Chapter 47
The next day.
Training began in earnest, just like it had in the dwarf village.
The routine was the same.
Training with the skeletons under the old man’s guidance, massages, the Supreme Azure Mind Method, and practicing various skills.
One cycle of training lasted about eight hours.
The village elves paid no mind to my eccentricities.
Only—
“Here’s the wool we gathered as you asked.”
“Bundles of silkworm cocoons. You can use that device to spin the thread.”
“Do we just stack them here?”
“Just… don’t misunderstand. We’re only doing this because the queen ordered it.”
“That’s right! Don’t think we’re helping you because we like you!”
In front of the makeshift device, they simply stacked up materials for weaving and crafting items.
Watching this, I felt—
‘They’re definitely pure.’
If dwarves were fiery and passionate, elves were like a blank white canvas—pure.
Dagnard harbored resentment against the chairman’s decisions.
But the elves didn’t question a single word from their queen.
They simply revered and obeyed her.
Even the titles made the difference clear.
‘Chairman’ and ‘Queen.’
‘Chairman’ suggested a federal council, where village representatives could gather and vote.
‘Queen’ was the very concept of monarchy, dividing rulers from the ruled.
Either way, if every elf followed Serphin’s orders faithfully, it worked out for me.
It meant I didn’t need to worry about favorability when acting.
“Stack them neatly over there.”
I smiled faintly as I accepted the materials.
“There’s no need to process them yourselves. I have to extract it for it to count.”
Right, they couldn’t process it for me.
Bone Six needed weaving proficiency.
He was already tirelessly spinning thread and weaving cloth, working day and night until he’d reached level 2.
[Skill, ‘Intermediate Weaving’ (Lv.2) is used.]
[Spinning Intermediate Thread.]
[Spinning Intermediate Thread.]
[Creating Waste Pile.]
[Weaving Intermediate Cloth.]
[Proficiency +1.]
“You…”
Beside me, Dagnard looked on in wonder.
“When did you learn how to use those devices?”
“Well, let’s just say… it’s a special method of our kind.”
Like I said before, it didn’t matter if I didn’t know how to operate the machines.
As long as Bone Six used the skill nearby, it worked.
“C-come to think of it! Didn’t you smelt metal without all the complicated steps last time too? Strange… could you be some kind of divine race?”
“Divine race? Such a thing exists?”
“No, no, of course not. Just a thought.”
He let it go easily.
Swish!
I swung my sword.
Today I was practicing the first skill I’d learned from the old man—Slash.
Following my own increasingly familiar form, I cut through the empty air.
“By the way, how’s the investigation coming along?”
Investigating the seal of the demon dragon.
That was Dagnard’s task.
Pinpointing the exact location and direction of the seal.
There was no risk of suspicion.
He could just climb the high ground in the village to scout.
If anyone asked, he could say he was collecting goat wool from the heights.
“Ah, right. I should get going again. I checked the east yesterday, so today I’ll head south.”
“Oh, I see? Good luck.”
“Heh, luck? Thanks to you, I might finally uncover the destiny passed down from my ancestors! I’ll give it my all!”
Good.
That passion.
Dagnard could search for his ancestors’ ruins, while I gained clues to the quest.
A perfect case of mutual benefit.
“I’ll be counting on you then.”
—
“You—huff, huff!”
Dagnard returned in less than three hours.
“You’re back quick. The sun’s still high.”
I wiped away my light sweat.
I was the one training—so why did Dagnard look more exhausted?
“It’s incredible… incredible! Come here!”
He whispered urgently, eyes filled with excitement.
“Incredible?”
“It’s closer than I thought! No—closer isn’t enough.”
“Oh?”
I lowered my sword.
“It’s right here. Here!”
“What?”
“This very spot we’re standing on is the seal of the demon dragon mentioned in the old texts! Where the blue valley forms a triangle and the tree rings all face one direction!”
“……”
“Unbelievable. An ancient hero’s relic lies here, and yet it’s left to rot! These elves don’t even know the duty of honoring their ancestors?”
What?
Here?
Goosebumps prickled across my skin.
[Ding!]
[Stage: Traces of the Great Demon Dragon]
[Difficulty: Unmeasurable]
[You have discovered ruins containing the hidden history of both races.]
[This may hold the key to resolving the conflict.]
[Warning! Warning! Warning!]
[Beware. Within lies the trace of the vile dragon that dominates hearts, the Great Demon Dragon, Drugan.]
A silence fell.
“Holy…”
The words slipped from my mouth.
I tried to calm myself, but my heart kept pounding.
‘So much for easy progress.’
Of course. Another “Unmeasurable” difficulty.
Just like when I met Sunny.
