Ch.150Chapter 150: A Long, Long Day (1)

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A warm atmosphere permeated the office of the highest authority in Night Haven’s fortress.

Ordinarily, this office should have been dominated by a cold atmosphere emanating from my sister’s imposing presence—a woman whose strictness when handling official matters could hardly be described as merely “stern.”

Before my regression, when I visited this fortress as a mercenary.

“You, mercenary over there. Come to my office after your duties are finished.”

My sister’s rigid voice when she vaguely recognized my identity and summoned me to her office.

“Do you understand how reckless and immoral this path is—ignoring the responsibilities you should rightfully bear, all to satisfy your own selfish desires?”

The moment I entered her office, her voice, colder than the northern winter winds, had dropped the indoor temperature—a memory that still naturally comes to mind.

So even as I moved my heavy feet toward her office.

I prepared myself to endure the pressure that would emanate from my sister as she posed sharp questions to resolve the doubts in her mind. Though it wouldn’t be as heavy as back then.

But such modest preparation became…

Completely unnecessary, thanks to Professor Grace’s sudden visit to the fortress.

The fact that someone who normally wouldn’t take a single step outside the Cradle unless absolutely necessary was now in a place where they shouldn’t be.

After my regression, my head had been spinning as I continuously confirmed how events were diverging from the timeline I knew.

But with the professor’s unexpected appearance…

I did gain one unintended benefit.

What was it, you ask?

“…An artifact?”

“Yes, yes. An artifact indeed. The Red Dragon Armor you saw yesterday is one of the ultimate battle weapons I created for fighting great magic dragons with my utmost dedication!”

“I see… Though it looked somewhat fierce, there was clearly a reason why it was impressive in all aspects, from the durability I sensed through my ki to its ability to preserve fighting energy.”

Thanks to this pleasant conversation between my sister and the professor.

One of the first things I was supposed to do when visiting this office this morning—

Providing a troublesome explanation about the Red Dragon Armor—was no longer necessary. That was the benefit.

All thanks to the professor, who had arrived at the office before me and explained to my sister about the armor I was wearing.

Originally, after reaching my sister’s office, I planned to show her the proper respect befitting an official setting.

Then, after my sister acknowledged my greeting and started the conversation, I would have explained about the Red Dragon Armor, which I had organized in my mind while heading to the office.

But after my sister received my greeting according to protocol…

She first addressed Professor Grace, who was visiting to repair the great magic dragon barrier damaged during the Subjugation Festival.

And in the midst of their conversation, when my sister naturally mentioned the matter she had called me for…

“Huh? Are you talking about the Red Dragon Armor? I gave that to him.”

Thanks to Professor Grace’s interjection with those words…

I found myself with nothing to do in the office.

From the moment I first met Fafnir…

I had confirmed the Red Dragon Armor he was wearing.

And as someone who came to wear the Red Dragon Armor through the Ring of Nibelung that he gave me…

I was perplexed by the professor’s sudden claim that she had given me the armor.

I was about to fall into contemplation about whether I should correct this or not, when…

[Just listen quietly and go along with it.]

Fafnir, who had been displaying his discomfort since first spotting the professor, actually stopped me.

So I could only listen attentively as the professor fluently explained about the armor.

At first, I was suspicious that she might be making things up as she went along.

But as she continued speaking, fluently explaining details about the Red Dragon Armor that even I didn’t know, I couldn’t think of any rebuttal and had no choice but to listen quietly.

Moreover…

[…Acting like she knows everything just because she helped make it.]

Even though his voice still revealed his discomfort, the fact that Fafnir wasn’t raising objections to the professor’s statements about the Red Dragon Armor…

Made it clear as day that there was no room for me to interject in the conversation about the armor.

After all, Fafnir was the one who had identified himself to me as the creator.

If any nonsense came out while discussing the armor, it would surely cause a commotion in my head, even if the speaker couldn’t hear it.

[Her memory isn’t faulty, at least.]

That terse comment was all the reaction Fafnir gave to Professor Grace Rabin’s words about the Red Dragon Armor.

I felt somewhat deflated that what I had been worrying about and preparing for ended so anticlimactically.

But the relief of getting through the situation without unnecessarily expending mental energy clearly outweighed the deflation, bringing stability to my mind.

‘Phew…’

I could inwardly sigh with relief, audible to no one.

However, despite overcoming this major hurdle…

I couldn’t completely relax, as there was another task that came as a reaction to this benefit.

What task, you ask?

Well…

[What is she saying? When I asked her to make it, she just snorted and barely helped!!]

It was the task of soothing Fafnir, who had been displaying his discomfort since Professor Grace’s appearance.

His voice, which had been escalating since confirming the professor’s presence, grew even more intense after Grace finished her ceaseless talk about the Red Dragon Armor.

[Hearing her boast as if she made everything from start to finish makes my insides twist!!]

