Chapter 88: Threads of Fate

[Sub Mission Completed!]

[Rewards:]

[1. Attack: E → D]

[2. Poison Nullification (Rare) → Acquired]

“That was… exhausting as hell…” Lucion’s voice rattled in his throat as he collapsed backward onto the damp earth, his limbs splaying wide across the grass.

He tilted his face toward the weak gold of the morning sun, watching his uneven breath fog in the cool air.

Running a full hundred kilometers with a body that initially felt like it was held together by brittle twigs was pure torture, but beneath the burning in his lungs, he could feel his muscles recovering."

At least now he had laid a decent foundation before the academy’s curtains opened.

He lay in a dimension where the horizon was interrupted only by the lonely silhouettes of scattered trees. Most of the surrounding forest was bleeding away its vitality, shedding brittle amber and brown leaves.

Yet, one anomaly shattered the melancholic landscape, standing in defiance of the seasons—a singular, majestic cherry blossom tree.

Pink petals tumbled from its branches in a perpetual dance toward the roots. But even as countless petals blanketed the earth below, the branches above remained perpetually full.

“The Maiden of Shinradra…” Lucion murmured, his gray eyes reflecting the soft pink hue. “If it weren’t for her lingering presence granting me that insane stamina buff, my heart would have exploded ten kilometers back.”

He forced his leaden legs to twitch, pushing himself up from the ground.

“I have to use this hidden zone to the fullest before the main character stumbles upon this place, the Garden of Shinradra.”

Dragging his overworked body across the grass, he approached a tear in the atmosphere—a swirling portal that served as the threshold out of the hidden realm.

“It’s almost time; I should get ready,” he muttered, rolling his shoulders as he stepped into the ripples of blue light to face the real world.

***

“Hey! Hey! Hey! Let’s get some of that too!”

Inside Gergrain’s crowded capital, a shout of gluttony cut through the ambient noise of trading merchants and rolling wagons. Passersby turned their gazes toward the source, their expressions a mix of amusement and bewilderment.

“Don’t you already have enough? Just look at you,” Noa asked, looking down at the dragon girl walking beside him.

To any ordinary observer, the pair looked like a tired older brother dragging a hyperactive kid through a festival. Elina looked tiny amidst the towering stone buildings of the foreign capital, her small frame buried under a mounting fortress of sugar.

“Mmm… I guess so? Then I’ll just come back with Lina after these are finished?”

As they navigated the sea of unfamiliar faces, Noa casually rolled a small velvet box between his fingers. Inside lay a finely crafted silver necklace.

A smirk touched his lips, thoroughly satisfied with the purchase. Then he slipped the box into his pocket dimension, letting it swallow the item whole before the tear zipped shut silently.

“Now that things are done, let’s meet up with the—”

A sudden, light tug on the fabric of his jacket stopped him. It was a frail, trembling clutch, as if the fingers responsible were already losing their fight against gravity.

What the hell…? I didn’t sense anyone, though, Noa thought, his gaze instantly narrowing as he spun around.

There stood an old man, his spine severely bowed, his dry skin clinging tightly to skeletal hands.

Noa looked into his eyes, seeing irises like a galaxy of violet nebulae and celestial dust. And at the center of those irises sat a white pupil, forged into the shape of a star.

Those eyes looked straight into Noa’s own purple ones—neither intensely nor happily, just staring.

“Young man… no, you’re not young at all,” the old man rasped in an unsteady voice. He extended a trembling finger toward him. “Primordial, you… you will die by the hands… of a dragon.”

“…A dragon?” Behind Noa, Elina muttered.

The cheerful, sugar-high energy around her evaporated, replaced by an icy, paralyzing dread that rooted her to the cobblestones.

A mocking chuckle broke the silence near Elina. She snapped her head up, her terrified expression faltering against Noa’s relaxed, amused demeanor.

“Well then, I’ll tell that dragon to go fuck themselves when I meet them,” Noa said, flashing an arrogant smile.

The old man stared into those purple eyes for a few lingering seconds before turning around. He took halting steps into the dense crowd, his silhouette slowly dissolving into the mass of moving citizens, leaving behind one final, ethereal whisper that drifted on the wind:

“A fitting… answer indeed. But… can you truly… turn fate around?”

A dragon? I-it can’t be me, right? Then is it one of them? How? Elina thought, her face turning pale as her fingers trembled against her pastries.

“Mmph!?”

Before she could spiral any deeper into her panic, a thick, cream-filled cannoli was jammed into her mouth. She blinked in surprise, then instinctively began chewing.

“Don’t worry. Neither you nor I will die by any of those guys’ hands,” Noa said, his hand coming down to ruffle her hair in an aggressive scrub. “Just trust in her plans, and we will win, if not with power, with cheats.”

