138. The Return of the Master (1)

Remiella was startled by the messenger’s words.

‘A Ancient Dragon has appeared here?’

Keiatic Gate Plutia. Because of the appearance of that Apostle and the suspicious movements of the Southern Army, the Royal Palace wasn’t idle either.

The current Demon King, Red Dragon Ustina, had summoned the Ancient Dragons with her authority.

But due to the nature of the Ancient Dragons, who didn’t want to belong to any group.

Only a small number of Ancient Dragons responded to the summons.

‘Even then, they were concentrated on the Eastern Front, which is close to Plutia.’

In the midst of all this, another major disaster occurred.

The Ancient Dragon Aquarite nested in this canyon, not far from the kingdom’s capital.

Naturally, the leaders of the Demon King’s kingdom had not anticipated this at all.

So, sending a Ancient Dragon here in a short period of time was impossible in the current situation.

But at that moment, Remiella remembered one Dragon she knew.

‘Could it be, Yulian-nim?’

Yulian had definitely agreed to meet in this canyon. And he had awakened his Dragon self.

A mixed-blood of human and Elf. So, it was a bit out of the ordinary for him to be a Dragon.

The Demon race had been actively encouraging mixed-bloods instead of pure-bloods for survival since the fall of the Old Empire.

So, it wasn’t strange at all for him to manifest the blood of a Dragon.

Also, Yulian was a special Dark Dragon among those Dragons.

‘But it’s strange. Has Yulian-nim already become a Ancient Dragon?’

Of course, when she met him in the primeval forest, he had already surpassed the realm that a young human could achieve.

But becoming a Ancient Dragon was a different story.

‘First, I need to quickly check what’s going on.’

Remiella hurried up to the watchtower with her adjutant to assess the war situation.

“Please be careful getting on, -nim!”

A Royal Knight leading the scouts. That Dragon carried Remiella and her adjutant on his back in his true form.

And when she soared into the sky with that Royal Knight.

She and her adjutant were shocked.

“Th-There really is a Ancient Dragon!”

The adjutant shouted.

At his words, she looked beyond the gloomy sky. A Dragon with jet-black scales. The appearance of a Dark Dragon could be seen from there.

And at that very moment. The sky screamed.

Gugugugugugugung-

‘Thunder…?’

No. It wasn’t thunder. It was a breath so powerful that it could be mistaken for thunder.

The most certain way to distinguish between a Ancient Dragon and a normal Dragon was.

The difference in the power of that breath.

The breath of a Ancient Dragon constantly vibrates the surrounding space with the magical power it possesses.

‘No. It’s not just that. The shockwave of that Dark Dragon’s breath alone is enough to destroy the surroundings…’

There was no time to continue that thought.

Remiella unconsciously opened her mouth at the sight unfolding before her eyes.

Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwang-

Soon, that Dark Dragon’s breath simultaneously evaporated the horde of magical beasts, literally.

The adjutant was right.

The power to annihilate over 100 of the highest-ranking magical beasts at once.

A breath with that kind of power. It could only be the breath of a Ancient Dragon.

And the moment she confirmed that this Ancient Dragon was definitely a Dark Dragon.

Remiella felt goosebumps.

‘It’s definitely Yulian-nim.’

As promised, he had arrived at the canyon. Just before the Western Demon King’s army and the Royal Knights were about to be annihilated.

‘Lucifel-pyeha… His Majesty’s son has grown up so much…’

As if guided by the great Lord she had served.

At the moment when help was most needed. The Lord’s only son. Yulian appeared here.

She closed her eyes for a moment. Her whole body was trembling.

The new Lord had returned to the Demon King’s kingdom. Tears welled up in the High Elf’s blue eyes at the emotion.

But Remiella didn’t have time to indulge in that emotion for long.

‘Since Yulian Jeonha is fighting so hard like that. I have to help him!’

She was the current commander of the Royal Knights and the commander-in-chief leading the current Western Demon King’s army. She didn’t forget what she had to do first for Yulian.

She quickly shouted to the Dragon Royal Knight.

“I will quickly inform our allies on the battlefield as is. Adjutant, prepare the amplification magic!”

