Book 4: Chapter 32 |
“What’s this? A love letter?”
Leon flipped the letter back and forth. Aside from some obscure poetic lines and overly affected, awkward rhetoric, there didn’t seem to be any concrete information in it.
“At first, we thought it was a love letter the queen wrote to this ‘Lord Shadow,’” Nacho said. “That Kant got cuckolded by his own wife without even realizing it.”
“But what’s strange is that we searched the entire Empire. We interrogated all the corrupt officials who were in on things, and even used memory-probing magic on them. There was zero information about this ‘Shadow.’ It’s like he appeared out of thin air.”
Leon put the mysterious letter away. “But the queen would never write a letter like this to someone who came out of nowhere.”
“Exactly. So I think Queen Elizabeth’s disappearance is very likely related to this person called ‘Shadow.’ Our next phase of investigation will revolve around him.”
“Alright. Thanks for your hard work. I’ll also look into any information about ‘Shadow’ on the dragon side.”
This was the first time Leon had heard the name “Shadow.”
No—not a name. Who would be called just a single word like “Shadow”?
And since this person was closely connected to Queen Elizabeth, it was highly likely he had also been involved in the dealings between the Empire and the dragons.
Just as Leon had predicted earlier—even after dealing with Kant and exposing the Empire’s conspiracy, the crisis would not simply disappear.
If one wanted to stand firm amid the chaos of this turbulent age, one could never afford to relax.
Leon chatted a bit more with Nacho about Shadow, but with so little information, there wasn’t much to discuss. The conversation soon drifted back to this absurd negotiation.
Nacho checked the time. “If you stall for about two more minutes, you can head back.”
Leon gave a short chuckle and nodded. “Yeah.”
Seeing that the captain had finished talking business, Rebecca came bouncing back over. “Oh, right, Captain—how are Dad and Aunt Charlotte doing?”
“Oh, Master and Madam are both doing well. They’re recovering nicely.”
A few days ago, after attending the Dragon King summit in Sky City, Leon had accompanied Claudia to visit the Sea Dragon clan and see his master and mistress.
They were both in good spirits.
Especially his master, after receiving a transplanted heart-protecting dragon scale from his wife, his waist no longer ached, his back no longer hurt, and his legs no longer cramped.
That said, just like Leon back then, since the heart-protecting dragon scale required magical nourishment to keep repairing the body, his master could no longer use magic for the time being.
Leon didn’t expect his master and mistress to be like him and Rosvitha, engraving dragon patterns on their bodies to store magic.
Leaving aside his mistress’s conservative temperament, his master’s current physical condition probably couldn’t handle that kind of ordeal anyway.
If they were to do it, it would have to wait until both of them recovered more.
Still, even without magic, it was arguably a good thing for his master—after a lifetime of running around, he could finally enjoy his later years in peace.
“Oh, that’s good. Did Dad say when he’d come back to see us?”
Rebecca’s tone suddenly dropped a little. “Or… is he not coming back at all?”
For Rebecca, who had lost her parents at a young age, Tiger was like a second father.
At the age when she most needed guidance, it was Tiger who led her onto the path of a dragon slayer, setting her on the road to becoming a legendary genius gunner.
Without him, Rebecca might still be fighting street thugs for territory in some dark, stinking alley.
So after being apart from him for so long, she missed the old man dearly.
“Of course he’ll come back,” Leon said. “Master will definitely return.”
Rebecca’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
“Really. Once Master and Madam recover a bit more, they’ll come back to see you.”
Leon wasn’t just saying that.
When he visited his master a few days ago, the old man had clearly shown how eager he was to return to the Empire.
But due to his health, he needed more time to recuperate, so for now he had to stay with the Sea Dragons.
After all, even someone as strong as Leon had slept for two whole years after being saved by his wife’s heart-protecting dragon scale—
Though admittedly, part of that was because he had done something reckless with Blood Temptation.
