#079

The path leading to the Elves’ dwelling was unusually quiet. His time with Kiyen had always been serene, but it had never been tinged with discomfort. His throat felt scratchy, as if he had swallowed something.

The silence was broken when Kiyen, who had been examining the object in his hand, finally spoke. They had reached their destination.

“It’s not moving.”

His silent steps stopped as soon as the sound was heard.

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Look.”

As Kiyen extended his hand holding the object, Cullen paused for a moment. In the past, he would have let their fingers brush, even if it was with ulterior motives, but from now on, it was best to be careful.

Cullen carefully picked up the object. Kiyen’s gaze touched his hand and then scattered.

As he said, the stars on the object were faintly glowing, but the light was much weaker, and it had stopped. The metal needle was the same.

“It was definitely moving yesterday.”

“What exactly was the situation?”

Cullen wracked his memory. It was right after he met Kiyen, night was falling, and the moon in the sky was very large. It was a perfectly round, white moon, just like the day he met Kiyen.

“It was night…… and the moon was large. I think it was a full moon.”

“Hmm.”

Kiyen stroked his chin. Seeing Kiyen’s hand reaching out to take the object again, Cullen quickly handed it over and stepped back. Kiyen’s gaze touched his hand once more. However, he said nothing else.

“The moon is the goddess herself, and considering it only moved at night…… the moon’s shape could indeed be a factor in moving this object.”

Cullen looked up at the sky. The moon was large and round, as it had been yesterday, but it wasn’t a perfect circle. While he was looking at it, someone called out to Cullen first.

“Cullen!”

Anan ran over in a flash. She arrived in front of them and was about to greet them cheerfully, but upon seeing Kiyen, her face turned pale, and she gasped.

“I greet you, great being.”

Kiyen was the first to notice, even before Anan could do anything. More precisely, it was an Elf.

The Elves, who had heard her words from afar, murmured and soon knelt before Kiyen. Cullen scanned his surroundings, sensing an atmosphere that felt more like dread than reverence. Clearly, it was different from when the monster had appeared. If one thought about it, they should have been more afraid of the monster, yet the Elves feared Kiyen. Kiyen’s brow furrowed.

“Elves. Have you become a mad race in the meantime?”

“That… doesn’t seem to be the case.”

Kiyen’s voice was displeased, as if bothered by the gestures directed at him. Cullen restrained Anan.

“Kiyen-nim is a good person. You don’t have to be afraid.”

“That….”

Anan hesitated, then nodded. As the Elves, still terrified, looked at Kiyen, someone emerged from among them.

“To frighten the Elves the moment you appear, you truly are Kiyen-nim!”

It was Lasano, whom they hadn’t expected to be there. His silver hair, which shone uniquely under the night sky, and his red eyes were smiling faintly.

“Weren’t you at the Duke’s residence?”

Cullen’s words were followed by Kiyen’s.

“So you snuck out and were trying to come here.”

Kiyen said suspiciously. Before Lasano could protest, Anan stepped forward.

“The priestess of the goddess came to help other Elves she couldn’t treat yesterday! I was with her the whole time.”

Cullen looked at Lasano with surprise. Of course, he had treated the party or others before, but it was always at the command of Kiyen or himself. Lasano had always acted suspiciously, making him difficult to trust. However, seeing him voluntarily showing concern for the Elves, following yesterday’s events, brought about confusion.

The puzzling words he’d learned during their travels, and the fact that he, a High Priest, didn’t complain of great pain even during harsh ordeals. Coupled with Anan’s words that he had voluntarily treated the Elves, Cullen found it even harder to define the Lasano he knew.

“We’ve been waiting so long for you two to stroll the night streets intimately, our necks have grown long.”

At the word “intimately,” Cullen responded faster than Kiyen.

“Lasano-nim, please refrain from such remarks in the future.”

Lasano raised his eyebrows with a hum, at Cullen’s more decisive interruption than usual.

“Is this the end of love?”

“It is not.”

To prevent his mouth from babbling further, Cullen led Lasano and moved ahead. Without seeing Kiyen squinting one eye, Cullen moved towards the place where the monster had appeared yesterday. Lasano stayed close by, whispering.

“You didn’t deny it implicitly until now. You can confide in this Lasano about what happened in the meantime.”

