Chapter 236 - 3−40
Early in the morning, I hurried through the corridors of the Imperial Castle as fast as I could, with the monitoring knights following behind.
I have to see Theodore-sama immediately! I must give him this magic stone and break the spell cast upon him right now.
I wrapped the magic stone in a white lace handkerchief and held it carefully with both hands. Driven by impatience, I quickened my pace. Past the turn in the corridor was the door leading to the garden. I turned right.
Thump.
The impact of hitting something hard sent me tumbling onto my backside. I frantically checked the magic stone in my hands. It was still there, and I let out a sigh of relief.
“Can the young lady not even look where she is walking?”
A voice mixed with a scoff came from above. Looking up, I saw the Emperor looking down at me, arms crossed and a smirk on his face.
“Shall I lend you a hand?”
“...No, thank you.”
Feeling irritated by the Emperor’s mocking tone, I stood up quickly and gave a formal curtsy.
“I was just about to head to your room, but to think you would come from that direction. How passionate.”
“I am in a hurry, so if you will excuse me.”
I didn't have time to waste here. I bowed my head and tried to pass the Emperor, but he grabbed my arm and stopped me.
“Wait.”
“Please let go.”
“I have business with you. I will not permit you to act as you please.”
The air around the Emperor turned sharp. Shifting from the casual atmosphere he had shown recently, he commanded me in a resonant baritone. His narrowed, piercing gaze felt as though it were squeezing my heart.
“...Your Imperial Majesty seems to have a great deal of free time.”
“Unfortunately, since you came to this country, I haven't felt like going to others.”
Sweat beaded on my back as I threw a sarcastic remark his way. However, the Emperor simply curled his lip into a grin.
“I feel like invading somewhere soon, but for now, watching your futile efforts seems more entertaining.”
The Emperor is different today.
The aura he projected was prickly and high-pressure. Yet, he seemed to be in a good mood, like a beast that had just sated its hunger.
“So, the Pure Magic Stone is complete, isn't it?”
The Emperor pulled my arm toward him, his smile deepening with amusement.
I haven't told anyone about this magic stone since I finished it late last night. So how does the Emperor know...
As my eyes widened in shock, the Emperor snatched the handkerchief-wrapped stone from my hand.
“Ah!”
“Ho, so this is it...”
Tossing the handkerchief aside, the Emperor held the Pure Magic Stone up toward the sky.
“It is indeed a beautiful thing. Is the mana of spirits truly this captivating? It is no wonder the dragons of the past went mad over it.”
As if mesmerized, the Emperor didn't take his eyes off the Pure Magic Stone, turning it over in his hand to examine it from every angle.
“...Please give it back.”
I reached for the stone, but it was far beyond my reach in the tall Emperor’s hand.
“Do you wish to deliver it to Nana?”
I glared at him, but he gripped the magic stone, turned on his heel, and began walking down the corridor.
“Your Imperial Majesty, where are you going?!”
I hurried after him, and he stopped abruptly to look back.
“If you want it back, come with me.”
♢
“It has been a long time since I traveled by carriage.”
Where the Emperor led me, a magnificent carriage was waiting, its luxury catching the eye immediately. It had a white exterior with gold patterns and yellow and purple floral designs on the sides. The Emperor climbed in as if it were the most natural thing in the world and gestured for me to follow.
The Emperor had the magic stone now. It was likely hidden in a pocket, but I didn't know where. Biting my lip, I entered the carriage with the help of the coachman.
“It feels quite cramped.”
The Emperor sat on the velvet seat with his legs crossed. He looked like a masterpiece painted by a master artist. His well-built physique was evident even through his clothes, and his features were as sharp as a sculpture. Even without his overwhelming martial prowess, his mere presence would captivate many.
“It seems plenty spacious to me.”
“You call this spacious? I haven't been in a carriage since I was a child, but it is quite suffocating.”
“...The Emperor of Tratia has no occasion to travel by carriage?”
I had never heard of an emperor who didn't use a carriage. I asked despite myself, and the Emperor sighed, knitting his brows.
“I was born into this country as the Third Prince, but my mother was a commoner maid working in the Imperial Castle. She was a greedy woman whose only pride was her beauty.”
“What?”
“My mother was likely overjoyed when she became pregnant with me, thinking she could become a concubine. But my father loathed the idea of making a lowly commoner a concubine. As a result, I was a prince in name only... nothing more than a filthy brat.”
