After excusing herself from the king, Pale immediately went to a certain room to confirm something she’d spoken of to Rehsia.
“Reshia Fel Zeal-dono, I wish to ask you for your opinion,” Pale said.
“…It might be exactly as you’ve thought,” Reshia said.
“His Majesty has lost his taste as well?”
Reshia nodded and Pale touched her slender chin and became thoughtful.
“If even the power of the Goddess of Healing is powerless to stop the progression of his illness, then… I suppose we really will have to rely on the supernatural,” Pale said.
The Goblin King shaved away at his life every time he used the vast amount of ether within him.
It was the price he paid for the High King’s Oath.
To make things worse, the Goddess of Vengeance’s power complicated the situation when he tried to save Reshia after she was possessed by Zenobia. The power that could push aside even the power of the gods was eating away at the king.
—The perception of color fades, the sensation of the wind’s caress gone… Sometimes even his ears fail him. And then the nose forgot how to smell, and now even his tongue has lost its taste. Regardless of the intensity of loss of senses, it was evident that it now affected all five of his senses.
“Do you know something?” Reshia asked with a sad expression.
It was because she felt responsible for the Goblin King’s illness that she had tested him.
“Word has it that someone saw a dragon in the northern mountains,” Pale said.
“…A dragon?” Reshia said.
Pale nodded. “His majesty has received the divine protection of the Goddess of the Underworld. That’s evident from the black flames he uses. Once upon a time, the Goddess of the Underworld led four snakes… The One-Eyed Snake of Black Flames (Verid), the Twin-Headed Snake (Bedydia), the Earth-Devouring Serpent (Perseval), and the Wingless Sky Snake (Gawain). Now what if one of those snakes were still alive?”
“…You’re saying that’s the dragon?” Reshia asked.
It was unthinkable for the short-lived humans, but to the elves, it wasn’t so far fetched. The war that erupted during the age of the gods certainly felt as though it belonged to a different age, but it was a war that occurred during the era of her great-grandfather. The elves that lived deep in the forest possessed many precious literatures and had many things that the ever-warring humans didn’t.
“In one of those old documents was written this.”
—It was Gawain the Wingless Sky Snake who faced off against the ruler of the skies, the Dragon King, Grimoa. The battle of these two monsters and the households they led covered the sky and shattered it. The bodies of their household fell into the sea and became monsters. Beyond the high peaks of the mountains, there in the north, they fought.
“According to the old document, Verid returned to the underworld with the goddess, while Bedydia fought with the Goddess of Time (Jurana) and Perseval fought with the giants. After confirming with the goblins, I’ve found that Bedydia, who was known as the Lord of Decay has already passed, while Perseval has thrown himself into an insatiable battle with the giants,” Pale said.
“…I’m sure, it must be true,” Reshia said.
The things that Pale said were not things that normal humans would believe, but Reshia believed it. After all, just a few days ago, she felt the goddess, who had given her her divine protection, so close to her. So even though Pale had just told her that beings spoken of in legends and myths existed yet, she was not surprised.
“It’s good that you’re so understanding for a human. Perhaps the power of the Goddess of Healing does not suit him. But I’m sure you know more than me about the feud between the Goddess of the Underworld and the Goddess of Healing.”
“So you want to borrow the power of the Goddess of the Underworld’s servants… But I’m certain that my healing abilities showed effect before…”
“Perhaps his body has already surpassed its limits. Either way, I believe it would be better to rely on the Goddess of the Underworld than the Goddess of Healing.”
“…Perhaps,” Reshia said listlessly.
Although she had put on such a cheerful front in front of the king, the truth was that she was full of anxiety and impatience. What was she supposed to believe in now? She didn’t know anymore.
“Also, I have something I’d like to ask of you, Reshia Fel Zeal-dono,” Pale said.
“Yes?”
“From here on I will be using the full power of the country’s intelligence department to look for traces of the Goddess of the Underworld. Once we’ve found a plausible lead, I want to ask you to lead that person there.”
“…Why, me?”
Pale wryly smiled a little and looked Reshia straight in the eye.
“I thought you’d understand. No matter what he says, there’s no doubting that he’s attached to you,” Pale said.
‘However, as for whether that’s love, a desire to dominate, or perhaps something else altogether remains unclear…’ This part Pale did not say out loud.
“…I understand. I too am partly responsible for this anyway, but more importantly…” Reshia said.
“What?”
“I don’t think I could ever win against you in a contest of words.”
Pale gazed blankly, dumbfounded, for a moment, and Reshia excused herself with an impish smile.
At the behest of Pale Symphoria, the country’s intelligence department began gathering information about the dragon. 20 days later, the information they’d gathered was brought to her.
In the northern and western unexplored areas was indeed a dragon.
And so, the time came for the Goblin King to leave his footprints on the domain of those spoken of in the Age of the Gods.
