What Does That Evil Dragon Live For?

Elaine also blinked in surprise.

 

‘In my past life, when I was offered as a sacrifice to Rabes, I didn’t have the mind to question how Rabes’s seal was broken, but now it was different.’

 

It didn’t make sense to talk about the ‘seal of the evil dragon’ when Rabess, who had already broken the seal, was sitting on her shoulder.

 

However, John, who had no way of knowing what Elaine or Rabes were thinking, continued speaking with a solemn expression.

 

“The heart of Lancer Aquinal, who sealed the evil dragon and fell asleep, must have been the same as our hearts as we serve Lord Bara and worry about the safety of the empire.”

 

[It’s funny. What do you know about Lancers?] 

 

“We re-embodied the remains of Lancer Aquinal and poured in the divine power of priests and paladins to strengthen the seal of the evil dragon. It is not an easy task, but everyone at the Temple of Pavelo will continue to do their best to prevent the return of the evil dragon.”

 

[He’s already returned, and you want me to show you what the ‘return of the Evil Dragon’ looks like right now?] 

 

Rabes burst into anger every time John spoke.

 

Elaine was anxious that Rabes might burst into flames at any moment, so she patted Rabes’ tail draped over her shoulder.

 

No one else in the room had seen the true return of the evil dragon, but Elaine remembered clearly the image of Rabes circling over Lecce City, spewing black flames, and how terrifying it had been.

 

[If you hadn’t made a wish not to destroy this country, this place would have already become a sea of fire.] 

 

Rabes fumed as if his anger wouldn’t subside, but he didn’t try to do anything dangerous, perhaps because Elaine’s pat had its effect.

 

And the initiation ceremony went on without any particular incident, and it soon became a time for the saint and their families to say their final goodbyes.

 

Newt, who had nothing to say to Elaine, instead of encouraging Elaine, went to Count Dardil’s family and greeted Lorina.

 

Elaine was the only one who didn’t go along.

 

As Lorina watched from a distance as Newt received all kinds of praise and encouragement from people including the people of Count Dardil, 

one of the people who had shown their backs to Elaine quietly turned and approached Elaine.

 

“hey!”

 

“Why, Damon?”

 

“Aren’t you scared?”

 

“what?”

 

“Starting today, you have to live in the temple dormitory.”

 

Elaine somehow laughed at the completely unexpected situation.

 

‘I don’t know what Damon heard, but he seemed to feel a little sorry for Elaine, who had joined the temple instead of him.’

 

“You might be scared, but I’m not scared. Even at Newt’s mansion, I stayed alone in the attic, so what?”

 

“Oh, that’s right.”

 

“And you are the one who should join the Knights, so why should you be afraid of living in a dormitory? from now on you need to improve my swordsmanship skills and also need to develop your courage.”

 

“The knight…”

 

In front of Elaine, who deliberately pointed out the story about the Knights, Damon lowered his head and mumbled.

 

The story about joining the Knights Templar may have been an excuse made by Rubaine to get Elaine to join the temple, but Damon seemed to feel pressured to join the Knights.

 

But no one could tell that Damon was not destined to become a knight.

 

Not only was he of small stature, he was cowardly enough to be chased around by his brother, and he had no interest or talent for anything physical, including swordsmanship.

 

Elaine felt a little pity for Damon as he watched him wriggling his cold, sweaty hands. Elaine made sure Newt wasn’t looking this way and patted him on the shoulder.

 

“Oh, what!”

 

“Don’t be scared. You don’t have to join the Knights.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Ugh, you idiot. That’s just an excuse.”

 

“excuse? What excuse?”

 

“An excuse to have me join the temple because I am not a direct descendant of my uncle. No one will remember that you will join the Knights after today’s initiation ceremony, right?”

 

“Really?”

 

Damon’s eyes widened in surprise.

 

“Even if you’re going to lie, you have to be right. Didn’t my uncle or L’Arch tell you in advance?”

 

“they didn’t tell me…”

 

Which meant that Damon was as much of a pawn to Rubaine and L’Arch.

 

Even if it’s a decision on Damon’s life, they don’t feel the need to tell him in advance, and of course, he’s a child who follows the orders of his family.

 

“You must have been fidgeting alone.”

 

Damon didn’t specifically reply, but I could easily overhear his answer from the way he was biting his lip with his teeth.

 

“Don’t worry. Because in the first place, uncle had no intention of letting you join the Knights. but…”

 

At the end of Elaine’s words, where she was trying to give a clue, Damon gave her a curious and anxious look.

