His hand, which had been about to yank the handle of the old, decrepit temple door, suddenly dropped limply to his side.
“My goodness. So, is it true that you can witness the dragon’s incarnation here?”
“That’s what they say!”
“I hope sacrificing my sleep to come all the way here is worth it.”
“They say the dragon’s wings were spotted right here, Your Majesty.”
…At the familiar female voice, Giselle’s, his face twisted. Don’t tell me that woman realized the lucky stone is here too…No, that couldn’t be. If she had, she would have come secretly to obtain the lucky stone herself, like he did, not drag along the emperor and a crowd of nobles. Still, she’s trying to ruin my plans again. His expression was distorted in an instant.
The other nobles, oblivious to his burning frustration, kept chattering away.
“I’m really looking forward to this. It’s not every day you get to visit a resort island like this in the middle of the night.”
“If a new dragon appears, maybe we’ll be able to wipe out all the monsters too.”
Everyone was so excited, they were chattering madly. It was noise pollution, plain and simple. This usually quiet resort island had suddenly become unbearably loud.
There was definitely no one here before, so where did they all come from?
He’d just given hurried orders to move the baggage wagon closer when he slowly let go of the door handle. For now, Duke Reshaniel intended to retreat and wait for another opportunity. But at that moment, the door swung open.
“Hm? Duke Reshaniel?”
It was right about then that he realized things had taken a turn for the worse. Duke Reshaniel had intended to speak as naturally as always. But then…
“Oh my.”
…Giselle appeared, wearing that same maddening smile on her lips.
“Your Majesty, did you invite Duke Reshaniel as well?”
“Umm…” The emperor rolled his eyes awkwardly. It clearly meant no.
“You didn’t invite him, so why is he here?” Giselle clearly voiced the very words everyone there had been thinking but had not dared say, smiling brightly. “Surely you didn’t sneak onto an island that requires His Majesty’s permission to enter, right?”
Her annoying voice made him grind his teeth. “That is not the case. I merely heard the news by chance and came to assist His Majesty.”
“Aah! Well, if that’s what the Duke says, then I’m sure that must be true.” Giselle flicked her hand dismissively and grinned. “Well then, let’s all go together. To meet the dragon!”
* * *
At the top of the mountain stood two buildings. One was the emperor’s villa, and the other was an old, ancient temple. Though they had come to see the dragon, it was already quite late. Quite a few people were exhausted from waiting.
“I wonder when the dragon itself will manifest. Hoam. Staying up all night is difficult at my age.”
“Why don’t we all wait in the villa together?”
With the emperor’s approval, they headed toward the villa near the temple.
“Well now.”
Duke Reshaniel, who had been roughly going along with the revelry of the merrymakers, finally reached the limit of his patience. Using the excuse that he needed to step away briefly, he abruptly left the gathering. I have to enter the temple. As long as I find that… His eyes gleamed dangerously. Everything was going remarkably smoothly. Leaving behind the emperor and nobles who had become tipsy on a few glasses of light wine, he safely arrived before the temple.
The temple itself looked like an old manor, steeped in the passage of time. With a creak, Duke Reshaniel stepped inside and gazed up at the murals adorning the soaring ceiling. Most people would have been awestruck by the brilliant ceiling frescoes depicting the radiance of the gods, but he was different. Clenching his jaw, he stared at the ceiling for a moment before turning away.
I didn’t see it. Useless. Determined to find the lucky stone, Duke Reshaniel walked along the neatly laid carpet while scanning his surroundings. At the farthest corner of the old yet sacred temple stood a statue of a god that looked meticulously maintained by its caretaker.
The ivory-colored statue was said to represent Graind, the god of fate, scattering miracles upon the world. It looked like a humble farmer sowing seeds across the ground. But as Duke Reshaniel faced the seemingly ordinary statue, his eyes flashed. What the statue held in its hand was—
His pupils trembled with delight, his exhilaration palpable. Duke Reshaniel didn’t hesitate. With that…! He could make Giselle kneel at his feet once again. And he could rise to the top once more. Thrilled, he strode forward as if he might break into a run, reaching the statue of the god in no time.
Rumble. The whole world began to shake. Duke Reshaniel staggered, unable to keep his balance.
“W-What is this?!”
And that wasn’t all. Bang! Crash—! Countless stones began to rain down from the sky. When the heavy stones struck the temple, its roof crumbled like a cookie. Holes punched through the once-beautiful ceiling frescoes, and more stones poured in through the gaps, bursting in as if exploding.
“No!”
A massive boulder split the statue of the god in two, sending the lucky stone flying. Duke Reshaniel watched as the lucky stone he’d searched for so desperately tumbled to the floor. I-I just need to grab that! He didn’t care if the dust in the air burned his eyes. He reached out desperately with all his might, tears streaming down his face.
