Chapter 15 : The Second Girl (7)

The village was eerily silent, as if dead.

From the hill overlooking the village, there wasn’t a single light, nor was there any sign of life.

Having gone out hunting for dinner every evening for the past month, I had a vague sense of the village’s usual atmosphere at this hour.

So for it to be this quiet at this time was definitely abnormal.

“Strange.”

I felt an ominous sensation, but I couldn’t just turn back.

Because I had come to get “forks” for the children.

With utensils, they could eat more comfortably, and using tableware would help their cognitive development in early childhood—

so they were absolutely necessary.

Besides, Lisette’s mood would likely improve, and she’d regain her strength to keep up with my grueling training.

“I’m curious, but I guess I shouldn’t go into the village.”

Since the whole village looked like this, going into the center would be troublesome in many ways.

I turned my attention to the houses on the outskirts, just beyond the village limits.

Among them, a small hut, separated near the edge between the forest and the village, caught my eye.

“Alright, let’s start there.”

I lowered my massive body as much as I could, trying not to make a sound, and approached the hut.

Though the night was dark with only faint moonlight, the surrounding terrain appeared fairly clear to my eyes.

As I got closer to the hut, I began to sense faint traces of people inside… and what sounded like terrified breathing.

“Gasp… Daddy!”

“Shhh… Quiet.”

It seemed the people inside the house had already noticed my approach.

I moved toward the small window of the hut and peered inside.

Though the window was grimy and cloudy, I could see the silhouettes of people trembling and clinging to each other in the dark.

One man, one woman, and two small children.

They couldn’t even breathe properly when they saw my massive eye appear beyond the window.

“Hmm, as expected, they’re really scared.”

I thought to myself as I observed their terrified reaction.

If I spoke to them directly, they might completely freak out.

But what could I do?

I needed forks.

Trying to appear as non-threatening as possible… I approached the door of the hut and spoke in a very low voice.

My voice was naturally deep and echoed, but I tried to speak slowly and briefly.

I resolved to show that I wasn’t going to attack first.

“Anyone… to talk?”

The people inside the house trembled as if they were having a seizure at the sound of my voice.

A moment later, a man, presumably the head of the household, answered in a voice that barely crawled out.

His voice trembled severely from fear.

“O-Oh mighty dragon… please… have mercy… W-What… what is your business…?”

“Mighty dragon?”

I frowned inwardly.

I couldn’t understand why they were addressing me with such fear.

I hadn’t harmed them in any way.

“I just slept, that’s all.”

But now wasn’t the time to argue about such things.

I conveyed my purpose as concisely as possible.

“Forks.”

“…?”

The man didn’t understand and asked again.

“Plates.”

I spoke once more, briefly.

“Need them.”

Those three words should have been enough to communicate my request.

But the people inside didn’t seem to understand anything I was saying.

Their faces showed not only fear, but deep confusion and disbelief.

The man asked again, nearly in tears.

“F-Forks and plates… is that what you said, oh mighty dragon…?”

I was getting slightly irritated by their bewildered reaction.

Why couldn’t they understand such simple words?

I needed to get dinner ready and get some sleep, so I acted before thinking.

Instead of replying, I lightly tapped the hut door with a sharp claw on my forefoot.

The wooden door creaked and pushed slightly inward.

“Eek!”

A scream erupted from inside the house.

They must have thought I was about to break down the door and come in.

“I-I’ll bring it to you! Please wait just a moment, oh mighty dragon!”

The man shouted in panic, fumbling in the dark for something.

After a short while, the hut door creaked open just a bit.

And through the crack, a trembling hand suddenly stuck out.

In that hand were four crude wooden forks and six slightly worn ceramic plates.

The man couldn’t even lift his head, extending only his hand to offer them to me.

I carefully took the forks and plates.

They looked tiny and insignificant compared to my claws.

Since I had gotten what I came for, I had no more business there.

To them, my very presence was probably terrifying, so leaving quickly would be a kindness.

I might’ve even slightly nodded just in case, though that may have appeared to them as another frightening gesture.

I turned back into the darkness.

Careful not to break the small forks and plates I held in my hand.

On the way back to the cave, I was lost in thought.

Why was the village completely dark?

“Did something big happen while I wasn’t aware?”

And why did they fear me so much, even offering sacrifices?

If I could figure this out, maybe I could finally sleep peacefully.

“…I don’t know.”

I couldn’t keep thinking anymore due to prolonged insomnia.

I tried to shake off the complicated thoughts.

For now, getting back to the cave and giving the kids these forks and plates came first.

And I had to prepare dinner.

They’d be hungry, and toddlers shouldn’t go without food.

That night, the Albrecht County was a cauldron of fear.

It began with a flashing light in the sky and a faint rumble that made the ground tremble.

Though it originated deep in the Black Mountains, the ominous energy crept across the entire territory.

Then came complete darkness.

