What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 505

#505

Confession and Revelation (5)

“The Yeoui Mani [a mystical orb or jewel] was said to be the heart of the Four Dragons. The monster horde has begun to target it in earnest.”

-Swish, swish, swish······!

The intense light of the first sunrise was slowly and redly engulfing the entire camp.

The roaring waves gulped down the brief silence.

We were all captivated by Joan’s story.

The lizard on my palm occasionally trembled or buried its head while tightly gripping my thumb.

As if vividly remembering all the battles and pain of the past.

“Oh! The volcanic eruption in the South was also considered the Four Dragons’ power. Humans faced a terrible disaster due to the dragon’s descent, though unintended.”

“······.”

“So, no one helped the Four Dragons fight!”

Joan gestured grandly as she explained. I blinked in surprise.

In the monastery city of Yericho, Mr. Morhan had told a similar story.

‘No human dared to help the dragon.’

‘Why?’

‘How would I know? That’s what the legends say.’

······Good heavens. So that’s how it was.

I bit my lip at the chilling realization.

-Thump, thump, thump······!

‘Run away! Flee into the caves!’

‘No one should go to help the dragon! Go inland!’

‘Aaaaaah!’

The ancient humans, filled with fear and anger towards fire, did not help the Four Dragons but instead condoned his suffering.

Even though the East Sea enjoyed a year-round optimal water temperature thanks to the dragon’s power to control heat, and the fishing was so good that it was named the ‘Sea of Abundance,’ they betrayed him.

This was the result of long-held fear overcoming faith.

Perhaps it was the result of accumulated resentment suppressing a sense of justice.

Or it could be the result of confusing the power of the sacred object with their own good fortune.

Thus, even when a horde of house-sized monsters rushed into the sea, they did not fight to help the sacred object.

Even as ships sank and treasures were plundered, humans hid even deeper.

-Kkirururu!

‘Aaaaaah! More monsters are coming!’

‘Hide! It is right for them to fight each other and perish together!’

-Kugugung―!

Rather, they worried that another person would die and disappear because of the battle.

“The problem is that the Four Dragons’ heart was, literally, a heart.”

“Wow······.”

Gain looked blankly at us. The lizard lost strength in its legs and drooped.

“Physis [a Greek term for ‘nature’ or ‘essence’]. That’s the name? You’ll know it when you hear it, they say.”

“Oh my.”

I hurriedly met the little one’s eyes. The gray eyes were filled with loss and sorrow.

The feeling of a suspected thought turning out to be true was neither refreshing nor pleasant.

······This child has been robbed of the sacred object’s ‘essence.’

“Heart, Physis? Yeoui Mani? Hey, all the names are difficult except for heart. Anyway, the Griffin clan decided that they had to defeat the dragon first to dominate the sea. Just like Her Highness said, they must have been very intelligent.”

“······.”

“So, they decided to take the heart.”

-Kwaaang!

-Krrr······!

The Four Dragons was already at a disadvantage.

The power of a sacred object without an owner has its limits, and it was a bloody battle fought in the ‘sea,’ which completely deprived him of his freedom.

In comparison, the winged Griffin clan could do anything in the sky.

It is basic for monsters to be weak against water and fire, but mythical-grade monsters already had a huge difference in skin tissue and thickness compared to lower-grade ones.

The flight speed, regeneration, and strength were also enormous. They were also numerous from the start.

Conversely, the dragon could fly in the sky, but it was difficult to run far with a body soaked in water.

Of course, it was not easy to attack and bite the Griffins.

The sacred object was alone from beginning to end.

The battle between the monsters and the sacred object across the sea was repeated for dozens, hundreds, and thousands of days.

-Kwakwakwa······!

Finally, the waterlogged scales and tail dragged the fire dragon under the glacier,

-Kkigigigit! Kkigigit!

-Kkiruru, kkirururu, kkirururuk!

-Kkyaak, kkyaak, kkyaaaak······!

The Griffin clan, covered in blood, circled the sky and shouted,

-Krrrreong!

-······Kwaaaaaaa―!

Until the dragon, who had been deprived of the Yeoui Boju [another term for Yeoui Mani], which was his very essence, let out a final scream and sank to an island in the North Sea.

-Splash!

