DSB 107

“This is faster.”

The cave’s interior was vast, and the northern demon was hiding deep within. It was easier to just blast through it than to search for it.

“Isn’t the cave collapsing?”

“This place is fine. It’s inside a cave, but it’s a completely different space.”

Lebel brushed away the shattered debris and folded his wings. It was a space beneath the cave, but separated to protect the rift.

As soon as he entered, he felt a dense demonic energy that was enough to refill their strength, but the fact that only a faint trace escaped outside was evidence of that separation.

The inside of the cave also looked different, to the point where it was hard to believe it was the same cave as before.

It would be no exaggeration to say the cave’s interior was covered in thick, frozen ice. The cold air seeped into their bones.

Then, Yutis noticed that Lebel’s back was exposed due to his wings being spread. He took off his cloak and placed it over Lebel.

“It’s cold, so put on some clothes.”

“Oh, it’s torn.”

Everything was good, but the only drawback is that his clothes rip every time he spread his wings.

“Look ahead. Didn’t you wish to see the demon? That’s the northern demon that rules this place. And the reason the demonic beasts are so numerous and so strong is because of the demonic energy coming from there.”

Yutis turned his gaze to where Lebel’s finger was pointing. There, he saw a distorted, crimson rift.

And before it stood a large dragon. He was crouching, his head raised, as if he had just awakened from sleep.

Lebel gazed at the dragon in silent admiration. Contrary to his demonic origins, the dragon’s pupils and scales were as white as snow.

“You are the guardian of this rift….”

“Grr!”

Lebel couldn’t finish his sentence. The dragon’s half-asleep eyes widened, and he began to rampage.

In retrospect, the dragon had been startled awake by the commotion and familiar aura above. And just as he was waking, the barrier, previously impenetrable, collapsed, and someone appeared before him.

And it was a demon.

As someone who had to guard the rift, he had no choice but to be wary of Lebel.

“Let’s talk for a moment….”

As if conversation were unnecessary, the dragon spread his wings and roared. At this threatening gesture, Yutis sent Lebel back and raised his sword.

Because Lebel had supplied him with demonic energy, Yutis’s presence was ominous. The dragon, roaring mightily, flinched, then slowly lowered his head to look at Yutis, who was blocking Lebel’s path.

He was so distracted by the demon that he forgot the familiar aura.

A familiar aura. It was his own power, and he remembered that he had once given it to a human.

But humans die quickly. That one would already be dead, right?

The dragon rubbed his eyes and examined Yutis closely. They resemble each other. It was that human! They say humans can be reincarnated, and it seems he’s come to meet him!

“Grrr!”

The growl was loud and raucous, but it sounded somewhat frightened. As evidence, the dragon was stamping his feet, his previous ferocity gone.

The cave shook with each stomp of the dragon’s feet, and Lebel’s body swayed from the vibrations.

The confused dragon might have thought he was talking to himself, but every word he muttered was clearly heard by Lebel and Yutis.

[That white man is that man! He came here to kill me! He broke his promise to me!]

The dragon looked around as if he wanted to hide, then saw an open space and covered his face with his wings and arms.

Anyone could tell he was terrified. Even Yutis, who had been on guard, was so shocked that he lowered the tip of his sword to the ground.

[You even brought a demon! After all, you came here to gain more power! You came here to exploit the rift! What should I do?! Wha-What should I do?]

Lebel looked at the dragon, who was shaking in fear and panic, and wondered how he had managed to protect this place all this time.

[Wait a minute, but how did the demon get here? The Demon God put up a barrier… . Ah! Did that demon break it? Then he’s incredibly strong!]

Ah, I had a feeling something was blocking my entry, so it was a barrier.

Lebel stared at the crouching dragon, then slowly approached him.

[Eek…!]

It was the demon that the Demon God created to look after the rift, and the demon that gave demonic energy to Yutis’s ancestor, but at first glance, it looked like a young one.

‘When was this child born?’

It wasn’t even the day the rift appeared. The Demon God had created him when the situation became severe.

Moreover, he was sleeping when they first found him, and it seems he’s never left this place. If he had lived here, isolated and alone, he would be even more ignorant of the world, and he’d never interacted with anyone.

But there was something more curious than that.

