Leon arrived in the restricted area bordering the dragon territories, the air thick with latent magic and unspoken tensions.
The region remained guarded by the elite forces of various dragon clans, all maintaining a vigilant watch over the powerful and unpredictable Constantine. However, compared to the massive initial deployment, the number of guards had significantly decreased—a testament to the fragile stability that had settled over the lands.
Leon approached the sector watched over by the Silver Dragon Clan, blending in discreetly thanks to his status as the Silver Dragon Prince. His familiar presence allowed him to reach the border without challenge.
"Your Highness, you've returned," greeted Shirley, captain of the stationed Silver Dragon guards, as she noticed Leon's approach. Her posture remained formally alert, but her eyes held a familiar warmth.
Leon nodded, his gaze scanning the perimeter. "Thanks for your hard work, Shirley. Any unusual movements from Constantine lately?"
"None to report," Shirley confirmed crisply. "Since his last... coordinated passage through our station, he hasn't made any further moves." She referenced the time Constantine had assisted Leon in overthrowing Canter's regime—a temporary alliance that had required Leon and Rossweise to arrange for Constantine's covert movement through Silver Dragon territory, with Shirley warned in advance.
"Good. Maintain the surveillance as planned."
Leon then turned, heading toward the dense forest that separated him from Constantine's dwelling—a path he'd walked before.
Shirley's eyes followed him as he disappeared among the ancient trees, her expression professionally unreadable.
"Your Highness is acting strange..." one of the younger Silver Dragon guards murmured, stepping up beside her. "Isn't this his third time sneaking off to see Constantine?"
Shirley remained silent for a moment, her eyes never leaving the path Leon had taken. His previous visits had indeed allowed Constantine to slip through their area undetected, only for the Crimson Flame Dragon King to return days later. The specifics of their dealings remained a closely guarded mystery.
"Wasn't it Constantine who attacked the Silver Dragon Sanctuary on the day Her Majesty was giving birth?" the guard pressed, confusion evident in his voice. "Why are we being so lenient with him now?"
Shirley's voice was firm and carried the weight of command. "Questions that need not be asked should remain unanswered. If the queen or His Highness has given no further orders, we simply follow their will. Is that understood?"
Shirley's unshakable loyalty to Rossweise and Leon was well-known throughout the clan; she trusted their judgment implicitly, even when it defied conventional understanding.
"A worthy king will never betray her followers," she continued, her tone softening slightly, "and every decision they make serves a purpose we may not yet see."
The young guard scratched his head sheepishly. "I do trust them too... it's just that I'm curious."
Curiosity was natural, and Shirley understood the feeling. She, too, wondered about the strange alliance between her prince and their former enemy.
"If you really want to know the answer, I'll give you some advice."
"What advice, Captain?"
"Wait for the results."
The young guard blinked. "Wait... for the results?"
"A king's mind works in ways we might not fully comprehend, shaped by strategies and foresight beyond our perspective," Shirley explained patiently. "Each of us only glimpses a fragment of the greater plan. So instead of obsessing over countless questions, store them away, keep your curiosity contained. And when the time is right, perhaps you'll witness the full picture unfold."
The young guard nodded, seeming enlightened by her words. "Understood, Captain."
"You're welcome. Now, return to your post."
Leon moved swiftly through the dense forest, the familiar path taking nearly an hour to traverse. As he reached the perimeter of Constantine's territory, he encountered several Crimson Dragon patrols. Recognizing him, the dragon guards simply opened a path, letting him pass without interference—another sign of how routine his visits had become.
One of the younger Crimson Dragon guards hesitated, watching Leon pass. "Captain, isn't he technically trespassing? Shouldn't we stop him?"
"Stop him?" The captain chuckled dryly. "Even if we wanted to, what chance do you think we'd have against the one who defeated our king—twice?"
"Really? He doesn't look all that special to me," the young guard muttered, eyeing Leon's retreating form.
"Trust me," the captain said, his voice dropping. "If you knew half of what he's capable of, he'd redefine the meaning of 'ordinary' for you."
Leon continued on, hands tucked casually in his pockets, his expression calm as he walked toward the grand gate of Constantine's sanctuary. He nodded to the bewildered guards who watched him enter the fortress as if he owned the place.
Crossing the familiar stone paths and ascending the grand stairs, Leon entered Constantine's throne room without ceremony.
