With the death of the Evil Dragon Fafnir, the crisis facing this world finally came to an end.
In fact, everyone was quite curious about how exactly Duanmu Huai had killed Fafnir—what had he actually done?
The truth was, what Duanmu Huai did wasn't that strange. First, he carved a hole through the dragon's upper palate and drilled straight into its skull. Then, facing Fafnir's exposed brain, he hacked it apart mercilessly. After that, he severed the central nerve hub that connected the dragon's entire body, paralyzing it completely. Only then did he crawl out of its brain, cut his way downward, and locate Fafnir's magic core, which he shattered. Just like that, the infamous Evil Dragon was slain.
Of course, things didn't simply end there. To prevent resurrection, Fafnir's corpse was dismembered and completely destroyed. As for its lair, Manaria dispatched troops to reclaim it and successfully seized Fafnir's treasure hoard… though naturally, the majority of it went to Duanmu Huai.
Strictly speaking, all the treasures in Fafnir's lair should have belonged to Duanmu Huai, but he generously offered a portion to repair Manaria's royal capital. And with such a vast treasure trove, his once-empty purse became full again.
Not only that, Duanmu Huai also received honors from the Kingdom of Manaria. After all, he had destroyed the King of Evil Dragons single-handedly. The King of Manaria conferred upon him the title of "Dragon-Slaying Knight" along with rewards. Duanmu Huai, in turn, proposed a joint "Academia-Industry-Research Integration" project between the Holy City's Automaton District and Manaria's Magic Academy. Naturally, the king approved.
But… some things still caught Duanmu Huai completely off guard.
"…An engagement??"
He stared in disbelief at the king on the throne, wondering if his ears had deceived him.
"That's right, Sir Knight. I hope you can be betrothed to my daughter, the princess of Manaria—Anne."
"Not only Anne."
From the other side, the King of Regnis also smiled warmly at Duanmu Huai.
"My daughter Guleya as well. If possible, I would like you to be engaged to her too."
"No, this… why??"
Duanmu Huai was dumbfounded. He had thought the two kings summoned him for state affairs, but… this was far too unexpected.
"We are getting old, after all. It's time to consider the future. I believe it is most fitting for the hero who defended Manaria and saved this kingdom to inherit my place."
The King of Manaria stroked his beard with a smile, and the King of Regnis nodded slightly.
"Indeed. Regnis has also been thrown into turmoil by this matter. So, for the sake of maintaining friendly relations between our two nations, we believe this arrangement is an excellent solution."
So that was it.
Hearing this, Duanmu Huai finally understood. In plain terms, this was nothing but a political marriage. Manaria needed him to stabilize the realm, while Regnis, clearly intimidated by his feat of slaying hundreds of dragons and killing the Evil Dragon King alone, wanted to secure peace through marriage. From the Regnis king's words, it was obvious the country was in chaos. The dragons probably feared Manaria might march in to conquer them while they were weak.
In such a situation, sending princesses as peace offerings was indeed a clever move.
But still…
"You two also agree??"
Duanmu Huai turned to Anne and Guleya at his side. Hearing his question, Anne gave an embarrassed laugh.
"Ahaha… well, Sir Knight, you do look a little scary, but when I traveled with you, I realized you're actually a good person. And… as Manaria's princess, this is also my duty. Besides, this way, I can always stay with Guleya. Isn't that nice?"
That last part is your real reason, isn't it?
"I-I feel the same…"
Unlike Anne's boldness, Guleya lowered her head, her face red to the tips of her ears.
"As long as I can be with Anne, I don't mind…"
Good grief, so you're both just using me as a tool, huh?
Duanmu Huai rolled his eyes helplessly. He understood their thoughts now. As princesses of Manaria and Regnis, Anne and Guleya had never truly had the right to choose their own marriages. One way or another, they would inevitably be wed for political reasons.
Since that was the case, naturally they would choose someone who at least suited them.
They might have some fondness for him, but he was sure the real reason they agreed was so they could openly cling to each other without objection.
