Chapter 786
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Chapter 786
So You Know Who I Am. (3)
Dragons were wise and mighty beings.
Endowed with wisdom accumulated over thousands of years and a mission inherited from ancient tis, they were revered as if they were agents of the gods.
What they guarded was the balance of the world; their very existence served as proof of order.
However...
They were, at the sa ti, feral and brutal monsters.
Weary from the boredom of countless years, they began to see themselves as absolute beings, viewing all other lifeforms as insignificant specks of dust.
Their rage had no reason. Their whims were unpredictable.
On so days, they acted as wise arbiters and judges of the world; on others, they beca calamities that set the world ablaze.
They were endlessly contradictory, beings who wavered between Gods and Monsters.
That was precisely what made them both great and the most fearso of all.
Arterion spoke with eyes that glimred with a blend of madness and wisdom.
“I cannot understand this. I don’t know you. And yet, how is it that you know who I am?”
Arterion was certain. It wasn’t just a guess based on Ghislain’s expression or deanor.
It was the power dragons possessed—
That transcendent sense was what had inford him.
A change finally appeared on Ghislain’s face. He smiled and said,
“I don’t know what you an. I simply remained cautious of soone who approached so suddenly.”
“…”
“Didn’t you say you would lend us your ship? I’d like to have a deeper conversation with you.”
“You’re quite an amusing fellow.”
Arterion extended his hand. He intended to grab Ghislain by the neck and attempt mind control.
However, as Ghislain lightly stepped back, Arterion’s hand ended up swiping at empty air.
“...Huh?”
Arterion looked down at his own hand.
He had made a light move, one that most wouldn’t have been able to evade. Yet the human before him had avoided it effortlessly.
His eyes curved into half-moons, expressing delight.
“Then try dodging this one, too.”
Crack!
Arterion’s hand moved even faster than before. So fast that an ordinary person wouldn’t have been able to perceive the motion.
Clang!
Ghislain, who had already drawn Gramdyr at so point, blocked Arterion’s hand. But even that light strike pushed Ghislain back.
“Ghislain!”
Julien drew his sword and brought it to Arterion’s neck. The others also raised their weapons, surrounding him.
Arterion looked around and laughed.
“How rude, to treat soone who ca to offer help like this.”
He wasn’t just speaking to the rcenaries.
Dozens of assassins had appeared at so point, encircling Arterion.
The townspeople recoiled in shock. At this rate, the guards would surely swarm in.
Darents spoke to Arterion with a disinterested expression.
“You seem like a nobleman with so skills, so why don’t you back down now? These people also hold a status that’s ‘currently’ no less than that of nobility.”
Darents now revealed himself without hesitation. After all, their attempt to stay hidden had failed long ago.
Of course, stepping forward like this was also more convenient from the standpoint of protecting them.
Arterion narrowed his eyes and asked,
“And who might you be?”
“I’m soone acting under orders from a high-ranking figure to protect this rcenary corps. Continuing this won’t do you any good.”
“Oh… a high-ranking figure, you say?”
Arterion tilted his head slightly, then smiled.
“Could you be referring to the Pope, by any chance?”
“…”
Darents briefly wore a surprised expression.
This was supposed to be a top-secret operation, and yet even an unidentified outsider knew about it.
He had no idea where the leak had co from.
He briefly shot a glare at Marika, then asked Ghislain,
“Can I kill him? I think we’d be better off just cleaning this up quickly. He may seem like a noble, but we’ll handle the aftermath.”
“…”
Ghislain looked montarily dumbfounded.
‘Who’s killing who here?’
Arterion was soone that not even everyone here combined could defeat.
If Arterion rely stretched out his hand right now, Darents’ neck would be snapped.
Of course, Arterion—grinning from ear to ear—didn’t seem inclined to do that just yet.
Ghislain shook his head.
“I’d rather you didn’t act without my say-so. I told you before that I didn’t like seeing you, rember?”
“This is our mission. I have no choice.”
“Then just do your job and protect us. Don’t go around saying stuff like who’s killing who. Just go. I’ll handle it.”
