Chapter 52
Even So
“Today, I wish to use this opportunity to speak about Valdrova, the one who is to become my partner.”
Those with weaker nerves looked as though they might stop breathing.
Seeing those expressions only gave Ferda greater confidence.
“At the eastern edge of the continent lies a land where all living things once roamed freely. Because of the Dark Dragon Godwin, it was reduced to ruin and became a land of death where monsters are endlessly spawned.”
Ferda poured that confidence into his words.
“For one hundred and fifty years, the great Red Dragon Valdrova has served the continent without receiving anything in return, fighting the monsters of the East. And yet, what names have been attached to my partner?”
Names that had once inspired terror.
Names that became objects of contempt as that terror faded.
Names that were mocked.
“Tyrant. Evil Dragon. Monsters are forever pouring in from those distant demonic lands. They tear away her scales and rip apart her flesh.
“Their claws are aimed at your homes and your families. Despite such devotion, she has never asked for anything. Even through agonizing pain that brought tears to her eyes, she remained silent and continued fighting without yielding.
“We are indebted to her. Even beasts repay the kindness they receive. That is why I have spoken here today—to clear her name.”
Ferda swept his gaze across the chamber.
Many people had gathered, but their expressions could be divided into familiar categories.
Those with no interest.
Those who were interested.
And those calculating how they might exploit the situation.
Yet all their gazes eventually turned toward the same place.
The Dragon Spawns seated at the front.
They were servants of the masters of mystery—beings of great status and immortality.
“Did you say you were Regent Ferda Valdrova?”
One of them spoke.
Was it an objection from the Silver Dragon’s Spawns?
Contrary to Ferda’s expectation, the voice belonged to a dignified woman.
Blue hair and horns that were rounded rather than pointed.
‘Was her name Erika Iorga?’
She was Erika Iorga, the leader of Iorga’s Spawns.
She had bright blue hair and eyes, a slender jawline, and striking features.
She was beautiful enough that one might have believed her an imperial princess rather than the leader of a group of Spawns.
She rose and greeted Ferda with graceful movements.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Regent Ferda. I am Erika Iorga, Iorga’s representative and the Master of the Blue-Eyed Tower.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you as well.”
“I dislike beginning our first meeting with harsh words. However, given the nature of your proposal, I will not speak indirectly.”
Erika’s eyes settled upon Ferda.
Sharp pupils that seemed out of place within those clear, sky-blue irises fixed themselves on him.
“To put it plainly, the answer to your proposal is no. It is an agenda item that can be dismissed that simply.”
The conviction embedded deep within her eyes was directed at Ferda.
This was unfavorable.
Her gaze was drawing everyone in the Grand Council to her side.
“One hundred and fifty years ago, when the Dragon-Demon War erupted, Lady Valdrova became a war hero by piercing the heart of Godwin, who had forced the continent into a twelve-year struggle.”
Her tone was gentle and rational.
But Ferda did not accept her words at face value.
“Yet that was not the end of it. Lady Valdrova lost control of her power and went berserk. Many people, many races, and countless lives were lost. Do you know how many?”
Erika asked Ferda, then continued before he could answer.
“As you are to become Lady Valdrova’s husband—and as you submitted this proposal—I trust that you have conducted extensive research.”
It was a question he had to answer.
Claiming ignorance would only mean stepping into the trap himself.
Ferda answered honestly.
“Half… of all the casualties caused during the twelve years of the Dragon-Demon War.”
Half that number had died in a single half-day.
It was the greatest catastrophe recorded in every history book.
“Yes. Half. The equivalent of twelve years’ worth of losses occurred in a mere half-day. And…”
Erika turned her head slightly, drawing everyone’s attention elsewhere.
Toward Goz Silver Wind.
“Even Silver Wind, the leader of the Silver Dragons, passed away because of her.”
Goz Silver Wind said nothing.
No—he was probably incapable of speaking.
He was a hot-blooded man who preferred fists to words.
He seemed to be clamping his mouth shut because no one could predict what curses might erupt if he opened it.
Yet Ferda, the one who had submitted the proposal, showed no sign of intimidation.
Had this been enough to frighten him, he would never have raised the subject in the first place.
“Godwin’s case was different. At the time, it was an all-out war. Every force on the continent of Cerdes had surrounded Godwin, and vast numbers of soldiers and beasts had gathered there. If someone went berserk in the middle of such a concentration, it was inevitable that countless easy targets would be caught in the destruction.”