“I whas nwot wrorried,” she muttered, quickly looking away as a faint flush colored her cheeks. “I whas jwast… curwious.”

“Okay then.” Letting out a chuckle, Noa turned back toward the main thoroughfare, resuming their march toward the others.

“By the way, do you really believe that old man?” Elina asked, hurrying her pace to keep up with his long strides as they blended into the flowing currents of the crowd.

“Yeah. There are no coincidences in a world filled with stories, stupid dragon.”

…

Noa and Elina finally reached the spot they had decided to meet at, a few miles before the towering castle gates of Gergrain.

Standing near the awning of a stone storefront were Vionette and Lina. Lina was looking thoroughly flustered, her arms crossed in a pout, while Vionette stood beside her, gently patting the younger girl’s head with a sigh.

“Wow…” Noa whispered, his eyes locking onto her.

“‘Wow’ what?! She’s just standing there!” Elina shouted at him, throwing her hands up in utter disbelief at his immediate romantic daze.

“Exactly…” Noa muttered, ignoring the dragon.

After a few more steps, the two closed the distance, and the waiting pair looked up.

In a flash, Lina cast all dignity to the wind and launched herself forward. She wrapped her arms tightly around Noa’s waist, her knees hitting the cobblestones as she began weeping tears of despair.

“Whaaaah! Big Bro! They don’t have the swords I need! I want a cool-looking one like yours and Big Sis Vionette’s too!” She looked up at him with wide, watery puppy-dog eyes. “Please, Big Bro, I need this! My current sword is kinda useless!”

Noa looked down at his sister, his brows twitching. Finally reining in his annoyance, he let out a long breath and turned toward Vionette.

“She doesn’t like the swords here?”

“We searched through the whole city, and there were many beautiful ones… but none earned her interest,” Vionette replied, taking a step toward them. “So we just came out empty-handed.”

“We’ll just make you one if you don’t want to buy one, so fucking get off of me,” Noa grumbled, his teeth gritted.

“Thank you so much~” Lina’s tears dried up instantly as a big, sweet smile took place.

Without missing a single beat, she quickly jumped to Elina’s side to secure her half of the smuggled desserts, and with a faint smile, Noa watched the two girls immediately begin bickering over a sugar-dusted pastry.

Then, with a gentle tap, Vionette placed a finger below his chin and leaned her face incredibly close to his.

Her crimson eyes gleamed with a dangerous, playful light. “So, My Love, what did you go and buy for me?”

His faint smile froze, twisting into something closer to a grimace. “…It’s a little secret, I’ll give it to you later.”

“Really?” Vionette laughed in amusement, her gaze drifting past his shoulder toward the massive spires of Gergrain Castle far away. “Okay then, shall we continue what we actually came here for?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Noa lifted his chin away and glanced back at the two gremlins who were currently stuffing their faces with shameless greed. “Hey, you two! Throw those away and come here!”

“Mmhm!”

“Hmmpp!”

Both replied with their mouths filled with food, too greedy to throw anything away without tasting every single crumb.

---

In the middle of the road leading to the castle stood a gorgeous royal carriage with a senior butler dressed in a black professional suit.

Ah, there they are.

The butler looked at the approaching duo. Being a well-informed person, he instantly recognized the pair by their contrasting characteristics—one a devouring abyss of black, and the other a radiant crown of white.

“You must be Her Majesty of Crimvane.” He bowed deeply at Vionette before looking at Noa. “And of course, I’ve also heard a lot about you too, Your Majesty.”

“Yooo… I’m that famous?” Noa turned his head to look at Vionette with a raised eyebrow.

Vionette gave a proud nod with a smug smile, as if she were personally responsible for his reputation. Given the reason they first met, she technically was.

The butler straightened his back and looked behind the royal couple to inspect their retinue.

Lina’s cute face appeared from behind Noa’s back, looking at the butler as if they were engaged in a game of hide-and-seek; simultaneously, a pair of dragon horns poked out just before Elina’s face emerged from behind Vionette’s back.

“They are…” The butler was lost for words, his rigid composure fracturing for a fraction of a second as he looked back at Noa. “…Your escorts?”

“No, we didn’t bring any escorts,” Noa answered dismissively, waving a hand. “It’s only us two, my sister, and her friend.”

“Ah! Pardon my rudeness, ladies.” The butler executed another bow toward the two teenagers. “Then please, step into the carriage. We’ll escort you to the castle.”

Who comes to a foreign kingdom without a single escort, bringing their family instead like they’re on a casual weekend vacation?

“Wow, you guys really went all in for this, huh?” Vionette remarked, stepping toward the plush leather interior.

“We are honored by your praise, Your Majesty. We did indeed spare no expense; this is an important moment for our king, after all,” the butler said with a steady smile, holding the door open.

“Is that so… well, I’m excited to witness this ‘important moment’ as well~”