Chapter 5 The Most Noble and Pure Maiden

 

Disgusting.

 

Rumble——.

 

It was extremely unpleasant.

 

The man I had just encountered was that repulsive to me.

 

Having lived in this body for a long time, I could see things that were invisible to human eyes.

 

For example, all the metabolic processes flowing through a creature’s body, and other foreign energies coursing through that body.

 

Such as mana, aura, and similar energies.

 

Simply by facing a creature, I could already know everything about it. Through the reaction of its blood, I could sense its emotions, and through the contraction and relaxation of its muscles, I could predict its actions. Everything was clear to my eyes.

 

Additionally, whenever I flicked my tongue.

 

I could catch glimpses of the life that creature had lived and its inherent nature.

 

That’s why I could tell.

 

I could instinctively know the stench of blood and cruelty emanating from the revolting doppelganger of the man approaching me.

 

I knew instinctively.

 

That he was my enemy.

 

The number of humans he had killed was likely more than all the humans born over hundreds of years combined.

 

It was merely a doppelganger.

 

Even the faint scent clinging to that doppelganger was that repulsive.

 

So how much more disgusting and horrific would the main body be?

 

That was why.

 

I had released my aura without realizing it.

 

The doppelganger vanished because of that, but consequently, I couldn’t find out where the main body was.

 

[That was a mistake.]

 

I should have extracted all the information and torn apart the creature in its dwelling.

 

Uncharacteristically emotional.

 

I gritted my teeth, but nothing changed.

 

However, I did learn one thing.

 

In one way or another, I would face that creature again.

 

And that moment would be.

 

The last time it remembered its existence.

 

* * *

 

Jörmungandr’s wrath resulted in a widespread event.

 

Suddenly, a typhoon blew across the entire region, with winds and lightning strikes killing only monsters and beasts, sparing human lives. This miraculous natural disaster only deepened the king’s worries.

 

“A dragon…….”

 

The king gazed blankly at the sky.

 

The dark clouds filled the sky, and each time lightning struck, it seemed like the shape of a massive dragon appeared within those clouds.

 

To be honest.

 

He desperately hoped Hans had seen it wrong.

 

It was simply bewildering.

 

Encountering an unexpected enemy, he hoped Hans had mistaken it for a dragon in his confusion.

 

Nevertheless, he sent the sacrifice, just in case Hans’s words were true, to prepare for the catastrophe that would befall the kingdom.

 

The king always thought of his people.

 

The lives of countless citizens depended on his every decision.

 

Thus, he offered animals as sacrifices to eliminate even the smallest potential danger.

 

However.

 

“It seems it did not please you…….”

 

The immense storm and rain proved it.

 

“Indeed, you are as greedy as the myths say.”

 

Oh, dragon.

 

Why can you not be satisfied with that level of offering?

 

The reason for the storm and rain was merely the encounter with the Demon King, but the king couldn’t possibly know that.

 

Naturally, he recalled the stories from the myths.

 

Specifically, the ‘most important sacrifice’ the mythical dragon demanded.

 

‘The most noble and pure maiden.’

 

It was too abstract.

 

What was the standard for the most noble?

 

The path that person had walked?

 

The nature that person possessed?

 

The blood flowing through that person’s body?

 

He couldn’t determine what was noble. Yet, the king bit his lip as a young girl came to his mind.

 

“Elyserede….”

 

His only daughter.

 

The noblest child in Trellinia.

 

Should he offer Elyserede?

 

Based solely on mythical stories, to preserve the kingdom?

 

Where was the guarantee that the dragon would be satisfied with that? Furthermore, what if it demanded more, using his daughter as leverage? No, was the story from the myth even true? Was that creature truly a dragon?

 

Countless doubts filled his mind.

 

It felt like his head was about to burst.

 

Clench——

 

Blood flowed from the fist he had gripped tightly, but he felt no pain.

 

It was too overwhelming.

 

He feared whether he could make the wise choice.

 

The kingdom and his daughter.

 

Weighing the two on a scale was an incredibly cruel task.

 

As both a father to one child and a king to a kingdom.

 

The king looked at the storm and rain, thinking of his daughter.

 

The pure and kind daughter who always smiled so brightly.

 

“…….”

 

He closed his eyes.

