Chapter 133

Chapter 133
## Chapter 133

The initial sensation Lucian experienced upon stepping into the small hut was one of heavy, stagnant pressure.

A crushing weight of magical energy bore down against his frame.

‘I sensed the aura from the exterior, but the concentration in here is far more potent.’

Lucian inhaled deeply, the air feeling as thick as water, and lifted his gaze.

The space was tight and cluttered, allowing him to spot his objective almost instantly.

In the center of the room sat a crimson stone, integrated into a grotesque mechanical apparatus positioned beneath it.

Recalling the descriptions he had received, there was no doubt: this was the Dragon’s Heart and its accompanying relic.

‘They spoke of it as a heart, so I anticipated a rhythmic pulsing, but it appears remarkably mundane.’

The Dragon’s Heart looked less like an internal organ and more like a polished gem. It had the texture of raw ore, yet it radiated a profound sense of life that no natural mineral could ever possess.

If a rock were capable of containing a soul and drawing breath, it would manifest exactly like this object.

‘I would prefer to study its properties further, but my window of opportunity is closing. I must delay my curiosity.’

At this moment, the primary goal was to assimilate the energy stored within the Dragon’s Heart.

Thinking back to the instructions provided by Marius, Lucian directed his attention to the base of the pedestal. He needed to recalibrate the relic as he had been taught to facilitate the transfer of power.

As he reached down to adjust the mechanical components, Lucian paused in surprise.

“…This is identical to the security mechanisms found in the White Castle.”

While the external aesthetics differed slightly, the spherical core and the interlocking patterns that fit together like a complex puzzle were effectively the same. Even the engraved sigils shared only minor differences; he felt confident he could align the matching icons.

This indicated that the relic operated on the same principles as the defensive systems of the White Castle.

‘If I play this correctly, could I not relocate this Dragon’s Heart for use elsewhere?’

Regardless of how magnificent the artifact was, leaving the Dragon’s Heart tethered to it while idle was a massive inefficiency. The only reason it remained in this state was likely because the locals lacked the knowledge to utilize it differently or extract it safely.

But what if Lucian possessed the skill to decouple the Dragon’s Heart and integrate it into other vital machinery?

If he succeeded, it wouldn’t merely be a static weapon; it could be adapted for a vast array of functional applications.

‘Once I have secured my authority over this clan, I should have Colin brought here to conduct a formal investigation.’

Lucian suppressed his mounting fervor and began manipulating the relic’s interfaces.

As he shifted the internal gears in the specific sequence Marius had detailed, a soft luminescence began to pulse from the machine. Simultaneously, the Dragon’s Heart started to rotate in a slow circle above its housing.

Drawing a final, centering breath, Lucian reached out and gripped the Dragon’s Heart with both hands.

*Whoosh!*

“…!”

His eyelids snapped wide as a tidal wave of energy, far beyond anything he had ever encountered, surged through him.

—

“Why did they have to establish their sacred ground in such a desolate place and make an old man suffer like this?”

Marius trailed toward the holy site a short distance behind, rubbing his aching lower back.

He had delayed his departure on purpose, knowing that traveling alongside the Prince from the start would have tipped off Chieftain Ivar. Once Lucian completed the task and emerged, Marius needed to be present to manipulate the narrative with talk of destiny and ancient omens.

“Hah. Scaling these slopes at my time of life makes every joint in my body scream.”

Despite his persistent moaning, a broad, satisfied grin remained fixed on Marius’s face.

Now that Lucian had committed to absorbing the power of the Dragon’s Heart, every piece of his scheme was falling into place.

‘There was a moment where I doubted the outcome, but I am pleased to see things progressing. From this point forward, whether he cares for it or not, he will be forced to rely on my guidance.’

He was well aware that the aftermath would be turbulent. Once Lucian grasped that he had been manipulated, he would likely be consumed by a murderous rage toward Marius.

However, to a man standing at the threshold of his own demise, Lucian’s fury was an insignificant price to pay. The only thing that mattered was fulfilling his lifelong ambition before death claimed him and seeing the results with his own eyes.

‘I only need to set the foundation once. It may begin through my shadow play, but once he recognizes the sheer utility of it, he will never be able to dismantle what I’ve built. Most importantly, to maintain his survival, he will have no choice but to elevate future sorcerers to positions of power…’

“You look like you’re having a grand time, old-timer.”

Marius, startled out of his daydreams, flinched.

