Ch.48The Sleeping Dragon in the Forest (1)

Nia Ryan arrived at Dellin’s Lake.

The emerald lake, sparkling and shining as always, was beautiful.

“…Not here.”

But Nia didn’t wear her usual bright smile. The person who should have been here, as always, wasn’t.

“I wonder if they’ll never come back.”

Nia shook her head, shaking off her gloomy thoughts.

She had come to gather the Flower of Adrane. Though it was late dawn, she urgently needed it for her research.

Just as she crouched to collect the flower, her pupils trembled at the sight.

There were far fewer flowers than before.

-You can only gather three per day. No more than that.

…It was as if she could hear someone’s voice.

“With no one to manage them… people have been taking them carelessly. At this rate, they’ll disappear soon.”

Nia gave a bitter smile. She abandoned her flower gathering.

She looked at the faint protective barrier surrounding her body. It was a protective spell that Ruide had cast on her in the past when she was struggling.

Thanks to it, she could gather rare items without being affected by the immense magical power in Dellin’s Lake.

“I never got to thank you.”

Nia slumped her small body.

“Maybe I should ask Hersy. Ask her to let me meet him.”

But then she remembered that Hersy received that question dozens of times a day.

Better not, after all.

“If it’s meant to be, we’ll meet someday!”

Instead, she pumped herself up and moved elsewhere. Like making do with chicken instead of pheasant, she was about to gather other magical ingredients.

Grrrr—

She turned her head at something making a chilling growl.

Nia’s eyes filled with terror.

A ferocious-looking black dog with three heads was staring at her.

**

“Robin Hood’s Steakhouse” located in the center of the district.

After training, the knights were having a dinner gathering here.

“Try this too, Ruide.”

Ruide sat at the head of the table, receiving lavish treatment. The female knights showed great interest in him.

“I thought I asked you not to pay so much attention to me.”

Clang.

Amelia blocked Irina’s fork with her own.

“Come on, don’t be so stingy.”

“And when did you meet my brother to act so familiar? As far as I know, this is your first time meeting him.”

“But we’re going to be relatives in the future, right?”

“Who decided that…!”

Ruide was cutting his steak while using their bickering as a side dish. He cut just enough to eat and put it in his mouth with his fork.

‘It doesn’t taste good.’

Still, it was a bit better because he had sprinkled salt on it beforehand. But it still wasn’t as good as the inn he had visited before.

“Ruide. It’s time to head back now.”

Amelia said as she wiped the corner of his mouth with a handkerchief.

It was already 5 AM.

Too early for a 12-year-old to be wandering the streets.

Above all, she felt quite uncomfortable sensing these beasts eyeing Ruide.

“What about you, Ame?”

“…I need to go investigate a scene.”

‘He’ll probably refuse again.’

-Aren’t you bored?

-It’s fun.

Knight training isn’t much. Just endless repetition of the same movements.

So she thought he’d want to leave after a few hours, but Ruide said it was fun instead.

She thought he wouldn’t want to go back.

But now she had to go solve a case.

Although she had never won an argument against Ruide, Amelia had prepared a hundred rebuttals in advance.

“Can I come with you?”

At that moment, Irina cut in with a bright smile. She rested her chest on the table. Amelia indignantly covered Irina’s chest with her arm. Not good for children’s mental health.

“We’re all tired, but having Ruide around would energize everyone. It’s refreshing to see him after being around such gloomy people.”

The female knights nodded vigorously in agreement.

The men sitting a bit further away flinched.

“Besides, isn’t Young Master Ruide a genius? I don’t understand why the captain keeps sheltering him.”

Irina grinned broadly, her eyes almost closing in a smiling expression.

Amelia glared at Irina, who paid no attention.

In fact, everyone was agreeing with her. Being human, Amelia wondered, ‘Am I being too protective? Does Ruide dislike it?’

“I’ll go home after eating.”

“Huh?”

But unexpected words came from Ruide’s mouth.