The massive doors opened slowly, and there sat the Crimson Flame Dragon King himself, lounging on his throne with practiced nonchalance, watching Leon's approach with a lofty gaze. The hall was conspicuously empty—no guards, no attendants, no courtiers.
It was clear that Leon was no stranger here, and Constantine had grown accustomed to his unannounced visits.
"Long time no see, Constantine," Leon greeted, his voice echoing slightly in the vast chamber.
"What do you want this time?" Constantine's response was as direct as ever, his crimson eyes narrowing.
"Hey, can't I just come see an old friend without a hidden agenda?" Leon spread his hands innocently. "A friendly visit, maybe?"
"Don't flatter yourself," Constantine snorted. "We're not 'friends.'"
"Oh, come on!" Leon laughed. "We've been through life and death together!"
"Life and death, sure," Constantine countered dryly. "Yours and mine—twice. That's what you call friendship?"
"Relax," Leon began, but Constantine raised a hand, cutting him off.
"I don't have time for your nonsense. Out with it. What brings you here?"
Seeing Constantine's usual calm demeanor—the familiar grumpiness that Leon had come to recognize as his baseline—reassured him that nothing had drastically changed since his last visit.
"Some time ago," Leon began, his tone turning more serious, "I received a list from your former second-in-command, containing the names of Dragon Kings who collaborated with the enemy."
Constantine's eyes narrowed further. "My second-in-command? You mean... Duke?"
"Yep."
"But he's dead, Leon." Constantine's voice turned somber, laced with restrained anger.
Leon shrugged, spreading his hands. "He handed over the list and chose to self-destruct afterward."
The memory surfaced clearly: Duke had finished writing the list, spat out a few final curses—"Cosmodeous; the Dragon Clan will not stop until you're dead!"—and then ended it all in a catastrophic explosion that decimated his surroundings and ensured his clan's final defeat. With no one left to lead them, the remnants of Duke's faction had dissolved soon after.
Constantine closed his eyes, a slow sigh escaping him—a rare show of genuine emotion.
"Duke was loyal—a skilled second," he acknowledged quietly. "I've never fully come to terms with his death, but there's no use in dredging up old grievances between us now. It would settle nothing."
That much was true, Leon reflected. Their shared history had been full of brutal battles and bitter betrayals—Constantine's initial attack on the Silver Dragon Sanctuary, Leon's retaliatory strikes, then Constantine being resurrected as a zombified creature by the Empire only to attack Isha's Red Dragon territory, with Leon forced to defeat him once again. Revisiting these old conflicts would lead nowhere productive—they'd be better off just fighting it out directly if that was the goal.
Constantine, however, seemed to recognize the importance of having a reliable, if unlikely, ally in these times of shifting power dynamics. Any final reckoning between them could clearly wait.
"I half-expected you to come down here ready to fight," Leon joked, trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere.
Constantine snorted, "Enough banter. You got the list. What then?"
"Not long ago, the dragons and humans reached a formal truce," Leon explained. "The negotiations went smoothly, and those Dragon Kings who'd betrayed our kind have been appropriately punished."
"Yes, I heard," Constantine said, a hint of something unreadable in his eyes. "And I also heard... you represented the dragons in those negotiations, didn't you?"
Leon smiled faintly. "Indeed, I did."
"No wonder it went 'smoothly,'" Constantine remarked dryly. "I'd be more surprised if it hadn't, with you negotiating with yourself on the other side."
Leon returned to his main point, his expression turning serious once more. "While reviewing recent history and comparing it with Duke's list, I realized that out of all the Dragon Kings who sided with the enemy, only one remains unpunished."
At this, Constantine's expression darkened, his brows furrowing. "Who?"
"Warhammer Dragon King, Adam."
Hearing the name, Constantine's faint smile vanished completely, his face becoming rigid and cold.
He paused, then slowly stood from his throne, descending the steps one by one with deliberate, heavy steps.
"I despise that name," Constantine said, his voice low and dangerous. "And I despise that dark-hearted creature."
"Oh?" Leon's interest was genuinely piqued. "Dark-hearted? I don't know much about Adam beyond basic rumors. Care to share what you know?"
"In my generation of Dragon Kings, Adam's reputation is particularly infamous," Constantine explained as he reached the foot of the steps, stopping just in front of Leon. "Given your relatively sheltered Silver Dragon upbringing, it's no surprise you haven't heard the details."
