Chapter 101
“Even a scholar could be a spy from the Kingdom of Eden.”
“W–wait! I have my identification right here!”
“That sort of ID can be forged easily. You’ll have to come with us quietly for now.”
“What—!”
“If you’re really innocent, a simple investigation shouldn’t be a problem.”
One of the soldiers cut me off coldly.
“It won’t take more than a few days, so try not to worry too much.”
I frowned, anxiety tightening my chest.
The problem was that I didn’t have the time to be detained and interrogated.
‘Should I just tell them who I really am?’
Yes… at this point, it might be better to reveal my family and ask for cooperation.
I’d have to tell a small lie about why I was traveling near the border, but that was still better than being dragged away.
‘What a mess. …But there’s no helping it.’
I just hoped word of this wouldn’t reach Thea. She’d surely be worried sick.
I was just about to open my mouth and reveal my identity when—
“Need some help?”
“…Who’s there!”
The soldiers instantly raised their weapons at the sudden voice that rang out.
I blinked, startled.
‘That voice…’
Moments later, a rustling came from a nearby tree, and someone leapt down lightly from the branches.
“You looked like you were in trouble.”
Even in the dark, his bright orange hair seemed to shine.
Just from that back view, I knew immediately who it was.
‘…Rel?’
My lips parted slightly in shock.
‘So he hasn’t left yet.’
I hadn’t expected him to still be in this territory.
But something about him felt different—strange, almost intimidating.
Rel snapped his fingers.
In the next instant, the soldiers’ eyes glazed over as if they’d been hypnotized.
I flinched.
Magic.
And not just any magic—high-level, almost divine.
The only person I knew who could freely wield magic without any incantation was Thearoha.
The soldiers no longer seemed to perceive either of us.
With empty expressions, they calmly fell back into formation and marched away.
The sight was eerily chilling.
Once they were gone, Rel turned to face me.
“……!!”
I shuddered violently.
‘What does he look like?’ I’d once asked.
Asil and Bergo had only replied:
‘You’ll know the moment you see him.’
They’d said he changed his appearance whenever he wished, that he could never be defined by a single form.
Rel’s slitted pupils weren’t human—they were reptilian.
But the next moment, he blinked and they changed again, becoming perfectly human.
Awe filled me—pure reverence toward a being so high above.
The absolute master of magic. The agent of the divine.
There were countless ways to describe him.
“I greet the Great One,” I whispered, trembling as I bowed deeply.
Yes—there was no doubt now.
He was the dragon I had been searching for all this time.
Rel smiled.
Just like that morning when I first met him—
as if he’d found something endlessly amusing.
“Are you not a magician?”
The first time I met Rel, I’d thought his tone rather rude.
But now that I knew who he truly was, it suited him perfectly.
Who would dare expect honorifics from such an exalted being?
“Why don’t you use magic? Don’t you even know basic detection spells?”
I hesitated before answering.
“I’ve been forbidden to use magic in this Empire.”
I had been told to be completely honest in his presence.
Rel studied me intently, his gaze sharp enough to cut.
It was as if his eyes could dissect me down to the bone.
“There’s no magical seal binding you.”
“…No.”
“I’ve known for a while that you were looking for me.”
How—?
Was a dragon’s perception truly so far beyond human understanding?
If so, why hadn’t he revealed himself sooner?
As if reading my thoughts, Rel smirked.
“Did I have any reason to?”
He wasn’t wrong.
To a dragon like him, I was less than insignificant.
The lives of humans probably seemed no different from the scurrying of ants.
“So, why did you seek me out?”
I took a deep breath to steady myself. His gaze was fixed directly on me.
Perhaps to him, humans were mere specks.
But to me—he was everything.
I had come all this way, spent all this time—for Rubiana.
So I told him everything.
Exactly as I had told Asil and Bergo when I’d asked for their help.
When I finished, Rel tilted his head and said calmly, as if he had been waiting for it:
“I see. Then, in exchange for giving you the cure to that disease…”
“……!!”
My heart pounded wildly.
Could I really save Rubiana?
It felt as though all the hardship, all the desperate hope that had carried me here, was finally being rewarded.
But his words weren’t finished yet.
“What will you give me in return?”
“…I…”
I fell silent.
Money? Power? Fame?
What could I possibly offer to a being like him?
To a pure and ancient dragon, such things were meaningless.
To him, humans were fragile creatures—always fighting, dying, struggling.
Rubiana’s death would hardly stir a flicker of emotion in him.