"Sir Knight, do you not wish to?"
"I don't mind. Just don't regret it later."
Before crossing over, Duanmu Huai had never even been on a blind date, let alone in a relationship. As for whether he was willing—of course he was. Both Anne and Guleya were beautiful, with high looks and good personalities. With two princesses offering themselves to him, he had no reason to refuse.
Of course, even with Duanmu Huai's consent, for now it was only an engagement. Actual marriage would have to wait until after the two graduated from Manaria's Magic Academy. If circumstances changed before then, the engagement might even be annulled.
This condition served as a buffer period. While the political need was urgent, the two sides hadn't known each other for very long, so their feelings still needed time to develop—or so the kings thought.
But that was for later.
For Duanmu Huai, the most important thing now… was the reward!
[Fragment Quest "Save Manaria" completed!]
[Quest Evaluation: Outstanding]
[You have destroyed the source of all evil in this world, restoring peace and safety. You are the hero who saved this land!]
[Quest Rewards: Gained special title "Dragon Slayer" (Attack/Defense +30% against Dragon-type foes)]
[Bonus Rewards: Bathed in dragon blood—Subspace Armor gains special effect (immune to magic/physical attacks Lv.4 and below / psychic attacks Lv.4 and above deal half damage); gained Dragon's Might Aura (+1 Intimidation)]
[Your reputation in Soul Fragment "Manaria" is now Worship]
[Permanently acquired World Soul Fragment "Manaria"]
He had to admit, the rewards this time were excellent. Especially after obtaining the Manaria continent's soul fragment—once fused with the Holy City, both worlds could freely connect.
But still…
Why was it intimidation again??
Staring at the system prompt, Duanmu Huai was speechless.
His intimidation was already at Lv.6. At this rate, he could max it out soon! Back when he played the game, he hadn't even found many intimidation skills… Though now it hardly mattered. After all, what was given couldn't be taken back. All he could do was accept it in silence.
Aside from that, his greatest gains came from the treasure hoard itself, because inside were several Sacred Relics!
For example: [Dragonclaw Necklace], [Core of Dragon's Might], [Dragon Gem], [Mirror of Truth], and [Astronomical Telescope].
Of these, Duanmu Huai kept the [Dragonclaw Necklace], returned the [Mirror of Truth] to Manaria's Magic Academy, and dismantled the [Core of Dragon's Might], [Dragon Gem], and [Astronomical Telescope] to upgrade the Inquisition Library to Level 5, cutting the analysis time for the [Antimatter Energy Core] by more than half.
But the most important matter now was fusing the two Soul Fragments.
Duanmu Huai silently returned to the space station, opened the system, and a map centered on the Holy City appeared before him.
In this map, the pure-white Holy City stood at the center, surrounded by several towns under its jurisdiction. Beyond those lay forests and lakes—and then nothing more.
Of course, that was only from the map view. If one actually traveled to the edge, they would find dense fog blocking the way, much like the map borders in many sandbox games.
Next up… Manaria!
As the thought flashed in Duanmu Huai's mind, the land of Manaria appeared before him.
Compared to the Holy City, Manaria's map was more than twice as large, since it included not only the Magic Kingdom of Manaria but also the Dragon Kingdom of Regnis.
The question now was how to place this land.
Naturally, Duanmu Huai had no intention of putting Regnis right beside the Holy City. With dragon-kind's temperament, they wouldn't behave unless he knocked them around a few times. So after some thought, he decided to link the area around Manaria's Magic Academy with the Holy City's region. This way both sides could enjoy peace, and communication would be more convenient.
After connecting the two lands, Duanmu Huai sent Lorena to report to the Archbishop. As for how Manaria and the Holy City would handle trade, politics, or personnel exchanges… that would be their business.
As for Duanmu Huai himself, he returned to Altdorf to prepare for the next move.
After all, it was almost time for the grand victory banquet hosted by the Crown Prince.
However, upon his return to Altdorf, Duanmu Huai received an unexpected message from General Pasteur.
(End of Chapter)