The Dragon Slayer Who Regressed After 1,000 Years - Chapter 26

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Dragon Slayer Returns After 1000 Years — Episode 26
“Phew, the barrier’s down! The dragon could come back any moment—let’s move!”
At Lusciwood’s words, the knights’ hands moved faster, but Cain felt no real alarm.
‘It won’t come back. In a Succession Duel, the loser is abandoned—that’s the unspoken law.’
Unlike parent and child, siblings don’t share a link through the Soul Bond.
Nerkasion would never sense his brother Drakasion’s death.
His only concern was whether the heart might be discovered.
‘Even if it were, I can substitute an illusion in its place. Nothing to worry about.’
No Sword Master, no matter how skilled, could see through Eighth-Circle Illusion Magic.
As proof, they hadn’t noticed a thing while he carefully placed the Dragon Heart into its seal.
That was when it happened.
Dmitri approached, breaking his reverie.
“This one’s larger than the Blue Dragon we caught last time. How old would you say it is, sir?”
“Looks to be around two thousand years.”
“To slay an Adult-Class dragon… what an extraordinary achievement. This is all thanks to you, Prince Cain.”
“Don’t give me that.”
“No need for modesty.”
Cain turned at the unexpected voice—Lusciwood was walking toward him.
“Because you understood the dragon’s nature, we achieved this victory without a single casualty. I’m truly grateful.”
Lusciwood spoke his thanks with genuine feeling.
It seemed excessive for killing just one creature, but Cain understood.
‘Bellion hasn’t hunted dragons in years. This is like rain after a drought for them.’
And what they’d hunted was no Spirit-Class dragon—it was an Adult-Class one.
Worth five Spirit-Class dragons combined. An astonishing victory indeed.
And to achieve a seemingly suicidal operation without a single loss—how could anyone not rejoice?
Lusciwood’s elation made perfect sense.
“But are you really just Aura Rank 2?”
“As you can see.”
“Your skill and knowledge of dragons both defy explanation.”
Lusciwood extended his hand.
Cain, glancing down for a moment, clasped it.
“If there’s another opportunity, would you come help with a subjugation? Even just for advice on dragons.”
“Anytime.”
Satisfied with the answer, Lusciwood grinned and turned to exchange farewells with Dmitri and the other knights.
“Thank you for the support. Your help was invaluable in the hunt.”
“Think nothing of it.”
“When we return, I’ll tell the Crown about the courage of the Asel Knights.”
Their business was finished.
The Asel Knights exchanged their final courtesies and descended the mountain.
Behind them, Lusciwood’s voice echoed like a distant call.
“Next time, find an excuse better than ‘I read it in a book’!”
‘He’s perceptive after all.’
Cain smiled faintly and quickened his pace.

* * *
“Welcome, our heroes!”
The knights of Bellion who returned from the subjugation received a hero’s welcome.
The King of Bellion especially spared no praise, his face beaming with delight.
“I hear you’ve slain the dragon. Well done, all of you!”
The King moved down the line of assembled knights, shaking each man’s hand, until he stopped before Lusciwood.
“Commander Lusciwood! You’ve outdone yourself this time. To fell an Adult-Class dragon—I can’t remember the last time we had such news! You’ve earned our gratitude!”
“No, Your Majesty.”
Lusciwood, unused to such praise, looked somewhat embarrassed.
“Thanks to you, our kingdom can finally hold its head high.”
“Yet we cannot rest easy. At least ten or more dragons remain…….”
“Why should that matter? They won’t care about one of their own dying at the hands of inferior humans.”
He was right.
Looking back through history, dragons had never come seeking vengeance.
One of their kind struck down by lesser humans?
If anything, they’d scoff—provided they spared any thought to it at all.
Dragons are a species indifferent to whether others live or die.
So Lusciwood, too, decided to set his worries aside for now.
He had only to savor the splendid achievement of slaying an Adult-Class dragon.
“Glory to the Dragon Slayer!”
At the King’s lead, everyone shouted in unison.
Even the faces of the Bellion Knights, stiff moments before, broke into smiles.
No one noticed that Deputy Commander Leonan alone maintained his rigid expression.

* * *
When Adrian sent Cain off on the subjugation, anxiety outweighed his hopes.
How could he simply watch his nephew walk toward certain death?
Had Cain not insisted so stubbornly, Adrian would never have sent him.
‘That’s why I stationed Dmitri and the other Sword Masters at his side.’
He had counted himself fortunate if the boy merely returned alive, never imagining he would come back crowned with glory.
“The Asel Knights have completed their support mission and returned without incident.”
Dmitri and the knights, along with Cain, knelt.
Adrian’s face lit at once.
“I’m grateful simply that you’ve returned unharmed. Rise.”
As the knights got to their feet, Adrian continued.
“I hear you’ve achieved something remarkable—an Adult-Class Black Dragon, no less. It’s a shame we couldn’t claim the victory ourselves.”
“There will be opportunity enough for us another time, my lord. Please do not trouble yourself.”
Adrian smiled warmly at the Commander’s words, then turned to Cain.
“Welcome back. You’re not injured, are you?”
“No, my lord. I am unharmed. I apologize for the worry I’ve caused you.”
“Your aunt worried far more than I did—and I caught an earful for it. Next time, don’t accept such reckless requests. Is that understood?”
“It is, my lord.”
Adrian nodded and glanced around at the assembled knights.
That was when Dmitri stepped forward cautiously.
“My lord. If I may speak.”
“Of course.”
“Young Master Cain played a crucial role in this mission.”
At those words, Adrian’s eyes widened slightly.
“Cain did?”
“Yes. When we confirmed twelve dragons during reconnaissance, we believed the task impossible and intended to withdraw. But Young Master Cain possessed deep knowledge of the Succession Duel unique to Black Dragons, which allowed us to hunt the weakened Adult-Class dragon. Without his expertise, we would have returned empty-handed.”
“Is that so?”
His nephew had played the decisive role—Adrian swelled with pride as his uncle.
“You did splendidly. A remarkable achievement indeed.”
Bellion surely had learned of this as well.
Perhaps their previously hostile gaze had softened considerably.
Adrian looked at his nephew with a warm smile.