Darents glared at Ghislain for a mont, then withdrew along with the assassins.
His mind was now preoccupied with trying to figure out where the leak had sprung from.
Once the so-called escorts had pulled back, Arterion turned to Ghislain and asked,
“If a fight breaks out, wouldn’t it be better to fight together? The more people, the better, right?”
“I don’t plan to fight. All of you, put away your weapons and fall back.”
Julien and Kyle hesitated. Even to them, Arterion’s movents didn’t seem ordinary.
He didn’t look that powerful based on the aura he gave off, and yet...
“It’s fine. I think we can talk.”
The Arterion of the future had been so far gone he couldn’t even hold a conversation.
But now, it seed he wasn’t nearly as insane as he had been in the future.
He was still fully in control of his madness, and beneath it, there was a deep, weighty insight.
Once the others stepped back, Ghislain let out a sigh and said,
“Let’s go sowhere quiet and talk.”
“Let’s do that.”
Arterion obediently followed Ghislain.
Once they reached a secluded area, Ghislain deployed a massive mana field to ensure no sound would escape.
He had sensed Darents and the assassins following them to the vicinity.
Arterion stroked his chin as he observed the mana Ghislain had spread.
“Hmm, impressive.”
It was a genuine expression of admiration.
It wasn’t that Ghislain’s magic was particularly high-level, nor that he possessed imnse mana.
What surprised Arterion was how naturally and effortlessly Ghislain had deployed the field, as if breathing.
With a wave of his hand, Arterion conjured a small table and chairs.
Ghislain involuntarily chuckled at the sight.
The Arterion of the future had also pulled out that sa table and chairs whenever they conversed.
‘So, he must be fond of that table.’
Arterion looked at Ghislain curiously, then said,
“Have a seat. I’ll entertain your conversation.”
Without hesitation, Ghislain sat across from Arterion.
The party looked on, confused.
This man had just attacked them without warning, and now he calmly wanted to have a chat?
They couldn’t make sense of his behavior at all.
Noticing their puzzled expressions, Arterion opened his mouth with a hint of amusent.
“There’s no need to find it strange. I was simply enjoying my rare outing and thought I’d have a little fun then found this mage interesting, that’s all.”
The mont Ghislain was singled out, he sighed.
“Let’s stop this and reveal who you really are now.”
“Hmm…”
After a brief pause, Arterion spoke with solemn weight in his voice.
“I am the sovereign who rules the Eternal Blizzard, the guardian of wisdom, Lord of Frost, and the one who upholds the world’s balance—Dragon Lord Arterion.”
The mont he said that, everyone in the group froze.
They all stared at Arterion, unable to believe it.
They had intended to et the Dragon Lord, but to think he would appear before them so directly—it was beyond expectation.
As they stood dazed, Ghislain calmly said,
“That’s right. This man is the Dragon Lord.”
The reactions ca instantly.
So awkwardly attempted to bow,
So instinctively reached for their weapons,
So took a few steps back,
And others simply froze in fear.
Dragon.
That single na alone was enough to intimidate countless people across the world.
Even the seasoned Julien rcenary Corps, with all their experience, couldn’t help but feel a crushing pressure in the presence of a dragon.
Arterion, no longer paying attention to the group, asked,
“Now then, tell . How did you know who I was?”
“…I guessed.”
“…Hm?”
“We were on our way to et the Dragon Lord, and then out of nowhere a mysterious man appeared.
If even I felt he was too much to handle, there could be only one answer—he had to be a dragon.”
“Your explanation is lacking.”
“If you were going to polymorph, shouldn’t you have at least changed your hair color? Anyone could figure it out with a bit of thought.”
“…”
Arterion furrowed his brow. While the answer made so sense on a logical level, his instincts told him it was a lie.
The person in front of him knew far more about him than he was letting on. But for the life of him, Arterion couldn’t explain why he felt that way.
It was a sensation born from the dragon’s innate intuition.
Ghislain remained shaless.
No matter how powerful the Dragon Lord was, there was no way he could know about a future a thousand years from now.