The mana stone lamps that lit every house shattered as if on cue and lost their glow all at once.

Likewise, minor magical devices powered by mana all ceased to function.

The domain sank instantly into primitive darkness and silence.

“It’s the dragon’s curse!”

“Valakas is enraged!”

People whispered, screamed, and prayed.

Originally, the dormant dragon Valakas, who normally showed no activity, had recently begun to stir—like a volcano right before eruption.

All the villagers knew this.

Every time the evil dragon awakened, it left scars across the continent.

Everyone believed without a doubt that this transcendent being had finally revealed its rage and brought disaster, plunging the entire domain into darkness.

It wasn’t any less terrifying within the thick walls of Eisenberg Castle than in the village of Fernen.

The corridor, where the mana stone lanterns had gone out, was even more eerie in the shadows of the torches.

Though the knights donned their armor, their eyes were filled not with courage, but with deep anxiety.

They couldn’t even dare to imagine confronting a dragon.

All they could do was guard the castle walls and pray that the judgment of the evil dragon would not reach them.

And in that dreadful darkness, another piece of news arrived.

It was said that the evil dragon Valakas had appeared in person at a hut on the outskirts of the village.

The domain’s residents, who had trembled with fear all night, were said to have finally let out a sigh of relief at dawn.

The dragon no longer appeared, and the destruction and slaughter they had awaited all night never came.

But the mana stone lanterns still had not regained their light, and the family from the hut, who had faced the dragon directly, were brought to the castle in a daze.

Count Albrecht received a report in his office from the head of the frightened family—a frail old woodcutter.

Still trembling like a leaf, the woodcutter barely managed to speak.

“D-dragon, oh dragon… I cried out, begging for mercy. Then that great being…”

The woodcutter swallowed hard.

“He said he needed a fork and a plate.”

“…What?”

Just a fork and a plate?

The knight beside the count, who had been listening to the report, asked again with a puzzled look.

But Count Albrecht silenced him with a gesture.

The count’s face was as cold as ice, and his eyes were as deep as the abyss.

He asked the woodcutter a few more questions, then dismissed the exhausted man.

A heavy silence fell over the office.

The count stared out at the dark mountain range beyond the window, deep in thought.

What could this bizarre and unpredictable series of events mean?

At first, he was merely confused.

But soon, he reached a single, chilling conclusion.

“Lisette is dead.”

It was a cold certainty.

A fork and a plate.

Those were tools for a meal.

If the evil dragon was preparing to eat, then what was the dish?

It could only have been the sacrifice offered just before—his own daughter, Lisette.

His illegitimate daughter.

He tried to recall Lisette’s face but couldn’t remember it well.

She had merely been an annoying and troublesome presence.

He even felt it might’ve been better this way.

But the problem didn’t end there.

Why had the dragon asked for tableware now, of all times?

Had it simply devoured its sacrifices whole or torn them apart before?

Or… was this a demand for a more fitting offering? That’s what the count believed.

This was a clear warning.

If the sacrifices of humans no longer satisfied the dragon, a greater price would be demanded.

Then there was the hunt of the Kirin—a sacred beast—and the destruction of the mana stones that kept light in the darkness… and now, the request for a fork and plate.

When the puzzle pieces came together, a chill ran down the count’s spine.

“Does this mean a pure girl alone is no longer enough?”

Cold sweat trickled down the count’s back.

There had been intent behind the evil dragon Valakas’s actions.

The Kirin was a creature close to a god.

Destroying the mana stones was the act of rejecting the light.

And the fork and plate… a demand for further sacrifice.

Indeed, the evil dragon was no mere beast.

“A sacrifice close to the gods, close to the light… Is it asking for a saint?”

It was a disaster—cunning, cruel, and completely unpredictable.

At this rate, the entire domain might be destroyed.

They had to appease the dragon’s fury.

In a more definite way.

“We must show our reverence and submission.”

The count made up his mind—if the dragon wanted it, he would offer even a saint.

And according to legend, dragons liked shiny things.

Gold and jewels.

They would offer the castle’s precious treasures without hesitation.

Perhaps that would satisfy the dragon’s greed.

This time, they had to offer the ultimate sacrifice.

Among the saints in the domain, they would find the purest, most beautiful, most precious girl.

Only flawless purity might be the last hope to quell the wrath of that wicked dragon.

With a cold and resolute gaze, Count Albrecht called for his steward.

“Search every cathedral in the domain and find the most pure and beautiful saint. Then open the castle treasury and prepare the most dazzling, expensive treasures. These will be the next offerings to Lord Valakas.”

The steward, feeling the heavy weight of the order, bowed his head with a pale face.

“As you command, my lord.”

Count Albrecht looked out once more at the black mountain range.

There was no guilt in his heart for having offered up his own daughter.

“And tell Lisette’s mother that Lisette was at least of some use.”

“Yes, my lord.”