DMHS 118

‘I’m lonely.’

He felt like he’d been left alone in the middle of a road under pouring rain.

He had thought a day like this might come, yet somewhere inside he’d still hoped for the companions who’d fought at his side for so long.

A sulky look appeared on Rowan’s face.

“Don’t make that face. I wouldn’t have come this far without you. The biggest reason I helped humans until now was you.”

“……”

“You worked hard, Yan.”

The child’s voice was firm with determination. Kian lowered his head.

It would’ve been a lie to say it didn’t hurt.

But he was the one who’d persuaded Rowan again and again, even though Rowan hadn’t wanted to involve himself in human affairs, and dragged him into the hero party. Now it was right to let Rowan do what he wanted.

“You made the clay doll?”

Rowan changed the subject. The clay human figure emerged from the shadow at Kian’s feet.

“I’ll try moving the soul into this.”

Rowan studied the beads he had placed on the table. They all looked the same to Kian, but Rowan seemed to choose one with strong vitality.

In the end Rowan picked up a bead with a vivid pink glow. He pushed the bead into the clay doll’s head, closed his eyes, and chanted a spell.

Pop!

A bright light burst out from the doll’s body.

The doll, which had only a rough outline like a ginger cookie, began to take on the shape of a living human as if touched by a sculptor’s hands.

A moment later, a girl appeared where the clay doll had lain. Her wavy hair fell to her shoulders. On the academy uniform jacket she wore, the name “Bennet” was embroidered.

The girl, Bennet, slowly opened her eyes. Kian reached out his hand to her.

“Can you stand up?”

“Oh, yes! Thank you for helping me!”

Bennet answered brightly and looked around in confusion.

Her gaze swept across the lavishly decorated parlor and stopped on Kian and Rowan. Rowan had already changed into the shape of a woman.

Bennet nodded as if she understood something.

“The adventure succeeded. So you two are Sir Yan and Lady Rowan, right?”

“Ah…?”

“Mm…?”

Bennet bounced with excitement she couldn’t hide.

“I knew it. You both look exactly like the people in the old stories. Lady Rowan is dazzlingly beautiful, and Sir Yan is overflowing with charisma. I’m so nervous my heart is pounding.”

Rowan sent Kian a look, asking what was going on.

Kian was just as confused. He cleared his throat.

“Do you remember what happened before you lost consciousness?”

“Of course. I met a talking cat on the north stairs of the academy. The friendly black cat even said it would grant my wish. Thanks to that I came here and got to meet the heroes.”

“Your wish was to meet the heroes.”

“Yes!”

He didn’t know whether to call this fortunate or not. The situation had become strangely convenient.

The girl didn’t realize her real body had been taken, and she was simply happy. Kian wanted to confirm a few things through Bennet.

“You must be hungry after waking from such a long sleep. Should we talk slowly over a meal?”

“You’re inviting me to a banquet? I’d love that!”

Rowan had a servant bring food to the room. Bennet’s eyes sparkled as she saw the well-prepared dishes.

“Thank you for the meal!”

Bennet quickly ate the food. Beside her, Kian asked about what had happened at the academy while watching her movements.

‘There’s nothing strange so far. Her recent memories are clear. She sits and eats without problems.’

It was a relief.

Once her stomach was partly full, Bennet grew excited and started chattering.

“By the way, did you see the other kids? We’re part of the Silent Society. We investigate academy ghost stories. Lucerion met the black cat before me and disappeared, but we don’t know where he went.”

Lucerion was also one of the beads on the table.

Kian didn’t say the truth. He gently changed the subject.

“What was Lucerion’s wish?”

“He wanted to explore the Forest of Creation. He wanted to see the ancient elf graves hidden deep inside the forest.”

“Then he must be there. He’s probably reading the old epitaphs under warm sunlight right now.”

“Wow… Then Finnegan must’ve gone to the Dragon Realm. But isn’t the Dragon Realm dangerous? What if a bad-tempered dragon grabs him and makes him mine jewels with monsters?”

“He’ll still enjoy it. It’s an experience not everyone gets.”

“Haha, that’s true. Finnegan would probably make friends with monsters even in a dragon’s lair. Even if he can’t talk, he’ll communicate somehow with chirps and gestures.”

