Episode 98. first meeting (4)

After the extinction of the Stella family, there was no one who did not bow their heads in front of the emperor, and the empire was at peace for a long time.

Thanks to Holy Prince Zer-nim inheriting the absolute power built up by the blood of his ancestors, the inside of the empire was so stable that it was difficult to believe that it was suffering from an endless war with demon beasts.

Without declaring a general mobilization order or forcibly sending the people to the front lines, they are defending the border by winning every battle of attrition with the endless monsters… .

This would have been impossible without the emperor’s superhuman efforts to minimize the burden on the people by maximizing efficiency with limited manpower and supplies.

‘It’s an achievement that will never be erased.’

The first princess, Seryl, loved her father, a great saint.

As if burning his whole body with responsibility as an emperor, his father devoted himself to ruling the country without even getting enough sleep.

Seryl had always felt that he who willingly accepted the heavy responsibility that came with great power was far more noble than saints.

However, for Seril, there is only one person who is closest to the ideal ruler, even if it is Jer-nim. There were minor downsides.

‘Why does he hate the sacrifice of a cow for a greater cause?’

His father’s mildness was not befitting the ruler of an empire.

The life sacrificed by his ancestors is the fundamental driving force that enables him to lead everyone.

How contradictory it is to stand on the altar of blood and not have blood on your hands.

There were several times when I wanted to ask my father, who denied the previous emperor’s actions, if he didn’t know why everyone obeyed him… . Seril couldn’t bear to do that as a child’s duty.

It was said that on the day the previous generation put an end to the Stella family, my father was so shocked that he even suffered from blood phobia.

I don’t know the details of the circumstances, but it was understandable that Stella’s demise remains a strong trauma, and it is difficult for her to make a harsh decision.

‘so… . I’ll have to make up for what my father lacks.’

Inhuman coldness and superhuman responsibility.

Those were the qualities Seril thought of an emperor.

Hwang Kwon sucks in someone’s blood and spreads its roots. She fully understood this through the politics of her predecessors.

And he was ready to take responsibility for all those sacrifices.

On behalf of his father, who was preoccupied with controlling the wartime situation, he was in charge of internal payment issues within the imperial family.

Taking advantage of the war, he secretly punished those who tried to overstep his authority little by little, and ascended to the position of power next to the emperor.

Even before they were blood relatives, he did his best to prevent the dispersion of power by constantly checking the second and third rivals for the throne of the next emperor.

All of the secret research on mana reduction theory in order to completely destroy the new purge target to succeed Stella, theological students… .

“To protect my father. And-“

“As the next emperor, to shoulder all the responsibilities… . is it?”

“Yes, Kegar. That is the weight of the crown. Our youngest who grew up like a child… . It’s a harsh thing to put on a frill.”

The sky over the imperial garden was cloudy.

Seryl, who received the magical engineering receiver handed to her by a young butler who was less than ten years old, asked Kegar with a heavy heart.

“Can Professor Ian understand this?”

“… He is a stubborn person. I don’t think I will break my faith easily.”

“I already knew that my father would talk to Frill every night and forget his fatigue for a while. In a way, the child could be said to be close to the current emperor, but the reason I didn’t treat him as harshly as the second or third… . It was because I didn’t want to take away the happiness of my father, the only one left.”

However, I can’t let this situation where the names of Frill and Ian keep being heard inside the imperial family.

If Ian had quietly cooperated with the Mana Reduction Theory research, he would have watched the situation a little longer.

He had no choice but to accept that he dared to reject his proposal so clearly as an unspoken challenge to the next emperor.

“I cannot leave him alone.”

“Would you like to come?”

“It is. Almost all the professors have arrived by now. Didn’t the observers say they would let you in in two days?”

“That’s right. I will be waiting with a happy heart.”

A drop or two of rain began to fall.

A few drops of water soaked her dress, and the butler became contemplative and belatedly opened his umbrella.

Under the shade of an umbrella, Seryl muttered with the receiver in her ear.

“Originally, I’m reluctant to go far… . I can’t help it this time You are crying.”

“I have news that will comfort the princess.”

“What?”

“There are research results that I would like to show you. You can look forward to it.”

* * *

It’s been 7 hours since the train has been running non-stop, and the time points to 11:00 AM.

As you get out of the green landscape, a beautiful, white stone mountain like a sculpture begins to stand out from a distance.

I saw the Dragon Caldera’s lair right next to the first tower.

‘… It’s much bigger than I thought.’

If Caldera had a body similar to her nest… . Night will come to the castle just by spreading its wings in the sky.

I had read in novels that mountains were cut down and castle walls collapsed with just one flap of my wings, but when I saw it with my own two eyes, I definitely felt the sense of intimidation.

At the same time, the fact that Dana clinging to the window is of the same species as them started to create cognitive dissonance.

‘… Have I been too comfortable with you so far?’

“Brother.”

“Yeah?”

“You mean there’s the first tower in there?”

“That’s right. A presentation will be held there soon.”

“Hmm… .”

Two days later, when the nest opens, Professor Kiruna will present the research results in the magic tower standing right next to the caldera.

