Evil Dragon, Without a Princess, I Had to Transform Myself!-Chapter 64 : Glory and Loyalty

After a while, Elaphia finally arrived, somewhat late.
She cautiously scanned the surroundings but couldn't find Loranhir anywhere, only the solitary figure of the princess standing alone.
Today, too, she seemed detached from everything, silently standing on the steps, gazing at the cloudless evening glow.
Tiny specks of dust shimmered in the setting sun's light.
Though it was merely dust reflecting the light, it appeared as though a halo illuminated her.
For some reason, Elaphia always felt that the princess had a sense of absence about her. She could never find someone who truly belonged by her side—whether it was herself or Loranhir, standing with the princess felt like being temporary travel companions.
Yet she always felt there had once been such a person.
The feeling came suddenly, like a flash of insight, as if a certain judgment had instantly formed but remained elusive.
Dismissing this inexplicable illusion, Elaphia approached Patunasankus, scrutinizing her up and down to confirm the princess was unharmed before speaking.
"Your Highness, do you know where the hero went?"
Patunasankus ignored her, rubbing her temples with her index fingers as she pondered.
She couldn't shake the feeling that the dim golden hue in Loranhir's eyes when they met her gaze was strangely familiar, subtly overlapping with fragments she'd dredged up from her draconic memories.
Patunasankus truly felt she needed to replenish her brain's sugar levels again.
Compared to racking her brains, the evil dragon preferred charging headlong into action.
"Did she leave to fulfill her duties as the hero?" Elaphia muttered to herself when the Princess didn't respond, as if coming to some realization. "In that case, were all those magic puppet remnants in the backyard her doing?"
"Do you know where Loranhir's homeland is?" Patunasankus suddenly asked Elaphia.
"Let me think... if I recall correctly, the hero's homeland is Aethel in the north. It's quite famous because the holy sword is located there," Elaphia mused. "There was once some trouble because of the holy sword too..."
"Aethel?"
Patunasankus tilted her head, blinked, then frowned, gripping her chin as she began to think.
The name sounded even more familiar to the evil dragon. She sifted through her inherited memories.
Wasn't that the origin place of Dragon Communion?
Patunasankus remembered that the ancient dragons had first taught the methods of Dragon Communion to humans around Aethel.
To this day, though the first generation of dragon warriors had either turned to dust or degenerated into earth dragons, some traces of their existence must remain.
Before long, Patunasankus clapped her hands together.
"Ah, that explains it."
She nodded, finally feeling enlightened.
"Explains what?"
Elaphia was baffled, her habit of digging to the root of matters making her intensely curious.
"You want to know too?"
"Yes."
Elaphia was very curious.
"I see..."
Patunasankus adopted the air of someone about to reveal a great secret.
She half-covered her face with an upright palm, gazing at Elaphia with gentle eyes."Guess?" Patunasankus flashed a mischievous smile, his gem-like eyes narrowing like a cat toying with a mouse it had no intention of eating.
Realizing she was being teased, Elaphia fell silent.
Yet the Princess's laughter was melodious, like the chime of silver bells.
It was beautiful.The young oathbreaker knight was composing a magic-net dispatch.
This was a near-instantaneous short message, transmitted swiftly through the magic-net’s pathways. In the past, each word of such a dispatch was costly, and few mastered this messaging technique—only the magic-net experts of Astraea City possessed the skill.
Hedica barely counted as half an expert.
"Really, is this wording appropriate?"
Hedica wore an awkward yet polite smile as she cautiously asked, "Doesn’t it feel a bit... provocative?"
Loranhir examined the content carefully and nodded with satisfaction.
Exactly. This was precisely the tone she wanted.
"It’s fine. Just write it like this," Loranhir patted Hedica’s shoulder reassuringly. "No problem."
"...Are you sure? Really sure?" Hedica was conflicted. She wasn’t a fool—she could clearly sense the provocation in the words.
"He will," Loranhir’s tone was utterly confident. "Don’t worry, he definitely will."
"Alright then."
Hedica finished editing the magic-net dispatch and sent it off to the distant recipient.
Late at night, in the resplendent palace’s conference hall.
Allen Wahl had been sitting on the sofa before the fireplace for a long time, his chin resting on his hands as he stared ahead. Above him hung the phoenix emblem of the Layang Empire.
The silence had stretched on for too long. Everyone present kept their heads lowered, for the man before them was the bloodline of the Chief Adjudicator.
This exceptionally gifted holy knight never removed his helmet, even among his peers.
"For the first time in all these years, I’ve encountered such a vile undead creature," Allen said coolly. "To me, this is unprecedented. The power of my oath nearly abandoned me."
A crushing defeat, he ground out between clenched teeth.
The weight of shame was as heavy as a mountain. Since mastering the power of his oath, Allen had been an invincible holy knight, guided by his vows—no dark creature had ever escaped his grasp.
And now, unbelievably, he had been defeated by an entity of unimaginable power.
"If not for her desire to humiliate my will, I might have completely lost the power of my oath in battle with her and suffered agonizing torment."
The atmosphere grew heated as the righteous holy knights whispered among themselves, clamoring to avenge Allen’s disgrace.
"Enough!" Allen’s slender fingers tapped lightly on the table, delicate yet inexplicably commanding, silencing the clamor in the hall.
Just as he was about to explain just how evil this foe was, the conference hall’s door creaked open. A servant crept in and handed Allen a translated letter.
"A magic-net dispatch, addressed to you."
The sudden interruption displeased Allen greatly."It's Hedica again. I already said I don't care about her or her damned city..." Allen muttered instinctively.
But after just one glance, his expression changed completely.
[To Allen Wall:
Blue Mackerel Bay. Feel free to bring all your feeble holy knights.
—Hero Loranhir]
"...Coordinates confirmed. We'll depart immediately using teleportation scrolls—we can be there within hours," Allen surveyed everyone present. "Will you join me in vanquishing this evil?"
After a brief silence, the holy knights erupted with fervor.
"Glory and loyalty!"