“Kiyen-nim is displeased. So, shut your mouth.”

“Is that so? Even so, whenever Kiyen-nim gets hurt, you treat me worse than a slave….”

Sensing the glare, Lasano silently smiled and closed his mouth. Kiyen walked slowly, catching up behind them.

Cullen stopped and looked down. He felt no vibrations.

“You don’t know the time because you’re only on the ground, do you?”

Lasano’s words were countered by Kiyen.

“The flow of time can be felt even on the ground. You can actually feel life moving more keenly.”

Then, he gestured downwards with his eyes.

“It’s coming.”

A few seconds after Kiyen spoke, the vibration began. Lasano clung tightly to Cullen to maintain his balance, while Cullen ignored him and observed Kiyen. Kiyen stared at the ground without moving.

Only when the vibration grew strong enough to be felt throughout the entire Duke’s territory did two red stones finally appear. The red stones beneath the shallow soil shone towards Cullen.

‘Dragon… Why… did you bring it.’

The monster spoke as soon as it appeared. Cullen looked at Kiyen.

“Can you hear me, Kiyen-nim?”

“No. I can feel it speaking to you, but I cannot understand the content.”

Then, the ground rumbled.

‘That Dragon… cannot hear. Another Dragon… hears.’

It was incomprehensible. Didn’t it sound like there was another Dragon?

However, since the beginning of the Empire, Kiyen had been the only Dragon. That was also why Dragon was the name referring to Kiyen.

“There are no other Dragons in the world.”

Kiyen’s blue eyes shone intensely. The word Dragon seemed to have caught his attention, and Kiyen strode forward in an instant, asking, his voice low like a growling beast.

“Did it say another Dragon? Is that what it’s telling you?”

“……Yes.”

“What did it say?”

Kiyen’s demeanor turned fierce. Cullen recalled the forgotten fact that he, in myth, had searched for the same being his entire life. He had never seen Kiyen so agitated. The turbulent emotions were palpable on his skin.

“Kiyen-nim says he cannot hear its words. Even if there is another Dragon.”

“There is another Dragon?”

Gold entered Kiyen’s pupils. His elongated pupils glared at the red stones, and the ground trembled.

‘That Dragon… is pitiful….’

The stone said that, uttering the opposite of what Kiyen desired.

‘That Dragon is also… the only one. I am… the only one.’

Cullen remained silent. As if responding to Kiyen’s emotions, his clothes and hair began to flutter. The moment the Elves’ faces showed fear, Cullen shouted.

“There isn’t, Kiyen-nim.”

His vertically elongated pupils glared at Cullen. Cullen said expressionlessly.

“That monster, and Kiyen-nim, are both beings that are one of a kind.”

The atmosphere surged like an explosion. The air, which had burst and subsided as if to represent Kiyen’s despair, instantly became calm. Kiyen’s eyes slowly returned to their blue hue. He stepped back.

“That would be the case.”

Kiyen fell silent thereafter. The silence gnawed at Cullen’s heart. It was painful to see him so sad. The complete solitude that Cullen, a human, could never understand.

Cullen was clearly someone left alone, without family or loved ones. However, he was not the only being of his kind in the world. Unless he became Kiyen, he would never understand the feeling.

They were walking on parallel lines. No matter how much Cullen tried to cross the line, he would never reach Kiyen’s solitude.

Kiyen had trapped himself in the loneliness of being the only creature of his kind in the world. He felt sad witnessing his longing, which he had only seen in text, right before his eyes.

It hurt. Powerlessness consumed Cullen. The density of despair pressing on his shoulders was suffocating. As long as that sadness resided within him, Kiyen would never be truly happy.

Never.

In that miserable realization, Cullen understood there was only one way to make Kiyen happy. He would not find happiness in any human thing.

He would only feel happiness once he found his own kind.

‘Dragon… Originally… personality… ferocious.’

The monster interrupted Cullen’s thoughts. Cullen felt he couldn’t keep calling him a monster forever. They were communicating, and he wanted to show at least minimal courtesy since he wished to die.

“What is your name?”

‘Our… name… Kwanu… It’s long… Kwanu. We are… one.’

The stone said that and wailed mournfully. The ground rumbled.

‘My kin… do not exist. I… am not Kwanu.’

