The Dragon Slayer Who Regressed After 1,000 Years - Chapter 8

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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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A Dragon Slayer’s Return After 1000 Years — Episode 8
The work of the Order takes many forms.
Monster subjugation, protection of royalty and nobility, border defense, maintenance of order — the list goes on.
But among all these duties, Dragon Subjugation is held paramount.
‘The Asel Order was always the first to stand at the forefront of Dragon Subjugation.’
Before his regression, Cain had belonged to a knightly order of the Crescent Empire.
He learned much there, but upon discovering his compulsion to consume Dragon Hearts, he had no choice but to leave of his own accord.
‘I couldn’t let them see me like that — a madman devouring Dragon Hearts.’
Afterward, he hunted alone, building a reputation as a Dragon Slayer.
Through that work, he came to understand how utterly dragons despised and oppressed humanity.
Humans were always nothing more than playthings and delicacies to dragons.
The dragon Dmitri now sought to subjugate was no different.
“The beast we’re tasked with subjugating is estimated to be seven hundred years old. It’s attacked five villages and consumed a hundred and eight people in the process.”
Dmitri’s expression grew heavy as he addressed the assembled members.
“Three months ago we launched our first subjugation attempt, but it ended in failure — we lost three precious members of the Order. I pray this second subjugation will be our last, and that we’ll finally cut short that creature’s life. Do I have your commitment?”
“Yes, sir!”
“And one more thing.”
Dmitri gestured toward Cain.
“Lord Cain has agreed to participate in this subjugation as well. He will not be deployed in active combat — this is purely an observation mission for his education. I will not entertain any objections. That concludes my briefing.”
All eyes turned to Cain.
None of them held welcome.

* * *
The mounted knights aligned their column as they passed through the entrance to the Mountain Range.
A force composed entirely of Sword Experts and beyond — assembled to face the dragon.
All except one: Cain.
‘The weight of their stares is cutting enough.’
A fresh-faced 2-Star knight squeezed between seasoned 4-Star Sword Experts was bound to be treated as dead weight.
But that wasn’t the only reason.
‘I dragged two knights of the Ragnar Family down into ruin. There’s no chance they’ll look upon me with favor.’
Typically, knightly orders are bound together by fierce camaraderie.
When a parachuted knight suddenly descended upon such a brotherhood and shook an entire noble house to its foundations?
Of course he would be seen as a thorn in their side.
‘Justice-serving fools who turn a blind eye in the name of comradeship. Pathetic.’
Still, Cain found it all rather fitting.
Once he slew the dragon, their regard would shift in time.
‘Though one of them will never change his mind.’
Cain’s gaze drifted to the prisoner walking at the head of the column.

