Chapter 564

“Ah? It doesn’t look much different from an ordinary city, does it?”

Following Leo out onto the nighttime streets of Dragonia, Ar breathed out in wonder.

Just as she remarked, the evening avenues here mirrored those of any common town.

Crowds of citizens were bustling through the lanes as though an evening bazaar had commenced, infusing the settlement with life.

It was an entirely recognizable, everyday view with nothing peculiar about it.

“I expected Dragonia to be breathtaking, but I’m slightly disappointed.”

“What were you anticipating?”

“I figured everything would be colossal!”

“Ah, I suppose I anticipated something along those lines as well.”

Leo let out a brief chuckle, overhearing the exchange between Ar and Lunia.

‘What on earth do they imagine dragons to be?’

Even dragons do not maintain their true forms at all times.

“Still, every single person here is a dragon, right? Considering it from that perspective, isn’t it mind-blowing?”

Chelsea remarked, peeking her head out from behind Leo.

Even for prospective heroes, who are viewed as the prospective leaders of their respective populations, encountering numerous dragons throughout one’s life is no simple feat.

Furthermore, gaining entry into Dragonia is an impossible task unless one is a champion who has accomplished extraordinary deeds.

“Viewing it that way, we truly are experiencing something marvelous.”

It was right when Lunia murmured with an astonished expression on her countenance.

“Driana?”

Leo noticed that Driana was nowhere to be seen.

“Ah, she’s over there.”

Ar gestured toward Driana, who was conversing with a young girl carrying a basket as she strolled down the lane.

“You possess remarkable beauty.”

“……?”

“I walk the road of artistic expression. I would love for you to serve as my model.”

“……?”

“In the nude, if circumstances permit……”

Thud!

“What nonsense are you uttering, you degenerate!”

Lunia drove her elbow downward onto Driana’s skull.

Yet she immediately clutched her own joint and tumbled onto the ground.

“Lunia, I have mentioned to you previously, resorting to physical force is an undesirable trait.”

“You… you… compel me… to use… physical force…! Ugh! You thick-skulled fool…!”

“Such a minor blow will not deter my artistic ambition. Strike me as frequently as you please!”

“Oh? Is that so?”

“I am merely jesting, preserve my life.”

Driana immediately gave up when Ar questioned her with a giggle.

No matter how robustly dwarves were created from birth, they could not match pure physical strength against Ar, a beastkin.

“Are you unharmed? You must have been terribly startled, correct? It might be hard to credit, but they are harmless individuals, despite how they appear.”

Chelsea comforted the young girl, who appeared terrified.

“What do you mean ‘despite how they appear’? ‘Despite how they appear’?”

Lunia muttered under her breath, massaging her elbow, though she could not argue any further.

In truth, one individual demands a nude modeling session without warning. Another strikes them down with a joint.

Anyone unfamiliar with their group would certainly be struck with terror by the display.

However, the young girl still maintained a bewildered look.

It appeared as though she failed to comprehend their speech.

It was just as Chelsea felt slightly unsettled observing this.

Leo advanced a step and began to speak.

An unfamiliar tongue poured from Leo’s mouth.

Yet the young girl appeared to grasp his speech, her eyes widening, and she offered a slight nod of her head toward Leo.

“What tongue is that which the Black Rabbit is uttering, anyway?”

“That is Draconic. Lunia, you surely studied Draconic, did you not?”

“I studied it for the sake of spellcraft, but not sufficiently to hold a conversation fluidly like that.”

“Quite so. Draconic is an intricate tongue. Leo is perpetually marvelous, regardless of when I observe him. Is there anything he cannot accomplish?”

“Ahem!”

“For what reason are you swelling your chest?”

Driana stared at Chelsea with a look of disbelief.

The dragon youngster, having concluded her exchange with Leo, warily drew closer to the four young women and lifted the fabric concealing her basket.

The container was packed with blossoms.

She presented a blossom to each member of the company one after the other, and when she finally reached Lunia at the end, she wavered, then carefully tucked a pale blossom into Lunia’s tresses.

