Vol. 6 Ch. 85

At dawn, the campfire had already burned out for some time, with wisps of black smoke curling into the air.

Leon slowly awoke, his eyes fluttering open—

Only to see a beautiful face filling up half his vision.

Still groggy from sleep, his brain lagging behind reality, Leon squinted and mumbled,

"Big sis… why are you at my house…?"

"I am, Leon."

The mature yet slightly clueless voice instantly jolted him awake.

"Cecilia, Senior!"

Leon bolted upright, scanning his surroundings. Once his thoughts settled, he finally remembered—he’d been away from home for several days now.

Meanwhile, Cecilia remained perfectly composed, kneeling gracefully on the grass. Those red eyes—a defining trait of the Isha Red Dragon Clan—confirmed that Leon hadn’t mistaken her for someone else in his half-asleep state.

Cecilia sat primly, watching his reaction with a serene smile.

"Good morning, Leon."

"…Morning."

Leon glanced at Cecilia and couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

Why did she look like she’d accidentally discovered some embarrassing secret of his?

It was just a morning greeting.

Did she really need to smile like that?

Brushing the thought aside, Leon looked around and asked,

"Where’s Senior Vida?"

"Oh, he went—"

"I’m back."

The grass rustled nearby as Vida emerged from behind them, holding a camping kettle in his hand.

He walked up to Leon, his expression as composed as ever.

Leon blinked in confusion.

"Senior… what’s with that?"

"Aren’t you thirsty?"

Leon raised a brow, even more confused.

"Why… would I be thirsty?"

"You talked so much last night. And yet you’re not thirsty?"

"Hah?"

Leon felt even more lost.

Cecilia, sitting off to the side, finally lifted a finger and began listing off numbers one by one.

"Noa—344 times. Moon—337 times. Aurora—335 times. Muse—340 times—"

Leon: ==

"Rosvisser—2498 times."

…

A pity.

Didn’t break the record, Leon mused to himself.

Clap!

Cecilia slammed her palms together, squinting at Leon with a teasing smile.

"Wow~ Leon, so Little Lo is this important to you~"

"Even more than all the kids combined~"

By now, Leon was completely used to getting teased for calling out his wife’s name in his sleep—his friends had beaten him up over it enough times.

So naturally, his heart remained as calm as a still lake.

Casually standing up, he dusted himself off and responded in a completely even tone,

"Concern for family can’t be measured by numbers, Senior."

After a short pause, he added, coughing lightly,

"And besides… the only reason the number is higher is because ‘Rosvisser’ rolls off the tongue more smoothly."

"Then Noa’s name doesn’t roll off the tongue?"

"……"

"Then Moon’s name doesn’t roll off the tongue?"

"……"

"Then Aurora’s? Muse’s?"

"……"

Cecilia’s red eyes sparkled with pure gossip-fueled anticipation.

But Leon really didn’t know how to explain it.

What, was he not allowed to miss his wife while traveling?

A good man always misses his wife!

"Th-th-th-th—"

"Stop with the ‘th-th-th,’ Cecilia."

Vida stepped in, calmly grabbing Cecilia by the collar before she could lean in any further with her interrogation.

With an ease that made it seem like he was simply picking up a cat, Vida lifted her off the ground.

For a man of his towering height and build, this was effortless.

"If you’re not thirsty, then let’s get moving to the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion’s trial grounds. The sooner we deal with this, the better."

Silent. Serious. Loves his wife. Efficient.

These were the strongest impressions Vida had left on Leon after spending a single night in his presence.

The sheer contrast between his no-nonsense attitude and Cecilia’s absolute cluelessness was almost comical.

How the hell had these two ended up together back then?

"Once we’re done with this, I need to hear that story," Leon thought to himself as he stepped forward to follow them.

As they walked, his gaze flickered toward Vida’s back, his mind wandering.

That steady presence. That solemnity. It reminded him of Rosvisser from years ago.

Back then, she had been just like this—a workaholic, laser-focused on efficiency, quiet, distant.

Maybe that was the power of blood ties.

Even if they had never grown up together, the Melkvey family’s natural traits still left their imprint on their descendants.

Leon couldn’t help but imagine the day when Vida, Cecilia, and the Melkvey sisters would finally reunite.

He had no idea what it would look like—

But it would definitely be a moment worth remembering.

……

……

As they traveled throughout the day, Leon gradually noticed that their group was getting larger.

Judging by their appearances, the newcomers were from a variety of different races—likely participants in the once-in-a-century Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial.

But even after observing for a long time, Leon couldn’t find a single dragon among them—aside from Vida and Cecilia.

Moreover, the way others glanced at them carried a strange mix of curiosity and confusion.

Cecilia, unable to hold back, decided to ask directly.

