"You, and those others we haven't yet found, the reason you've lived this long... is because many years ago you transplanted those defeated Dragon Kings'... Heart-Protecting Scales."
Leon reached out, seizing Voel's collar, and slowly stood up, lifting his entire body into the air.
Voel's feet left the ground. His legs kicked, his hands clutching desperately at Leon's wrist.
The old man's eyes bulged wide. His earlier air of superiority had faded, but his mouth was still as stubborn as ever, "I don't understand what you're talking about."
"Don't understand? That's fine too," As he said this, Leon stretched out his other hand, slowly pressing toward Voel's chest.
"Your secret of longevity must be hidden right here, right? If I take it out... I wonder, will you instantly turn into nothing but a pile of bones...", Leon's tone rarely carried such intimidation and menace as it did now.
Outside the cell, Rebecca and the others heard the entire process loud and clear.
"Captain looks like that... if someone didn't know what's going on, they'd really have a hard time telling who the villain is," Martin muttered.
"Interrogation has to be like this," Rebecca folded her arms, "Back in the Dragon-Slaying Army, Captain wasn't good at interrogations. He couldn't play the 'bad guy.' But in these years, looks like he's learned quite a few new things."
"Oh? Why's that?"
The twin-tailed girl scratched her temple, thought for a moment, and answered, "Probably from Sis. I always felt she was that kind of beauty with both gentleness and scheming in her."
If Leon had heard Rebecca describe the dragoness that way, he would've definitely given his gunner a thumbs-up.
'Sharp read on dragons.'
Inside the cell, Leon's hand drew ever closer to Voel's chest.
And on his face was still no expression, as if plucking a Dragon Scale from a living man's heart was no harder than pulling a splinter from his finger.
In contrast to Leon's coldness, Voel was drenched in sweat.
A long life hadn't given him the courage to face death without fear.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down his cheek.
Thud!
Leon's fingertip brushed against his clothes. It was light, but to Voel it felt like a heavy blow straight to his heart.
His body shook. At last he broke down, pleading, "I'll talk! I'll talk! I'll talk!"
Thump!
Leon released him. Voel collapsed, knees slamming into the straw.
Leon drew back his hand, tucked it in his pocket, and looked down at the old man from above.
Voel gasped heavily, inwardly thankful that this madman hadn't ripped out his heart.
When he'd calmed a little, Voel swallowed hard and said, "I can tell you the details of the Empire's dragon scale plan, but you must guarantee my life."
"You're in no position to bargain. Don't talk, and you die right now. Talk, and maybe you live. Choice is yours."
"..."
In these years hiding, Voel had used his network and spies to keep collecting intelligence on the Dragon-Slaying Army.
Of course he knew of Leon Casmodeous.
Righteous, brave, kind, the ever-victorious general, the undefeated myth, and, the Silver Dragon's prisoner. But among all those labels, Voel had never once heard Leon described as ruthless.
'Damn it,' the old man thought, 'I never even crossed him. Why's he being this cruel to me?'
Snapping back, Voel resigned himself, sighed, and said, "Thirty years ago, the Empire began secretly allying with some Dragon Kings, steering the war's direction."
"That plan, at the time, was opposed within the royal family."
"Supporters and opposers split evenly."
"Until King Kant said we could seize Dragon Kings' scales through war, and thereby obtain their power."
At that, Leon frowned, scanning the decrepit man. He said coldly, "But looking at you, you don't seem like someone who's gained Dragon King power."
Besides, if so many had really gained such power back then, his battle against the Empire recently couldn't have gone so smoothly.
Voel nodded.
"The first man to successfully transplant a heart-scale, after surgery, though he didn't gain Dragon King-level strength, the sorcerers discovered..."
"His lifespan was vastly extended."
"His regeneration and bodily resistance were greatly enhanced."
"But...", Voel trailed off.
Leon already knew what he meant.
"But after transplanting, you could no longer wield magic, right?"