Fafnir’s voice, filled with anger, seemed to suggest that despite not playing such an important role in creating the Red Dragon Armor…

“With over fifteen hundred years of accumulated experience, the Red Dragon Armor is truly my life’s work.”

“…Professor, talking about your age in front of others…”

“Ah.”

[You should truly be grateful that I don’t have a physical body.]

His voice contained such profound anger toward Professor Grace, who was carelessly revealing details about her identity while boasting about the Red Dragon Armor.

I’m not joking.

If he had a means to manifest his physical form in this material world, beyond the fog-shrouded otherworld…

I could clearly sense his ferocity, as if he would immediately manifest that form and rush at the professor to grab her by the collar.

‘…I understand you’re angry, but please calm down.’

I tried to soothe him with a calm voice, but…

[I can’t!! That shameless one has always been this brazen, then and now!]

Seeing Fafnir reject my suggestion while expressing his indignation…

It was beyond my ability to calm his boiling anger with just a composed voice.

Sigh… what to do.

There was a limit to soothing him, and if I left Fafnir here like this, his anger would surely exceed the critical point, making my day quite arduous.

I couldn’t just sit here and jump into a hellish pit of fire.

After much deliberation in my mind…

Since my business in the office was essentially finished…

I decided I should leave the office to avoid encountering Professor Grace, who was disturbing Fafnir’s mood, but…

My decision, made after racking my brains, was rendered meaningless.

“So, Iriana.”

“Yes, Professor?”

“The power residing in the Red Dragon Armor your brother is wearing would speed up the barrier restoration I need to do here.”

“I see.”

As their conversation was about to end, I heard the professor’s request to borrow me.

“Did you hear that? You have work to do.”

My sister’s gentle voice assigning me a task thwarted my attempt, and simultaneously…

[…KAAAAH!!]

It also faithfully served to push Fafnir’s anger closer to the critical point.

…I was clearly planning to rest in my quarters after this.

“Haha…”

Only a hollow laugh escaped my lips as I experienced, in real-time, how my plans were being derailed by events outside my expectations.

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And so, my business in the office ended before it even began.

“Well, I’ve said everything I needed to, so I should get to work.”

The same was true for Professor Grace, who had arrived at the office before me to take care of some “simple” matters.

“Being in the frontier, our hospitality has been lacking. When we meet again, I’ll receive you properly.”

Words of great courtesy came from my sister’s mouth, despite having no reason to show respect to the professor based on their apparent positions and status.

Seeing this, I suspected that my sister might also know the professor’s true identity hidden behind her surface appearance.

She had also hastily stopped the mention of age earlier, which made this almost certain.

At the same time, I wondered how she knew about the professor’s identity.

But I also vaguely thought that as the heir to the oldest noble family in the Empire, she would naturally know such things.

So I simply watched in silence as my sister showed deference to the professor.

“Yes, meeting the Ranos children always puts me in a good mood.”

Pleased by my sister’s courtesy, the professor gave a light farewell gesture by raising one hand and was about to leave the office, but…

“Oh my, I was so focused on my business that I forgot something important.”

“…?”

Her footsteps halted as she suddenly remembered something important she had forgotten until now.

“What did you forget?”

My sister asked about the professor’s forgotten business in a calm voice.

“Take this. I received it and brought it along on my way here.”

The professor, subtly showing off, took out what appeared to be a letter envelope from her possession and handed it to my sister.

I could see my sister’s eyes trembling slightly as she carefully received the envelope from the professor.

This was a natural reaction.

The seal on the letter envelope in my sister’s hand was stamped with an insignia that both my sister and I knew very well.

The Twin Dragon seal.

Second only to the Golden Sun seal used by the Emperor to seal official documents…

It was an insignia that only the head of House Ranos, the foremost of the four oldest families supporting the Empire, could use.

I’ve said this much, so it should be obvious.

The sender of that letter was none other than our father, who raised both my sister and me.

After confirming the identity of the letter, my sister quickly rose from her seat, carefully removed the seal using a letter opener on the desk.

“…”

With even quicker hands, she took out the letter and checked its contents.

“…Hmm.”

She then let out a soft moan, neatly folded the letter, and put it in her possession.

Since there was no significant change in her expression while reading the letter…

I didn’t think it contained serious content, but…

“Kal, come back to the office after you finish your business with the professor. We have things to discuss.”

From my sister’s demeanor as she calmly conveyed her request to me…

I could easily tell that something important had come up.

“Alright.”

I responded to my sister’s informal tone with an equally informal reply, and…

“Well then, I’ll borrow him for a bit.”

No sooner had my words fallen than Professor Grace’s voice reached my ears.

“…Huh? Whoa…”

I was suddenly grabbed by the nape of my neck by Professor Grace and dragged out of the office.

“Do as you please.”

What reached my ears as I headed toward the office door was my sister’s voice readily accepting the professor’s request, and…

[If that woman asks you anything, answer as briefly and concisely as possible.]

Fafnir’s fierce voice giving instructions for what I should do next.

I have a feeling today is going to be another long day.