The kind of insane difficulty no ranker had ever spoken of.
“You don’t look well. Are you alright?”
“Phew, yeah, I’m fine.”
My head throbbed.
I wasn’t fine at all, but there was no reason to tell Dagnard.
It wouldn’t help.
“For now.”
“Hm?”
“Let’s wait until tomorrow.”
What I needed now wasn’t Dagnard.
It was the old man.
—
The next day.
“Hm.”
The old man hummed low.
“Great Demon Dragon, huh. That’s a grand name. So, you’re planning to head in right away?”
“Shouldn’t I? I can’t stay trapped in this dungeon forever.”
“Heh. My disciple has guts.”
“Don’t tease me. I’m scared out of my mind.”
“Ha!”
The old man chuckled.
“I’m serious. This place is more dangerous than you think.”
“……”
“You remember that chairman fellow you saw before?”
“Volcanus?”
“Yeah, him. He was about as strong as me in my prime. Imagine how terrifying this Great Demon Dragon must be.”
“……”
As strong as the old man in his prime?
That was a problem.
In our world, rankers were the strongest.
The old man could toy with rankers with one finger.
“Boy.”
“Yes, master.”
“Don’t worry too much. From what I’ve seen, this ‘system’ never creates a truly hopeless situation.”
“Actually, there’s one thing bothering me.”
“What’s that?”
“The High Elf Queen feels too contrived.”
Something about her felt wrong.
Off.
“You mean that elf leader who brought you here?”
“Yes. She just happened to be there the day I was cast out by the chairman, and she naturally drew me here.”
“……”
“Since then, she hasn’t said or stopped anything. It’s like she wanted me to find this place.”
“Hmm. You think she’s guiding you.”
“Yes.”
I was suspicious.
Not proof—just intuition.
Why else would she even allow an outsider dwarf like Dagnard into the forest?
‘Even now…’
Serphin hadn’t appeared.
She might be watching from afar, just like when she spied on me forging the hammer.
It made me uneasy.
Uneasy and unsettled.
“Disciple.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t overthink it. If there’s no answer, then stop searching for one.”
“So I should just barge in?”
“Exactly. And if you suspect that elf leader, test her.”
“Test her?”
“Yes. Make a big show of it. Go loud.”
“Huh?”
I immediately understood his meaning.
The quest had already triggered.
The answer was clear—I had to enter the Great Demon Dragon’s ruins.
But if I did it openly, making it clear I was going in, I could test Serphin’s intentions.
“Wait. What if she has no such plan? Wouldn’t I just be provoking her? If the High Elf Queen decided to block me, wouldn’t that kill the quest entirely?”
“Ha! Not a chance.”
The old man clicked his tongue, grinning with certainty.
“By your words, she’s on par with that chairman. That means she won’t interfere.”
“……”
“Odds are, she’s hearing every word you say right now. If I were still in my prime, listening in like that would’ve been child’s play.”
“……”
I nodded silently.
After hearing that, I didn’t feel like speaking further.
In truth, even my current mutterings were noisy enough.
If she still didn’t show herself, it meant she was allowing me to enter.
I made my decision.
“Dagnard.”
“H-huh?”
The dwarf, listening blankly nearby, widened his eyes.
He was used to me talking to myself by now.
He probably just thought I was some mysterious race.
“That dragon’s ruins. Where exactly is it? Let’s go now.”
“Wh-what? Weren’t we supposed to sneak in at night? What if we get caught!”
“No. We’re going right now.”
Better to take the hit early.
Unmeasurable difficulty?
Thump, thump.
My heart beat faster and faster.
Fear, excitement, and the stirring of something deep within me.
Behind me, the old man smiled warmly.
“You truly are a warrior. Genius or not, you’re one who can fight the world itself. Ha! That’s why you’re my disciple.”
So I walked.
Toward the high ground Dagnard had found.
“That hole up there looks like the spot.”
The old man stood at my side.
“This trial will be a great fortune for you. I’m not worried. The heavens are on your side.”
A hole about five meters wide came into view.
Dark and dim.
A rotted staircase descended into the depths.
The entrance to the ruins.
“What are you waiting for? You’ve decided. Go in, my disciple.”
“Yes. I will.”
I moved forward.
—
Above the forest.
A high elf with pale white skin looked down silently.
The High Elf Queen, Serphin.
Queen of the forest tribe, worshiped by elves for 500 years.
Below her—
She watched Joo Donghoon and Dagnard moving diligently.
“Outsider. At last… you move.”
Her facial muscles twitched.
Her expression betrayed no thoughts.
One thing was certain.
There was no displeasure.
“……”
After a long silence, her figure—
Shhhh!
Vanished like a mirage.