72. Temple of Yunir (2)

The Great Elder reached out her hand towards me.

“H-How can it be… Your Majesty…!! To be… alive like this… I’m relieved… I’m so relieved…”

The Great Elder called out to me in a choked voice. I approached her. She was even more surprised when she saw me up close.

“No… You’re not His Majesty… How can you resemble Lucifer-nim so much without being him… And you have the aura of a dragon… Could it be?”

“That’s right. I am His Majesty’s son. Yulian.”

“His Majesty’s… That person… That person left behind an heir… Truly… a blessing from Yunir-nim…”

Lucifer-nim didn’t create any other heirs besides me. So, the Demon race probably thinks that the lineage of the previous Demon King has been cut off.

“You look exactly like… that beautiful person… There are so many stories… so many stories I want to share, but the time I have left… is now gone.”

“Great Elder-nim!”

Tricia shouted, but the Great Elder raised her hand to stop her.

“The reason His Majesty’s heir is a dragon… There must be Yunir-nim’s arrangement in that… Will you… will you come closer to me?”

I nodded. She cupped my face with both hands.

“Now that the intruders have stolen the World Tree’s branch from me… they will find the Tomb of the Myriad-Year Dragon… And the divine power of Yunir-nim that I possess can instinctively know the location of that branch… so I will give that power to you…”

In an instant, divine power flowed in from her. It was Yunir-nim’s divine power, a special magic. A location naturally began to surface in my mind.

“The Tomb of the Ancient Dragon is still… near the World Tree, so those guys won’t be able to arrive so quickly… That ancient dragon’s power… must not fall into their hands… Instead, you, the rightful heir of the Demon King, must… Keuheuk!”

Having said that, the Great Elder coughed up blood once more. I could feel her life fading away.

“…Still, it’s a relief… a relief… Yunir-nim may have disappeared… but her will still remains… You have that will… to prevent Isrand from… that destruction… I beg of you…”

And the Great Elder finally breathed her last. I quietly closed her eyes. Tricia hugged the Great Elder, wailing.

“Great Elder-nim… Why… why…”

Even though Tricia had already abandoned the Demon King’s kingdom and Yunir-nim’s priestesshood, it seemed that the Great Elder and Tricia had deep ties.

And although the Great Elder had died.

The magic she left behind, that will, was clearly telling me.

‘The Demon Inks… the Demon Inks imbued in the Sentiac Knights are different from ordinary Demon Inks.’

It’s dangerous. It’s like that ominous feeling I get when I encounter a high-level demon beast. They’re guys with blind bloodlust.

I placed my hand on Tricia’s shoulder. I calmed her down and said.

“Tricia. It’s sad, but we have to listen to the Great Elder-nim’s words. We’ll have to chase those guys.”

“Yes… Yulian-nim.”

Tricia said in a sad voice, but soon got up from her seat. After taking care of the Great Elder’s body near the temple, the group moved.

And Chloe was silent for a while. Because she had heard shocking words from the Great Elder. That I was Lucifer-nim, the son of that ruthless Demon King.

‘I guess she expected my identity to some extent. But she probably didn’t think I was the Demon King’s son.’

Not only that, but she must have sensed that the upcoming chase would be no ordinary one.

So, I subtly drew up my magic and read the magic of her vulva that was connected to me. It was already possible because the two were connected through that tattoo.

‘Excitement?’

That’s right. Rather, Chloe seemed to be more excited by learning that shocking secret.

More than the Myriad-Year Dragon Scale we were aiming for. I could feel that her interest and lust for me had increased even more.

‘She’s not an ordinary person after all.’

I said to the group.

“Let’s hurry and chase after the intruders!”

The chase continued all night. It had been quite some time since the guys who raided the temple had left that place. Fortunately, their movement speed wasn’t fast.

Since they didn’t have a guide like Tricia who naturally opened the way for them. The group caught the tail of the Sentiac Knights.

“No matter how much Demon Ink they have, they can’t withstand all the magic of the primeval forest. So, they must have invaded with such a small number of people.”

