Epilogue
Sensing a sudden change in the air movement from his nose, Tsaindokrus Vaision stirred from his shallow slumber. Who dares interrupting my nap? Wondered the Platinum Dragon Lord.
Dragons possessed keen senses that far surpassed those of humans. If their opponents tried to deceive them with invisibility or illusions, dragons would still be able to detect them even from a surprising distance. This was true even when they slept. As the greatest amongst dragonlords, his perceptive abilities were far better than normal dragons.
Hence, anyone who wanted to sneak up to him had to be exceptionally skilled. Despite his long lifespan, he only knew a handful of people who could pull this off. First would be the few dragon lords, followed by the assassin of the thirteen heroes, but she has passed on from this world. Next would be―
Feeling the presence of the person that just came to his mind, Tsaindokrus twisted his mouth and opened his eyes slowly. Even in the dark, a could see as if it was day. The one he felt before him was an elderly human with a flashy sword at her waist, standing out in the open with no intention to hide. She had managed to reach this close without being detected by the keen senses of a dragon lord, which is why the smile of someone who had pulled off a prank could be seen on her wrinkled face.
"It's been so long since we last met, Tsar."
He didn't respond as he stared at the old lady. Her head of white hair was a testament to her advanced years. However, her face had the vitality of a mischievous child, which did not match her age. She had gotten thinner and frailer as she grew older, but her heart remained the same.
While the Platinum Dragon Lord was comparing her current appearance with the one in his memories, the eyebrow of the elderly lady twitched to a dangerous angle.
"What? Did you forgot how to greet an old friend? Huh, so even dragons grow senile with age."
Showing his teeth, the dragon answered with a gentle laugh. "My bad. I was too touched from seeing a friend after such a long time. That's why I reacted so slowly."
In response to the gentle voice no one would expect from such a colossal body, the old lady's reply was sarcastic, just as he predicted.
"… Friend? That empty suit of armour over there is my friend. And it's all beaten up."
The elderly lady shifted her gaze towards the platinum armour. On the right shoulder of the armour there was a hole, as if it had been pierced by a spear. She was there when that blow had struck.
Long ago, when Tsar journeyed together with the old lady and the others, he did so by controlling that armour from afar. Because of this, when his true identity was revealed, he had earned the ire of his comrades.
It seemed that even now the score hadn't been settled yet, since this subject was mentioned again and again over her visits. On one hand, he wished that she would finally put this matter to rest, but on the other hand he was also glad to reminisce about it. Tsar smiled wryly at their usual exchange and, looking for a different topic, he noticed something was was missing from the old lady's right hand.
"Oh? That ring is gone, what happened? I can't imagine anyone taking it from you… But it is still an item that exceed the realms of humanity. It must not fall into the wrong hands. Especially those fanatics of the Slane Theocracy."
"Trying to change the subject? Hmpf. But you do have sharp eyes, so this is the fabled dragons' sensitivity for treasure… Ah, never mind. I handed it over to a worthy young man, so be at ease."
An item like that couldn't just be handed off to someone else on a whim. It was something that had been made with wild magic. Now, with the powers of magic tainted and twisted, it would be very difficult to create something like that again. His question also bore the feelings of one of the few who could still use wild magic. However, his friend could be trusted.
"Is that so. If that is your decision, then so be it… By the way, there are rumours that you have retired from being an adventurer… or did you come here on a quest?"
"I'm here to visit as a friend. I retired from adventuring and what not. Don't make this old woman work anymore. My job has been inherited by the crybaby."
"Crybaby?…" Tsar pondered momentarily and remembered. "You mean her?"
Reading the slight emotion in Tsar's tone, the old lady confirmed it.
"Yes, that little girl, Inberun."
Tsar made a sound as if he was stunned. "I think you are the only one who calls her a little girl."
"Really? Is that something you should say? I'm about the same age as that child. You are much older right?"
"Well, that might be so… But, you actually convinced that kid to be an adventurer huh? What did you do?"
"Hah. That crybaby kept nagging and complaining, so I told her I would let her do whatever she wanted if she could beat me. And so, I gave her a good thrashing, Kakaka!"
"You are the only human who can beat that kid…"
Tsar shook his head as he spoke with a voice that would make any human break out in a cold sweat. He remembered about the time he fought against the Demon Gods with the friends he parted ways with. Especially the face of his comrade that performed superbly during the fight with the Demon God of Insects.
"Well, no matter how strong the crybaby is and gets, there will always be someone stronger. For example, you could easily win against that kid. If you didn't restrain yourself, you would be the strongest existence in the world."
She thought he would have given a flippant response, but instead his reply was gravely serious.
"That might not be so, the power that corrupted this world… has returned."
"... So the tremors have come again. Why didn't you warn me?… ah, never mind. Who knows, this time it might be someone who that will help the world like leader did."
"Or destroy it. Two sides of the same coin."
"… I already asked before, but can't you ask for assistance from the other dragon lords in these situations?"
"My answer is the same. It is difficult. To be frank, the ones who survived thus far are the ones who did not fight the Eight Greed Kings back then. And they are the likes of Heavenly Dragon Lord that kept flying around in the sky or Deep Darkness Dragon Lord, who knows what he is doing, holing up in that giant cave underground. Probably sleeping… Anyway, I can't imagine these guys lending a claw."
"I see. However, there is Brightness Dragon Lord, who mingles with humans while making babies. So we might be able to persuade him, right?"
"Maybe. But my personal opinion is that the chance of waking 'her' who is sleeping at the bottom of the sea city would be higher."
"Are you waiting for that while you dream? Ah, if only leader had left his knowledge behind, there would be less trouble. It's a shame he died so early."
"It couldn't be helped. He was shocked after killing one of the companions who came with him. It was understandable for him to reject resurrection. Back then, weren't you as well, Rigrit?"
The old lady looked into the distance, nodding slowly with a pained expression.
"Yes, ah… that is… so."
"Rigrit, I feel bad about asking this of you even though you are no longer an adventurer, but can you listen to my request?"
"What is it? I have a hunch, but let's hear it anyway."
There was a sword in Tsar's line of sight. It was not suitable for slashing. However, its sharpness was beyond anything ever created in that world, an item that was impossible to craft there, be it with Wild Magic or Tiered Magic. This sword, one of the eight incredible weapons left behind by the Eight Greed Kings, was the reason why the Platinum Dragon Lord never left this place since he learned about the terrible power it contained.
"This is something I had been doing since I felt the tremors a few weeks ago, but I hope for your assistance now. I beseech you to collect information about items that can possibly match the weapons of a Player, or at least something special like the flying armour owned by the Kingdom's adamantite-ranked adventurers, Red Drop."
"… So you're serious about this."
"Yes. Whatever it is this time, we must be ready to send it back where it came from."