* * *
When Cain returned to his chambers after the audience, he sought out Serena.
“Cain!”
She embraced him suddenly, her shoulders trembling without a word.
Cain gently patted her back.
“I’ve returned safely, Mother. Don’t worry.”
“Do you know how much I worried while you were gone? What if something had happened—”
“This isn’t the first time I’ve gone to see dragons.”
“That doesn’t make me worry any less each time.”
At her words, Cain reflected.
He would become strong enough that she need never worry again.
‘If I became the greatest knight on the continent, wouldn’t she finally find peace?’
In his former life, he had attained the pinnacle of the blade and earned renown, but by then his mother was already gone.
Hollow glory—all of it meaningless.
Cain would not repeat that life.
This time, he would protect his mother and give her reason to smile because of her son.
‘First, I must grow stronger.’
He soothed his mother and returned to his chamber.
“Bernatus. Bring me the Dragon Heart. And don’t let anyone see.”
“Yes, Prophet.”
Bernatus, who had vanished somewhere moments before, returned.
Clutching a heart the size of a human head.
“Keep watch on the surroundings.”
“Understood.”
He slipped quickly out of the room.
As though the sight of it revolted him.
Crunch. Crunch.
Without hesitation, Cain drove his teeth into it and forced it down his throat in ragged gulps.
Drakasion’s heart, defeated in the Succession Duel.
It had no taste, but the vast mana contained within it expanded his vessel further.
Another star kindled in the constellation that formed his Aura.
Seven stars.
The throbbing power surged stronger still.
‘Seven stars at this age…….’
In his past life, he’d reached this height only after forty.
He’d accelerated his progress by twenty years.
‘If the Empire’s arrogant knights learned of this, they’d be scrambling to recruit me.’
Joining the Empire’s knights would bring advantages, certainly—but not now.
‘Securing the relics comes first.’
In his past life, Cain had obtained three ancient relics of the Prophet.
All of them lay hidden in locations unknown even to the Dragon Lord Arcadion.
He was about to retrieve one of them now.
‘If I’m going to claim the relics the dragons possess, I’ll need that ability.’
Cain gathered his things and left the palace under the pretense of a casual outing.

* * *
Dawn, when moonlight cast a pale gray over the world.
Vice-Commander Leonan slipped into an alleyway.
After confirming it was empty, he drew the Crystal Orb from his breast and tapped it softly.
―What is it.
“I report to you—the Bellion Knights and the Asel Knights jointly hunted an Adult-Class dragon.”
―…….
No response came from the Crystal Orb. Shock, perhaps.
Leonan continued his report regardless.
“We deployed a Sword Master and completed the full dissection—bones, claws, scales—with the heart now secured in storage.”
―Can you retrieve it? The heart.
A dragon’s heart is a precious collectible.
Security is tight around such treasures, but his rank should make it no obstacle.
“Yes. I can manage it.”
―Take it. But how did you manage to kill the dragon?
“We targeted a dragon weakened in the Succession Duel. We struck while the other dragons were withdrawing and disposed of it. And there’s something else…….”
Leonan lowered his voice.
“There was a key figure in the kill.”
―Who?
“A man named Cain Asel, royalty from the Asel Knights who came as reinforcements. When everyone else advocated retreat, he proposed a strategy to strike at the dying loser of the Succession Duel. He possessed uncanny knowledge of dragon affairs.”
―Cain Asel……. I’ve never heard the name.
“Neither had I. But something troubles me. He claims to have read of this in books, yet his knowledge of dragons is far from ordinary, and though he claims only Two-Star Aura, he struck down a Spirit-Class master in a single blow. He warrants close attention.”
―Understood. I’ll pass this to my superior.
The connection severed, and Leonan slipped the Crystal Orb back into his pocket.
He drew out something else.
A pouch he’d prepared for exactly this purpose.
‘Stealing the Dragon Heart is nothing.’
As Vice-Commander, he knew the security systems inside and out, memorized which guards were on duty at which hours.
As he approached the storage vault, a guard saluted.
“Vice-Commander, what brings you at this hour?”
“Night inspection. Open it.”
The guard opened the door without question.
Leonan stepped inside calmly and stood before the sealed chest.
‘There it is.’
He lifted the lid and withdrew the heart from inside.
The slick sensation made him wince, but the task demanded he see it through.
All he needed to do was place it in the pouch he’d prepared.
But then.
‘Hm?’
Leonan’s hand went rigid.
The texture he’d felt only moments before had vanished entirely.
Looking down, his palm was empty.
The heart had dissolved like a mirage.
‘What—what is this……?’
He looked back into the sealed case.
Nothing.
No trace on the floor, nowhere at all.
A fine tremor began running through his fingertips.
‘Could it be… did it vanish the moment I touched it?’
Leonan’s face drained of all color.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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