 

As his mind calmed down, his pounding heart steadied.

 

Finally, the King of the Kingdom of Trellinia, Lesbeligo Trellinia, made his decision.

 

“I must mobilize the kingdom’s army.”

 

Gather the kingdom’s forces to negotiate with the dragon.

 

And if that negotiation failed, wage war against the dragon with everything the kingdom had.

 

That was the decision made by a father.

 

“Father.”

 

“Ely…serede?”

 

…So he thought.

 

The king turned his head at the voice he should not have heard.

 

There stood his most precious daughter, Elyserede Trellinia.

 

With a smile on her lips.

 

The girl tore at her father’s heart.

 

“I will be the sacrifice.”

 

“Elyserede!!”

 

That pitiful smile.

 

It tore at his heart over and over.

 

For the first time in his life, the king, the father, scolded his daughter.

 

“I don’t know how you heard about this, but even if this body dies a hundred deaths, I will never offer you as a sacrifice.”

 

She was an active child.

 

Talented from a young age, always cheerful and bright, her pure smile was like the kingdom’s jewel.

 

A precious daughter raised with the love of everyone.

 

To offer such a child to a dragon.

 

That could never happen.

 

“Leave. This conversation is over…….”

 

“Father, do you really think you can defeat the dragon?”

 

“Of course. The Kingdom of Trellinia is a great kingdom with a long history.”

 

“A being that causes natural disasters with just a change of emotion?”

 

“…….”

 

“Father, do you really think you can communicate with the dragon?”

 

“Of course…….”

 

“Even though you’re planning to take the kingdom’s army with you?”

 

The king fell silent.

 

Yes, he knew too.

 

A greedy dragon that couldn’t be satisfied with hundreds of livestock would never listen to pleas for peace, even if they wielded force.

 

Moreover, there were numerous hostile nations around his kingdom. The moment he mobilized the army to confront the dragon, the kingdom left defenseless would be swiftly invaded by other nations.

 

And even if they managed to capture the dragon?

 

Could they conclude the fight without any casualties?

 

The king was not an optimist.

 

He knew this too.

 

Facing a dragon that caused natural disasters would result in severe casualties.

 

And if that happened, the Kingdom of Trellinia…would not be able to fend off foreign invasions.

 

His stomach churned.

 

He felt like he would vomit blood at any moment, and he shouted in frustration.

 

“Then!!”

 

What on earth.

 

“What do you expect me to do!! Yes, I know. Even if we capture the dragon, it’s impossible to avoid casualties. And I know that other kingdoms will invade once our forces are depleted!!”

 

But.

 

“How can a father offer his daughter as a sacrifice!!”

 

Hot tears flowed.

 

The reality he couldn’t avoid was so hateful.

 

“Father…….”

 

Elyserede’s gentle touch.

 

Wiped away the tears from the king’s eyes.

 

Then she took a step back and gracefully bowed to him.

 

Not to her only father, but to the king.

 

Not as a child, but as a princess.

 

“I am prepared to be the sacrifice.”

 

“No…….”

 

“So, ‘Your Majesty.'”

 

“Elyserede……!!”

 

“Please offer me.”

 

As a sacrifice for the kingdom.

 

And that day.

 

The king lost his right as a father, and the kingdom, upon hearing the news of the sacrifice, wept more tears than the rain that fell.

 

* * *

 

Jörmungandr stared blankly at the girl.

 

She was incredibly beautiful.

 

If a god were to create a masterpiece in its own image, it would look like this girl.

 

Of course, the reason I stared blankly wasn’t just because she was beautiful.

 

The girl, dressed in a pure white dress, knelt and looked up at me.

 

And behind her.

 

Numerous knights and soldiers, as well as servants and maids, looked at the girl and me with tears in their eyes.

 

When they looked at the girl, their eyes were filled with sorrow and grief; when they looked at me, their eyes were filled with hatred and resentment.

 

I couldn’t find words in this bizarre situation, so I just stood there quietly.

 

The servants, maids, and kingdom soldiers looked at the girl with miserable expressions, unable to say a word, and left.

 

The girl, left alone, smiled sadly and spoke to me.

 

“Hello, Dragon. I am the sacrifice for you, Elyserede.”

 

A sacrifice?

 

For me?