Chapter 94

Ariel tore the Teleport Scroll while holding Revena in her arms.

Poof!

A dazzling light burst out from the torn scroll.

Blinded by the intense flash, Ariel and Revena instinctively closed their eyes. When they opened them again, they were standing in a completely different space.

The air was filled with a gentle warmth.

The sensation on their skin was incredibly soothing.

Ariel quietly raised her gaze.

Right in front of them was a massive hot spring, with thick steam rising above it.

The water of the hot spring had an emerald hue, and blue mana flowed around it.

It was a mysterious hot spring with an otherworldly atmosphere.

It was the Magic Hot Spring of the Dragon’s Lair.

Ariel had been here once before. She had seen Lionel bathing.

Back then, Lionel had been extremely embarrassed and shouted at Ariel to leave…

This time, Lionel was here too.

For some reason, he was dancing in front of a large mirror.

His short, stubby body swaying back and forth looked quite ridiculous and cute.

“…?”

Revena’s eyes widened at the unexpected sight, and Ariel smiled slightly.

Even if she wanted to stop Lionel, he was so absorbed in his dance that she couldn’t bring herself to interrupt.

All she could do was enjoy the show.

After a while, Lionel placed both hands on his head and spun around in an awkward pose.

And then, the dance ended.

Ariel used her telekinesis to send the dragon doll, Sparki, to tap Lionel’s cheek.

“Eek!”

Lionel screamed in surprise and slowly turned to look at where Ariel and Revena were standing.

Ariel greeted him with a “Hello,” but he ignored her.

Lionel froze as if time had stopped. Only his pupils were shaking as if an earthquake had struck.

Ariel pondered for a moment.

She needed to tell him about Ragnarok being broken…

But now didn’t seem like the right time.

After all, Lionel was currently naked.

“Let’s go.”

Ariel and Revena walked away.

And shortly after.

“Ahhhh!”

A desperate scream from Lionel echoed behind them.

*

As they headed to where Elysion, Rakia’s mother, was, they saw Rakia.

Rakia was sitting in front of Elysion, wearing a rabbit onesie, maintaining a barrier to prevent the spread of Dark Magic.

Next to her was the head of the rabbit onesie, with Roo sleeping on top of it.

Judging by the empty bottles of fruit wine scattered around, Roo had drunk heavily and passed out.

Ghost and Black were nowhere to be seen.

“Ah, Lady Ariel! You’re here?”

Rakia smiled brightly upon seeing Ariel.

Ariel nodded and approached Rakia, with Revena timidly following behind.

Revena looked at Elysion lying down.

‘A… a dragon…!’

Even though Elysion was in a Polymorphed state, Revena, with her saintly intuition, could see that Elysion was a dragon.

Even Rakia, sitting in front of her in a rabbit outfit, and the dwarf who had been dancing naked earlier were dragons.

“Hmm, is this little girl the humans’ Saintess?”

Rakia pointed at Revena and asked. Ariel nodded.

“Yes.”

“She’s younger than I thought… Hey, human, can you heal our mother?”

At Rakia’s question, Revena flinched.

It was her first time facing a dragon.

Though Rakia looked like a young girl, her overwhelming presence was befitting of the strongest creature on earth.

“Ah, yes, I-I’ll try…”

Revena barely managed to reply, clinging tightly to Ariel.

It had only been a day since she made the Guardian Knight’s oath, but she was already relying on Ariel.

“If you heal our mother, we’ll reward you greatly. But if you fail…”

Rakia’s eyes gleamed.

“I’ll turn you into ashes!”

“!!”

Revena’s eyes widened.

Turn her into ashes? Did that mean burning her with fire magic?

There was a story of a dragon destroying a human kingdom overnight, turning it into ashes.

Was that what she meant?

“Don’t scare her.”

Ariel approached and gently patted Rakia’s head.

Rakia’s expression, which had been glaring at Revena, softened instantly. Like a well-behaved pet.

“Hehe, I was just trying to motivate her…”

Though Rakia was currently Polymorphed into a human, Revena could tell.