He looked straight at Amelia and said:

“Because what you say is more important.”

“Ah.”

Sighs of undisguised disappointment could be heard from the other members.

Amelia was overjoyed.

‘So I’m still his priority.’

It’s not easy to like someone who constantly nags you. But Ruide was indeed a thoughtful child.

Amelia smiled contentedly.

Just as she was thinking she should hold his hand gently and send him back—

BANG!

The restaurant door burst open.

“Emergency!”

A knight in full plate mail rushed in and shouted urgently.

“A-a student from the Academy has gone missing.”

Ruide, who had been chewing his steak, bit his tongue.

‘Ouch.’

Tears welled up in his eyes.

**

[January 5 – About 20 children disappeared from the slums. No traces.]

[January 12 – 3 children disappeared from nearby village, Ledin. No traces.]

[January 17 – Four children disappeared near Lifenyo Forge on the outskirts of the capital. No traces.]

[January 24 – One child went missing from “Wind-Stay Inn” in the district center. No traces.]

[February 15 – Black Mage minions appeared in the secret passage of the Imperial Academy, awakening the dormant guardians of the Chalice of Mana.]

[February 22 – Nia Ryan went missing from “Dellin’s Lake” at the Imperial Academy. Signs of intense magical battle.]

Ruide chewed on his pen as he stared intently at the book. He didn’t regret not acting sooner.

After all, Nia Ryan’s disappearance was a predetermined future.

However, the question was why the disappearance happened at Dellin’s Lake, and why an episode that should have occurred later in the story was happening now.

“…70s, near a great mage, strong upward ambition, a psychopath who feels no remorse exploiting young children.”

His speculation was certainly not wrong.

But there was one thing he had missed.

“…Black Mage.”

The Black Mage’s minion he had witnessed during the “Every Library Occupation Incident.”

He knew about one thing—Nia Ryan’s appearance—

But the other was clearly an external intrusion.

He had withdrawn after the principal crossed the line, so he hadn’t been paying attention.

The mastermind was tearing apart the system. He hadn’t expected a major mid-story episode to be pulled forward so early in the plot.

Ruide acknowledged his mistake. Not connecting the two was an error stemming from distinguishing between “the novel’s plot” and “events happening in reality.”

How foolish. Both were equally real to him, whether from the original story or outside it.

“What should I do now?”

Ruide looked up at the mansion ceiling with listless eyes.

**

Great Mage Clifford is a thing of the past.

His body has aged beyond what magic can sustain, and his cognitive abilities are not what they once were.

In essence, he no longer possessed the abilities of a Great Mage. Clifford was originally a genius through effort. His growth was slow from the beginning, so his prime was short.

If he had achieved his accomplishments just 20 years earlier, he wouldn’t have had such an aged body. But Clifford didn’t regret that. It was also one of his achievements.

Lately, however, he’s been feeling his age acutely.

Walking is difficult, and documents he’s reviewed for decades no longer register clearly.

Clifford was lying in bed, sleeping. He seemed to be dreaming, tossing and turning.

It was the moment his intricate rings aligned. Clifford’s eyes snapped open.

“Ugh.”

Pain lingered in his heart. Clifford groaned, clutching his chest as if trying to tear out his heart.

At that moment, someone entered his chamber.

“F-Father.”

It was Fenicia. She seemed to have urgent news, catching her breath. Clifford sat up.

Fenicia froze at the sight of Clifford clutching his heart. She quickly approached to support him.

“A-are you in pain? I’ll call a priest right—”

“…I had a dream.”

Fenicia had urgent news to deliver.

But seeing Clifford’s condition, as if he might breathe his last at any moment, she couldn’t bring herself to speak.

It felt as if this might be his final words. Fenicia took the old man’s hand with sad eyes.

“It’s a story from an old legend. The life of a very foolish adventurer.”

Fenicia tried not to miss a single word of his somewhat disjointed beginning.