The Elf adjutant quickly finished preparing to start the spell.

Soon, Remiella’s voice echoed to the soldiers on the battlefield.

“Lucifel-pyeha has returned! He has returned with a Ancient Dragon! Victory is ours, Demon King’s army! I repeat once more! Lucifel-pyeha has returned!”

At her words, the atmosphere on the battlefield changed all at once.

The soldiers who had been helplessly suffering. Quickly began to counterattack.

Not only that. The surrounding terrain where the river was overflowing was changing.

A way out was created for the Demon King’s army, which was about to be swept away by the flood.

“Dragon soldiers, do not join the battle! Focus on the retreat of our allies!”

At her words, the Dragon soldiers quickly grasped the terrain of the battlefield.

The allies who had been unable to join easily. Began to retreat towards Remiella’s headquarters in an orderly manner.

All thanks to Yulian’s appearance boosting morale.

And it was possible because he was directly confronting the main force of the magical beast army.

‘Yulian-nim…’

Remiella’s heart welled up again with that emotion, but she put that emotion aside for a moment.

And when she finished all the retreat and joining of her allies.

Remiella finally met Yulian again at the headquarters.

---

I, in the form of a Dark Dragon. Landed at Remiella’s headquarters.

The commander-in-chief of the Western Demon King’s army, Remiella.

She and the high-ranking commanders of the Demon King’s army all gathered in front of me.

And watched me with tense expressions.

Elves and Dwarves. Also, Dragons who had transformed into Dragonkin, who felt more familiar to me, could be seen.

In particular, they were instinctively trembling.

‘It’s probably the inevitable awe of a Ancient Dragon.’

The Sword Saint of Siertia. The reverse scale of the ten thousand year old Ancient Dragon.

Just like when I briefly met the will of Kraiupe, the owner of that reverse scale.

It seemed to be a tremor of blood towards a great member of the same race.

I looked down at them for a moment.

‘Are these the top commanders leading the Western Kingdom Army of the Demon King’s kingdom?’

The familiar Remiella can be seen.

And the High Knights standing next to her can also be seen.

Most of them were unfamiliar faces. But I heard that the Western Kingdom Army and the Royal Knights had great loyalty to my father.

And they inadvertently looked at the group behind me.

I could feel them looking at my future wives with eyes full of vigilance for a moment.

‘Even Cecilia is in human form now. It’s understandable.’

Relatively, the people of the Western Demon King’s kingdom, which directly borders Southern Caceres.

I heard that their hatred for humans was much greater than that of other demons.

But seeing Krien standing with them as if guarding them. They quickly eased their vigilance.

“We greet the Great One.”

And Remiella, their representative, knelt on one knee to me first.

“We greet the Great One!”

Following her, the other High Knights also knelt and showed their respect to me.

I nodded slightly to accept their greetings.

And among the Dragonkin, a middle-aged man with scars on his face and who looked old spoke to me.

“Great Ancient Dragon. Thank you so much for saving us. I am White Dragon, Aitekia, the general of the Western Demon King’s army.”

I could instinctively feel that he was strong.

The strength felt when seeing Commander Mihael or Vice Commander Pavel.

That strength as a martial artist who had reached the pinnacle could be felt from him. But because he was of the same race. His greeting to me, a Ancient Dragon, was extremely polite.

“I know it’s rude, but I ask you this question. May I ask where Lucifel-pyeha is now?”

And I remembered that name, Aitekia.

If Krien and his unit were called the Shield of Coldness. Then that Aitekia was the right arm of my father, who was called the Sword of Coldness.

His eyes were trembling.

It was the moment before reuniting with the missing Lord.

I released the Dark Dragon state.

And returned to human form. And when Aitekia confirmed my face.

Aitekia, who had frozen on the spot. Spoke to me in a very subdued voice.

“L-Lord… Lord-isiyeo…”

Dragon. And his golden eyes, which were definitely the eyes of a strong person, trembled. And soon tears welled up.

“Lucifel-pyeha!”

At the same time, all the commanders gathered here shouted loudly.

---

The commanders’ reactions were the same as Aitekia’s.