Bennet burst into laughter as if the thought alone made her happy.

“It’ll be fun when we meet again after the adventure.”

“Yes.”

“I’m going to brag to them so much. I’ll tell them I got treated to a meal in Lady Rowan’s mansion…”

Her eyelids slowly drooped.

Her movements looked like a wind-up doll running out of strength.

“The salmon melted in my mouth like…”

Bennet’s eyes closed completely.

“Sir Yan was so kind…”

Bennet’s head dropped forward as soon as she finished speaking. When they moved closer to check, they heard her slow, rhythmic breathing. She had fallen asleep.

Rowan folded his arms and looked down at her.

“Her life force ran out while she was separated from her body. Her soul is fine, but she doesn’t have enough energy to keep the body going. If this continues, she’ll never wake up.”

“Isn’t there a way to supply her with energy?”

After a brief silence, Rowan answered.

“There’s only one being in this world that grants life.”

“…The goddess.”

“But the Arbiter was born, and the goddess’s power weakened a lot. Right now even I don’t know where she is. Looking for her is the same as looking for a needle in a desert.”

Rowan, back in the form of a boy, ordered the servants to clear the table. Kian sat in a chair and rubbed his face with both hands.

“How am I supposed to find the goddess?”

He thought he had finally found a lead, but he was back at the beginning. Fortunately, Rowan came up with an idea.

“Oh, you don’t have to find the goddess.”

“Hm?”

“If someone created this world, then creators exist in other dimensions too. Move to another dimension and ask the god there.”

“Because the basic rules that move worlds are similar?”

“Right. If you ask how to grant life force, you’ll get an answer. What do you think. Isn’t it a good idea?”

Kian went over Rowan’s words. At first it sounded ridiculous, but the more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.

‘It’ll be faster to move dimensions than to look for the goddess.’

And Kian knew a dimension where he could find the god who created the world.

‘The Dragon Lord lives on the central island of the Dragon Realm. He said adult dragons go to him to receive a blessing prayer.’

Hellenos himself had said that proudly, so it wouldn’t be wrong.

‘I just need to find the Dragon Lord.’

Yet Kian couldn’t accept that reality.

‘Finding the Dragon Lord means I’ll have to go to the Dragon Realm…’

A vivid scenario unfolded in his mind.

He’d try his best to avoid Hellenos. But enemies always meet on a narrow bridge, so with terrible luck he’d end up facing Hellenos…

“What’s this. Why do I feel a dragon’s mark on you?”

“That’s, well… things happened…”

“Don’t tell me you married the descendant I left behind. Who was the one who said he didn’t feel love. And who was the one who looked at me like I was insane when I said I crossed dimensions to find my partner?”

“Calm down and listen to me. It’s not what you think…”

“Anyway, you’re my daughter-in-law now. Welcome to the family, Yan! Puhaha! Khahaha! Kyahaha! Kururukyakya! Grurukyakya!”

Kian wouldn’t even finish a single sentence before Hellenos turned him into a joke.

Hellenos’s strange laughter brushed past his ears. Just imagining it made Kian turn pale.

Rowan, not knowing any of this, clapped happily.

“I just got a great idea. We can go to the Dragon Realm. We don’t need to search everywhere for the Dragon Lord, and we can get help from Heli too.”

“Ha. I don’t want to meet Hellenos. He’ll mock me when he finds out I became Lucien’s partner.”

“Ah, that’s something I really like about Heli. Even I can’t manage to laugh at you like that.”

“What?”

Rowan continued as if nothing was wrong.

“Anyway the Dragon Realm is the best option right now. You’d feel familiar in the parallel world, but the Arbiter appeared there too, so it’s not good for finding the goddess. If we go to a completely new dimension, how are we supposed to know where the creator is hiding?”

Every word was correct. Kian brushed his hair back and answered.

“Fine. If you think about it, everything will be fine as long as I don’t meet Hellenos.”

A peaceful smile appeared on Rowan’s lips like a painted expression.

Anyone who didn’t know him would think he was wishing Kian good luck, but Kian, who knew Rowan well, saw something else.

‘He’s hoping I’ll meet Hellenos so something entertaining happens.’