Looking upward, he spotted Raymond, one of Lucian’s most loyal subordinates, peering down at him from the crest of the slope.

Raymond wore a mocking grin, clearly enjoying the old man’s discomfort.

“Were you enjoying a nice little fantasy? I’ve been standing right here watching you, and you were completely oblivious. Or is it that sorcerers lose their edge for sensing danger even at your level because you aren’t true warriors?”

“Hold your tongue, boy. I am not someone who should be addressed as ‘old-timer’ by someone of your station.”

Marius’s gaze turned freezing and sharp.

Had he wished to invoke his craft, Marius was more than capable of reducing a warrior of Raymond’s rank to cinders in a heartbeat. He might put up with Lucian, his partner in this endeavor, but being spoken to as an equal by a common knight grated on his ego.

Raymond, however, merely let out a dismissive snort in the face of Marius’s lethal intent.

“An old fool who conspired against the Prince’s life certainly has high expectations. You should just stay quiet and play along while I’m still being polite. If you keep this up, I’ll start calling you an old bastard instead.”

“What are you talking about?! Why would I ever seek his death?!”

“Ah, I used the wrong words. To be exact, you weren’t trying to end his life, but rather trying to gain absolute leverage over whether he lived or died. I suppose there’s little point in being pedantic, since that’s even more of a snake-like move.”

Marius stood paralyzed, the core of his plot laid bare.

A master manipulator would have maintained a facade of innocence, but Marius lacked that specific brand of seasoned deception.

Having confirmed his suspicions through the old man’s reaction, Raymond continued with a chilling, predatory smile.

“What was the plan after forcing a massive surge of mana—Dragon’s mana, no less—into the Prince’s veins? Were you planning to tell the agonized Prince that only you possessed the secret to stabilizing the energy, forcing him to bow to your whims?”

“That is a total misconception!”

“Well, it doesn’t really matter. Regardless of what you intended, thanks to your meddling, His Highness is going to be able to command the Dragon’s power exactly as he pleases.”

“…?”

Marius blinked at Raymond, completely bewildered.

He had accurately predicted what would occur if the Dragon’s energy entered a human vessel, yet this knight wasn’t horrified—he was planning to exploit it? The total shift in the logic of the conversation made Marius’s mind reel.

“What are you talking about? Do you actually believe me or not?”

“There is no point in keeping secrets now. His Highness was born with a very rare physical makeup. Since birth, his internal circuits for magic have been wide open. He has never suffered a single negative reaction from any potion or elixir, and he could absorb amounts that would have shredded a normal person to pieces years ago.”

The complication was that his internal pathways were *too* expansive.

Because he couldn’t act as a closed container for the mana, the moment his capacity was reached, the excess would simply drain away because he had nothing to hold it in place.

Naturally, this leaking meant that a massive surplus, far beyond his current mastery, had been gathered. Since he only retained what was appropriate for his current rank and vented the rest, it was actually a protective trait that prevented internal damage.

“But to a warrior like me, that always felt like a tragic waste. Regardless of rank, if you can take in energy without dying, more is always better. If it were possible, I wanted to find a way to lock that leaking energy inside His Highness’s body.”

Of course, no such technique was known to exist.

To be more precise, nobody bothered to look for one. Retaining energy beyond one’s natural limit is essentially a slow suicide; who would spend their life researching how to hurt themselves?

“So both the Prince and I had mostly given up on the idea… but then you, old man, came along with a truly inspired solution.”

“…!”

“Utilizing a relic to condense the Dragon’s energy into a solid mass and anchoring it within the body. You have no idea how shocked I was when I heard your proposal. If such a feat is achievable, it means His Highness can pull from and utilize that massive reservoir whenever he wants.”

Marius felt a wave of pure dread wash over him.

A unique constitution? Magic pathways that were open from birth? He even had a history of venting surplus energy without injury?

“Did you think we were so dense that we would just jump at a prize, blinded by simple greed?”

“Now, just wait a moment.”

“Did you honestly think His Highness would be crippled by the Dragon’s energy after taking your bait? Did you think he’d come crawling to you on his knees, begging for your salvation?”

“Listen to me! Just listen!”

“There’s no issue here. Not one. Even if the Dragon’s power erupts all at once, he will remain standing. I’ve witnessed a similar phenomenon myself, so you can trust my assessment.”

*Thud.*

His strength failing him, Marius sank to the snowy ground.