There were five people when I read the traces. It was what the spirits nearby had told Tricia, so it was certain. Chloe said.

“Five elite Sentiac Knights. And if they’re even Demon Inks. It won’t be easy to deal with them.”

“No. It’s fortunate that it’s only that much.”

Their invasion wasn’t an all-out war.

No matter how many elite priests had left, and how strong their power was, this place was a primeval forest. So, it wasn’t a place where those guys could move around freely for a long time.

‘With that small number of people, they’ll just steal the remains of the ancient dragon and quickly escape.’

The reason they raided the temple was because they needed the World Tree’s branch to find the Tomb of the Ancient Dragon. I objectively compared the intruders’ skills with my own.

‘According to the Great Elder’s words. And judging from their moving speed and traces, they’re definitely Aura Expert or higher. And if they’re Demon Inks…’

They’re not easy opponents. I had shown a close fight against Izeltier not long ago. But there were five opponents. They were strong guys who couldn’t even be compared to the fake High Knights of the Imperial Capital’s guard.

‘Well, it’s their bad luck that they met me as an enemy.’

But I didn’t feel any fear at all. The Dragonification was already complete.

I didn’t bother to change my appearance because Chloe was there. But it seemed that the amount of Aura I could use with just that Dragonification had increased much more than before.

‘And if I have Chloe as a companion, it’s worth a try.’

I knew her skills well. And because of the vulva I had already created, the magic of the primeval forest was no problem for her.

But still, it was 5:2. It was certain that we were overwhelmingly outnumbered. If so, it meant that Tricia, who we had brought as a guide, would have to fight with us.

However, Tricia’s condition wasn’t very good right now. The Great Temple where she had spent so long. All the priests in that place had died in a miserable state.

So, I could feel that she was unleashing intense anger at the Sentiac Knights. But that wouldn’t do.

For a swordsman, anger could sometimes be a driving force that unleashed power beyond their skills. But for her, a spiritist, it could be a hindrance.

‘Well-trained knights like the Sentiac are combat machines. If there’s someone who has lost their composure, the group could be in danger.’

So, I had to calm Tricia down now. The group that had been following behind Tricia stopped.

“It seems like those guys are tired too. It seems like they’re planning to take a nap and rest before entering the Tomb of the Ancient Dragon. They’re preparing to camp. So, if we raid them at this time…”

“That won’t do. Tricia. Their vigilance is at its peak. Rather than attacking them, we’ll attack them after they enter the Tomb of the Ancient Dragon.”

Yunir-nim’s magic that the Great Elder left behind. According to that will, I didn’t feel that the Tomb of the Ancient Dragon was a threatening place.

I was also a dragon. So, I was a more rightful visitor to the ancient dragon than those intruders.

“It seems like it would be more advantageous for me to fight in that tomb. That method will increase the probability of success in revenge the most. Let’s rest for now too.”

“Okay. Yulian-nim…”

Tricia said in a weak voice. But she obediently followed my words. The group’s location was a safe distance away from the intruders, so they wouldn’t notice.

So, like the day before, Tricia created a place to tie up again on top of a large tree.

“Then let’s rest here.”

After finishing a simple meal, the three people went into their respective chambers. But a moment later. There was a knock on my door.

“Um… Yulian-nim. It’s Tricia. I have something to say…”

“Come in.”

It seemed that Tricia couldn’t fall asleep easily.

The medicinal herbs she had collected on the way here. I lightly brewed tea with those herbs and shared it with her.

And I listened silently to what she had to say, as if to soothe her heart.

“It feels strange to be back in the primeval forest like this. When Cecil and I left the Demon King’s kingdom, we didn’t intend to come back.”

The Tricia sisters, who were from a collateral line of the Demon King’s family. And in the face of the Demon King’s kingdom’s serious crisis due to the absence of the Demon King. Cecilia was forced to make a contract with the Archduke of Evil.

