he turned and walked toward the wall where Mukapa had been leaning. "Wait here. Don’t get caught up in this."

"Don’t worry about us," Thesaya said with a nonchalant smile, picking up the wine bottle. "You seem to have forgotten, but I’ve met it before."

"My goodness... finally..." Lucia’s stunned whisper followed. Her gaze was fixed, mesmerized, on the dragon’s magic that was now spreading from Ian like gold dust.

A few seconds later, Ian’s eyes twitched. The flow of magic was different from what he knew. It should have scattered and then gathered in the air to form a Mantra—but the golden energy now pouring from his collar wasn’t scattering. It was circling around him. Instinctively, he looked up, and his eyes widened.

"This looks a little different from what I remember. Are you sure that’s okay, Ian?" Thesaya asked, picking up her cup. She narrowed her eyes slightly and gestured with her chin. "The Mantra is forming above your head. It doesn’t look like the Platinum Dragon is being summoned; it’s more like—"

"I’m the one being summoned," Ian finished her sentence, making her pause.

Staring at the Mantra materializing above him, he lowered his head. "That’s what it looks like to me, too. It seems this time I’m the one being pulled away."

"Wh-What did you say?" Lucia exclaimed.

Almost at the same instant, Thesaya flung her cup aside and sprang forward. She vaulted off the table, limbs spread like a flying squirrel, and lunged at Ian. But she couldn’t reach him this time. A sharp crackle of energy burst through the air the moment she touched the dragon’s magic swirling around him, and a flash of light sent her flying back.

"What the hell?" Thesaya exclaimed, her eyes wide even as she tumbled to the floor.

Just as Lucia was about to kick off her chair and leap forward, Ian held up a hand. "Stop it. It’s useless. It seems you two of you can’t enter."

He looked up again at the Mantra, which had flickered above his head.

As Lucia slid to a stop, Thesaya pushed herself up, frowning. "What is this? Why are you the one being taken?"

"Where are you being summoned? You’ll be back soon, right?" Lucia asked.

Ian finally lowered his head and answered, "I don’t know."

He looked at Lucia through the swirling golden tide. "But if I’m late, don’t wait for me."

"What do you mean?" Her face blurred before his eyes, dissolving rapidly.

Ian raised his voice before the light swallowed her completely. "Stick to the plan! Tell the others the same! Got it?"

"But—" Lucia’s reply was cut short.

The golden energy engulfed her form, and with it, her voice vanished too. The next moment, he saw nothing but a blinding, flickering golden light.

Ian felt as though his whole body was stretching like melted taffy from the crown of his head down to his toes. The world flipped upside down, and all his senses tangled into a dizzying mess.

An instant later, his stretched body snapped back like a rubber band, and he crashed hard onto a solid floor. He felt no pain. Instead, the world spun violently, and an unbearable wave of nausea washed over him.

"

Ugh

!" Pushing himself up with one arm, Ian retched.

The vertigo was overwhelming, as if his sense of balance had completely broken. A golden haze, rising like smoke from his entire body, blurred his vision.

I can’t even think straight. Damn it.

Just then, a low voice spoke from behind him. It was a familiar voice, melodic, like that of a man or a woman. "

Oh

, my, I apologize. I was certain you would lose consciousness."

"I failed to consider just how resilient your body and soul are."

Even with his senses in disarray, Ian could feel a presence slowly approaching from behind.

"But there was no other way. It must be painful, but please bear with it for a moment. You will be fine shortly."

𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Amid his retching and coughing, Ian turned his head toward the voice. Through the golden haze, a long silhouette was cast.

"Do not try to answer, just listen. I deeply regret that our long-awaited reunion must begin this way. But even so..."

The golden glow of the eyes looking down at Ian curved softly.

"I am glad to see you again, Ian. My one and only agent."

It was the Platinum Dragon, Archeas.