The Ice Dragon has died.
It was such an absurdly unbelievable feat that Kail stared at the Ice Dragon buried under the volcano with a dazed expression.
‘Should I really call this… dead?’
The sound of bubbling lava echoed. Yet, there was still a lingering fear that it might emerge from the mountain and ice walls at any moment.
Still, he didn’t have the courage to dig through the mountain again just to confirm its death. He had somehow managed to bury it under the volcano once—but he wasn’t confident he could do it again.
Besides, the Ice Dragon didn’t seem like the type to fall for the same trick twice.
“Uncle Chang, what do you think?”
“What about?”
“Do you think the Ice Dragon’s dead?”
“It’s probably dead. Despite being a dragon, it seems it couldn’t use any magic, unlike those in legendary tales.”
Merlin informed him that the overwhelming magical power of the dragon, which once seemed to blanket the world, was now completely undetectable beneath the mountain, assuring Kail there was no need to worry.
After hearing this, Kail gazed at the mountain for a moment, then turned away with a deep sigh.
“We’ll seal the mountain again. Permanently.”
“That shouldn’t be too hard.”
“And… we should block off this mountain entirely so no one can approach it.”
“You want us to set up a barrier too?”
Though Merlin found Kail’s suggestion baffling, he agreed that allowing people near the mountain while the Ice Dragon might still be alive would indeed be dangerous. Grumbling, he began the work.
Fortunately, setting up the barrier didn’t take long since there were three sorcerers present.
Two of them were Masters, and the other was a near-Master level sorcerer blocked only by the Master’s threshold.
“Kail.”
Yuri cautiously approached him after finishing the barrier work. Kail tilted his head in question as she drew near.
Glancing around to check if anyone was listening, Yuri covered her mouth with her hand and whispered into Kail’s ear.
“…I think I’ve become a Master.”
It was a very sudden development.
* * *
Unlike beasts that leave behind their hides when they die, the Ice Dragon left nothing behind.
Thus, while Kail felt like he came out at a loss considering the effort put into hunting the dragon, in reality, that wasn’t true.
“Master? Just like that?”
“Yeah.”
“How?”
“…Thanks to the Ice Dragon, maybe?”
Confused by her cryptic words, Kail asked for clarification. After hesitating briefly, Yuri finally spoke.
“The magical energy the dragon emitted acted as a stimulus.”
“What does that even mean…? Becoming a Master isn’t something that happens just because of ‘stimulus.’”
“But it’s true.”
Though Yuri’s explanation left some doubts, Kail couldn’t help but believe her after witnessing her cast a 5-star spell.
Moreover, if he thought about it, hadn’t his own ascension to Master been triggered by the ‘stimulus’ of fighting Chantelca?
And in games, Yuri had always become a Master rather easily. So, it made sense that in real life, absorbing the dragon’s magic might push her over the edge.
‘A Master, huh…’
Kail glanced at Yuri, recalling how she had collapsed feverishly after facing the dragon. That must have been part of her awakening process as a Master.
Regardless of how it happened, now that she was a Master—
‘This will be helpful.’
The combination of warrior and sorcerer was a classic yet still highly efficient pairing. In games, Kail had always tried to maintain that setup whenever possible.
Since Yuri was his fiancée—unlike Merlin or Rizelotte—he could rely on her powers without hesitation.
Which meant he could maintain the effective warrior-sorcerer combo wherever they went.
“Yuri.”
“Yeah?”
“You did well.”
Hearing Kail’s praise, Yuri tilted her head, wondering if that was all, and moved closer to him. Watching her act cute, Kail chuckled softly and patted her head.
“I’ll handle the rest when we get back.”
“…Okay.”
“Alright. Uncle Chang, if you’re done, let’s head back.”
“What? Done teasing already?”
Merlin, who had been watching Kail and Yuri from afar with Rizelotte, muttered sarcastically upon hearing Kail’s call.
Feeling awkward, Kail laughed sheepishly. Seeing this, Merlin sighed bitterly and started spouting clichés about youth that older adults often say.
“Anyway—Kail Meyer, consider your debt to me fully repaid.”
“One more thing remains, Uncle Chang. Don’t try to cheat me.”
“Tch, caught me.”
Merlin, who had naturally been trying to deceive Kail, looked disappointed before raising his staff to cast a teleportation spell. But then, glancing at Kail, he added:
“…What if I owe you one more favor to reach the North?”