“What matters is that she went berserk at that moment and caused those deaths. Regardless of the circumstances, she killed half as many people in half a day as the Evil Dragon Godwin killed over twelve years.”
“She killed Godwin, who had tormented the continent of Cerdes for twelve long years.”
“And she murdered Lord Silver Wind—the brave warrior who cherished others more than anyone, and the greatest leader of his age.”
In a single day, Valdrova had brought about the deaths of both the worst evil dragon and the greatest guardian dragon.
Because those two events had occurred at the same time, Valdrova’s position could only remain suspended in uncertainty.
However, Ferda possessed evidence.
“That rampage did not arise from Valdrova’s will, nor was it caused by the inherent nature of the power she embodied.”
“If it was not her nature, then what caused it?”
“It was merely an incident caused by contamination from the chaos dwelling within the heart of the Evil Dragon Godwin.”
Ferda had discussed the subject extensively with Mori in preparation for raising it here.
“Chaos dwelled within Godwin’s heart. Lady Valdrova was the one who came into the closest contact with it. She directly destroyed the source dwelling within that heart, so whether she wished it or not, she would inevitably have been affected.”
Erika’s gaze sharpened.
“It is true that Lady Valdrova came closer to Godwin than anyone else. But you are mistaken about one thing.”
Erika seized control of the chamber once again.
“Lady Valdrova was not the only one who fought there. Everyone fought desperately. Far more people came close to Godwin and suffered wounds from him.”
Ferda knew that as well.
By cross-checking the records, he had confirmed that Valdrova had actually suffered comparatively less damage.
“According to your argument, every dragon present should have been affected. That would include Lord Iorga, who suffered grievous wounds. Yet he remains perfectly well.”
Erika shifted her gaze.
Toward the old man seated beside her.
“How fares Lord Odograsado?”
The old man chuckled.
“Lord Odograsado is one who is wrapped in radiant golden faith. Surely he could never fall victim to one of Godwin’s shallow tricks.”
At his firm denial, Erika raised her chin.
“You see? If your claim were correct, then many of those who fought in the Dragon-Demon War should have been corrupted and contaminated.”
“…”
“Could chaos have entered her because she destroyed the heart? Of course, that is possible. But look at the present. Unlike the others who overcame their wounds and rose again, what is Lady Valdrova doing?”
Erika infused her voice with emotion.
“She does not truly wish to protect anything. She is like a beast that has tasted blood, as though the destructive instinct she awakened can no longer be reversed.
“The monsters spilling out of the demonic lands are merely what allow her to suppress that instinct, and she chose them because destroying them carries the fewest consequences.
“Is that not why she remains close to the demonic lands while showing no desire whatsoever to eliminate them?”
Ferda began to see Erika differently.
She was a wall.
And not just any wall.
A wall in the North.
A colossal barrier erected to stop the frost giants and demons that came from beyond the frozen lands.
It was known as the Frostwall.
Ferda had seen that wall before.
There was no mercy or tolerance for anything that came from beyond it.
Erika’s argument was just like that wall.
It allowed not even an inch of compromise, offering only intolerance and ruthlessness to anything that approached.
‘Why?’
Ferda wondered.
‘Why is she so desperate to condemn her?’
He could not understand why she was struggling so fiercely to isolate Valdrova completely.
Had Goz Silver Wind been the one enraged, Ferda would have understood.
Yet Iorga’s side, which had no direct connection to the matter, was desperately trying to leave no room for reconsideration whatsoever.
Ferda read the atmosphere.
His eyes unconsciously swept across the entire Grand Council.
The nobles who supported her position.
Alexander, who had acted as though he were on Ferda’s side only moments ago, was now holding his breath and watching the room.
He was likely calculating whether there might be some political benefit to gain.
‘Disgusting.’
To Ferda, everyone seemed desperate to kill her and strip her bare.
‘This was expected.’
He might not fully understand politics, but he understood humans.
The moment someone drew attention and came under attack, everyone joined forces to tear them down.
Had Ferda not carried the name Valdrova, they would already have been circling him one by one, looking for pieces to tear away.
Ferda had always kept that in mind.
‘Even so…’
His insides boiled.
The more they boiled, the colder Ferda’s face became.
He had already abandoned the thought that he could persuade them.
Even so, it was not easy.
To face this situation directly and still remain still.
Ferda felt a violent turbulence rising from his heart.
The anger he had cast aside and suppressed was now mocking him.
And so he asked.
‘Valdrova. My heart…’
Must you go this far?
Must you endure every false accusation and humiliation,
and still continue to love and protect that which you wish to cherish?