"My sources only know he has no tribe and works as a mercenary, taking on any job that pays well," Leon offered.
"That's correct as far as it goes," Constantine replied. "But Adam is ruthless in pursuit of his goals, using vile, despicable methods without a second thought. He has no honor, no code beyond his payment."
After a heavy pause, Constantine's voice grew colder, practically dripping with disdain, "The 'Fallen Dragon King'—that's the title he's earned among those who know his true nature."
Leon understood immediately that for Constantine—a Dragon King with a deep, if unconventional, sense of honor—the title of "Fallen Dragon King" would represent the utmost disgrace. Just as Constantine had once refused to use Noah as leverage in his personal feud with Leon, so too did he hold his warrior's honor high, never dragging the innocent into his conflicts.
This fundamental, if rough, sense of honor was precisely why Leon had come to trust Constantine enough for this uneasy alliance.
"You must really despise Adam, huh?" Leon commented, watching the raw emotion on Constantine's face.
"Trust me, Leon," Constantine said, his crimson eyes burning with intensity, "if you ever cross paths with him, you'll understand exactly why."
"Alright," Leon said with a determined nod. "If I get the chance, I'll make sure to teach him a lesson on your behalf."
Constantine scoffed, though there was a flicker of appreciation in his eyes. "So, is that what you came here for? To ask where that scoundrel might be hiding?"
Leon grinned. "If I knew where he was, I'd already be on my way to take him down."
A hint of deeper curiosity stirred in Leon's mind. Just what had Adam done to earn such profound, personal hatred from the typically composed Crimson Flame Dragon King?
Leon watched as Constantine hesitated, seeming to weigh something heavy in his mind. The Dragon King's gaze drifted toward a secluded passage behind the throne room, then back to Leon. Finally, he broke the silence.
"Follow me."
Constantine led Leon down the grand hall, turning into the secluded passage Leon had noticed. They passed towering, ornate columns, crossed a dimly lit corridor, and descended a set of ancient stone stairs into what appeared to be a hidden chamber deep within the fortress.
After about five minutes of walking through increasingly austere passages, they arrived at a heavy stone door marked with ancient dragon runes. Constantine pressed his hand to a recessed panel in the center, infusing it with his crimson magic.
With a low, grinding rumble, the door slid open.
"Come in," Constantine said, his voice uncharacteristically quiet.
Leon stepped inside, his gaze sweeping over the room. At first glance, there was nothing remarkable—a sparsely furnished chamber—until Constantine moved aside, allowing Leon to see what stood at the center: a bed carved from solid ice.
Mist rose gently from the ice bed, and suspended just above it was a large, perfectly clear crystal.
Inside the crystal was a small, crimson-tailed dragon hatchling.
The tiny creature lay curled in a fetal position, her fists clenched, eyes lightly closed. Her small body was perfectly still, preserved in stasis, as though she were simply sleeping peacefully.
Leon's eyes widened in surprise. He quickly approached, noting her young, fragile form—she looked barely older than a newborn.
The crystal, protecting her in this suspended state, reminded Leon painfully of the one that had once kept Rossweise safe when she'd nearly exhausted herself in that harsh future timeline. Veronica, her grandmother, had sealed her within a similar crystal to save her life.
But this little dragon... why was she—
"Thirty years ago," Constantine's voice broke the silence, trembling with barely contained fury as he looked at the tiny dragon, "Adam accepted a task from a rival Dragon King, seeking to steal magical resources from my territory. To ensure his success, he used her as leverage."
Constantine's hands clenched into fists at his sides. "But his plan failed, and in the ensuing conflict... she was gravely injured."
Leon's heart sank as understanding dawned. "So this child is..."
"Her name is Hefei Constantine," Constantine said, his voice softening with the smallest trace of a smile as he gazed at his daughter. "She is my daughter."
But then his expression hardened again, his voice turning sharp and laced with decades of bitterness and a chilling resolve. "The only reason I ever cooperated with the Empire in the first place was because Adam was among their ranks."
"Every day since," Constantine continued, his crimson eyes burning with intensity, "I have prayed for the chance to find him."
"To look him in the eye," he whispered, the words dripping with venom, "and tear him apart, piece by piece."