"Vida, why does it feel like everyone’s looking at us? What’s going on?"

After a short pause, she added,

"And also—I haven’t seen a single other dragon this entire time. Logically speaking, the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion’s blessing directly enhances strength. That’s exactly the kind of opportunity our power-hungry dragon race would never pass up.

"So why aren’t there any dragons here?"

Vida carefully surveyed their surroundings. He wasn’t sure either.

"We’ll probably figure it out once we reach the trial grounds."

"Alright."

With that, the three of them quickened their pace.

By the time they arrived at a mountain cave, it was already past 9 PM.

Even more participants had gathered here.

"Finally! If I pass the trial and receive the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion’s blessing, I’ll finally have the power to reclaim my homeland from the invaders!"

"That’s the spirit! What about you? What will you do if you get the blessing?"

"Me...? I probably won’t pass."

"Pathetic. …If I pass the trial, I’m definitely enlisting in the Dragon Clan’s Royal Guard! I’ll prove my worth to His Majesty!"

"……"

People had gathered from all over, carrying different ambitions—each one hoping to use the trial as a stepping stone to their goals.

Leon studied the crowd.

Even in this dense throng of competitors, he still couldn’t spot a single dragon—other than Vida and Cecilia.

Just as Cecilia had pointed out, dragons were obsessed with strength. There was no way they would pass up a chance like this.

Something was definitely off.

"Excuse me, are the three of you here to participate in the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial?"

A female voice pulled Leon from his thoughts.

Turning around, he saw a woman dressed in traditional garb.

She had delicate features and a tall, slender frame—but the two long ears atop her head were… a bit unusual.

Just as Leon was trying to guess her race, his peripheral vision caught a small movement behind her.

A tail.

Not a long, draconic tail—

But a horse’s tail.

A centaur girl? (bushi)

Leon shook his head, correcting himself. She’s probably from the Divine Stallion Tribe.

Vida nodded. "Yes, we’re here to participate."

"Understood," the woman replied with a polite nod. "I am Senel, one of the coordinators of the Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial."

She then glanced between Vida and Cecilia before asking,

"May I confirm—are you and the lady of dragon lineage?"

Vida frowned slightly. "That’s right. We’re from the Dragon Race. Is that a problem?"

"My apologies, sir," Senel said, maintaining a calm demeanor.

"But the Dragon Race is banned from participating in this trial."

"To be clear, we are not discriminating against dragons," she continued. "Here is the list of prohibited races—dragons are not the only ones affected."

She handed over the document.

Vida took it, and Cecilia leaned in to read over his shoulder.

As Senel had said, many races were prohibited from entering the trial.

"Dragons, Asura Clan, Thunder Elves… But why?" Cecilia asked. "I thought the trial was supposed to be open to all races."

Senel explained,

"During the previous Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial, the races on this list—especially the Dragon Race—completely dominated the competition."

"But this blessing is meant to empower those in need—not to make the strong even stronger."

"The Fire Spirit Divine Stallion Trial exists to balance the scales. Its purpose is to help the weak."

"I hope you three can understand."

So that’s why they hadn’t seen any other dragons.

And why the other competitors had been staring at them like they weren’t supposed to be here.

The rules had changed.

But this rule…

Sure, it sounded reasonable.

It had a strong moral argument behind it.

But still—

If the goal was always to empower the weak, why wasn’t this rule in place from the beginning?

Why wait until the dragons had already stomped the competition to suddenly decide, "Actually, you guys can’t enter anymore."

If they had set the rule earlier, none of this would’ve been an issue.

Still, since it was the organizers’ decision, Vida and Cecilia had no choice but to respect it.

Leon, however, remained silent for a long time before finally speaking up.

"I’m not a dragon. And I’m not on that list, either. So I can still participate, right?"

Senel hesitated for a moment before asking,

"May I ask, sir—what is your race?"

"Human."

At the mention of the word "human," Senel visibly relaxed.

As if her unspoken thought was: "Humans are weak enough to qualify."

Leon caught that implied meaning immediately.

And even though he knew Senel wasn’t trying to insult humans, given the circumstances, he still felt the need to clarify one thing:

"If you think banning strong races like Vida and Cecilia will help balance the trial…"

"Then unfortunately for you, you’re about to face a much, much bigger problem."

A problem named—

Leon Casmod.

"Oh, by the way—" Leon added, "Who was the dragon from the last trial? The one so strong that dragons got banned because of them?"

Senel thought for a moment, then hesitantly replied,

"I think… their name was… Kon…tan…?"

Suddenly, her expression cleared up as she remembered.

"Oh! That’s right—The Crimson Flame Dragon King, Constantine."

Leon: ……

Leon: OF COURSE IT WAS.