 

“If you keep following Martin around and acting like a child, Uncle and L’Arch will not expect anything from you.”

 

“What does that mean?”

 

“It means that your value is determined by uncle or L’Arch. They would send you wherever the family would benefit, right? Of course, regardless of your opinion.”

 

Damon’s face seemed to turn white.

 

In fact, as soon as Damon in his previous life turned 20, he had to leave for a foreign country to follow Viscount Elanfor, who ran a trading business.

 

Count Newt and his wife made a fuss in social circles that Damon had been recognized by Viscount Elanfor, but in reality, they had sent him as a hostage and worker instead of contributing to Viscount Elanfor’s business.

 

And Damon, who returned from a foreign country suffering from an endemic disease, was unable to get up even when Elaine was sacrificed due to hemoptysis and boils all over his body.

 

‘Viscount Elanfor sent Damon instead of him to an area where endemic diseases were prevalent?’

 

‘I heard that it was a disease for which there was no cure. Perhaps, if Rabes had not turned back time, Damon might have died not long after.’

 

‘In any case, if things continued like this, there was a high probability that the events of my past life would repeat themselves.’

 

“Well, then….What should I do?”

 

“You should research ways to survive on your own, don’t ask me how. I’m overwhelmed just thinking about how to survive in this temple starting today.”

 

I thought Damon might get angry, but surprisingly he nodded obediently and became lost in thought.

 

It may have been a difficult thing for a boy who had just turned 16 to worry about, but that advice from earlier was the greatest consideration that Elaine could give to Damon.

 

Although she didn’t have high expectations, Elaine hoped that at least Damon would come to his senses and live his life.

 

* * * 

 

“Huft, I feel at peace now. How much it bothered me to have an impurity in the house….”

 

The Countess, who returned to the mansion after the initiation ceremony, smiled brightly for the first time in a long time.

 

Then she called the head maid and ordered her to clean out the attic Elaine was using by the next day. With that, it seemed like Countedd Newt was having a truly peaceful evening.

 

However, before returning to his own room, L’Arch stopped by Elaine’s room.

 

He couldn’t give a clear reason why he stopped by, but he couldn’t help but walk naturally to the attic on the third floor.

 

‘Was this room so small and shabby?’ 

 

It was a place he never paid attention to before Elaine’s attitude changed at the end of last year.

 

Since he was indifferent to Elaine’s existence, he never paid much attention to the stairs she climbed with heavy steps or the attic that looked like a dirty rat hole.

 

However, when L’Arch came to give Elaine a gift, the impression of this room, colored by the warm colors of small oil lamps, was not as bad as he imagined.

 

No, it may not be that the impression of the room was bad, but that the sight of Elaine greeting him with surprised eyes, colored in orange, was good.

 

‘So this room without Elaine suddenly feels small and shabby.’

 

‘Now that I think about it, there are no curtains, and the only heating facility is a small stove.…The attic was really bad.’

 

The bed was so old that the edges were all frayed.

 

However, Elaine kept this room fairly clean.

 

He could tell by looking at the blankets neatly folded on the bed, the tables and chairs arranged neatly next to the window, and the smooth floor with almost no dust.

 

L’Arc couldn’t help but smile as he imagined Elaine’s diligent appearance there.

 

‘In many ways, she’s better than Ellie. She seems to be in a rebellious phase right now, but if I  take better care of her in the future, she will listen well again.’ 

 

L’Arch felt satisfied as he imagined Elaine leaning on his shoulder and entrusting everything to him.

 

To L’Arch, Elaine was his, someone who could not stand on her own feet without him, so even while imagining such a thing, he did not think that he was strange at all.

 

However, just before leaving after looking around the attic, L’Arch’s smile disappeared completely in front of drawers he had inadvertently opened.

 

There were only two items in the drawer of a dresser that was so old that it was thought to have never existed in the Newt family: a red ribbon in its original packaging and a silver rosary necklace.

 

“Elaine Newt…!”

 

L’Arch called Elaine’s name low, as if he was grinding his molars.

 

‘The way she’d frozen in front of me had to have been an act, or she wouldn’t have done this.’

 

L’Arch was experiencing for the first time in his life what it felt like to be rejected by someone.

 

Then, he suddenly remembered Elaine giving him the reason why she no longer comes to him.

 

“You are telling me not to come to you unnecessarily, right?”

 

‘I had said those words several times, but Elaine always came to visit me, so I never thought that Elaine would keep those words in her heart.’

 

* * *