“Exactly, Uncle Chang.”
Grumbling, Merlin teleported back to the Great Wall in the North with the group.
“Yuri!”
As soon as they teleported to the Great Wall, the Duke who had been waiting for them immediately greeted them.
It was strange behavior for the usually stoic and cold Duke, so Kail tilted his head in confusion and asked:
“Why is the Elder here?”
“How could I stay idle after sensing such immense magical energy?”
“Ah… it reached here too.”
The reason the Duke appeared was due to the monstrous magical energy emitted by the Ice Dragon. Indeed, the Ice Dragon possessed such grandiose power.
Kail marveled at nature’s greatness for eliminating the Ice Dragon and simultaneously admired his Aura Blade for cutting through the dragon’s skin.
‘As expected of me.’
Satisfied with himself, Kail suddenly turned to the Duke, who was talking with Yuri.
“Elder.”
“What is it?”
“I have something to tell you.”
“What?”
“Yuri has become a Master.”
“Hmm, I see. Yuri has become a Master…”
The Duke, who had been listening indifferently to Kail’s words, now looked at Yuri with disbelief. Yuri shrugged nonchalantly, and seeing this, the Duke realized they weren’t joking.
While the Duke was still reeling from the shock of his daughter becoming a Master at such a young age, Merlin and Rizelotte had disappeared somewhere along the way.
Feeling a pang of regret for their abrupt departure, the Duke snapped out of his shock and grabbed Kail by both shoulders.
“Kail. You.”
“Y-Your Grace?”
“When do you plan to marry Yuri?”
“What do you mean, suddenly…”
“If you don’t intend to marry her, I’ll send my daughter to another family.”
Stunned by the Duke’s words, Kail froze and stared at him. The Duke’s expression remained unchanged, making it impossible to tell if he was serious or joking.
Whether Kail scrutinized his face or not, the Duke continued speaking.
“Now that she’s a Master, she could enter the royal family. Surely the second prince is still unmarried…”
“Elder.”
“What?”
“…We’ll do it.”
Regretting his words the moment they left his mouth, Kail looked at the Duke’s expression. Smiling slyly, the Duke said:
“Welcome to the family.”
To his grave.
And so, Kail’s tomb was prepared.
* * *
Pragia Kingdom.
The members of Holy Weapons, gathered after a long time, glared at Aruki, Kaines, and the new member they brought along with hardened expressions.
“Am I seeing things wrong?”
“No, you’re seeing it right.”
“Haha! ─Since when did our organization start accepting beasts?”
Fist-wielder Jerard spoke while staring at Hecate, the six-armed black monster in front of him.
Realizing Jerard was insulting him, Hecate growled and clenched his fists, but Jerard, unfazed, stood up ready for a fight.
“─Both of you, stop.”
Just before a fight broke out, Aruki stepped between them, frowning slightly as he pushed Jerard back.
“Whether it’s a monster or anything else, there’s only one qualification for joining our organization, right?”
“To be a Master. Correct.”
Yet, Jerard didn’t wipe the competitive smirk off his face as he glared at Hecate.
“─So this beast claims to be a Master?”
Immediately, an Aura Blade formed over Jerard’s fist. The tangible aura shot straight toward Hecate’s face.
Hecate, calmly watching the incoming punch, let out a faint chuckle and drew his bone sword to meet the attack.
Crack! Hecate’s sword blocked Jerard’s fist, imbued with an Aura Blade.
“Tch.”
Jerard clicked his tongue in irritation and returned to his seat. Seeing him sit down, Aruki sighed in relief and addressed the other members.
“It seems the basic qualification has been proven. Anyone opposed to this guy joining us?”
No one raised their hands. Most members trusted Aruki.
Confirming there were no objections, Aruki began explaining the real reason he had gathered everyone.
“─The reason I called you all here today is because of a message from the boss.”
“That bastard, isn’t he dead?”
“The boss wouldn’t die! …Anyway, the boss said to open this if he doesn’t contact us for several days.”
Aruki pulled out an envelope left by Feyna, the leader of Holy Weapons.
Carefully opening it, he found a magical scroll and a letter inside.
“─It’s a scroll showing where the boss is.”
He activated the scroll immediately. A translucent thread of blue-tinted magical energy stretched out into the air.
Aruki spoke while looking at the thread.
“We’re going to find the boss now. Any objections?”
Fortunately, no one objected.
And so, Holy Weapons began to move.
