The Foreigner on the Periphery

Grand Patriarch Felix felt a fury that went far beyond mere bewilderment.

As the representative of the priests arguing that a prisoner with a human body must never be granted the Avatar Rank, he was already displeased that the man was seated at the head of the table for today's meeting. To make matters worse, the man had pulled out a Frying Pan to insult them, only to transform it into the order's sacred relic right before their eyes.

Yet an even more offensive and shocking event followed: the Pope's Deputy had grabbed the blade—with no way to verify whether it was a fake or the real thing—and brought it to his own neck. The attempt mirrored the sacred Baptism, which only horrified Felix further.

It would be one thing for an ordinary priest, but the Pope's Deputy should never do such a thing. It was meaningless self-harm. Even if that weapon was the true Holy Sword, the soul of the one chosen as the order's representative could not receive the brand.

'Has he suddenly lost his mind?'

If not, there was only one possible reason for such erratic behavior.

"What in the world have you done to that Sword! I don't know how you've clouded his mind, but stop it at once!"

Felix was pushing the narrative that this was Minjun's conspiracy, trying to sway the mood of the room.

The foreigner merely offered the priest a calm stare. Seeing that plain, unimpressed face made Felix's blood boil all over again.

Biting his lip tightly, Felix glared at him, then turned his head to address the Pope's Deputy.

"Please put down that wicked imitation. I don't know what kind of trickery this is, but it is clear that it has tainted you, Deputy!"

The priests who followed Felix murmured in agitated agreement.

The Pope's Deputy stared at the Sword in his hand for a long time with trembling eyes.

"..."

Ultimately, he gave up and pulled it away from his neck.

As the blade distanced itself from his flesh, he felt a crushing sense of loss, as if blessed joy were slipping away from him.

He muttered in anguish. He had just thought he might finally be able to reach it—the blessed land of the gods that the other priests had already experienced.

The moment to fulfill the long-cherished desire of his predecessors, who had sacrificed themselves while keeping the promise before him, had been right before his eyes.

'No, not yet.'

He slowly, heavily lowered his head, covering the nape of his neck that he had so defenselessly exposed.

His vision, which had been cast toward the ceiling, settled back on Minjun, who still wore that unreadable expression.

The priest squeezed out his voice with great effort.

"...There is still one thing left. In the scriptures, the Prophet told us to wait until the day of revelation. According to our calculations, we still have time until we reach the cycle where the gods' slumber is at its shallowest. But, Ava..."

The Pope's Deputy hurriedly snapped his mouth shut, nearly calling Minjun an avatar. It was proof that his heart was already leaning in that direction.

But since they had not yet made an official declaration, he couldn't do that.

Even so, he was reluctant to speak the man's secular name again. A feeling of reverence was already spontaneously welling up inside him.

"...But why have you declared that you will collect the Divine Blood so early?"

Minjun decided to deliver a response as close to the truth as possible.

"Because the soul of the Prophet has been sealed within the Sword. Are you going to deny the identity of the soul resting in this blade? Just like that touchy fellow who was shouting a moment ago."

The mocked Felix's face flushed bright red once more, but unlike him, the Pope's Deputy could not distrust the Sword.

Because the Sword had already mentioned the secret promise.

However, it wasn't something he could speak of here. Without confirming or denying it, the Pope's Deputy continued his questioning.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"The Prophet promised to return on the day of revelation before he was sealed in the Sword. Because he can no longer move freely, I have come with him, unlike the original promise."

Low groans rolled through the gathered priests.

It was the moment the reason behind the appearance of an unprophesied avatar was revealed.

"I intend to retrieve the Divine Blood before the ritual in order to unseal my tool, the Prophet. What is the problem with taking back what originally belonged to 'us'?"

The Divine Blood originally belonged to the gods.

And the god's incarnation was demanding its return.

No matter what theological theory they applied, the order had no excuse to refuse.

Provided that one single issue was resolved.

"I still cannot accept this! Show us absolute proof that you are an avatar before our eyes...!"

"Bishop Felix, enough!"

The Pope's Deputy stopped the enraged, ranting man with a sharp shout.

Before Felix could say another word, the Deputy spoke rapidly.

His tone was utterly desperate.

"Give us more time!"

"...?!"

The high priests' eyes widened in shock.

From their perspective, the only proof Minjun had shown was a bizarre object that had transformed from a Frying Pan into the shape of a Holy Sword.