The Emperor continued in a detached tone, as if reading a book for the first time.
“I grew up quietly in a small detached palace during my childhood, forbidden from going to the main building or outside the castle. What was expected of me was to live and die while holding my breath in a small birdcage. No one imagined I would become Emperor, nor did they wish for it.”
What was reflected in the Emperor’s eyes as he looked out the window? I followed his gaze as the carriage rattled along. In the distance beyond the plains, magnificent mountains capped with silver stood tall.
“But my world changed after my mother died. My father, the Former Emperor, noticed my talent.”
When he mentioned the Former Emperor, a flicker of anger seemed to cross his eyes.
“From then on, the best magicians and knights in the country became my teachers. Though even they were easily defeated by me.”
The Emperor suddenly turned his gaze toward me, studying my face intently.
“Have you ever killed a person?”
“...No, I haven't.”
He let out a breath and smirked. “I thought as much.”
“The first time I killed someone, I believe... I was six. I will never forget the pleasure of that moment. It was the day I learned what the irritation that had been swirling inside me since I was young truly was.”
Why is the Emperor telling me this?
I wanted to ask immediately, but he spoke so calmly that I could only listen.
“The destructive urge that every Dragonewt possesses to some degree. In me, it was prominent. Every day was a struggle to suppress the constant anger and irritation. But the moment I tore flesh, bathed in blood, and extinguished a life... for that one instant, the anger vanished and my head became clear.”
The Emperor spoke as if it were someone else's story, a self-deprecating smile on his face.
“You have likely never thought of destroying this entire world.”
“...What would be the point of destroying it?”
“I can turn this mad world into dust with my own hands.”
The Emperor clenched his fist in front of his chest.
“Do you think of such things constantly?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Why...”
“Why? Because I am none other than the Reincarnation of the Progenitor Dragon.”
I was lost for words at this first glimpse into the Emperor’s inner self. But he said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Why do you believe you are the reincarnation of the Progenitor, Your Imperial Majesty?”
“I was born with extraordinary power. That is why those around me say so. But I have a certainty that is different from that. It is because I frequently dream of the time when I was the Progenitor Dragon.”
Dreams of when he was the Progenitor?
The Emperor glanced at my stunned face and turned back to the window with a bored expression.
“...This sensation is something only I can understand.”
He looked out the window with cold eyes, as if he had shut out the world. In his gaze, there was no anger, irritation, or grief—only a coldness that suggested he had given up on everything.
In the silence, the rattling of the carriage echoed loudly. What felt like an eternity might have only been a few minutes. The one to break the silence was the Emperor, who had been expressionless until then.
“Do you know of the Dragon's Heart?”
“...I have heard of it.”
My shoulders jumped at his low murmur. Without noticing my surprise, the Emperor said, “I see,” and slowly turned toward me.
“Dragonewt is originally a name only for those related to the imperial family who inherit the blood of the Progenitor Dragon. Since the ancestors of Dragonewts are, of course, dragons, they are both human and dragon. And when a Dragonewt changes into a dragon, it is called Dragonification. The heart of one who died in that dragon form is called a Dragon's Heart.”
“So, a Dragon's Heart... doesn't refer to an ordinary dragon, but the heart of Tratian royalty?”
“Yes, exactly.”
The Tratia Empire was once a nesting ground for dragons. Among them, a special dragon was born that could take human form. That was the Progenitor Dragon, the first Emperor of the Tratia Empire. He could command the other dragons known as Combat Dragons, and that ability has been passed down to his descendants.
So the Dragon's Heart wasn't a Combat Dragon's heart, but the heart of Tratian royalty.
If so, why was he suddenly telling me this? Even though he must have noticed my searching gaze, the Emperor didn't mention it and continued calmly.
“By taking that Dragon's Heart into one's body, a Dragonewt can maximize the power sleeping within them. I thought that if I, the Reincarnation of the Progenitor Dragon, could just obtain that, I would be able to achieve Dragonification.”
So that’s why the Emperor was so desperate to get the Dragon's Heart. To gain the power to transform into a dragon.
“Dragons went extinct, and the original power of the Dragonewts weakened. Among the imperial family, there is no longer anyone who can achieve Dragonification. As a Dragonewt, I must reclaim that power.”
The Emperor’s quiet voice resonated clearly within the small space of the carriage.