The leader of the Shadow Leaves, Draim, had kept his distance from Marquis Palatio ever since meeting a certain man the last time.

However, keeping his distance didn’t mean he had abandoned his duty as a bodyguard.

Even though he’d had doubts about the mission from the start, and even though that suspicious man had threatened him.

In the end, the Shadow Leaves had to obey the queen’s orders without question.

In other words, until the order was rescinded, he had no choice but to protect Marquis Palatio, whether he liked it or not.

Instead, Draim chose to observe the marquis from afar.

Of course, close-range protection was the norm, but there was no other way.

‘He’s no ordinary man.’

A man so powerful that even Draim couldn’t guarantee victory.

The one who had threatened him in an instant.

A man whose strength was immeasurable.

On top of that, he had protected Marquis Palatio with an eerie fanaticism.

Even more than the queen’s personal guards.

Fearing unnecessary conflict, Draim made a decision.

He would protect the marquis while keeping himself at a distance—beyond detection.

Looking back, Draim believed his judgment had been correct.

The madman hadn’t noticed him anymore.

It was only natural. Draim had expanded the protective perimeter threefold.

That was why Draim had never imagined—

That he would be discovered.

“Guh—”

With trembling eyes, Draim stared at the figure before him.

Under the blue moon, golden lightning crackled and spread in all directions.

A beastkin with an expression so chillingly impassive it felt like it could freeze the world.

‘How... was I detected?’

Draim couldn’t comprehend it.

No—more precisely, he couldn’t accept how he’d been found.

But he had no time to dwell on it.

“—”

The longer his silence dragged on, the tighter the grip around his throat became.

“Wa-wait—”

Just as the suffocating Draim hurriedly tried to speak—

“I heard it.”

“...What?”

“Deus told me. You’re the ones, aren’t you? The elves sneaking around after Master.”

The beastkin, Seolrang, spoke.

Her voice held no emotion.

“I won’t say much. Stay away from Master.”

“We have no intention of harming Marquis Palatio—”

“I don’t care about that. Just having suspicious pests near Master is unpleasant enough. Unless—”

Seolrang’s golden eyes flashed like lightning.

“—I should just kill you and everything behind you?”

A murderous aura that made every hair on his body stand on end.

Yet even in the face of such killing intent, Draim forced out a bitter chuckle.

“...How arrogant.”

Seolrang didn’t reply.

Instead, she silently activated Thunder ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) God Manifestation.

Crackle—!!

In an instant, golden lightning surged through Seolrang’s body, condensing within her.

As if she couldn’t contain the immense energy, the compressed lightning burst outward, dyeing her entire form in golden light.

Unlike her previous battle against the Apostle, Seolrang’s use of Thunder God Manifestation was far more stable this time.

Draim’s eyes widened in shock at the sight.

The magical energy radiating from Seolrang was anything but ordinary.

And then—

“Remember my words, elf. This is your final warning.”

......

“Stay away from Master. Never appear before me again. If you do, I will kill you and everything behind you.”

“...Do you think that’s possible?”

Draim scoffed at the sheer arrogance of those words.

“Yes. Because it won’t just be me—”

Seolrang’s golden lips curved into a chilling smile.

“Yutia will move as well.”

And then—

Crack!

Draim’s neck was crushed.

“Ah—what a shame.”

As his severed head fell to the ground, the world flipped upside down in his vision.

And in that desolate landscape, he saw—

“If you’re a shadow, then I just need to make an example by killing them all.”

Under the blue moon in the middle of the desert, eerie golden eyes pursued him.

And—

“Gah—!”

Draim coughed up blood as he jolted awake.

“Captain!?”

“Are you alright!?”

“The aftereffects of Shadow Magic—!”

His subordinates rushed toward him in alarm.

Propped up by them, Draim leaned against a rock and clutched his throbbing head.

“Do not act rashly.”

“...Apologies.”

The subordinates bowed their heads at Draim’s words.

Yet all of them wore expressions of utter confusion.

Because they knew exactly what it meant—

For their captain to wake up coughing blood.

“Hah—”

Sensing the turmoil inside him, Draim let out a strained breath.

‘Not only did she find me in the desert, but she also figured out I was a shadow. How in the world—?’

Questions churned through his mind.

Then his face twisted in shock.

Until now, only one person had ever been able to immediately see through his Shadow Magic.

Which meant the beastkin he had just encountered—

“...That’s insane.”

A curse slipped from Draim’s lips before he could stop himself.

His subordinates flinched at the unfamiliar sight of their captain losing his composure.

But Draim’s thoughts were elsewhere—

Fixated solely on Marquis Palatio.

‘Just what is that man...?’

Overwhelmingly powerful beings acting coy and eager for praise—it was absurd.

‘Should I return and report first?’

Draim’s thoughts sank deeper.

*****

Alon was briefly startled by Carmaxes III’s sudden use of honorifics.

“Ahem, my apologies. I’ve been reading books on etiquette lately.”

Noticing Alon’s reaction, Carmaxes III quickly lowered his tone.

Alon found it odd—did a king really need to study etiquette?—but he chose to accept it for now.

However, from that moment on, the banquet grew more and more uncomfortable.

“Does the food suit your taste?”

“It’s delicious.”

“If anything tastes off, let me know. I’ll have it remade immediately.”

“Ah, yes....”

Carmaxes III had never once cared about food before, yet now he was fussing over it.