They had not heard the telepathic conversation exchanged between him and the Pope's Deputy.

The order's representative didn't seem to have the luxury of caring about the other priests' reactions. With a face contorted in agony, he barely managed to peel his two hands away from the Dagger. He felt a phantom pain as if he were tearing out his own heart.

Then, the Dagger remained floating in midair, just as it had when it first approached him.

"Time, you say."

Minjun asked in a low voice.

"How much?"

Minjun's tone was relaxed. In stark contrast, the Pope's Deputy answered with great difficulty.

Thick beads of sweat streamed endlessly down his face, exposed above his robes.

"One day... no, two... no, just give us three days!"

Three days.

Minjun tilted his head slightly. The Deputy's face was twisted in pain. What tormented him was not physical suffering, but mental anguish.

He was gripped by a terrible internal conflict.

Was it right to believe Minjun like this? Should he recognize the Ego Sword that knew their secrets as the Prophet?

Was it appropriate to hand over the Divine Blood here—the blood the order had gathered over hundreds of years through the sacrifice of countless priests?

What was right, and what was wrong?

This choice was a critical crossroads that would determine the order's future. The crushing weight of responsibility on his shoulders must be suffocating.

Looking at that face, Minjun was once again reminded of his kin's dilemma.

- Is free will truly essential for happiness?

If that touchy fellow hadn't shouted and caused a scene just now, the Pope's Deputy might have plunged the blade straight into his neck.

That priest held decisive influence over the order's choices. As a result, everything would have easily been resolved exactly as Minjun wanted.

And the man himself wouldn't have had to experience this hell in his heart. Instead, he would have found happiness under Minjun's guidance. All he had to do was follow the 'right path' Minjun prepared. He wouldn't have had to agonize over what was right, struggle to make the correct choice, or suffer pain that felt like his brain was burning.

He could have just blissfully thought and acted as Minjun led him.

'Still, he's almost entirely swayed. In the end, he'll hand the Talent over to me.'

Now that they had come this far, the rest was only a matter of time.

Swish!

With a light flick of his hand, the Dagger flew back into his grasp. He looked at its hilt.

Asiph-1 had confessed that its memories from its time posing as the Prophet were imperfect, but for all that, this historical recreation was nearly flawless.

The code hidden in the intricate pattern was particularly perfect. If he soaked this in Talent and stabbed someone, that code would undoubtedly be branded onto their soul. The code to open the door to the place where his kin slumbered.

Minjun spoke.

"Very well. I shall grant you the right to choose freely by your own will. Just as it has always been."

Minjun's tone was flat, and his choice of words was nothing special.

But to the ears of the priests, accustomed to theological thinking, it sounded like this:

- I will permit you free will.

If Minjun really was an avatar, the priests had just been granted the right to choose whether to accept or reject the love of the gods.

And the scriptures described in terrifyingly vivid detail what happened when one rejected it. Recalling those verses, the priests felt their blood run cold.

Ultimately, Minjun's final words could be interpreted another way:

- I will permit you the freedom to commit sin.

*

"We did it, we actually did it!"

A Lair somewhere on Earth.

A young male and female dragon had their heads together. The male's eyes were brimming with pure ecstasy. He was so excited that scarlet sparks flared in the rough breaths snorting from his nose.

He shouted in an elated tone.

"Asisphael! We did it! It's finally in our hands!"

In the spot where Kaien, the roaring dragon, was looking, lay the prize they had so desperately desired.

It was a crystal glowing with a thick, blood-red light. Even the faintest flicker of illumination in the Lair made it shoot out a fierce, radiant glare. The colossal energy hidden within those brilliant colors silently and subtly encroached upon its surroundings. Because the power was absorbed in a stabilized state within the crystal, only the tip of the iceberg could be felt right now, but even that was enough to send shivers down one's spine.

As if he couldn't quite believe it, Kaien muttered in an intoxicated voice.

"My god, Asisphael. It's Rod's Dragon Heart!"

Asisphael also found the situation hard to believe.

However, unlike her wildly excited lover, her eyes were cautious. Instead of the Dragon Heart, she stared at the bracelet strapped to Kaien's wrist. The artifact the Endelions used as a tentacle clasp could freely adjust its size.

'I really can't believe it. It was this easy?'

Just moments ago, the two of them had infiltrated the Dimensional Jump Terminal in Korea.