Adding Kegar and Dana together, it was like three dragons gathered around the four-story magic tower.

‘The same thing must have happened in the background of the novel.’

Even if I hadn’t been possessed, Dana, who has shown incredible research achievements, would have been on the shortlist for the performance presentation.

Dana probably rode this train alone.

‘… There’s no way something as large as this could have happened by chance.’

In other words, she and Kegar were destined to meet here even in the novel.

If you think about what Ah-yeong said about Dana, you can predict the flow of the original story they met.

‘That… . I’m going to hide the fact that I’m a dragon, and reveal my identity in the second half like a twist.’

‘yes? So you’re saying it wasn’t a character to be consumed lightly?’

‘I’m thinking about how to play an active role in the second half, but I haven’t thought about how to put in a double line and retrieve it yet.’

It is clear that Dana’s reversal elements prepared by Ayeongi are far from bright colors.

The true face of Dana, whom I first met last winter, was definitely dark.

What if she met Kegar in the state of human hatred and nihilism as she did back then?

The main point of mana reduction theory is that everything humans have given meaning to until now is just a function of mana, so she must have been very interested in his research.

In other words, Dana in the novel… . There was a high possibility that he was a member of Laplace and a villain who revealed his identity in the second half.

‘It doesn’t seem like it anymore, but.’

The intuition that she had changed, which she felt from the way she did her best to help Charlotte, was still strong.

The moment Kegar’s proposal was clearly rejected, it was clear that she was once again walking on a completely different line from the original work.

‘What would the ending of this novel that Ayoung envisioned look like?’

If Ayoung wrote the novel until the second half, Yuri there fights against Professor Dana… . Furthermore, did Laplace even block it?

Even if he was the main character, it was too heavy an ordeal for Yuri to shoulder alone.

‘… Why did Ayeong lay such a dark and heavy foreground?’

The time left until arriving at the accommodation was too short to answer that question.

Dana and I got off the train while being waited on by escorts and servants supported by the imperial family.

* * *

“Eh?”

After getting off the train, Dana looked around at the white buildings and looked at me and tilted her head.

“I heard it was a hotel, right? If you look at Amman, this is just a research center, isn’t it?”

“Probably that tallest building is a hotel. It seems to be used as accommodation for scholars who usually work here.”

“What is there to study in such a secluded place? … Ah, it must be the Caldera Lab.”

Hearing the sound of the train stopping, the scholars who had rushed out of the institute took the professors one by one and escorted them to the hotel, followed by servants who packed their bags.

“I will personally meet the professors.”

As we look back, Mel lowers his head, pulling back the white robe on his head.

The scholars who came out to greet the professors at the institute were all of the Nigredo class wearing black robes.

‘By the way… ?’

Eleven scholars came out in front of the station. It was the same number of professors minus me and Dana.

From the beginning, it seemed like Mel was destined to take care of us.

We wondered why Mel, who was one rank higher than them, was in charge, but decided to watch the situation first.

Walking towards the hotel, Mel pointed to the area to the right, lined with all sorts of research facilities.

“As Professor Dana said, this whole place is the Caldera Laboratory. It’s not small. It is called the core that leads the Empire’s dragon research.”

“By the way, Caldera opens a nest once every five years, right? Only during the Kiruna achievement presentation.”

“That’s right.”

“I understand that when the nest is open, it’s the only chance to observe a dragon up close, but what are people doing here when it’s closed?”

“We continue our research on dragons. It analyzes the concentration of mana around it to predict the dragon’s breathing rate, or measures the strength of ground vibration when the caldera stomps to estimate its weight.”

“Wow… .”

“Recent research has revealed that the caldera’s sleep cycle is disrupted… . Why?”

“Nope… . it’s nothing… .”

While Dana was muttering to herself that she was getting goosebumps, we arrived at the hotel.

“This Caldera Hotel is a facility for distinguished guests visiting the research institute, and as it is a place where even the emperor sometimes visits, there will be no inconvenience in staying for a week.”

“Five… ! Is it better than where we lived?”

As she said, the lobby of the Caldera Hotel was so elegant that the Kiruna Faculty Dormitory was forgotten.

The caldera’s nest, spread across the glass wall, matched well with the white marble floor and pillars.

In the sun-lit lounge, several professors and scholars were already chatting on the sofas in primary colors.

Mel spotted it and offered us tea, but Dana shook her head.

“I’m going to look around here a little bit. Who is your junior?”

“I want to get some rest.”

“Then I will show you to Professor Ian’s private room.”

‘… This is also strange.’

The person who needs guidance is not me, but Dana, who will tour the surrounding facilities.

All I had to do was tell me which room to use… .

‘Is there a reason you chose me between the two? Like saying something that shouldn’t be said outside.’

At that moment, Meriel and I met eyes. She seemed to be thinking the same thing as me, but she didn’t react much, just shrugged her shoulders.

Taking it as meaning that there were no suspicious signs around me, I decided to let Mel move as he wanted.

“See you later-“

Leaving behind Dana waving her hand and walking away, Mel and I climbed the magic engineering elevator.