Inheriting the Novel

Chapter 138 : Dreistler Family (1)

Dreistler Family (1)

"I'll try to gather more information about Setram. You just focus on your own tasks."

After saying that, pilla left abruptly.

There were no words promising our next meeting, but surely, we would meet again someday.

After all, he was definitely one of the main characters in the original story.

"Then, let's part ways here for now."

"Huh?"

After coming out of the mountain range, I brought up what I had been thinking to the group.

"Why all of a sudden?"

"I have one more place to visit."

"Then can't we all go together?"

At Kisea's suggestion, I shook my head.

"Sorry, but I'd prefer the two of you go back to the domain first and prepare for any unexpected situations."

"... By an unexpected situation, you mean?"

It was Ian who responded to my words.

Unlike Kisea, he seemed to have some idea of what I meant, judging from his expression.

"If Setram makes a move, he might target me. Publicly, I'm supposed to be there right now, so they might try sending assassins."

"That's true... You're both the owner of the Sword of Boundary and one of the Seven Heroes—it's easy for you to become a target."

"Right. Besides, I haven't been one of the Seven Heroes for very long, so they'll probably see me as easier to take down compared to the others."

Now, setram would begin his moves in earnest. There was no longer a need to operate in secrecy.

'Through Sehenz, this incident will be spread across the entire continent.'

Setram missing Sehenz this time was a huge blunder.

Once the fact that Setram colluded with the demonkin was revealed, no nation would let this pass.

The demonkin, after all, were a particularly sensitive topic for humanity.

"The crusade... That's what he called it, right?"

It seemed Kisea also just now recalled what Violette, who had possessed Luem, said.

Up till now, large and small wars had continued to break out on the continent.

However, it was easy to expect that the crusade Setram was about to launch would be on a different scale altogether.

A crusade would be a great war, enough to turn the entire tide of the continent.

'But...'

One thing still puzzled me.

If Setram was about to cause a war of such scale, surely there would have been related incidents reported in other regions as well.

But so far, not a single story related to that had come up.

'Maybe Fabian was the one who prevented the crusade from breaking out.'

That was the only plausible explanation I could come up with.

'I should be able to find some clues about it at the Dreistler family.'

After obtaining the Heaven-Slaying Arms, Fabian followed Pilla's advice and sought out a particular place.

'The Land Forgotten by the World.'

By some coincidence, that was exactly the same place I was planning to visit.

"So, please head back first and prepare for anything that might happen."

"Alright. It's a bit disappointing, but I guess there's no choice."

At my words, Kisea and Ian both nodded in agreement.

Mersaya, who had been silently watching, also nodded as if preparing to go with them... but—

"Except for you."

"... Huh?"

"You're coming with me."

"...!"

At this, Mersaya's face immediately fell. A visible sense of annoyance radiated from her.

"Clay, dragons are introverted creatures, you know..."

"What are you talking about? You play around all the time."

"That's different—playing is playing, but this isn't that."

It seemed she really wanted to go back and rest at her lair.

After all, Mersaya's dragon lair, recently constructed with much investment from the domain, was incredibly ornate and had quickly become one of her favorite places.

But now, she couldn't really use it as much, and that dissatisfaction was written all over her face.

"I'll let you rest for a while when we get back, so don't worry. Where we're going, there's no Magic Tower, so I need your help."

"My help?"

"Yeah, only a great dragon like you can go there."

"Where are we going?"

"To the Land Forgotten by the World."

My words immediately piqued Mersaya's interest.

She was always weak to flattery, and with her immense curiosity, it only took a convincing line to sway her.

'The Land Forgotten by the World... That sounds epic!' was clearly shining in her sparkling eyes.

"Well, if you really don't want to go, I won't force you."

"N-no, it's fine. Uh, I guess I have no choice then!"

[Stop teasing the kid already.]

Maybe feeling sorry for Mersaya bubbling with expectation, Grancesia chided me.

But I wasn't lying.

According to the map Marvin gave me a while ago, there was no Magic Tower nearby, so traveling on Mersaya's back was by far the fastest and most convenient option.

[Poor Mersaya... I wonder if she even realizes she's being treated like a mere mount.]

'Hey! Taking Mersaya this time isn't just for that reason.'

[Oh? So, you have another reason?]

'Of course.'

I glanced at Mersaya, relishing her anticipation for "the Land Forgotten by the World."

'I intend to test out what you mentioned before.'

[Something I said?]

To the puzzled Grancesia, I only smiled.

There was no need to explain just yet. I'd show her soon enough.

* * *

The Land Forgotten by the World.

It was a place one could never reach by ordinary means. To get there, you had to cross several mountain ranges, and the entire location was concealed behind a thick barrier of magic power.

Even if you did manage to cross the mountains, you'd end up somewhere else, and wouldn't even realize a hidden place existed there.

「Wow! I had no idea there'd be a human city in a place like this!」

Naturally, we were an exception.

No matter how elaborate the magical barrier—even enough to deceive a dragon's eye—it couldn't evade the Eye of Insight.

No matter how thick the magic barrier, with the power of the Sword of Boundary, breaking through was trivial. Mersaya marveled at the cityscape spread out beneath the sky.

"I'd heard about it, but seeing it in person is awe-inspiring."

