Of course, there was another reason I agreed so readily: Fernando's sudden invitation to join that so-called "Supreme God" organization was something I couldn't stop thinking about. If "Supreme God" was indeed one of the System teams we knew about, then Fernando joining them was absolutely something that needed to be taken seriously.
Right now, the two of them were celebrating inside that magical information-suppression barrier. Chances were they would inadvertently dig deeper into that topic as they talked. So after Adrian and the others all left, I decided to find an opportunity to slip into the barrier and keep eavesdropping.
But getting up onto that platform required a bit of planning. Even though I could fly up directly with my wings, the moment I spread them, the light-element surge would have too large an impact. With so many people nearby, if even a single mage could sense light-element fluctuations, we would be tipping them off immediately. Before I made any move like that, I needed to buy Adrian and the others as much time as possible.
That was when the wine jars stacked beneath the platform—waiting to be carried up in batches—became the perfect opening.
Those human underlings couldn't fly. The method they used to carry out Vaksham's orders turned out to be the most basic kind of wind magic. Since it didn't require any advanced elemental theory, wind magic was among the most common flight-type spells at the low levels. A wind mage around second tier, as long as their control was decent, could stir air currents and lift themselves—or someone else—up with relative ease.
Naturally, it had its drawbacks: it wasn't very stable. Ordinary people wobbled in the air and easily lost their balance, and accidents weren't rare—unexpected midair "crashes" that caused injuries or deaths.
Fortunately, the one casting the spell was an old man who looked to be in his sixties. His strength seemed to be only around third tier, but he was clearly experienced. The first few deliveries went smoothly—at the very least, the wine jars that went up mostly arrived intact. Meanwhile, relying on my invisibility, I effortlessly blended in among the cargo, rose into the air with it, and successfully entered the information-suppression zone.
Once I reached the platform that had served as the dragon's resting place, the rules up there were clearly a different matter. Without explicit orders, those underlings weren't allowed to approach casually. Under normal circumstances, no one would ever imagine an enemy had secretly slipped in with the supplies, ending up not far from the two of them.
By chance, Fernando and Vaksham had already had quite a few drinks, and their emotions seemed to be unexpectedly out of control. The moment I arrived, I saw them grappling and arguing.
"Give up? And you've got the nerve to suggest that to me now?!"
Vaksham grabbed Fernando hard by the collar, as if interrogating him. "Miriam acted together with you back then! She was the only offspring born into our family in nearly a hundred years, and you watched her get killed with no way to stop it!"
"It's true. I do bear some responsibility," Fernando sighed. He didn't resist despite the provocation, only closed his eyes and continued in a weary voice, trying to clarify. "You personally entrusted Miriam to me, and I failed to protect her…"
"But your revenge still needs careful, long-term planning. Ever since I told you the approximate area where Adrian might be, you've been stirring up trouble around this region for a long time. Leaving aside the casualties and the economic losses, if this continues, it will inevitably draw a joint crackdown by the Kingdom of Astralrealm—and even the surrounding nations. Don't forget that even the elders within your dragon clan reached an agreement with the Kingdom's army and agreed to stop pursuing responsibility for this matter. The consequences of pushing things further are likely more than you can bear alone. It would be wiser to stop sooner rather than later…"
"What a joke. Even if I have to hide farther away, it's no big deal!" Vaksham snapped, clearly not appreciating Fernando's goodwill. "Didn't I just tell you? Yesterday, among a batch of humans we captured from the nearby town, interrogation revealed that Adrian's biological mother was mixed in with them. That means I've successfully seized an important handle on that guy!"
"As long as I have this bargaining chip, once the news gets out, he'll have to think twice—he won't dare act rashly. Hell, he might even show up tomorrow on his own and deliver himself right to me!"
Vaksham had believed from the very beginning that victory was already in his hands, and he kept repeating his advantage with absolute certainty. But if that was the case, then it was easy to foresee that the hostages would be guarded even more tightly. Adrian and the others' rescue operation might become much harder because of it.
"I'm afraid your wish is going to fall through," Fernando said, shaking his head, still trying to keep his tone calm and persuade Vaksham to stop. "There were sightings suggesting Adrian appeared around the Empire's capital, Kyndrill, a few days ago. If you're trying to find him near his hometown, it looks like that won't be possible in the short term."