I thought long and hard before answering.
“…If there’s anything I can do, anything at all, I will do it.”
That was all I could offer.
Rel smiled faintly.
“Then let’s just say you owe me a favor for now.”
“……!”
I stared, speechless.
He raised his hand and snapped his fingers again.
The sound echoed—and when I blinked, the world around me had changed.
It was as if I had been swallowed by a whale.
A vast, dim space stretched out before me.
Floating orbs of light drifted lazily in the air.
Strange plants and bizarre preserved animals lined the walls—clearly magical artifacts.
It seemed to be a cavern of some sort.
The air was warm and damp, heavy with a stillness that hinted at poor ventilation.
While I was still looking around, Rel strode forward to a desk and began rummaging through the piles of papers.
He searched for quite a while before finally handing me a sheet.
I accepted it carefully—and as my eyes scanned the contents, I gasped.
“Th-this is…!”
I couldn’t help but cry out in shock.
It was the cure for Lugimi disease.
I bent over the paper, reading it line by line, afraid he might snatch it back if I blinked.
“How did you…?”
“It’s the result of my research. I take quite an interest in humans, you see. Sometimes I even come to the human world and pretend to be one.”
He looked almost proud of himself.
“……”
I looked up at him.
“Why…?”
“Why what?”
“Why didn’t you reveal this cure sooner?”
Rel replied flatly.
“Because I had no reason to.”
“……”
“I’m helping you only because it piqued my academic curiosity—nothing more.”
He waved his hand dismissively.
“Well, I’ve given it to you. Now off you go—and don’t forget your debt.”
I clutched the paper tightly.
With this, I could save Rubiana.
No—perhaps countless others suffering from the same disease.
My heart swelled with relief and gratitude.
“I’ll also return your horse.”
“Pardon?”
“Your horse. I’ll put it back at the inn.”
So he was the one who had taken it!
I stared at him, speechless, as he raised his hand again with a calm expression.
I realized it was his usual gesture before casting magic, so I hurriedly spoke.
“Th-thank you! Truly, thank you…!”
“Mm. Sure.”
He blinked once—and then—
I was standing at the entrance of Vigo Village.
The sky was still dark, and it didn’t seem like any time had passed at all.
“…Ah.”
But the paper in my hand proved it hadn’t been a dream.
The recipe for the magical cure was right there, exactly as he’d given it to me.
Thank goodness I had brought all my belongings from the inn in Inpola Territory.
If I’d left them behind, everything would have been lost.
I trudged through the quiet village streets.
It was late, and only the sounds of insects and distant owls broke the silence.
When I pushed open the door of the small inn, the innkeeper was dozing off.
“Welcome… Oh, s-sir!”
He nearly jumped out of his chair when he saw me.
“You came back without a word! So, how did things go?”
He asked, but then caught a glimpse of my expression—and seemed to understand everything.
“Oh, thank heavens. So it went well, then?”
He smiled broadly and added cheerfully,
“My boy’s fever’s gone down completely! Turns out it wasn’t Lugimi disease after all. What a relief!”
I smiled back.
“That’s wonderful news.”
And now—even if it had been Lugimi disease, I could have cured it.
The innkeeper looked surprised.
“I think this is the first time I’ve seen you smile, sir.”
“Is it?”
I tilted my head. I hadn’t had much reason to smile until now.
But with the weight in my heart finally lifted, I couldn’t help but do so.
Then, looking a bit awkward, the innkeeper said,
“By the way, sir… your horse still hasn’t returned…”
He scratched his head apologetically.
‘He means my horse still hasn’t come back.’
I shook my head and opened the door again, gesturing for him to follow.
Puzzled, he trailed after me.
Under the silvery moonlight—there, in the stable—stood my horse, calmly munching on hay, as if it had been there all along.
The very horse Ray had given me.
“Oh my goodness!”
The innkeeper was so startled he nearly fell backward.
“How on earth…?”
He looked back and forth between me and the horse.
“It must’ve been tied up just outside the village. Maybe the thief decided to return it.”
I said it as casually as I could.
Of course, it had been Rel who brought it back.
Still, the innkeeper, relieved that he wouldn’t have to compensate me, broke into a grin.
“That’s such a relief!”
I nodded.
‘Yes. It truly is.’
Following him back inside, I climbed the creaky wooden stairs and lay down on the same bed as before.
For the first time in what felt like ages, I fell asleep the moment my head touched the pillow.