He had never intended to kill Lucian, and the instructions for the relic had been technically accurate. However, with an energy as volatile as Dragon’s mana, it was guaranteed to seep out no matter how tightly it was anchored.

He had planned to exploit the fact that the resulting agony in the magic circuits could only be eased by the intervention of a master sorcerer…

“I… I was only…”

*KABOOM!*

The instant Marius tried to speak through his parched throat, a thunderous blast erupted from the peak of the hill.

At the same time, a colossal pillar of energy, shimmering like blue fire, roared into the atmosphere.

Gazing at the violently dancing blue flames, Marius found himself unable to speak.

‘It was the truth.’

Even if it hadn’t been the mana of a Dragon, a human vessel could not endure that much energy turning chaotic. Normally, the physical form would be obliterated, and the remaining energy would detonate in all directions.

But those blue fires were moving with a deliberate, controlled flow.

It was undeniable proof that the person wielding the mana was keeping his body perfectly intact while simultaneously venting the overflow.

‘Ah…’

Pure hopelessness filled Marius’s gaze.

Not only had his elaborate trap been seen through from the start, but it had also been repurposed to empower his target. Even his final shred of importance had evaporated.

No matter his skill as a mage, to Lucian, Marius would be nothing but a bitter old man lost in his own fantasies. While the Prince might find use for Colin and Helen, he would never tolerate someone like Marius in his inner circle.

“If you’ve seen enough, go back down the hill. Just as His Highness stated, you are now a person of no consequence.”

Raymond, having delivered his cold judgment, turned to leave.

As the knight walked away, Marius fell to his knees in the snow.

“I, the commoner Marius, humbly ask for a moment of your time, noble knight. If you have any mercy for a dying old man, please pause and hear me out.”

“…!?”

Stunned to see the arrogant sorcerer acting like a broken peasant, Raymond stopped. Marius pressed his face into the cold ground and whispered.

“Please grant me the chance to speak with His Highness just one more time. I beg of you, Sir Knight.”

—

“….”

“….”

The members of the tribe watched in stunned silence as blue flames poured from Lucian’s skin.

If the two warriors from before were heroes chosen by the Dragon, then the Lucian standing before them now was something closer to the Dragon reborn.

While the crowd remained paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of the power gap, Lucian raised one hand toward the sky.

“Observe. This is the Heart of the Dragon.”

“…!”

The tribespeople gasped as they saw the Dragon’s Heart held high in Lucian’s grip.

It appeared to be a stone, yet the raw life force it emitted made it obvious to everyone, even from a distance, that this was a divine object.

Ivar, seeing with his own eyes that Lucian held the genuine Heart, let out a sound that was half-shout and half-sob.

“How can this be!”

It was a total mystery how he had managed to separate the heart from its mechanical housing, but the fact that Lucian was holding the organ with his bare skin was even more terrifying. Without the relic’s protection, a human should have been vaporized on contact. How was he surviving?

Into the ears of the trembling Ivar, Lucian’s voice carried clearly.

“As you witness, the Dragon has made its choice. It whispered that it had remained in these frozen wastes for centuries specifically to wait for my arrival, and it rejoices that its long vigil is finally at an end. As the rightful heir to this heart, I shall take what is mine.”

“Ohhh…!”

‘Lies! It’s all lies! Every word is a deception!’

Ivar choked back the rage and insults clawing at his throat.

He knew better than anyone that the Dragon’s Heart possessed no consciousness, yet this outsider dared to spin such a tale! What drove him to the brink of madness were the tribespeople, whose expressions were filled with awe and devotion as they listened.

He wanted to scream at them to ignore the falsehoods, but he was trapped.

It was Ivar himself who had spent his life insisting the Dragon’s Heart had a sentient will.

Just as Ivar ground his teeth, certain that he was about to lose his clan’s holiest treasure without a fight…

“However, even though this is my divine right, it is the Chieftain who has stood guard over this heart until today. Therefore, it is only fair that he be granted the same test as I. Particularly since he, too, was once favored by the Dragon.”

“…?”

Hearing Lucian’s words, a sudden, cold dread settled in Ivar’s stomach. What was the boy planning?

Then, Lucian turned toward Ivar with a sharp, mocking grin.

“Come forward, Chieftain! Take hold of the Dragon’s Heart here! If the Dragon selects you again as it did in your youth, I will step aside and leave the crown to you without another word!”

“…!?”

At the sudden, lethal challenge, Ivar’s face turned the color of ash.