If Rakia were in her dragon form, her tail would be wagging happily.

Just because Ariel was petting her head.

“……”

Revena’s face showed her bewilderment.

What kind of beings were dragons?

Their knowledge and magical abilities were beyond imagination, and no one could stand against their powerful bodies.

Dragons were the very order of the continent, beings of terror and awe that no one dared to challenge.

‘And yet, this dragon is wearing a rabbit onesie… acting like a pet… and even using honorifics with Ariel…’

Even with her saintly intuition, Revena couldn’t help but feel confused.

Should she fear the dragon, or her own Guardian Knight, Ariel…

As Revena pondered, Rakia spoke coldly.

“Why are you just standing there, human? Hurry up and heal our mother.”

Her voice was icy, completely different from when she spoke to Ariel.

Rakia’s golden eyes gleamed sharply, and her face showed clear hostility.

In truth, Rakia didn’t like Revena.

Even if she was a Saintess, she was still a human, and her closeness to Ariel was irritating.

‘How dare she… that’s my spot…’

Simply put, she was jealous.

The spot next to Ariel should rightfully be hers. But now, this Saintess was occupying it, which made her angry.

…Meanwhile, Revena was trembling.

As a Saintess, she could fully sense the malice of others.

The jealousy-filled malice emanating from Rakia was directly transmitted to Revena.

“……”

Cold sweat poured down Revena’s forehead. Her fingertips trembled from tension and fear.

At this rate, she might faint before even attempting to heal Elysion.

Normally, she would rely on her Guardian Knight at times like this…

Then, Ariel spoke.

“Rakia, let’s wait outside.”

“Huh? B-but…”

“We might be in the way here.”

At Ariel’s words, Rakia turned to look at her mother, Elysion.

She felt uneasy, worried that something might happen to her mother while they were away.

“Let’s trust Revena.”

But Ariel spoke firmly, and Rakia had no choice but to nod.

It was Ariel’s words, after all.

Ariel’s words held absolute meaning to Rakia, who trusted her completely.

“Hey, human.”

Rakia looked at Revena again.

“Nothing must happen to our mother. Understood?”

“Y-yes… I’ll do my best…”

Revena replied with a pale face, her voice still trembling.

Shortly after.

Ariel took Rakia and the drunken Roo and left the room.

Now, only Elysion and Revena remained.

*

‘Huu… huu…’

Revena took deep breaths, trying to calm herself.

It was a relief that Ariel had taken Rakia away.

If Rakia had stayed, Revena might have fainted. The dragon’s malice was that terrifying.

Her heart was still racing. What would Archbishop Andersen say if he saw her like this?

Andersen always said, ‘A Saintess must maintain her dignity at all times,’ but would that hold true in front of a dragon?

Revena approached Elysion.

Now wasn’t the time for other thoughts. She had to focus on healing Elysion. Otherwise, she might really turn into ashes.

Elysion was in the form of a beautiful elf, but her lovely face was marred by dark, eerie spots.

‘This is…!’

She could sense a curse. It was a powerful Dark Magic, strong enough to make her skin tingle just by looking at it.

‘Who could have cast such a terrible curse…’

The Dark Magic was steadily draining Elysion’s life force.

Even a dragon would eventually lose their life if this continued.

‘To cast such powerful Dark Magic, it must be someone at the level of a Demon King’s Army executive…’

Revena’s guess was accurate.

The curse on Elysion was a forbidden Dark Magic cast by the Demon King’s Army executive, ‘Baalberith,’ at the cost of his own life.

This couldn’t be undone with ordinary Sacred Magic.

To undo it, the power of a Saintess was needed. In other words, a ‘miracle’ had to be performed.

It required direct communion with the divine, something only a Saintess could do.

Revena took a deep breath.

A sense of responsibility and duty as a Saintess burned within her.

“I will definitely save you.”

With a quiet resolve, Revena knelt and began to pray.

She clasped her hands in front of her chest, closing her eyes in reverence.

Soon, a soft white glow began to emanate from around her.