“Yay~”
Leon smiled, then glanced back at the dragons behind him before turning away. “Time’s about right. I should head back. There’ll be specialized personnel to handle the follow-up procedures. Don’t worry—they’re trustworthy.”
“Got it.”
“Alright then. If anything comes up, remember to contact me by messenger dragon.”
“Will do.”
After giving his instructions, Leon nodded and walked back toward the dragons.
Nacho let out a long breath, hands in his pockets, watching Leon’s retreating figure as he muttered, “Your captain always manages to surprise me.”
“Yeah… who knows when we’ll see him again,” the girl said, sounding a little wistful.
Nacho, however, looked worried. “Probably… not too long.”
Rebecca lifted her pretty face and looked at him. “Why?”
“I have a bad feeling. That guy called ‘Shadow’—the trouble he brings won’t be any smaller than Kant’s.”
…
Under the expectant and admiring gazes of the Dragon Kings, Casmod—hailed as the Light of Dragonkind—returned to them.
“The negotiations went smoothly. They agreed to return part of dragonkind’s territory and accept dragonkind’s resource compensation.”
“Wow, settling something this important with humanity’s leader in just a few minutes. Silver Dragon Prince Consort, I never thought you’d be not only brave in battle but also so skilled in negotiation. Truly both martial and civil,” Morgan said.
Is it possible that the leader on the other side is me, and negotiating with myself doesn’t exactly take much time?
“Not at all. You flatter me, Senior Morgan.”
Though the man’s mouth ran wild, he was practically from the same generation as Odin, so his strength was not to be underestimated. Calling him “Senior” was only proper.
The other Dragon Kings also came forward to praise Leon.
They weren’t about to miss such a perfect opportunity to heap on the flattery.
Ever since Leon first killed old Kang, then wiped out Stah, and finally risked his life to stop the spread of the spatial rift, his name—and the Silver Dragon clan’s—had steadily gained prestige among dragonkind.
And recently, Leon’s close association with the old Thunder Dragon King Odin made the other Dragon Kings pay even more attention to this young man who had risen from obscurity in a single stroke.
So why not flatter him a bit and strengthen ties with the Silver Dragons? Maybe someday they could ride Leon’s coattails.
What’s not to like?
Leon, however, was clearly not someone who handled praise well.
Like right now.
Even though he kept smiling, inside, he was dying to skewer these people along with their “special merit awards.”
In the end, it was Rosvitha who came to his rescue.
“Everyone, my husband hasn’t slept for several days preparing for today’s negotiations. He’s both mentally and physically exhausted. We’ve received your enthusiasm and goodwill. If there’s anything else, we can correspond by letter later. For today, please allow my husband to rest.”
As she spoke, the queen naturally linked arms with Leon and gave the gathered Dragon Kings a perfectly courteous, apologetic smile.
Naturally, the Dragon Kings said no more and retreated to their places.
Finally, Rosvitha looked toward Odin at the front, who had been silently observing Leon the whole time.
“And thank you as well, Senior Odin, for recommending my husband as the representative for these human–dragon negotiations.”
“No need for thanks. A capable person deserves recognition,” Odin replied.
He lowered the hand he had been holding, then slowly turned away. Before taking his first step, he half-turned back to Leon.
“Don’t forget our agreement, Silver Dragon Prince Consort.”
Leon nodded. “I won’t.”
“Good. Then until we meet again.”
As his words fell, a fierce wind swept through the area. The Thunder Dragon King spread his massive wings, transforming into a dark-blue colossal dragon and leading his clan away.
The other clans did not linger either. After brief farewells, they too took to the skies.
“You and Odin have some kind of agreement?” Rosvitha asked.
“Yeah. I promised him that if I have time, we’ll spar.”
“And do you get anything out of that?”
Leon paused, blinked, then lowered his gaze to his right hand.
“No real benefit. But borrowing a phrase from the Crimson Flame Dragon King…”
He spread his fingers, then slowly clenched his fist.
“Fighting—feels good.”
…