DSMBL Chapter 34

Chapter 034

“Let me go!”

W-What? Who just spoke? I blinked rapidly, looking around in confusion. Judging by the startled faces of those around me, I wasn’t the only one who heard that voice.

Only Theo seemed thrilled, holding Kiki in his hands with an excited expression.

“Theo!”
“Kiki’s back, Charlotte! I knew it—it was just hungry!”

The moment Theo hugged Kiki tightly to his chest—

“I told you to let me go, didn’t I?! Argh!”

Kiki pushed Theo’s face away… and spoke? Even the knights stared blankly at Theo and Kiki in disbelief.

Theo, however, acted like nothing unusual was happening, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

“Whoa! Did you see that? Kiki just talked! Wow, Kiki isn’t just a normal lizard—it’s amazing!”

“Lizard?!”

Successfully escaping Theo’s grasp, Kiki jumped to the ground and stood upright on two legs.

A lizard walking on two legs? Then, standing tall, it declared proudly:
“I am a descendant of the great dragon race! The last remaining heir of this land!”

A… dragon.

The knights murmured uneasily at the unexpected appearance of such a creature. Wasn’t it just an ordinary black lizard?

“Whoa! Are you really a dragon?”

Theo asked, his excitement undeterred. Kiki nodded confidently.

“Of course! What did you think I was?!”
“But… why don’t you have wings if you’re a dragon?”

“Argh! If you saw my true form, you wouldn’t dare say such disrespectful things! My true body is sealed away, but once I regain it, you’ll see!”

As Kiki huffed in frustration, small wings sprouted on his back.

Wings. Real wings.

The highest-ranking species of reptiles had just appeared before us.

“Can you fly, Kiki?”

“Kiki? What’s that?”

“Your name!”

“Ridiculous! How could this body’s name be something so tacky?”

“Do you even have a name?”

The dragon nodded grandly, its size still far from intimidating—honestly, it still looked more like a lizard than anything scary. I swallowed hard.

But, considering it could walk on two legs, had wings, and could talk, it felt less unsettling than before.

“My glorious name is Stephanie Chlorice Eracleum!”

“Spaghetti Erarium?”

“Spaghetti?!”

Theo, unable to catch the full name, shortened it to Spaghetti, and the dragon stomped its feet in fury, its black face somehow seeming to flush red.

“Stephanie! It’s Stephanie! That’s the name of the great ancestor, the mother of the dragon race! You should recognize the greatness of this body that inherited that name!”

Alright, you’re Spaghetti now.
Honestly, it felt more approachable than “Stephanie.”

The knights, struggling to suppress their laughter, kept their composure. Watching Theo and Spaghetti bicker, I turned to the knights.

“… Is a dragon safe to have around?”

In the original story, dragons never made an appearance. The only mention of them was that Istheria had inherited their bloodline.

I couldn’t tell if this dragon was a friend or an enemy.

“This must be reported to His Grace immediately,” said the knights.

They weren’t just laughing—they had been carefully observing the dragon the whole time. Their hands resting on their sword hilts proved it.

“Is it dangerous?”

“It’s just a young hatchling. Dragons themselves aren’t inherently dangerous. They eat magical beasts and are known to be friendly towards humans. Additionally, they share a connection with Istheria’s bloodline.”

“This doesn’t seem like the right place to discuss this. It would be best to move immediately.”

I nodded. It’s best to trust the knights who’ve lived here their whole lives when in doubt.

“Theo, we should head back.”
“But I haven’t caught any fish yet!”
“We need to show Spaghe… I mean, Stephanie to Cassius.”
“To my brother?”
“Yes. How about we save the swimming for next time?”

After a moment of hesitation, Theo nodded enthusiastically.

“Alright!”

And with that, we headed home, dragging a squirming Spaghetti along. To keep him out of sight, we placed him in the now-empty picnic basket, as the knights suggested.
Theo didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he seemed ecstatic just to be heading back with Spaghetti.

As I followed behind Theo, I mentally reviewed the original story.

A dragon. A dragon, of all things.

No matter how much I thought about it, dragons had never appeared before. Maybe they showed up later in the story, in parts I hadn’t read yet.

But would a creature as significant as a dragon only briefly appear as a minor character?

Or perhaps, like me, it was another unexpected variable.

Why would this world summon both me and a dragon?
Was there something specific I had to do?

My gaze landed on Theo. Up until now, I’d thought my mission was to keep him safe. But what if there was something more?
Was I overthinking this?
I clicked my tongue softly.

***

Meanwhile, at the training grounds.

Cassius, who had been taking some rare free time to train, was interrupted by shocking news.

That Theo, who had been completely engrossed in playing in the water, returned early was surprising enough, but what the knights reported next left him stunned.

Cassius lowered his voice.

“Did you just say… a dragon?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

His eyes widened.

A dragon?!

A legendary creature long thought extinct. They were the heroes who had once saved the continent from the sulfurous fires of magical beasts.

The dragon of legend was named Stephanie Triasi Eracleum, a black-scaled dragon with golden eyes that shimmered like starlight. It had fought alongside humans, driving magical beasts beyond the gate and sealing it shut—a true savior.

And now, such a dragon had appeared?

Cassius ran a hand through his hair.

‘What kind of omen is this?’

Before disappearing, Stephanie left behind a prophecy:

“When darkness swallows the world and the shadow of chaos covers the skies, I will return.

With a single beat of my wings, I will split the darkness and light up the heavens.

Like the wind, I will come, shattering all fear.

When I return, hope will be restored, and the light will triumph once again.

Remember, the stars will announce my return on that day.”

***

It was a legend passed down only to those who remembered the dragons of old.
The royal family, the Istheria bloodline, and the ancient noble houses were the only ones who knew about it.

“Darkness and chaos.”
Those words weighed heavily on Cassius’s mind, triggering a chain of thoughts about the strange occurrences recently discovered in the northern regions:
The monster gates and the snow beasts.

Cassius frowned deeply.
“This isn’t something to take lightly.”

What troubled him even more was the name of the dragon he had heard—Stephanie.
It was the same name as the black dragon once called the “Beacon of Salvation,” a dragon who burned monsters with its fiery breath and led humanity like a guiding light.

Holding his sword’s sheath, Cassius gave his orders.
“Return immediately. Keep constant watch, and under no circumstances should its presence be revealed to the outside world.”
“Yes, Your Grace!”

The knights bowed and moved swiftly. Cassius quickened his pace, his thoughts racing.

The implications of a dragon’s reappearance made his head throb. He also felt the heavy weight of the truth that the northern nightmare hadn’t yet ended.

The weight of the sword at his waist felt like it was pressing down on him.

When Cassius, drenched in sweat, finally arrived at the heavily guarded area, he found himself in front of Charlotte’s chambers.

“Is it here?”

 “Yes, Your Grace.”

Cassius hesitated and checked his appearance. Having just come from training, he was covered in sweat and dust.

He took a step back, realizing this wasn’t the right state to meet Charlotte. This wasn’t a place where he could walk in looking so disheveled. Running a hand through his hair, he spoke.
“…I’ll bathe and change first. Let her know she’ll have to wait a little longer.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”

He wasn’t sure why he made such a decision. Bathing wasn’t the top priority right now, yet it felt like something he had to do.

The image of Charlotte’s gaze flashed through his mind.
More specifically, he didn’t want her to see him like this—messy and unkempt. He only wanted to show her a refined and composed version of himself.

Cassius didn’t know why he felt this way, but it bothered him. Clicking his tongue softly, he muttered,
“Really, I’m doing such absurd things.”

Judging himself, Cassius quickened his steps, determined to finish quickly.