TAPGB - Chapter 30
The Abandoned Prince's Ghost Bride
"Wow, musty smell."
Caesar, who is sensitive to smells, pinched his nose and frowned.
If what Lia said is true, this place has been abandoned for a long time. There may be pores that communicate with the outside somewhere, but that alone will not be able to remove all the moisture inside.
The smell of mold was so strong that he felt like it would spread to his body.
Thump
Suddenly, Caesar's heart pounded. Even if he pretends not to be, is it because his nervous?
For some reason, it wasn't very pleasant to be here.
"We have to get rid of it quickly."
Caesar erased his smile and held out the lantern in front of him with a cool expression.
Scatter.
As he spoke, the fire in the lantern split and scattered in all directions. The dark basement was visible at a glance.
As Lucian said, three doors caught his eye.
First, Caesar looked at the left door. There was an unknown tunnel leading somewhere.
He took a step forward and briefly looked into the tunnel.
It is estimated that the tunnel was dug quite a long time ago. It seemed to be at least 100 years older.
In addition, there was a railroad not far from here that used mine carts. Since there is no cart, it seems like it is somewhere else.
"Is it connected to the mine by any chance?"
He had never heard of a mine nearby. Moreover, the size of the tunnel was quite large.
Usually, when drilling a tunnel underground or in a mineral vein, it is not made this large unless it is being built in earnest.
It's suspicious in many ways.
Even if he looked with a lantern, Caesar couldn't see the end. Eventually, Caesar raised his hand. The fire was created above his hands. Eventually, when he threw it into the tunnel, the fire went further and further away. Then it hit somewhere and disappeared.
Looking at the afterimage he saw just before the fire disappeared, it looks like there is a road next to it, not a dead end.
The distance to where the fire disappeared is approximately 1 to 2 km.
"It's crazy to look all over here."
He left the tunnel, compromising with coming later when he had time.
Now it is the door in the middle.
A door without a handle or window. Caesar tried pushing it, but it wouldn't budge. There was just the picture Lucian mentioned drawn in the middle of the door.
"It's a magic circle."
Perhaps because the moss was thick and many years had passed, the shape of the magic circle was not that perfect.
Rather than checking this, Caesar think it would be much easier to check the room where something like this magic circle was drawn.
Caesar entered the last room and lit it with fire.
The pattern on the floor here was much cleaner than the one on the middle door. The problem is that about 2/3 of the area around the center is full of what appears to be blood traces and is hard to see?
Caesar snapped his fingers and looked at the dark and brown blood on the pattern.
As Lia said, this is blood. If the blood turns to powder like this, it means it has been left unattended for a long period of time.
In addition, the fish that had not yet been powdered was also noticeable. A small sample was taken because it could be an important clue.
And everything that was dirty was removed with magic.
Then the magic circle was clearly visible.
The moment he saw that magic circle, Caesar's eyes widened.
Thump thump.
His heart pounded even more and his vision shook.
“Khaha...!”
Caesar started getting a headache, and unfamiliar things that he couldn't remember came to mind.
'... I just have to do it...?'
'Yes, only you can do this...'
Unknown memories came rushing in like crazy. There, Caesar was someone other than who he is now, and listened to a human's favor.
"Ugh...!"
The headache came again and the scene changed. This time, his vision was red, and he couldn't use his hands properly, as if they were restrained. And he seemed greatly shocked by what happened before his eyes.
His head felt like it was going to break and his heart was going to break.
'You... How did you... '
A woman was glaring at him with tearful, bloodshot eyes above a magic circle of an advanced level that was completely different from the magic circle drawn in the room.
'How could you betray me...'
Every single word she said became a huge dagger and pierced his heart. Caesar reflexively denied it.
"Ugh, I... not me... That's not me...!"
Cradangtang-
Caesar, who was staggering, fell on the spot. He came out the door shakily, scratching the stone floor.
He scratched the floor so much that his fingertips began to bleed.
Caesar thought everything would be resolved once he got out the door, but the headache showed no signs of going away.
Caesar, who had been writhing silently, finally opened his throat.
Wow!
Tears flowed and his eyes sparkled. In his flipped field of vision, he saw someone smiling wickedly at him.
"Why! You did that to me!!"
This was not Caesar's anger, but the anger of the person in his memory. As if responding, the man in the fantasy whispered softly.
'You have to speak clearly. That's what happened with your magic circle.'
No, this was all caused by a complete trap. He never meant to do that.
'... Carcerine, you can never di sobey me.'
With those words, he could see that the same pattern was engraved on his and the man's left arms. Absolute taboo for dragons. Soul contract.
It is an absolute contract that will never be resolved unless one party dies and neither party can attack the other.
The moment Caesar saw that, his reason was lost.
Krrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Caesar's polymorph was released and the basement shook as if there had been an earthquake.
In his dimming vision, Caesar saw something clearly.
The cool golden eyes of the man in the fantasy.
***
".... Are you okay? Shouldn't I go with you?"
[Even though he seems like a child, he does it when he has time to do it. Don't worry, nothing will happen.]
I comforted Lucian, who was anxious, but for some reason, I also kept getting an ominous feeling.
I know full well that Kaizar is not a dragon that can be easily defeated, but why on earth am I so anxious?
Waaaaaaaaaaaa!