We flinched and returned to reality at the sound of something falling into the water.

Grandfather, who was putting reddish lumps into a chipped teacup, gave the group an embarrassed smile.

“Oh dear, I’m sorry. I heard that drying the tentacles of Hwangseol Sugar Peony [a fictional flower] is very good for relieving fatigue······. I was preparing something for you to eat.”

“No, it’s okay. Thank you instead.”

I bowed to the elder and met the lizard’s gaze again.

The lizard avoided my gaze for the first time, as if the past story was difficult and humiliating.

Poor thing.

“Ah! Now I know. That’s why the Four Dragons in didn’t have a bead.”

Slap! Gain slapped her knee and raised her hand. Huh?

“There are quite a few illustrations that Prince Alexandre worked on, and the Four Dragons were drawn like cute crocodiles. Looking back, there was no Yeoui Mani either.”

“Oh, now that you mention it. There was no special explanation other than the heart being important.”

I groped the air and answered.

Yes, .

The book was certainly less informative about the sacred objects of the Divine Kingdom than the Empire, and as it went on, it became more of a fairy tale than an explanation.

It was a good reference book for beginners, but insufficient for advanced learning.

“Yes. Since that child lost the Yeoui Mani almost two thousand years ago, it seems to have been forgotten in human traditions, and eventually, no one mentioned it anymore. Right?”

“That’s right. If no one helped the fight, there would have been few who properly witnessed the battle of the ocean. This is a remote land anyway.”

“I didn’t tell you.”

“I was just talking to myself.”

Zibril Diop and Gain bickered.

I patted the lizard’s head with a slightly trembling hand.

“You’ve suffered a lot on your own. So no one knew you lost your heart.”

-······.

“You protected the sea and disappeared into the sea, so there are no writings or pictures recording your actions. Only by word of mouth······.”

-······.

“Did you end up like that because you lost your essence, the heart?”

Tok, the Crown Prince next to me spat out. I turned to him in shock.

Hey. Be more gentle, please! Did you have to say it like that to feel better!

-Tok

“······.”

Then the lizard calmly moved its tail to affirm.

The attitude didn’t seem to be very hurt by anyone’s eyes.

He was tired of his past, but he didn’t seem to be bothered by such words.

I glanced at him, then looked at Hwaseong’s Hyegeom [likely a reference to a specific sword or artifact], and finally stared at the man who owned Hyegeom.

Now I was starting to feel a little absurd.

Are all fire attributes familiar with this kind of speech?

“Huh······.”

Shouldn’t you all take the MBTI [Myers-Briggs Type Indicator] test together? Back then with the air attributes?

“Ahem. Was that why he bothered you all? He wondered if he could rebuild the lost heart. He knows that such a miracle is impossible, but he thought that if there was a good vessel, he might be able to try. ‘The seasons are suspicious, so I was desperate······.’ What does this mean?”

“A good vessel?”

I tilted my head. Joan quickly read the note while holding his hand in the air.

“Oh, according to what I wrote······. What a great calligrapher. Ah! Physis, the sacred object’s ether, is itself the body, the heart, and the vessel.”

“Yes.”

“Yes, since he lost it, he wondered if he could create a new one. He knows it’s a ridiculous idea, but he was a little excited because it was the first time such good vessels had come here all at once?”

“Heo······.”

I sighed and looked at the lizard. The little one turned his body away as if embarrassed.

So he tried to steal François’ lips to covet the vessel, and he stole Duke Diop’s staff to gauge the vessel.

Stealing Sir John’s hair tie and coveting Grandfather’s belt were all for that reason.

It was all to check the depth of the vessel.

“Then what about Christel or the Crown Prince? He couldn’t approach them because they were already the owners of the sacred object?”

-Tok

The lizard repeatedly tapped the palm of my hand with its tail. What a cute way to answer.

-Beep beep beep

Then Dduk-sim, who had been quiet all along, raised his voice.

Joan, startled, said, ‘That’s right!’ as if he remembered something.

“He also wrote the answer to that. Look at this. ‘One could not be approached because he is already the owner of the sacred fire, and the other could not be touched because he possessed the water of my lover.’ What a theatrical tone?”

“Is the sea that little one’s lover? How romantic.”

Gain chuckled as she looked at the lizard.