“The adventurer had ordinary talent, a mediocrity. Someone who hunted a few goblins to make ends meet… One day, as usual, while hunting goblins, he entered a cave.”

The dream Clifford had just had was vivid before him.

“A dragon. There was a dragon. A massive dragon that existed only in legends was sleeping.”

Fenicia swallowed hard at Clifford’s tone, which sounded as if he was describing reality.

“But the fear was momentary. The adventurer was captivated by a huge scale that had fallen near the dragon’s body. The emerald-shining scale seemed more precious than any jewel he had ever seen. He believed that if he took even one, he could live comfortably for the rest of his life.”

“The adventurer gathered courage and took the scale. His prediction was correct. He made a lot of money, and people praised him, calling that third-rate adventurer the ‘Dragon Slayer.’ However, it was difficult for a mere adventurer with no power to maintain the legend. So, the adventurer went back to find the dragon.”

Clifford wore a mocking smile.

“At first, he thought of taking a few more scales—but somehow, the dragon seemed very manageable. Perhaps it was because he had been praised by those around him for years? He felt as if he really had the power to kill the dragon.”

The adventurer raised his spear. He filled it with magical power. He climbed onto the dragon’s neck. It seemed possible. The dragon was sleeping like a dead mouse. No, he thought it might already be dead.

The adventurer imagined his future. A brilliant future. The future when he would bring back the dragon’s corpse.

And with dreams and hopes, he stabbed the dragon’s nape.

The price of that foolishness was.

-Crunch.

“That was the end of the adventurer. It was retribution for disturbing the dragon’s sleep. Even though I knew it was a dream, it seemed foolish watching it.”

Clifford spoke as if it was pathetic. A faint disgust was dormant in his voice.

“Why disturb a sleeping dragon that’s doing nothing? That adventurer only invited his own death. Tsk tsk. If I had seen that adventurer, I would have taught him a lesson—”

“Principal.”

Fenicia bowed her head and spoke.

“…Magic Department, first-year student Nia Ryan.”

“Why such a sad expression, child—”

“She’s missing.”

Clifford’s eyes widened as if they would tear.

**

Clifford gave a hollow laugh as he looked at the devastating scene at Dellin’s Lake.

“Heh heh.”

The traces of intense magical battle left at Dellin’s Lake.

Nia Ryan’s magical energy remained scattered throughout.

The lingering Black Magic confirmed it.

The one who took Nia was a Black Mage.

Clifford staggered, feeling extremely dizzy.

“Father!”

Fenicia quickly supported him.

Clifford’s hands trembled slightly.

“…This is a first. One of my students going missing. Sia, is this my karma? Is that what this is?”

“……”

Fenicia couldn’t say anything. The fear in Clifford’s eyes was an emotion she had never seen before.

“I’ve never regretted past events. Even when having an inadequate master extended my path to becoming a Great Mage by 20 years. Even when great turmoil struck our family. But now I regret.”

Everything goes back to that time.

A month ago. When Ruide Christopher left the Academy.

It was regrettable but not something he dwelled on. It was already in the past. Impossible to prevent.

That boy would become an excellent mage someday, even without his guidance.

It was a miscalculation. The Academy should have asked for help. He should have.

Ruide Christopher was already having a massive impact just by existing. He was protecting students from Black Mages and eliminating potential dangers.

“If that lazy fellow had been quietly sleeping at Dellin’s Lake, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Dellin’s Lake was desolate.

Clifford’s eyes filled with deep regret.

“…I must have awakened the sleeping dragon in the forest. I was the foolish adventurer.”

Fenicia had never seen Clifford look so weak.

“…Send a message to the Imperial Court.”

Clifford steadied himself, staggering.

What he needed to do now was clear.

He must rescue the missing student.

He would accept any sacrifice or price to do so.

“The Academy does not have the ability to resolve this incident on its own.”

“…!”

Clifford’s words were an admission of his own incompetence.

That meant, in effect, the resignation of the principal.