And it would never even occur to him that soone from that far future had co back to this ti.
The two stared at each other in silence for a long mont.
Arterion furrowed his brow as Ghislain, a man who had reached the height of his craft through countless real battles, maintained a flawless performance.
After a mont of consideration, Arterion asked,
“Is your na Astion?”
This ti, Ghislain was slightly surprised.
He knows more than expected.
If he knows that na, then he probably also knows this group is the Julien rcenary Corps.
It seed Arterion hadn’t just randomly wandered out for fun—he had co here knowing about them.
“Yes. My na is Astion.”
“Who gave you that na?”
‘Hm?’
At that mont, Astion urgently spoke within his consciousness.
—Just say it was a passing mage who gave it to you when you were a child!
In truth, Astion had grown up an orphan with no real na.
People had just called him things like "hey," "you," "kid," or "beggar."
It wasn’t until he t his first possessed host that he was given a proper na.
That host had nad him after a star—one that shared its na with the great Dragon Lord, Arterion.
It symbolized one who inherited the na of the star borne by the Dragon Lord himself.
Ghislain spoke naturally.
“I grew up an orphan, so I had no na. One day, a passing mage taught a bit of magic and gave my na as well.”
Arterion slowly nodded and murmured,
“So that na’s beco known sohow. A coincidence, I’m sure.”
“Does my na have a special aning?”
“It’s nothing significant. A very long ti ago, humans used to worship dragons. Among them were individuals who could communicate directly with us.”
“People who communicated with dragons?”
“Yes. They were called Dragon Speakers. They studied the stars and learned many things from dragons, which they passed on to humankind.
A forgotten legend, these days.”
“…”
“In any case, that na was used by soone who once spoke with . I gave it to him myself. Hearing such a familiar, long-lost na again just made curious, that’s all.”
“…I see.”
What Arterion spoke of must have taken place several thousand years ago.
Only then did the imnse lifespan of a dragon truly hit ho.
Astion let out a sigh of relief and spoke within Ghislain’s consciousness.
—That person was the first one to possess . He laid the foundation for my magic and gave a prophecy. If Arterion finds out the truth, he’ll probably capture imdiately for experintation.
‘Seriously?’
—Yeah. That dragon was known for his insatiable curiosity—he used to experint on anyone regardless of race. That’s why he knows so much.
‘And you’re telling this now?’
—I was going to tell you before we got on the ship! I just forgot ‘cause I was ditating and sleeping all the ti! There was plenty of ti anyway!
‘Hmm…’
As expected, dragons were not benevolent beings.
It would be a mistake to assu they were allies just because they fought against the Demonic Abyss.
One only worked with them out of necessity—the essence of a dragon couldn’t be judged by human notions of good and evil.
They were beings that operated on entirely different principles and orders, incomprehensible and impossible to empathize with.
“What’s got you so deep in thought?”
A conversation within the mind was but a fleeting mont from the outside.
Yet Arterion had sensed that Ghislain’s thoughts were elsewhere.
Ghislain replied with a nonchalant expression.
“I was thinking of changing my na.”
“Why?”
“Just the idea of it being tied to a dragon—it’s a little overwhelming, don’t you think?”
“Hahaha! There’s no need for that. It doesn’t hold much weight anymore.”
Arterion laughed heartily before continuing.
“But I’m still suspicious. You clearly know who I am. Yet I doubt I’ll get the answer I want out of you right now.”
“I don’t know why you’d think that, but I’ve already told you the truth. You showed up at such a suspiciously perfect mont. And your appearance too—it just made sense.”
“Very well, let’s set that aside for now. We’ve got ti—we’ll figure things out slowly.”
“Then… may I ask why you sought us out instead of waiting for us?”
Arterion leaned back in his chair and shifted his gaze.
He was looking at Deneb, who stood not far away.
“I ca to et the Saintess.”
“You an Deneb?”
Arterion nodded and spoke calmly.
“Yes. I ca to give her a warning before she dies.”
“…”
Ghislain frowned at the sudden words.
At the sa ti, Julien’s expression turned cold.
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