* * *
Valter trudged forward at the front, his body wound tight in binding rope.
‘Damn it all… how did a 5-Star knight like me end up in such a state?’
Valter had once lived a life of assured privilege within the Ragnar Family.
Then one day his brother’s arm was broken, and his father’s crimes were exposed for all the world to see.
In a single moment, his status plummeted from nobility to commoner.
‘It’s unjust. I knew nothing of any of it. Nothing!’
In truth, there was nothing unjust about it at all.
His rank and title were not achievements earned through his own effort.
They were merely a mirage, enjoyed solely through his father’s shadow.
But Valter refused to see it that way.
‘It’s all because of that parachuted bastard, Cain.’
Valter wanted to kill him so badly it was driving him mad.
“Valter — is this the route you scouted before?”
“Yes, sir. It is. Why would I guide you down a different path?”
“One never knows. Rage might cloud your judgment and lead you astray.”
“……”
Now he’d even lost Captain Dmitri’s trust.
Fresh waves of hatred for Cain surged through him once more.
But he could not let it show.
‘I’ll find my chance and end him.’
He had already lost everything.
His family, his station, his honor.
The commander seemed to understand his heart, speaking in a roundabout way.
“I know how angry you are. But you’re the man who wielded your blade with all your might, determined to kill Prince Cain. You do know whose mercy kept your head attached to your shoulders, don’t you?”
“…Yes, sir. I’m aware that it was he who petitioned for my pardon.”
“Good. Complete the reconnaissance mission, and as promised, you can live as a commoner. Don’t think of anything else.”
‘Why, though.’
It wasn’t as though he didn’t know; the more he dwelled on it, the less he could comprehend.
His enemy had let him live.
That fact stirred turmoil in his chest.
‘No matter. That man destroyed my house. He is my enemy.’
The thought was so powerful that his fury never truly subsided.
Shaken for a moment, perhaps.
“We’re here. The dragon’s tracks went cold in this direction, so I investigated.”
“Mm, there are definitely tracks.”
Dmitri knelt to gauge the size of the prints gouged deep into the earth.
Then.
Cain, who had drawn near without warning, dismounted and examined the tracks closely.
“Judging by the shape of the prints, it’s a Blue Dragon, and since there’s no moisture clinging to them, it doesn’t seem to be the aquatic type.”
“My goodness, you can tell all that just from the footprints….”
Dmitri’s amazement was well-founded.
He had deliberately withheld all information about dragons from Cain.
“Whom did you hear this from?”
“I studied it from books.”
Cain shrugged and gazed across the Mountain Range.
“Judging by the direction of the tracks, the Lair should be over that way.”
With that, Cain turned back toward his horse.
Valter’s burning gaze followed him.

* * *
‘He really does want me dead.’
Cain thought this as he rode.
He was not so dull that he couldn’t sense the killing intent of a 5-Star Knight.
‘Well, at least he’s following obediently. That’s fortunate.’
Pardoning Valter had not been an act of mercy.
‘If I kill the dragon, complications arise. This is not yet the time to reveal myself.’
If word spread that he had slain the dragon, it would draw the attention of those who followed them.
‘I need a decoy to redirect their gaze.’
And so he had kept Valter alive for precisely that purpose.
It would be a waste to let him die now.
“From here on, we must proceed on foot.”
“Everyone dismount!”
As they crossed the Mountain Range and entered the narrow pass, all of them alighted from their horses.
In one corner of the pass lay an overturned cart, smashed to pieces.
Beside the cart lay a single small shoe.
It belonged to a child.
“This is….”
“Ah, that.”
Valter spoke awkwardly, his voice strained.
“About two months ago, villagers passing near the Territory were attacked, or so I heard….”
“The bodies?”
“…Were never found.”
Cain picked up the shoe.
The sole was nearly worn through.
It must have belonged to a child from a poor family.
Days of walking, hand held by a mother now gone, at least one meal skipped—all of it lay in this single, frayed shoe.
An entire life, ended by it.
Cain placed the shoe carefully atop the broken cart.
Only Dmitri, who followed close behind, noticed the shift in Cain’s expression.
As they walked on, guided by Valter, Cain suddenly came to a halt.
“Why do you hesitate, Valter?”
“I’ve only scouted this far. I’ve never been beyond here.”
“Then scout ahead. Go.”
Valter nodded at Dmitri’s command.
There was no reason to refuse—obedience meant survival.
That’s when it happened.
Cain stepped forward.
“I’ll join the scouting party.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Beside the astonished Dmitri, Valter’s brow twitched.