“Calm down, Kwanu. I will grant your wish.”

‘…Really.’

“Yes.”

Lasano asked.

“What is your wish?”

“He asked to be killed.”

Then Kiyen stepped forward.

“I will kill him. It seems to be my role to break this cycle of suffering.”

His voice was dry. But the stone, or rather Kwanu, refused.

‘Magic… does not work. I… must shatter myself. We… are among the few beings… that Dragons cannot kill….’

“He says it’s only possible if he shatters himself.”

“That size? Even climbing a mountain would be lower than that.”

Lasano shuddered.

‘Father… the magic… that formed us… exists. Only Aksha’s power… that… shatters it. Behind the legs… the back… above my eyes… all… must be pierced with a sword.’

Kwanu said that and then pointed at Lasano.

‘Aksha’s lineage… power… can help….’

Although not yet organized, he had a slight grasp of what needed to be done.

“Understood. However, Kwanu, when I kill you, you must be far from here. You must move to the empty fields far to the west. Is that possible?”

‘…Possible.’

Kwanu’s red light flickered.

‘Before the one who woke me… arrives… do it.’

“Who woke you?”

‘I do not know… Father’s power… exists.’

Saying that, Kwanu made the ground rumble once more. It seemed like impatience.

‘When…? When…? Quickly….’

Cullen recalled that the banquet was in six days. To kill Kwanu, Cullen also needed preparation. Exactly how to strike his weakness, how to use Lasano’s power, and whether Kwanu would truly remain still were all uncertain. If so, they would have to prepare for the evacuation of not only the Elves but also others in the city. He would have to discuss it with Moet and prepare.

Furthermore, it was still unknown who woke Kwanu. Kwanu had woken up recently. If those who woke him had used Akesis’s power with high probability, they would surely have a purpose. Cullen wanted to ascertain the identity of those who woke Kwanu.

The banquet in six days was being held with impure intentions, as Moet had said. If the group that woke Kwanu, the one promoting poisoning with Cadmium, and the black-cloaked figure who contacted the Young Duke were all one organization, Cullen had to disrupt their plans.

And if Cullen were to kill Kwanu, wouldn’t the masked figure from Viscount Exion’s territory reveal themselves? Surely, if ‘they’ woke Kwanu, they would reappear then.

“I will come in six days at night. Please wait in the farthest plain then.”

‘You must… kill me. If I live… this land… will grow cold. Humans… will die more.’

As soon as Cullen finished speaking, the stone sank back into the ground.

There were three ways back. Lasano and Cullen were following Kiyen’s back. A shadow, detached and alone, fell upon them. Cullen couldn’t tear his gaze from Kiyen’s back due to the precarious sway.

“If you’re that worried, why not offer some comfort?”

Lasano whispered secretly beside him. Cullen also naturally wanted to comfort him somehow. However, he had no words.

“I am human. I cannot empathize even a little with Kiyen-nim’s feelings.”

“But doesn’t the feeling of worry matter? Someone who blindly cares for another like this in life… no, such a being… has never existed, regardless of race.”

Lasano continued with a meaningful remark, his lips curled upwards.

“If the goddess had given us an early revelation, many things would have changed.”

“What do you mean by that?”

To Cullen’s question, he merely smiled.

As the Duke’s residence came into view, Kiyen stopped. Lasano, meanwhile, seemed to have built such strong friendships with the knights that he could easily pass through the main gate. Lasano waved goodbye to Cullen and Kiyen and headed for the main gate.

Cullen and Kiyen, unable to show themselves, indifferently turned and headed for the back gate of the castle from which they had emerged. Throughout their return, only Kiyen’s breathing could be heard, and his solitary shoulders flickered in his eyes.

Cullen barely swallowed the words that lingered at the back of his throat. What he said would disturb Kiyen’s mood.

“Please go in safely, Kiyen-nim.”

That was all he could say. Kiyen finally bestowed a precious gaze upon him. His blue eyes, with a faint trace of sadness, looked at him.

“I will pray… for a peaceful night.”

Kiyen looked down at Cullen for a long time. He nodded slightly and went inside first. Cullen closed the door and entered, watching Kiyen’s retreating figure as he went into the Young Duke’s room for a long time.

Until Kiyen’s shadow disappeared.