The little dragon’s back was as red as tomato juice. Hahaha.

“Then why did you knock me out in the library?”

“Oh? Ah, at that time, I didn’t know that Princess Rose had absorbed the sacred object. I just thought she was a water attribute paladin and tried to steal the vessel first······. He almost disappeared after swallowing a piece of the princess’s soul?”

My mouth dropped open at those words.

Oh my gosh, I didn’t know anything at the time and just patted the lizard’s back!

“He’s sincerely sorry, I swear. He must have been momentarily out of his mind. And finally, he said this about Flower Song’s Princess.”

“Yes?”

“······’She is a vessel chosen by the Main God. This body can only revere and revere her.'”

“For someone who said that, he really liked my lizard Noctiluca. He was caught trying to steal it.”

I muttered. The Four Dragons were now as red as rubies from the tip of their tail to their toes.

“Ahem. Anyway! The story that the lizard told Dduk-sim, Dduk-sim told Herrit, and Herrit told me is up to here. Because he lost his essence, the heart, the Four Dragons is now a sacred object and at the same time cannot be a sacred object. The dragon’s form has also been shattered into tens of thousands of pieces and cannot be recovered.”

Joan unfolded the second scroll. Hwururuk, chak!

Herrit, who was helping Grandfather with skillful movements, had a pitiful expression.

“Ah······.”

Chwaaaaaaa―! It was a picture of the Four Dragons’ body falling into the dark deep sea, collapsing into red fragments from the tail.

The sight of water, fire, soot, and bubbles mixed together was very beautiful and felt just as miserable.

I patted the lizard, which was much smaller than before, to comfort it.

To have fought a fierce battle that no one recognized, and to have survived alone here for over a thousand years since then.

“······.”

Wait, then where did the stolen Physis go?

Could it have been swept away by the vast ocean and become a treasure that no one can find?

“Then it’s Her Highness’s turn!”

Click! Gain, who received Grandfather’s Dolmoran herbal tea, said brightly.

I flinched and raised my head. Me?

“Earlier, before we went out to see the sunrise. Didn’t you say you had something to tell us later? That you had a strange dream that wasn’t a dream.”

“Oh, that’s right. I had forgotten for a moment.”

‘Ew!’ Around that time, the protagonist who took a sip of the herbal tea stuck out his tongue.

It seemed to be terribly bitter and tasteless as much as it was good for the body.

Grandfather laughed heartily, but Cedric glared with a blatant look of contempt.

I was about to give him a lecture about not looking at his partner like that―

‘Thump!’

“Huh?”

Tuk, I hurriedly stroked my forehead. There was nothing there.

Of course. I didn’t even wear a hair accessory, so there couldn’t be anything······.

‘Thump!’

「Maintainer of the world.」

“Heok!”

I gasped and widened my eyes.

What resonated from below my forehead was definitely that woman’s voice.

The part where she had put her two fingers was talking to me.

Whoosh! Sir John, who was standing at the entrance, immediately flew this way.

His white hair seemed to slowly obey gravity in front of my eyes.

“Your Highness? Are you feeling unwell?”

“No, I’m fine.”

“Serenite.”

“Really. I can breathe well, and I don’t feel any pain.”

Then the Crown Prince’s jaw tightened. And again―

‘Thump!’

“Ugh······!”

“Your Highness!”

Clatter! When I opened my eyes again, Gain’s face was right in front of me.

Her cool touch on my cheek felt like salvation.

The clear voice strangely faded away and then came closer. ‘His Excellency the Royal Consort, we need to take Her Highness to school!’

‘Thump!’

「Please keep in mind.」

“Ha······.”

It wasn’t accompanied by pain, but a tingling and strange sensation flowed down my spine.

Dduk-sim and the lizard looked at me with surprised eyes. What is this?

It’s already over. Why are you warning me again?

‘Thump!’

「There is only one chance left.」

“What······?”

Flash! My head was immediately lifted. At the same time, clean and cool air filled my lungs.

I looked around with a bewildered face.

All my friends were looking at me with worried and embarrassed faces, but······.

“Oh, I’m fine now?”

I was back to normal. It was true. Just······.

I shouldn’t talk about it. That was the first thought that came to my mind.

She just shut my mouth.