At that time, a scream was heard from the basement. Lia's eyes widened and she grabbed the doorknob as Lucian looked up at her in horror.
"Lee, Lia... ... I guess something happened to my brother."
[...]
Even if it was just empty words, I couldn't say that it would be okay. The scream from earlier was so full of excruciating pain that it could not be said that it came simply from surprise.
"Okay, I'll go down......!"
[Wait for a second...... It's not certain yet. I don't know what's going to happen, so just watch the situation for a little while.......]
Kugugugung-
As soon as he finished speaking, the basement, no, the entire mansion shook. Caesar's murderous spirit gushed out from below. It was an energy comparable to that of Dragon Fear.
"My brother is in danger!"
I know. A big surprise has now occurred to Caesar. Otherwise, a guy who is good at self-control wouldn't randomly release his power like this
But what if Lucian falls and gets seriously injured?
'If I could go down, Lucian wouldn't be in danger, and I could rescue Caesar safely...!'
All kinds of scenarios came to mind. Since I didn't know the situation in the basement, the ominous ending was half the story.
"... Leah!"
Lucian struggled, saying he had to be rescued quickly.
Lia bit her lower lip tightly and quickly cast a barrier spell on him.
[Never do anything dangerous. I've set up a barrier just in case, so it will block most attacks.]
"Yes, got it!"
[If there is someone attacking Caesar in the basement, don't deal with them and come straight up the stairs. Got it?]
"I will definitely rescue my brother!"
It was only a minute ago that he was shaking because the basement was scary, but Lucian's eyes became serious as he felt a sense of duty to save Caesar.
Lia nodded and prayed that he would bring Caesar back safely.
***
After making a promise to Lia, Lucian went straight down the stairs without a moment of hesitation. He didn't realize that his fear of the basement had disappeared. This is because all attention was focused solely on Caesar.
"Brother...!"
When Lucian reached the basement, he hesitated for a moment. A firestorm was raging in the basement.
It wasn't someone attacking. Caesar had a seizure.
He returned to his dragon form, but fortunately, it was a reduced size rather than his true form.
However, because he was having a severe seizure, Caesar twisted his body mercilessly and scratched the stone floor with his claws, and the storm grew stronger around him.
Whoa!
"... It's hot!"
Because of this firestorm, Lucian can not approach Caesar.
However, if he leaves it like this, it seems like Caesar will lose his breath. The moment Lucian finally mustered up the courage to take a step forward...
Phew!
The flames passed right in front of his nose. Lucian reflexively raised his arms. But for some reason, it was hot and he didn't feel any pain.
"Ah... ! Barrier!"
Lucian saw a transparent barrier forming in front of his eyes. A little while ago, Lia's insurance was working well.
Lucian, who thought he could get to Caesar with this, swallowed his saliva and rushed into the firestorm.
It was so hot everywhere that it was hard to breathe, but once inside the storm, it was frighteningly calm.
In that silence, Caesar was just writhing in pain.
"Brother! Brother Caesar!"
Lucian hurriedly ran to Caesar.
"Brother, are you okay? What's the matter! What happened.......!"
"Well, huh......!"
It seemed like his voice couldn't reach him. Lucian lifted Caesar up and held him in his arms.
Caesar's eyes rolled back.
Lucian, whose heart sank, trembled and looked around.
That's right, Leah can't come down here. In that case, Lucian has no choice but to get out of here and go to where Lia is.
Lucian pursed his lips and stood up, holding Caesar in his arms.
However, the current Caesar was too heavy for Lucian, who was still young, so his back quickly broke. Nevertheless, Lucian did not give up.
"Keuuuuu......! Hang in there! I'm going to see Lia!"
Lucian put his arm around Caesarr's armpit and carried him away. Caesar was still busy struggling, unable to come to his senses. That made him feel heavier.
"Brother! Wake up! You can't fall down here!"
In the end, Lucian decided that it would be better to wake Caesar up first and punched him in the face.
His pinched eyelids began to flutter and his pupils began to appear.
"Brother! Can you hear me? Brother!"
Lucian shook him again and made eye contact.
Caesar's vision wavered. A little while ago, the boundary between fantasy and reality was unclear.
It was a sensation of his ego being distorted my emotions being assimilated as his own and the unknown memories of someone in his fantasy were mixed together.
An unpleasant yet unforgettable feeling of urgency shook Cesare's head even more.
But on the contrary, such a feeling deeply scratched Caesar's arrogant pride.
He is the most promising among red dragons. But are you being swayed by this false illusion?
"Ugh! Don't be damned!"
"Ugh!"
As soon as Kaizar spread his wings wide, the dragon pier opened.
Even after becoming an adult, he has to sharpen and polish his Dragon Fear to be able to fully use it.
It is a feeling of fear that cannot be compared to the life of ordinary beasts or monsters.
Lucian gritted his teeth, doubting whether the person in front of him was really Caesar.
'W-I'm scared...'
If Lucian doesn't run away right now, that dragon is going to take his life. But even if he wanted to run away, he couldn't move, and he couldn't leave Caesar behind, who had changed so horribly.
At that time, Caesar's gaze, which was sighing with sparks flowing, turned to Lucian.
It was the look in the eyes of a predator facing its prey. It contained no mercy or kindness.
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