"That's right... That's why many military officers gave up the procedure. They still had to fight on the front. Without magic, they'd just be waiting to die."
Voel went on, "But many civil officials, myself included, couldn't resist the temptation of near-eternal life, and transplanted scales."
Just as Leon suspected.
The Empire steering the war for its own gain couldn't have been just for war taxes. It had to be something more, something to feed their greed.
So the scales could grant lifespans like Dragon Kings.
'No wonder Claudia said Dragon Kings who lose their Heart-Protecting Scales lose much of their longevity...', Leon slowly raised his hand, touching his chest.
The heart that should've stopped was beating again thanks to Rossweise's scale.
She hadn't only given Leon a second life, she'd extended it.
"But transplanting scales brought troubles too. For example, once we reached a certain age, we had to hold a funeral, to show the outside world, so they wouldn't grow suspicious."
Still alive, but funeral held first.
Why did that sound so strangely familiar?
General Leon could almost smell steak grilling.
He shook his head, pushing away the nonsense, and asked, "So, the former king isn't dead either. He's still alive somewhere, isn't he."
His teacher had said the Empire's rule under Kant was exactly like the previous king's. That meant Kant was a puppet.
The true ruler was still the former king, who'd transplanted a heart-scale and gained centuries of life.
At this, Voel hesitated.
But with no way out, he knew if he lied or kept silent, the man before him would tear out his heart without hesitation.
"The former king... also transplanted a scale. But I don't know where he is now."
"In fact, after Kant took the throne, no one knew. He vanished like into thin air, leaving no trace."
"But he still ruled this country, from the shadows, pulling the strings," Leon's voice was icy.
Voel bit his trembling lips and nodded, "Yes... Kant was only the puppet put in front. The strings were still pulled by the previous king."
Leon didn't ask further.
He had already gotten the two key truths:
1. Extending life through Dragon Scales was the royals' true aim.
2. Kant was indeed a puppet; the former king still lived.
Enough to proceed to the next stage.
As for Voel. Since Nacho and the others had caught him, he was probably a discarded pawn. He wouldn't know more anyway.
Leon would let him live. For now.
"Others will come later to continue questioning you. Tell them everything word for word. Otherwise... you know."
Voel clutched his chest, nodding frantically, "Y-yes, I know."
Leon said no more, turned, and headed for the door.
Just as he reached it, Voel called after him, "Wait..."
"Something else to confess?"
"No... I just want to know, why do you know so much about Heart-Protecting Scales?"
Leon froze slightly, his heartbeat skipping a beat.
Lowering his eyes, he answered softly, "I don't understand scales."
"But I understand the one who owns them."
———
Leon stepped out of the cell. Rebecca and the others rushed up.
"Well? Did you get anything?"
Nacho asked urgently, "That old bastard's mouth was like iron. We tried everything."
Leon nodded, relaying all that Voel had revealed.
Whether it was learning that the Empire deliberately dragged out the human-dragon war to seize scales for centuries of life, or learning the former king still ruled from the shadows. Both left Nacho and the others too shocked for words.
Leon, though, was calm.
Betrayed and framed by the Empire himself, he already knew they had no bottom line. They could do anything.
Stealing scales? That was nothing.
If they didn't extend their lives with human sacrifices, Leon would almost think they still had some humanity.
"We should have sensory sorcerers in Lionheart, right?", Leon asked.
"Yes, we do. Why?"
"In the next days, I'll teach them how to sense Dragon Scales. Aside from Voel, there must still be ex-royals hiding in the Empire. Find them. Piece clues together. It should help in our investigation of Queen Elizabeth and Lord Shadow."
Because Leon's body carried his wife's scale, he too could, in some sense, sense dragon power.
To be precise, scales.
He intended to pass that skill to trustworthy Lionheart sorcerers, so they could help.
As the saying went, more hands make lighter work.
Besides, Leon was Lionheart's leader. He couldn't do everything himself. Tasks requiring manpower and time were best left to reliable subordinates.
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