Cecilia, who had just become a fully grown dragon. And Cecilia, who was a reclusive dragon far from Yunir-nim’s teachings, had to attempt that contract in a hurry. The situation was said to be very bad.

‘The damage they had to suffer because of the demon beasts. The Demon race suffered much more than humans.’

100 years ago. The appearance of the Chaotic Gate was the root of all that.

The power of the dragons and elves. And the dwarves’ technology, who were excellent blacksmiths, was great. But the problem was the absence of Yunir-nim, the Demon race’s main god of darkness.

Unlike the humans who somehow survived the demon beasts by borrowing the divine power of Jedin and his six gods.

The Demon race, who could only use divine power in the form of contracts with demons, couldn’t properly cope with the demon beasts’ rampages.

“So, the Great War 20 years ago was, so to speak, a last-ditch effort. The demon beasts in the east. And the Orhain army in the south, and even the Sentiac Knights. If we had just stood still in between them, the Demon race would have really been destroyed.”

So began the Great War with humans.

The reason why the Demon race could fight humans on equal terms even in that disadvantage was, of course, because of the existence of the ruthless Demon King Lucifer-nim.

“That person was great as a Demon King. But he had great charisma in leading people. His own insight was also great. So, he carried out unconventional personnel appointments and formed a proper staff.”

The unique tactics created by that staff and Lucifer-nim. The fact that the Empire was burned down by those tactics is still recorded in history books.

Through that Great War, the Demon race was guaranteed the right to survive from humans.

“But even now that the threat of humans hasn’t completely disappeared… the Chaotic Gate has started to become active again. You know that the last 50 years have been a dormant period for the gate, right, Yulian-nim?”

I nodded. Right after the super-large gate was summoned 100 years ago. So, when Sword Empress Atlin was active.

At that time, the power of the Chaotic Gate had reached its peak. But its power had weakened to some extent, starting 50 years ago.

But I knew. That dormant period was a temporary dormant period to create the final Chaotic Gate located in the Old Imperial Capital.

‘That Chaotic Gate that my parents, Saintess Agnes and Demon King Lucifer-nim, sealed.’

It’s known to the world that Demon King Lucifer-nim summoned the gate. But the truth was completely different. Rather, Lucifer-nim had saved the humans.

But that seal had now expired.

The Autumn Nest strategy. If I failed that task. The demon beast in that nest would release all of that seal.

If so, five Chaotic Gates would be activated. That was Isrand’s most certain death sentence.

Of course, I didn’t know the details to this extent. But it seemed that Yunir-nim’s temple, where Tricia had been, had clearly sensed the signs of that destruction.

“If the world is going to be destroyed someday… and if I think about my sister, who has a limited lifespan due to the failure of the contract with the Archduke. I thought I shouldn’t stay in the Demon King’s kingdom any longer. Cecil has always longed for human culture. Actually, I did too to some extent.”

It seemed that the sisters had always been curious about human society.

Rather than waiting for the Demon race’s downfall, or rather, the world’s downfall, they chose to move first.

“But was that choice a mistake? If I had stayed in the temple. The Great Elder-nim and the other elves might not have died so miserably…”

“No. That’s not true. To put it coldly, you alone couldn’t have stopped those Demon Inks. And thanks to your decision to leave the Demon King’s kingdom, Cecilia was saved, wasn’t she?”

“…That’s right. Still, the people in the temple were people I had been with for a long time… I guess my heart was a little shaken. But I won’t hold Yulian-nim back.”

But I could still feel Tricia’s emotions wavering. No matter how cool she was. It would be difficult to maintain her composure if she saw the temple’s tragic massacre scene.

I took her hand.

“You don’t have to pretend to be too strong. We need some time to offer that sadness for the people who died.”

At my words comforting Tricia, her eyes turned red. And at that moment. Tricia hugged me.

I patted Tricia’s back, who was crying, and comforted her.

A moment later, when she calmed down and the two people’s eyes met.

Tricia’s eyes, which were looking at me, had changed to the eyes of a woman with deep passion, not her usual self.