"And Adrian is protected under the Continental Human Convention. If you take his mother hostage, sooner or later you'll be collectively hunted down by every country on the continent—including the Sages' Alliance. That's a dead end."
Up to this moment, neither of them had any idea that Adrian had already slipped inside and was carrying out a rescue operation in secret.
"So you're telling me to let everything I've done go to waste at the very end?!"
At Fernando's analysis, Vaksham's emotions seemed to collapse instantly. Dragonkind had always had an extremely low birthrate—sometimes it took centuries for a single child to be born. It was obvious Vaksham truly loved his younger sister. His voice even caught slightly as he demanded, agitated:
"Miriam's death wasn't entirely your fault. For the sake of our long friendship, I could even choose not to hold it against you! But I want to avenge her with my own hands, and you come here to stop me—what does that mean? If it were Sally instead, would you still have this attitude?"
"So you joining that 'Supreme God' organization… is it because after all these years you've already given up on avenging her?"
"Of course I haven't given up!"
The situation took a turn no one would have expected. The dramatic conflict between one dragon and one man immediately became a mutual wounding. Fernando looked as if he'd been struck right in a weak spot, and he tried, helplessly, to defend himself.
"Sally and Miriam aren't the same… Back then, I arrived one step too late—I saw her murdered right in front of me."
"For many years, I threw everything away and trained with bitter effort, just to keep increasing my strength, but I was still nowhere near strong enough to take revenge! Then later I met Lady Michelle. Perhaps only Lady Michelle's power could contend with that… That's one of the reasons I chose to serve under her."
"But Lady Michelle has disappeared recently, and there are other problems that still haven't been resolved. So I can only place my one remaining hope on this newly appeared outsider organization. At the very least, it allows me to train across different worlds—and if things go smoothly, I can even spend points to return to this world. As long as I can stay alive and become strong enough, I will definitely get my revenge!"
"…"
Fernando's reasoning was more than sufficient. Vaksham had nothing to say for the moment. Still, since he understood something about Sally's death, he asked with suspicion:
"Sally has been dead for over a hundred years. You've always kept quiet about the killer who hunted angels everywhere. So who exactly was it—what kind of person could possibly be that strong?"
After all, Fernando had once been one of the founders of the Sages' Alliance, and he had even created the Art of Demon Taming himself. He'd been famous for centuries, yet even now he still couldn't overcome his enemy. To be honest, I was extremely curious about that person's identity as well.
"You don't understand," Fernando said. "That kind of power can only be described as the legendary 'Domain of the Gods.' It's simply not the same plane as ours."
"Back then, all I saw was him absorbing every last trace of light-element released by the angel's death—and in an instant, the pressure he gave off became terrifyingly strong. I rushed in without regard for my own life, but in the end I can't even remember how I lost consciousness. I only know I somehow survived by sheer luck."
"I didn't even figure out whether he was human. But strangely, not long after Sally was killed, the culprit vanished from the continent completely for no apparent reason. To this day, there's been no trace of him."
Fernando's answer was extremely abstract. His past was tragic—but listening to it left me completely bewildered.
"Domain of the Gods"? "Hunting angels"? Had someone like that existed in our world? By all logic, the events he described were far in the past… and yet, for some reason, it kept bothering me.
"It's time for me to go," Fernando said, standing up. "There's still an important matter I need to handle with my new teammates. They're waiting for me—and this is my first mission after joining."
After recalling the past together, and sensing the atmosphere between them had turned sour, Fernando rose to bid farewell to his dragon friend. At the same time, he took out a strangely shaped object from his storage ring.
"What's that?"
The item immediately piqued Vaksham's curiosity. Fernando didn't hide anything. He explained that it was a teleportation badge—after joining "Supreme God," every member received one. It could instantly teleport the user to the side of another teammate.
And then he dropped an even heavier bomb:
"Also, I recommended you to my teammates as well. If things go smoothly, they agreed that after this mission is successfully completed, they should come and assess you for recruitment. If you meet the conditions and join, then once you gather enough points, you can use the celestial weapon to exchange for Miriam's resurrection too."
"When that happens, talking about revenge and everything else will be easy."