The fact that Jenkinson, who held shares in the Terminal, had returned to Korea without warning a short while ago was a massive wild card. After waiting a few days in nail-biting tension, he thankfully returned to Hong Kong. Terrified that he might suddenly come back again, Kaien moved their timeline forward and executed the plan early.

He was terrified that the Ancient Dragon might just decide to settle down in Korea permanently next time.

Just as they had already tested, Kaien's artifact neutralized the barrier protecting the corpse with ridiculous ease. No one noticed the barrier being breached while they slipped in and out, and once they escaped with the Dragon Heart, the hole in the ward repaired itself as if nothing had ever happened.

After the Princess of Endelion who created that barrier went missing, the dragons couldn't enter Rod's temporary tomb. If she didn't return by December 31st—the date Rod specified in his will—the Ancient Dragons intended to pool their strength and forcibly shatter the barrier.

In other words, no one would notice the Dragon Heart was gone until that day arrived.

'A barrier that even Ancient Dragons would have to pool their power just to barely break... that artifact pierced it so easily.'

Asisphael felt more than just surprise at its sheer power; she felt genuine dread.

Kaien's backers who prepared that item were definitely the Ancient Race. Their technological prowess had already reached such an absurd level.

Asisphael couldn't stop her ominous thoughts.

What if they aimed that mana-neutralizing blade at a living person instead of a barrier?

Erasing a single dragon without a trace would be a walk in the park.

In her estimation, even a mighty Ancient Dragon wouldn't be able to resist it.

'Why would they hand over such a lethal weapon to a young dragon like Kaien? What's so important about delaying an election in a backwater dimension like Earth...?'

Kaien quickly noticed his lover's troubled expression. As if to soothe her anxiety, he flicked out his forked, snake-like tongue and gently licked the corner of Asisphael's mouth. Yet, his lover's face refused to soften.

"Don't worry, Asisphael. Everything will be fine!"

Only then did Asisphael manage to suppress her bottomless anxiety and anchor her focus on practical matters.

"So we still can't just flee off-planet right now?"

As much as he wanted to do exactly that, Kaien shook his head.

"My backers don't want that. They want us to stay here a little longer and buy them time by boycotting the election."

"And we can't just absorb the Dragon Heart right away either?"

"We might fool the younger dragons, but we can't deceive the eyes of an Ancient Dragon. If they see us suddenly overflowing with power, they'll obviously get suspicious."

That said, they couldn't betray their backers and escape Earth under their own power either.

This young couple simply didn't have the capability for that. The ability to board a Jump Ship while flawlessly concealing the heart of the strongest, oldest dragon on Earth—

Ultimately, the backers' help was absolutely essential if they wanted to leave this place, evade their pursuers, and live in peace.

"So in the end, we have to stay here as long as they want... and keep buying them time."

Looking deeply into Asisphael's eyes, Kaien said,

"I want to leave right this second too. But we don't have a choice, do we?"

Saying so, Kaien showed absolutely no lingering attachment to his birthworld.

And understandably so. Asisphael knew that he had already put his back against the river. The moment he incited the young dragons and spearheaded the election boycott, the Ancient Dragons cut off his funding and bankrupted Kaien's businesses.

It was a way of fixing his attitude, or breaking him in.

Since punishing the entire hatchling boomer generation that agreed with him would only spark a massive rebellion, they grabbed the ringleader and beat him into the dirt as an example. They wanted the other dragons to watch and learn fear.

Because of that, Kaien already had nowhere left to return to.

"Then, until that time comes, we'll keep the Dragon Heart in my Lair?"

Kaien shook his head.

"We need to distribute the risk. We're going to split it and absorb it together anyway, right?"

"So?"

"Even if we wait to absorb it later, let's split it in two first!"

Kaien spoke in a voice brimming with joy.

"Then we'll each hold onto half of it. Right up until the day we escape Earth. This is the token that guarantees our brilliant future! And at the same time, consider it the wedding gift for when we finally get married out among the stars."

After cheerfully proposing to split his father's heart to use as a wedding gift, Kaien began to chant a spell.

A Dragon Heart wasn't something that would just neatly split in half with brute force. He needed Magic to slice something like that safely.

A blade of blue light was summoned before the chanting Kaien's eyes. Concentrating his mind, Kaien slowly moved it and anchored it over the blood-red Dragon Heart.

The moment the eyes of the young male and female dragons locked onto that single spot.

"...!"

Guided by Kaien, the blade of light slammed into the Dragon Heart with a massive shockwave.

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