Chapter 7: Dragon's Dream (5)
"Phew… finally, I can breathe again."
Now that there were no more eyes on him, Monkyspanner casually let his tail out and sighed in relief.
"Just a few more years and my term as the 'Bearer of Lifespan' will be over… and yet, of all times, the Cycle had to fall under my watch. Rotten luck… seriously, what a joke… nghhh…"
Groaning with frustration, he slumped down, stretching his arms out with a great yawn.
As he raised his burly arms high into the air, thick tufts of fur began sprouting along them—and his form began to shift.
Across his bronzed skin, even darker fur shimmered into view. His nose protruded, his eyes sank deep into his skull. It wasn't just his face—his entire bone structure was changing.
This was the magic of 7th-tier spell: [Greater Change].
Normally, a House Patriarch would use the far more refined 9th-tier spell: [True Transformation] to alter their form, but Monkyspanner hated the way that spell made him look.
So instead, he used a magic item that allowed him to transform only when absolutely necessary.
In his case, being closer to a humanoid beastman than most, he was granted special allowances.
Even in his beast form, he could still pass as "human…ish" if he tried hard enough.
And if worst came to worst, he could always claim it was some beastly bloodline talent.
"Aaah… I swear, this human form never suited me. My original body's still the best."
At last, his true form was revealed—a massive, golden-furred ape cloaked in thick layers of radiant fur. His face was black, eyes blood-red, and around each eye burned a ring of gold like fire halos.
This was Monkyspanner, the Saru-shinkan, Ninth of the Twelve Divine Attendants who serve the Great Monarchs—closest to the gods themselves.
This was the real face of the monkey beastman who held the name of the head of Dragon's Dream.
Now back in his original body, Monkyspanner threw all semblance of "dignity" aside, collapsing sideways onto the massive table. His nostrils flared loudly with each relaxed breath.
Though considered the most human-like of the Twelve Beastkin Priests, it was obvious—being human was torture for him.
No tail. No fur. No freedom to breathe and snort as he pleased.
It was like being stuffed into a suffocating shell—pure agony.
And he had endured that agony for 20 years.
At first, he thought, How can anyone stand this? But now… well, he'd grown used to it.
Still, when he thought of the others who had been putting up with it for decades longer without even a break, he felt genuine respect for them.
"Life sure finds a way to adapt," he muttered, twisting and flexing to shake off his lingering discomfort.
"But damn… this is a pain. What now?"
His words were closer to a groan than a question.
The world—or rather, the "Outside"—didn't know their true identity.
It didn't know why a so-called "House" bore the strange name Dragon's Dream, nor why they possessed strength so far beyond the norms of the world.
And above all… it didn't know why such a powerful faction had chosen not to rule it.
The truth was that the "Dragon's Dream" known to the world—that "Great House" revered by nations—was nothing more than a forward outpost, a border patrol, a recon unit, at best.
Honestly?
Monkyspanner hated living like this.
Pretending to be human with magic gear…
Entertaining weaklings—some of whom, sure, showed a bit of promise—but all in all just mutated scrap species and half-trained locals.
Putting on an act for them? Disgusting.
And don't get him started on those "missions," where he had to play along with fragile things who claimed to love battle and bloodshed.
What was there to enjoy when just brushing them with his palm made them pop like water balloons?
If he had a choice, he'd rather be relaxing in the Divine City instead.
At least there, he could live freely and eat well.
"But… we have no choice."
Their very existence had meaning only in serving their master—their monarch or god.
To carry out His will.
To remove any discomfort or disturbance from His path.
And if that meant sacrifice—then so be it.
No price was too high.
This minor discomfort was nothing.
…But this wasn't a command from Him.
Ever since the day they fell into this world, He hadn't opened His eyes—not even once.
Of course it was a headache.
Their absolute sovereign, their god, still slumbered—and did nothing.
Of course, the mere fact that He resided in the Divine City was already an unfathomable blessing.
But still… they could not help but wish that He would rise, speak, and rule directly.
But their kingdom—the Divine City—was far from unified.
"Sigh… Yeah, this is beyond something I can handle on my own."
Monkyspanner scratched his head with his tail, which had been scratching his back moments ago.
Maybe it was just his mood, but he was seriously craving a banana.
Unfortunately, unless he returned to the Divine City, that craving would remain unsatisfied.
The mere thought made him even more irritated.
And the situation wasn't looking good.
They knew the Cycle was approaching.
But the exact timing? Even they didn't know.
The Cycle—a concept forged through the collective minds of scholars in the Divine City after extensive research into historical records spanning over six centuries.
In the end, the wise men of the Divine City formalized the concept of a "Hundred-Year Cycle."
In the year the Cycle returned, 600 years ago, the beings known as the Six Great Gods descended upon the world.
Five centuries ago, it was the Eight Greed Kings.