The city was surrounded by mountains like a fortress, built on high ground with a shape befitting the word 'impregnable.'

Now I understood why the location of the Dreistler family had remained a secret for so long.

Dang, dang, dang!

It was then that a frantic alarm began to ring out below.

'Ah, looks like I need to get down there quickly.'

It was only natural for them to be alarmed—a dragon had suddenly appeared in the sky.

"Mersaya, let's descend."

「Yes.」

Even as the alarm cried out and suspicious activity occurred below, Mersaya didn't seem particularly tense.

She probably expected I would handle whatever happened.

'What's that?'

As Mersaya began to descend, massive cannons turned in our direction.

'Those don't look like ordinary cannons...'

And at that instant, enormous energy gathered at the turrets, and a massive shockwave split the air.

"Whoa, shit!"

I was only saved because I sliced through space with the Sword of Boundary just in time—otherwise I'd have been caught in the blast and turned to dust.

'What the...? Why does a city have such weapons?'

I knew this wasn't an ordinary place, but I never expected weaponry on this level.

Of course, no matter how strong, they're useless against the Sword of Boundary.

"Magic cannons have no effect?!"

"Emergency! Emergency! Call for the head!"

As I repelled several attacks, things below got hectic. At this point, even I started to feel uneasy.

'Did I push ahead too recklessly?'

I'd only wanted to save some time, but things seemed to have escalated more than I intended.

As I neared the city, I leapt off Mersaya's back. She followed, and we landed on the ground together.

"Who are you?!"

No sooner had we landed than armed soldiers surrounded us.

They hesitated to jump me, likely because of what I'd just done, but I could feel strong hostility.

"Sorry for the commotion, but I have an appointment with Marvin Dreistler."

"What?"

The man at the forefront scowled at my words.

He must have been the highest ranking among them.

'Wait, isn't that Marvin's son?'

As I checked the man's profile, I was surprised.

I didn't know Marvin had a son.

"You came to see my father? Don't be absurd! Under what circumstances would a dragon be meeting my father?!"

"I'm not a dragon."

"What?"

It seemed he had mistaken me for the dragon that had flown overhead a moment ago.

Given that Mersaya transformed into a human as soon as we landed, it was understandable.

'Still, to talk so boldly when you think you're facing a dragon...'

Was this the son of Marvin Dreistler, or just someone utterly fearless? Hard to tell.

"I'm not a dragon. She is."

"... What?"

He looked at the girl standing next to me in bewilderment.

"Wow! Clay, this place is amazing! I never thought a place like this existed!"

Mersaya seemed unconcerned by the humans' reactions, instead wandering and taking in the sights.

"That girl... wasn't she the dragon flying through the sky a moment ago?"

He looked at her in disbelief, but the dragon's horns growing from her temples made it clear she wasn't an ordinary human.

"Yes, that's right."

"S-so... You mean... you arrived riding a dragon?"

"Yes. The mountains were pretty high and I was in a bit of a hurry, so that's how it happened."

"You say that like it's nothing!"

He looked genuinely bewildered.

Thinking about it, that was a natural reaction. A dragon giving a human a ride was unheard of.

'I've become too used to this lately...'

In any case, I had no intention of wasting time bickering here.

"First, my name is Clay Vanhart, also one of the Seven Heroes, just like Sir Marvin Dreistler. And this girl is a kind dragon who means no harm to humans, you don't need to worry."

"What? You're Clay Vanhart?"

He sized me up, as if he couldn't believe it.

"My father said Clay Vanhart is a distinguished swordsman and warrior. But you look so—frail..."

"Kaden, that's enough."

"Father!"

The man called Kaden spun around at the voice from behind.

Behind him, I saw Marvin walking towards us.

"He really is Clay Vanhart. I'll vouch for him."

"That can't...!"

Kaden looked at me in utter disbelief. At his reaction, I just shrugged.

"Clay Vanhart, you never cease to amaze me. To think you'd arrive here riding a dragon...!"

Marvin let out a defeated laugh and shook his head.

"The mountains were rather high. I've had to cross them so many times lately, so I got sick of climbing."

"Haha! Indeed. Well, never mind. You must be busy, so it's best to save time."

Marvin let out a hearty laugh and patted me on the shoulder.

The others stared at Marvin's reaction in a daze.

"... I've never seen the head laugh like that."

"So that really is Sir Clay Vanhart?"

"I wondered what the new Hero was like, but I never imagined he'd ride around on a dragon."

With Marvin's appearance, the agitated mood subsided. As if forgetting what just happened, everyone looked at me now with glimmers of awe.

[Once you're a Hero, even storming in on a dragon gets pretty nicely spun.]

'It's not like I attacked anyone. Whether it's horseback or dragonback, it's all the same, right?'

[Wow, you're really getting shameless.]

Either way, it seemed the matter was resolved.

Only Kaden, Marvin's son, bit his lower lip and glared at me.

"Let's go inside and talk. Actually, I wanted to ask you about the incident in Linken, too."

After saying this, Marvin slowly turned and walked away.

Wherever he moved, countless people moved as well, bowing in respect.

'The Dreistler family... it really wasn't an ordinary house.'

Marvin's presence was less that of a head of a noble family and more like a king of a country.