As Lunia’s eyes grew wide, the dragon youngster spoke.

When Lunia cast a glance toward Leo, Leo translated.

“She is expressing gratitude for rescuing her from a troublesome predicament. She mentions that she greatly enjoys Luna’s heroic tales and will offer her support to you, who pursue the nebula.”

Upon hearing those words, a touched look manifested on Lunia’s countenance.

The dragon youngster paused for a brief moment, then offered a timid grin and proffered her hand.

“She is asking if you would be willing to clasp her hand?”

“Most assuredly!”

Lunia grinned and grasped the dragon youngster’s hand.

Shortly thereafter, they gestured farewell.

“Still, that is quite astonishing. Aren’t all dragons supposed to possess the capability to utter the common tongue of the land?”

“Dragons are certainly instructors for champions, but not every dragon functions as an instructor.”

Leo remarked, observing the dragons passing along the avenue.

“So dragons also possess ordinary everyday existences? That makes sense.”

Driana nodded her head in agreement.

Leo silently contemplated the avenues of Dragonia.

In some respects, this street represented the very state of the dragon population that Lisinas had desired.

‘During the Age of Gods, dragons represented the population selected by the deities.’

In those times, every dragon committed their entire existence to safeguarding the territories within their respective realms.

Lisinas had also mentioned that she endured her younger years being coerced into an existence as a Black Dragon.

‘The decision to rescue the world is entirely a matter of my own volition. Yet there is no duty for every dragon to do the same, is there?’

Thus, following the Age of Calamity, Lisinas desired for numerous dragons to experience normal and peaceful existences.

‘The traditions of Gardsron certainly exerted a significant impact on dragons.’

Dragons raised in Gardsron mingled with numerous populations.

In the present day, they still preserve their traditions that have endured since the Age of Gods and remain the sole population that employs their distinct tongue rather than the common tongue of the land.

‘Yet even so, this ordinary landscape bears a resemblance to Gardsron.’

Leo offered a soft grin.

‘It is precisely as you desired. Your population has set down the loads they bore.’

“Leo, how does it look?”

Lunia inquired, brushing the blossom in her tresses.

“It becomes you.”

It was right when Lunia beamed brilliantly at Leo’s reply.

“Black Rabbit, remain alert! She possesses a blossom in her tresses. There is no telling when she might strike!”

Ar yelled, concealing herself behind Leo.

At those words, Lunia, whose countenance had drained of all warmth, lunged toward Ar, and Ar swiftly took flight.

Chelsea remarked, observing the pair.

“If that dragon witnessed this display, wouldn’t she lament presenting her with the blossom?”

“She did not witness it.”

Chelsea nodded in agreement with Leo’s reply.

“How far have those simpletons traveled?”

Driana uttered a sigh, watching the pair vanish into the masses.

“They are not infants, they will not become genuinely misplaced, will they?”

“Hmm. Most assuredly not.”

Driana nodded at Leo’s remark.

“By the by, Leo, were you not out on the avenue because you possessed a task to fulfill? What was the matter?”

“I must locate an item.”

The agreement drafted following the defeat of Erebus five millennia past, pledging the reconstruction of Dragonia.

‘On that day, Lisinas abandoned it behind in Dragonia and took her departure.’

A shard of the shell that held Lisinas.

That object itself served as the instrument to gain entry into Lisinas’s domain.

As long as the Hero’s Record remains, Leo can gain entry into Lisinas’s domain at any moment.

Nonetheless, the situation differs for others.

‘Because there will be occasions when I am absent.’

It was prudent to locate the instrument in anticipation of such occasions.

“Let us make our way to the threshold first.”

Leo summoned his recollections and directed his steps toward the threshold of Dragonia.

“Where have we arrived?”

“We became misplaced on account of your actions.”

“Why is it on account of my actions? It is your own fault for fleeing.”

“I fled because you were pursuing me as though you intended to end my life.”

“Then who permitted you to mock me? And who was pursuing you as though they intended to end your life?”

“Then? What did you intend to perform?”

“I simply intended to make you wish you were deceased just a fraction.”

“That is far more malevolent.”