Apparently, the demon before him was the one who gave power to Yutis’ ancestor, and they were in love with each other.

But looking at this reaction, it seemed like he had been ripped off, not that he gave his power out of love.

There were many things he was unsure of, but Lebel put them aside for now and spoke to him to calm him down.

“I have come to seal the rift by the will of the Demon God.”

[Huh? Huh?]

When Lebel mentioned the Demon God, the dragon’s eyes widened.

[Do you know the Demon God?!]

“I know. I am also a living being created by the Demon God.”

All living things were created by the gods, but few were created directly by them.

Those born by the hands of the gods when the world was formed. Lebel and Michael were among them. Over time, each began to create descendants, and the gods no longer had any reason to directly create living beings.

[Really…?]

“Look at me closely.”

The dragon, who had been hesitating as if in agony, slowly approached Lebel, stomping his feet. Sensing Yutis’s nervousness, Lebel placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Will you be all right?”

“It is fine.”

As Yutis retreated, the dragon thrust his large face toward Lebel. Lebel’s hair blew in the air as the dragon sniffed.

[The smell seems right…]

Lebel placed his hand on the dragon’s nose and transferred some of the power that the Demon God had given him to him.

[… … !]

The dragon’s eyes widened. The concentration of demonic energy was so thick he couldn’t even fathom it, making his shoulders hunched.

Lebel, seeing the widened eyes, stroked the cold scales and said.

“Did you realize that as time passes, the rift is widening? Because of this, the surrounding demonic beasts are growing stronger. We must seal the rift.”

[I tried hard to keep it…]

“I know. But the rift is growing bigger, and that’s inevitable. You felt it too, right?”

The dragon glanced back and stared at the rift. At first, it was a small gap, large enough to cover even with his own bulk, but now it was impossible.

Moreover, the density of the demonic energy was growing thicker and thicker.

Even though he was asleep, he could tell. There were demonic beasts who had sensed this power and came to the mountain, and others who wanted to take over this place.

“There’s no time to waste. There’s another demon out there looking for the rift. He’s planning to use it to do something.”

[That won’t work…]

“So I will seal the rift.”

[The Demon God couldn’t intervene, which is why he asked me to guard it….]

“I can do it.”

The dragon stared intently at Lebel, then suddenly raised his head and shook it. The distance that had been close suddenly widened, and the dragon crouched down, baring his teeth.

[You’re a demon too! You thought I didn’t know you had another plan! I’ll never be fooled. You brought that human with you, too!]

“Hmm?”

Lebel tilted his head.

He thought the dragon was being hostile to him for forcibly invading his space and waking him up, but it was actually Yutis who the dragon was staring at with wary eyes.

“…Aren’t you happy? He’s the descendant of the one you loved.”

[What, what?! Who loved whom?!]

The dragon stomped his feet as if he was angry and aggrieved.

“No?”

[No!]

“Wife, I know this may be presumptuous of me, but is it really true what the Demon God said?”

Yutis asked cautiously.

At this point, Lebel was starting to think that maybe the Demon God was mistaken. He tend to think positively about everything.

“…The Demon God said that you and Yutis’ ancestor were in love.”

[That can’t be true!]

“Then why did you give him your power?”

[That, that’s….]

The dragon hesitated. Then, as if he couldn’t bring himself to say it, he clenched his jaw tightly. Then Lebel asked Yutis.

“Yutis, do you know anything about your ancestors? Like how they came to be called a demon’s bloodline?”

“It was like that from the beginning. The first lord was widely known for being inhuman. It’s said that neither demonic beasts nor the most accomplished lords ruling over entire territories could defeat him. That’s how he conquered the North.”

“Well, then it seems like he gave his power to the first lord… Did his appearance change too?”

“Probably not. It’s said that at some point, he developed a madness that turned him into a monster. After that, rumors began to spread that his inhuman strength was a manifestation of demonic influence. Even back then, many sought power from demons.”

[…Is it because of me?]

Lebel looked up at the dragon, seemingly unaware of the consequences of granting a human his power.

Well, it wasn’t possible to know everything that had happened in the past. Whether the dragon was on guard or not, Lebel just had to complete his task.

“I have received a request from the Demon God, so I will seal the rift.”