They sobbed with expressions full of emotion.

I wasn’t my father, Lucifel, but I had no intention of interfering with them at this moment.

‘My biological father was a great man after all.’

Of course, even in the Empire, my maternal grandfather. Count Wilhelm was as famous as the Demon King of Coldness, Lucifel.

He was the only strongman who had driven the Empire to the brink of collapse.

But of course, his reputation in the Empire was a terrible infamy.

On the other hand, through Remiella’s reaction, I could see that my father was the great Lord of the Demon King’s kingdom.

‘He was worthy of receiving the absolute loyalty of these strong people.’

I felt a new respect for my father.

I knew my mother Agnes well.

In fact, as a human who had lived until now, I didn’t really know about my biological father.

Perhaps my father was not only absolutely strong as a Grand Master.

He also seemed to have high virtue to receive the loyalty of these strong people.

Uuuuuung-

My mother’s rosary resonated. Probably because she was my mother who knew my father well. She conveyed the words I had to say at this moment with the will contained in the rosary.

I spoke to the commanders who were still unable to speak.

“I thank you all. I will not forget your contributions in protecting the Royal Knights and the Western Kingdom Army.”

“Pye… Pyeha!”

“Lord-isiyeo!”

For them, who had protected the Demon King’s kingdom since their Lord’s disappearance. It was the words they wanted to hear more than anything else.

Some commanders even burst into tears at those words.

I waited until they calmed down.

In fact, because of my face, which resembled my biological father. They were momentarily mistaking me for the Demon King of Coldness.

My father was an Elf.

I had stood before them in the form of a Ancient Dragon just a moment ago. There was no way they wouldn’t notice that contradiction.

And as expected, after a while. Aitekia asked me.

“Pyeha! But what about the form of the Ancient Dragon just now? Could it be that you have realized the realm after the Grand Master… and transcended the species to reach the realm of a Ancient Dragon instead of an Elf?”

I almost laughed at those absurd words.

But I calmly shook my head.

“No. I am not an Elf but a Dragon. It is not a transcendence of species but my original form.”

And soon, he looked at my appearance and became even more puzzled. But true to his loyalty. He easily accepted those words as well.

“I… Is that so? If Pyeha says so, then that’s right. But why did you transform into a human form instead of a Dragonkin form?”

It was a natural question.

Pure Dragons, like Cecilia. Even if they transform into human form, they have to change into Dragonkin form.

I answered his words.

“Because the human form is also my original form.”

Aitekia’s expression became even more absurd at those words.

For a moment, he looked at Krien.

If Aitekia was my father’s sword. Then Krien was my father’s shield.

And Krien was still directly guarding my human wife without change. He had a loyal expression on his face. His expression became even more puzzled.

‘I should tell him quickly.’

I had no intention of troubling the loyal Aitekia.

I said to him.

“In fact, I am not Lucifel-pyeha.”

And at my words. The commanders’ expressions darkened instantly.

In particular, Aitekia opened his mouth wide and was shocked.

“I-It can’t be! H-How can the Lord have returned! How can you not be the Lord? And I’m not an old Dragon who wouldn’t recognize Pyeha’s face!”

At the same time, he looked at Krien.

“C-Commander Krien. Isn’t Pyeha joking? Th-That’s right. Pyeha has created a new hobby of disguising himself as a human or a Dragon instead of singing like before…”

It seemed that Aitekia had been eagerly waiting for the Lord’s return to the point of denying reality right away.

Seeing that, Krien smiled and said.

“This person, Yulian Jeonha, is His Majesty’s son.”

“H-His Majesty’s son? His Majesty didn’t have any children!”

“Commander Krien!! Q-Quickly explain!”

A very big commotion broke out at those words. But after a while, I said calmly.

“Time is short. It would be better to start the tactical meeting right now. We must not sacrifice even one soldier.”

Although I barely prevented the collapse of the Western Demon King’s army with my intervention.

The war situation was still overwhelmingly unfavorable.

The commanders gathered here were capable. The commotion stopped at my words for now.

“Then I will serve Jeonha.”

Remiella quickly guided me to the commander’s barracks.