Although there were no other confirmed instances of "godlike" figures descending, there were scattered records of potential candidates—the Princess of the Crystal Palace, the Wyvern Knight, the Goblin King, and more.
And 200 years ago, when Monkyspanner and the others fell into this world with their slumbering monarch, chaos erupted.
The Divine City, in those early days, was a maelstrom of internal strife, power struggles, and ideological clashes.
It took decades to stabilize.
Only once order was restored did small expeditionary forces begin to venture into the outside world.
It was then that they discovered others who seemed to have fallen into this world at the same time.
Through negotiation and testing, these individuals were brought into the Divine City.
Most notably, the so-called "Thirteen Heroes" and the "Mouth-only Sage."
They were the first invited into the city due to their resemblance to divine beings.
After several trials, it was confirmed—they were Players, godlike figures, and they were accepted into the city.
They asked to meet the God of the Divine City, but awakening Him was strictly forbidden under Divine Law.
"The authority of God is absolute. Under no circumstances may it be violated."
This was the highest of all commandments—one of hundreds that formed the laws of the Divine City after centuries of deliberation.
The words of God are final, and disturbing Him is an unforgivable sin.
Thus, even though He has slept for centuries, not a single being in the Divine City has dared to wake Him.
And if anyone ever tried—
Even if they resembled gods themselves, even if they were revered… they would be eliminated without hesitation.
The Thirteen Heroes learned this truth.
And with the phrase, "There's no going back now," they despaired.
But soon, they accepted it.
They embraced the wondrous gap between the Divine City's civilization and the outside world.
They lived out their days under the grace of the Divine City.
Though they eventually succumbed to the limits of mortality, they lived long beyond the natural span of their races thanks to treatments and research pioneered in the city.
Until the very end, they contributed everything they had to their new home.
But not all stories end so peacefully.
The Thirteen Heroes and the Mouth-only Sage were not threats.
But what if the Six Great Gods or the Eight Greed Kings returned—true threats?
What if beings like the Dragon Lord who defeated the Eight Greed Kings, or others of similar magnitude, were still hiding somewhere in this world?
Back during the chaotic period when the Divine City first fell into this world, there were some who slipped away into the outside world.
These deserters, once members of the Divine City themselves, posed an even greater risk than the potential threats scattered across this weak and pitiful realm.
Because they might expose the very existence of the Divine City.
Though most of this world was disgustingly weak, there were still a few dangerous exceptions.
To track and, if necessary, eliminate those threats, the Divine City established its external surveillance unit: Dragon's Dream.
The first head of this agency was the Dragon Priest, who laid its foundations.
Later, it was the Tiger Priest who formalized the group into a structured "clan" known as the Dragon's Dream.
To sustain this front, every generation, a new Priest is sent from the Divine City to assume a human form and lead the Dragon's Dream under the alias of its "Head."
Their term—referred to as a "Lifespan"—is decided by a randomized draw known as the "Random Box."
Now, it was the turn of the sixth Head—the Monkey Priest, Monkyspanner.
And of all times, his tenure had to coincide with the Cycle. Just his luck.
"Our God won't awaken today either…"
It had been nearly 200 years since they fell into this world.
And their God still remained asleep.
During that time, they'd gathered all kinds of information about this world.
Among that, anything related to dragons was of the highest importance.
After all, their God took the form of a dragon—
So they feared perhaps His long slumber had something to do with this world's own dragonkind.
But the dragons of this world were entirely different.
Even if they looked somewhat similar, their power was pitiful in comparison.
Their dignity, their majesty—utterly lacking.
Winged lizards like these could never be compared to their sovereign.
Even the so-called "Dragon Lords"—dragons with intelligence and magic—failed to produce any significant leads.
There was a time when a princess from the Dragon Kingdom, claiming draconic heritage, publicly proposed to the then-head of Dragon's Dream…
She was brought in and examined, but nothing came of it.
So they had no choice but to wait.
Wait for their God to awaken by His own will.
And now… another Cycle was beginning.
But this time, it felt different. It felt wrong.
Two hundred years ago, the Cycle ended with them simply recruiting a few "heroes."
They found no other major disturbances.
True, the Thirteen Heroes and the Mouth-Only Sage were powerful, but not enough to rival a Priest—barely on par with a Priest candidate at best.
A hundred years ago, during the previous Cycle, the only major event was the so-called Great Invasion.
No godlike beings were detected.
After resolving the invasion, the then-priest Lion the Tiger Priest, who also headed Dragon's Dream, quietly took care of a rogue demi-human nation—
A state secretly founded by one of the original deserters from the Divine City.
In other words, every Cycle so far had been manageable.
Each event could be resolved by the priest in charge of the outer world.
But not this time.
This time, something felt…
Very, very, very, very wrong.
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A/N: This is the third time I've been blocked, lol. It seems like someone really hates or doesn't like this.