It was just as his hand was about to touch the lucky stone. Rumble—! Boom! As if struck by lightning, the lucky stone was split in half by a surge of mana. With trembling hands, he picked up the lucky stone, only for it to crumble like sand and slip through his fingers.
“W-What is this…?”
Right before his eyes, everything he’d hoped for was destroyed. At this rate, even his life was in danger. Glancing at the massive stones closing in around him, he scrambled to his feet and staggered away in a frantic escape. T-That can’t be. That wasn’t the lucky stone. Clinging to denial, comforting himself, he left the temple, refusing to face reality.
It was at that moment.
…A dragon? Duke Reshaniel saw enormous dragon wings enveloping the entire exterior of the temple.
Right then, people who had been relaxing at the villa hurried toward the temple and stared at the place where the dragon had manifested.
“Oh my god!”
“A dragon has appeared at the site of the ancient temple!”
“It’s a sign from god!”
Above the ruins of the shattered temple, a majestic dragon beat its wings, proud and imposing. Its wingbeats were like a raging storm, as if to say mere humans were beneath its notice. Everyone gazed up at the dragon in reverent awe.
No, no! There must still be some lucky stone left! Like a madman, Duke Reshaniel charged toward the temple, wild with desperation.
“Where do you think you’re going? What, do you really think the lucky stone might still be there?” Giselle blocked his way, smiling brightly.
In that instant, Duke Reshaniel was struck by a sudden realization. He’d walked right into Giselle’s trap.
* * *
I looked straight into Duke Reshaniel’s wildly trembling eyes and thought. If I can’t have it, I’ll destroy it. Better it be destroyed than end up in the hands of that trash.
The evil conversation I had with Coocoo resurfaced in my head.
“Coo. (So you just want to sneak in and kill him, right?)”
“No, that won’t work. Honestly speaking, confronting him one-on-one myself carries too much risk.”
“Coocoo? (Why? Can’t you just smash him apart?)”
“No, he always travels with mages from the Magic Tower. He could use them as hostages. There can’t be pointless sacrifices.”
“Coo? (Then what are you going to do?)”
“There’s only one way to reach Bartolamyu Island before him. The emperor. We need to move quickly with the emperor first. If the emperor is there, the barrier around the resort island becomes useless, and then we can reach the temple as fast as possible.”
“Coocoo? (And after that?)”
“After that, your role becomes important. Draw Duke Reshaniel away for a moment, then destroy the entire temple. Making it look like the dragon did it.”
“Coo. (B-But, won’t you receive divine punishment?)”
“Yeah. I don’t mind if I do.”
“Coo… (That’s genuinely insane.)”
…And just like that, Duke Reshaniel fell right into the planned trap for all to see. His eyes were bloodshot with rage. He grabbed at my collar as though trying to strangle me.
“It was you. You’re the one who destroyed the temple.”
“Hmm?” I smiled brightly at him. “How strange. Why would rocks suddenly falling from the sky be my fault~? Do you think Giselle is secretly a dragon or something?”
“You…!”
“Do you think Giselle is such a genius?”
Even the last certainty he had that he could obtain the lucky stone had crumbled away. At that point, it was only natural for Duke Reshaniel to go insane.
I laughed mockingly. “Oh my, why are you coming closer?”
At my words, he grabbed my collar before hurriedly letting go.
He probably can’t even approach me properly. He’s afraid that I’ll beat him up and steal his power. I smiled sweetly in provocation while looking at him.
Now the only thing left was rescuing the mages he had captured nearby. Since the emperor is watching too, while the duke can’t do anything, I need to find that baggage wagon from earlier… But what I hadn’t expected was that Duke Reshaniel was even more unhinged than I thought.
Twisting his lips, Duke Reshaniel snapped his fingers. Suddenly, bound mages appeared before everyone’s eyes.
“W-What the…?!”
With a smirk, he stomped on one mage’s foot. In an instant, after stealing the mana from the wounded mage, he glared at me and created a spear of light in his hand. “You, do you want to die?” It seemed he could no longer hear the nobles murmuring around him, nor see the emperor waving his hand as though urging restraint.
“Excuse me, Duke. It seems you’ve completely lost your mind.”
Breathing harshly, he thrust the spear of light toward my chest. At that exact moment, I quickly raised my hand and drew a defensive magic circle. Bang—! The light he’d conjured bounced off the barrier that surrounded me.
“I don’t feel even a little sorry, but you keep forgetting that I can use magic now too.”
His bloodshot eyes trembled as he staggered, staring at me. Suddenly, his attitude turned eerily calm and rational.
Just as I stepped forward to capture him, Duke Reshaniel used his magic to move rapidly. And his destination was…
“Y-Your Majesty!”
The emperor, who had been trying to mediate the situation in confusion.
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