Then, astonishingly, his turbulent heart began to calm.
The anger ceased its jeering.
It was fragile enough to seem as though it might break.
Soft as a newly sprouted leaf pushing through damp earth at dawn.
Yet it had melted his frozen heart
and engraved itself deep within his chest.
That feeling answered Ferda’s question.
Even so,
“Then…”
She loved them all.
“I will prove it.”
Erika asked in response to Ferda’s words,
“What exactly do you intend to prove?”
“That she did not establish the Far East as her base merely as a place to vent her destructive instincts.”
Standing upon the platform, Ferda raised his voice more clearly than ever before.
“As the representative of the Far East, as Regent of Valdrova’s domain, and as Valdrova’s fiancé, I hereby make this declaration.”
What Ferda had to do was exceedingly simple.
He merely had to help her spread those steadfast wings.
He raised his head proudly and enunciated every syllable, driving the words into their ears.
“We will purify and reclaim the land defiled by Godwin, father of monsters, source of chaos, and the Calamitous Dragon.”
It was a declaration of conquest against the Demonic Lands.
The entire Grand Council erupted into commotion at Ferda’s shocking proclamation.
“He intends to conquer the Demonic Lands?”
“That land was beyond even the immortal powers…”
Everyone reacted with shock and disbelief.
It was only natural.
After the Dragon-Demon War created the Demonic Lands, many had attempted to conquer them.
Yet every person who had entered with dreams of conquest had failed.
For a hundred years, countless people had attempted it, only to be defeated and abandon the land.
And now—
“What the great Valdrova, embodiment of power and flame, desires is the eradication of the monsters appearing upon this land. The principal and ultimate goal of that eradication is the conquest of the Demonic Lands.”
A young regent was boldly challenging what all others had failed to achieve.
“As she desires peace for this continent, I too will lend my strength and act until everyone acknowledges that the title ‘Evil Dragon’ is nothing but a false stain upon her name.”
Ferda’s ambitious declaration shook the Grand Council.
This was his first time attending the council as the representative of a Dread Queen.
He was only eighteen, young and inexperienced, which gave them more than enough reason to call him insufferably arrogant.
Wherever one went, age and experience were factors that could not be ignored.
But that did not apply to Ferda.
On the surface, they believed he was able to act this way only because he stood beneath Valdrova’s authority.
Yet deeper in their unconscious minds, something else stirred.
A hidden hope that perhaps this broad-shouldered young man might actually succeed.
“This proposal…”
Blancaros’s voice quietly echoed through the chamber.
At once, every other voice died away.
Even the Dragon Spawns stiffened at the sound.
“We shall end the discussion here, Regent.”
Blancaros had personally spoken to stop Ferda.
Ferda had no choice but to accept.
The mere fact that Blancaros—who conducted everything through his representatives—had spoken directly gave the request extraordinary weight.
“Thank you for granting me this opportunity.”
Ferda decided to be satisfied with what he had achieved.
With that, his debut before the council came to an end.
Ferda returned to his seat, and Blancaros’s Tongue resumed the proceedings.
“We shall move on to the next agenda item.”
After that, they began discussing matters Ferda found trivial.
To him, they were nothing worth hearing, and he paid them no attention.
‘Erika Iorga.’
Her name continued echoing through his mind.
The old habits Ferda had developed as a mage of vengeance were unconsciously carving that name deep into his bones.
‘Pointless.’
Ferda tried to ignore the habit.
Then—
—Regent Ferda, can you hear me?
Speak of the tiger, and it appears.
Erika’s voice echoed directly in Ferda’s ear.
She was using telepathy magic.
—I have listened carefully to your position.
Ferda cautiously drew mana into his finger.
He condensed it to a level that posed no threat and lightly touched it to his temple.
—I, Erika Iorga, view your position favorably, and furthermore—
Snap.
The resonance in his mind stopped as though a wire had been severed.
Ferda had cut off the telepathic connection she had established.
Erika flinched at the sudden interruption.
She subtly turned her head and looked toward Ferda.
Her eyes demanded to know what he thought he was doing.
Ferda stared back and answered aloud.
“Get lost.”
She immediately sent another telepathic message.
—Please wait, Regent Ferda. I understand that you are emotional, but if you would refrain from blocking me and listen—
Ferda blocked her again.
—No, listen to what I am—
Another telepathic message arrived.
He blocked it again.
For the remaining thirty minutes until the meeting ended, the two continued their battle of sending messages and cutting them off.