* * *
‘Going together? With me?’
Valter’s expression twisted into bewilderment.
‘Does he have a death wish?’
Surely he couldn’t be ignorant of Valter’s intentions to kill him.
He could end him in a heartbeat without so much as a weapon.
Dmitri, catching the lethal glint in Valter’s eyes, moved at once to stop him.
“Prince Cain, that won’t do.”
“Why not? It’s Valter you’re concerned about, isn’t it? Don’t worry—I’m unarmed.”
“Still, it’s too dangerous. Besides, I can’t entrust a scouting mission to someone of only 2-Star rank. And weren’t you only meant to observe?”
“Observation alone grows tedious. Let me help with something, at least.”
“Absolutely not. Out of the question.”
Dmitri was resolute.
But Cain had no intention of backing down.
To execute his plan, he had to scout with Valter.
“If you insist on that, come along with us then. Having you nearby will set my mind at ease, won’t it?”
“Hmm…”
Dmitri fell into deliberation.
In the end, he could only yield.
“Sigh… very well. Let’s go. The rest of you, stay here and wait!”
Valter took point, with Cain following behind.
Dmitri walked between them, watchful and ready.
“There’s nothing here. If this were a Lair, there’d be Guardians about.”
“Then try that path.”
Following Dmitri’s instruction, Valter changed direction.
As he did, he shot a glance at Cain, but Dmitri immediately stepped into his line of sight.
Making clear there would be no opening.
“Focus on the scouting, Valter.”
“Yes…”
With each step deeper into the passage, the sand beneath their feet grew thicker.
As the two moved carefully forward, Cain’s nostrils flared.
‘A faint dragon scent. I can feel it.’
Having hunted hundreds of dragons in his past life, Cain knew.
There was a Dragon’s Lair nearby.
‘And where there’s a Lair, there’s always a Guardian standing watch.’
Channeling his mana, he opened the Seer’s Eye, and the future five seconds hence bloomed into view.
“Stop for a moment.”
“Hmm?”
The two in front halted at Cain’s words.
“Beyond here lies the dragon’s Territory. You mustn’t enter.”
“How could you possibly know that?”
Dmitri voiced his doubt, but Valter merely scoffed.
“Ridiculous. What? The dragon’s Territory?”
“I’m serious. Don’t go any further.”
Valter’s features twisted in contempt.
It was human nature to want what one was forbidden from having.
Especially when such nonsense poured from the mouth of someone he longed to kill.
His rebellious streak flared to life.
“Let me see if the prince’s words hold truth.”
Valter took a step forward.
Unaware that Cain had provoked him into it.
One step.
Two steps.
By the third step.
Finding nothing amiss, he spread his arms as if to prove it.
“The Dragon’s Territory? Look. There’s nothing wrong at all—”
That was when it happened.
Crack-crack-crack!
Something burst from the earth and coiled around Valter.
Dmitri cried out in alarm.
“Great Sandworms!”
There was more than one.
At least ten of them broke through the ground at once, their heads rising in warning against the intruders.
And Valter?
“Ahhhhh—”
Crack-crack-crack!
He was already being dragged beneath the earth.
“Valter!”
Dmitri drew his blade, but it was too late to save him.
“Damn it!”
He bore Valter no love, but still—the man had once fought under his command as a knight.
Once swallowed by the earth, there was nothing to be done.
Or so he thought.
Until Cain spoke.
“I’ll go retrieve him.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I knew this place was the Dragon’s Territory. But I failed to stop Valter decisively enough. I bear some responsibility for this.”
With that, Cain stepped forward.
“No, sir! Please don’t go any further—”
Dmitri’s words caught in his throat as he collapsed.
He had fallen under the Sleep Magic cast by Bernardus.
“Well done, Bernardus. Perfect timing.”
“Hehe, I only did as you commanded.”
Sleep Magic was elementary, but no Sword Master, no matter how skilled, could resist the magic of a 9-Circle dragon.
‘Everything unfolds as planned.’
He had anticipated that Valter would rush forward, driven by wounded pride.
An enemy’s words have a way of stirring contradiction in any heart.
Having declared he would rescue Valter just moments ago, the pretext was solid.
‘Valter will still be alive.’
The Guardians had the habit of presenting any human who entered the Territory directly to their master.
‘I’ll use Valter as bait. And hunt the dragon.’
Cain smiled and issued a command to Bernardus.
“Guide me. To the Dragon’s Lair.”

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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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