“Oh, by the way, is the guild comfortable enough? If staying there is difficult, you’re welcome to stay at the royal palace.”

“The royal palace, you say?”

“Yes. What do you think?”

“I truly appreciate the offer, but I’ll have to decline.”

“I see? That’s unfortunate. But if you change your mind, let me know—I’ll treat you as an honored guest.”

“Yes.”

Suddenly, the king was offering him a place in the palace out of kindness.

And in the end—

“Marquis.”

“Yes.”

“Is there anything you find inconvenient, or anything you need?”

“...Are you asking if I need anything?”

“Yes. If there’s anything at all, just say the word. I’ll spare no effort to provide it.”

“If anything comes to mind, I’ll let you know.”

He seemed desperate to do something for Alon.

‘Did I do something wrong? If not, is there something he wants from me?’

Naturally, suspicions and questions rose up.

However—

“Well then, I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Haha, alright. If you ever need my help, don’t hesitate to ask!”

“I understand.”

In the end, the banquet concluded without any requests being made.

Alon barely managed to shake off Carmaxes III—who seemed reluctant to let him go—and boarded the carriage.

“Marquis.”

“What is it?”

“Did you happen to find some sort of leverage over Carmaxes III? Something incriminating about him...?”

Evan, who had accompanied him, had sensed something unusual too.

Alon shook his head.

“Of course not.”

“I figured.”

“Yeah.”

“But then, why is he acting like that?”

“That, I have no idea.”

“...You really don’t know?”

Evan’s face showed a hint of suspicion.

Alon shrugged, as if to say he was telling the truth.

“Yeah. I truly don’t know.”

“...Hmm, that’s strange.”

In fact, Alon himself was the most baffled.

He had no clue why Carmaxes III was acting that way.

As the unanswered questions lingered, the carriage soon arrived at Seolrang’s guild building.

“Seolrang.”

“Oh! Master! You’re here?!”

The moment she spotted Alon, Seolrang threw her arms around his neck, wrapped her legs around his waist, and clung to him like a cicada.

Alon no longer found her excessive greetings surprising, and simply asked—

“I went to the palace, but you weren’t there. Where did you go?”

“Oh, I was heading to the palace, but I suddenly remembered something and got sidetracked.”

“Something you forgot?”

“Yeah! There was something I had to do, and it just popped into my head~”

Nod, nod!

Seolrang’s head bobbed vigorously.

Like a father respecting his daughter’s growing privacy, Alon chose not to pry further.

The day after he recovered from the banquet’s fatigue—

“Good morning!”

Early in the morning, Karsem arrived, leading a group of soldiers.

“...Karsem, it’s been a while.”

“Yes!”

Not only had Karsem lost weight, but his muscles had grown more pronounced too, bulging through his clothes as if announcing themselves.

Beside him, Evan muttered under his breath, “Wow, life really is unfair.”

Alon almost unconsciously agreed.

“I heard you’re heading to the ruins! I will escort you!”

Karsem’s booming voice echoed.

“Escort...?”

“Yes!”

Alon glanced at the soldiers standing in formation behind Karsem and hesitated for a moment.

“...This seems a bit excessive for an escort.”

It wasn’t just an offhand remark—it was a fact.

Even at a glance, the number of soldiers Karsem had brought easily exceeded several hundred.

However—

“No, Marquis! Since you’re going, this much is only natural!”

“?”

Karsem answered firmly, without the slightest hesitation.

He was always a bit over the top, but something about him today felt... off.

‘...Why do his eyes look even more eager than before?’

Alon couldn’t shake the feeling that Karsem’s gaze held even deeper reverence than before.

It was different from the admiration he’d sensed in the past.

‘What on earth happened to make him like this?’

A new question formed in Alon’s mind, but—

“...Very well. I’ll leave it to you.”

“Yes, sir!”

It felt too awkward to ask outright, so without further comment, Alon set off for the ruins.

Before long, they arrived at their destination.

As the sun began to rise, Alon moved toward the central tower, walking through the now-familiar ruins.

He entered the tower and climbed to the upper floors.

And after some time—

What came into view was not a Dragonkin—

“...Huh?”

—but a red pendant and a single letter.

*****

At the same time Alon discovered the red pendant in the ruins—

In the royal palace of the Ashtalon Kingdom, Zakurak, standing beside King Stalian V, received a letter from a strange creature that flew in through the window.

“A letter from that side?”

“Yes.”

“...A spirit?”

“They are their kin.”

The letter itself was blurry, its form flickering.

Zakurak took it and immediately tore it open to read.

Then—

“Heh.”

His heavy, dark-colored armor shifted slightly as his shoulders trembled with laughter.

“What’s so amusing?”

Hearing the chuckle, King Stalian V raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

“I apologize, but I’ll need to act alone for a while.”

“...All of a sudden?”

“Yes. It would be troublesome to move together.”

“What’s the matter?”

“There’s something I need to confirm.”

“Confirm?”

Stalian V shrugged and returned his attention to his documents.

Since nothing major had begun yet, Zakurak’s absence wouldn’t cause any issues.

So—

“Fine. It must be important.”

He acknowledged it casually and picked up another document.

“Yes. I need to confirm whether Marquis Palatio is truly a close friend of the one we serve.”

“That makes sense. Marquis Palatio is a close friend of the one you ser—”

“...What?”

Stalian V reflexively lifted his head.

“...What did you just say?”

Without realizing it, the words slipped out.