Ar narrowed her gaze, but Lunia merely offered a disdainful snort.

“In any case, where under the heavens are we located?”

It was an area where no trace of inhabitants could be detected.

Dragonia is immense, so much so that even its primary sector is colossal.

Nonetheless, not every part of Dragonia is settled by inhabitants.

The peripheral zones resemble desolate regions where the entire topography of Dragonia from the Age of Gods has been recreated.

Consequently, the peripheral passageways of Dragonia were literally akin to an intricate maze.

There was no peril, but extracting oneself was a difficult chore.

Lunia raised her gaze.

“They mentioned that a defensive enchantment is spread across Dragonia’s upper skies, so if we ascend into the heavens, dragons will arrive.”

When a simple method to discover their path was put forward, Ar shook her head violently.

“Absolutely not.”

“For what reason?”

“Then that degenerate dwarf will discover that we are misplaced, will she not?”

Ar scowled fiercely.

“She will undoubtedly view us as though we are wretched.”

“…I find that displeasing.”

Lunia knitted her brows.

In truth, being regarded as an imbecile by Driana was intolerable.

The trio are heirs to Luna, Arion, and Dweno, acknowledged by the Dragon Lord.

‘Leo likewise recognizes us as heirs to the legendary champions.’

For Lunia, who grasped Leo’s true identity, Leo’s validation held a distinct and profound weight, unlike Ar and Driana.

It was precisely due to this equal footing that they could unreservedly reveal their genuine selves, and owing to that, they rapidly grew close.

‘We can be candid with one another, but that likewise signifies we absolutely cannot concede defeat to one another.’

“Then how do we discover our path? Do you possess a technique?”

“Hmph.”

At that instant, Ar positioned her right hand, with solely her thumb and index digit extended, beneath her jawline.

“Cease gesturing and inform us of the technique.”

“Whom do you imagine I am? The prospective student council leader of Azonia! Ar Tun!”

Ar swelled her chest, struck it, and subsequently gestured toward her own snout with her digit.

“I can discover the path utilizing my scent, I declare!”

Upon hearing those words, Lunia cried out in admiration.

“Wow! You truly resemble a canine!”

“I am a feline!”

It was just as Ar bristled, even elevating her tail.

Four individuals emerged from the passageway.

Beholding them, Lunia and Ar appeared bewildered.

“You two. You are Lunia El Rundia and Ar Tun, correct?”

Lunia, limbs folded, canted her head at the query of the lad who stood at the vanguard.

“That is correct, who might you be?”

“Lunia, observe closely. They are sporting garments resembling academy attire.”

Ar remarked, inspecting the four individuals’ dress.

The lad grinned upon catching her words.

“We are apprentice instructors.”

“Instructors?”

Lunia’s eyes expanded.

Instructors.

The designation of dragons who guide champions.

“I have caught wind of it. There exists a site in Dragonia where dragons possessing exceptional traits study to become instructors.”

“That is accurate. You can consider it akin to a champion academy for dragons. My designation is Riden. Pleasure to encounter you.”

Riden advanced a step and offered his hand.

However, Lunia and Ar merely stared at his palm.

“Are you not going to clasp hands?”

It was right when Riden looked bewildered by their conduct.

“I have no desire to clasp your hand.”

Lunia offered a sweet grin.

“It causes us discomfort when you observe us as though you are assessing our worth.”

At those words, Riden rubbed his cheek.

“I offer my regrets if I caused offense. As instructors, we are in a role to guide champions. Yet this represents our initial encounter with prospective champions. Thus, we maintain elevated anticipations.”

Riden grinned warmly.

“Your renown is already celebrated within Dragonia, particularly Lunia El Rundia. You have already attained the standing of a champion, have you not?”

“And so?”

“We arrived to evaluate how capable you truly are.”

“Hmm.”

Lunia curled the edges of her mouth.

At that instant, Ar swished her tail and spoke.

“There exists solely a single individual who can judge my worth as a champion.”

“What? Who might that be?”

Ar smirked, observing Riden’s bewildered expression.

“Leo Flov.”