* * *

Since the first assassin broke into the fortress, the forbidden forest behind the Yudenet Castle had practically become a graveyard for intruders.

Though the means of infiltration varied, the pattern always remained the same: the moment they were captured, they took their own lives with poison, giving no opportunity for interrogation.

The tongues of the deceased intruders were always stained with an unsettling bluish hue.

Every servant in the castle was searched thoroughly, yet no hidden poison pouches were discovered.

Investigations into suspicious noble families yielded little progress—Velon’s rugged and vast terrain was perfect for concealing secrets.

Though they knew combing through the castle would likely yield no evidence, abandoning the search was out of the question.

From the thorough investigation of Velon’s prominent noble families, three were identified as prime suspects: the Count Sloane family, the Marquess Vashimov family, and the Marquess Rozar family.

They all had one commonality: each controlled a significant city within the predominantly sparsely populated, mountainous Velon region.

Additionally, their territories were blessed with rivers that never froze over, enabling lively trade and resource movement.

To these families, Yudenet was undoubtedly an obstacle.

Despite being within the Velon duchy and holding the same rank as the empire’s mainland nobility, they were treated as a step beneath.

On top of paying taxes to Yudenet, they were also obligated to send tribute, a form of tax, to the empire.

Many of these families preferred the idea of complete assimilation into the empire.

“Even if this is about vested interests…”

Roughly two centuries ago, the empire had aggressively conquered over half the continent through sheer numbers.

To integrate the annexed lands into the empire, they resorted to numerous tactics: luring rulers to surrender their autonomy in exchange for retaining their titles or demonizing local rulers to incite rebellion.

Their propaganda painted a picture of rescuing oppressed citizens and granting them the prosperous lives of imperial subjects.

Lands that fiercely resisted imperial rule were ruthlessly crushed.

Entire populations were forcibly relocated to the empire’s wastelands, while mainland settlers replaced them in the conquered territories.

This rapid cultural assimilation made the empire one of the most successful territorial expansions in the continent’s history.

Amid this, Velon was the sole region the empire failed to subjugate.

Velon’s harsh winters were unbearable for the empire’s soldiers, who hailed predominantly from the continent’s warmer southern regions.

The mountainous terrain further compounded the challenges, making it nearly impossible to sustain supply lines or even survive.

Meanwhile, Velon’s inhabitants, mostly hunters, miners, and herbalists, were adept at enduring life in the snowbound mountains.

Facing the futility of conquest, the empire temporarily abandoned its ambitions.

Yet, driven by the dream of uniting the entire continent, successive emperors continued to covet Velon.

Rumors of mountains spilling gold and gemstones only stoked their desires further, leading to repeated invasions.

Despite their resilience, Velon couldn’t afford to waste its borderlands—ideal for agriculture—in endless wars.

Though every invasion ended with Velon’s victory, thanks to blizzards that locals likened to dragons’ tantrums, the prolonged conflicts devastated their farmlands.

Ultimately, Velon entered into a peace treaty with the empire: they would send regular tributes and integrate as an imperial territory, retaining their autonomy as a self-governing region.

Yudenet fiercely opposed the treaty, but the sacred dragon of the temple, bound by celestial laws, could only intervene so much in the mortal realm.

Over time, resentment towards Yudenet for surrendering waned, but nearly two centuries later, Velon’s prominent families began yearning for full integration into the empire.

What would have appalled their forebears, who fought for Velon’s autonomy, was now dismissed in favor of wealth and power.

These families believed that with Yudenet weakened, the time was ripe for full imperial assimilation.

The duchy’s long-standing corruption had diminished its sacred dragon’s faith in humanity, and the boy duke lacked the resources to fend off the monsters descending from the empire’s borderlands.

Just when they thought the time was right to topple Yudenet, the supposed ‘kitten’ of a duke began to move.

Starting with Haptis, he rooted out corruption, seized lands, and appointed administrators instead of new lords.

Something was shifting.

If Yudenet reestablished order, the narrative of the boy duke ruining Velon’s future would crumble.

Worse still, the duke’s unexpected public appearance in Haptis spread wildfire-like rumors: his godlike beauty, his harsh punishments for corrupt nobles paired with a humble demeanor toward commoners, and his frugal lifestyle starkly contrasted with his predecessors.

The narrative of a tragic boy king who lost his family to misfortune, now fighting for his people’s safety, began to disrupt the families’ plans to dismantle Yudenet.

Before this “unlucky” boy could shape Velon’s future, they needed to cut him down.

What they hadn’t accounted for, however, were two critical truths: first, that he was a true dragon’s descendant, impervious to ordinary death, and second…

“If places like this exist across Velon, we’ll need to make an example early on—to show that actions like these come with severe consequences and won’t be tolerated any longer.”

The translation aims to retain the original tone, style, and intent of the Korean text, preserving the nuanced emotions and world-building details while maintaining the flow of the narrative.

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It was the sudden arrival of a noble from the South in the Northern territories—an aristocrat, yet his demeanor was more akin to that of an administrator or a merchant.

He was a peculiar man, strangely stiff-necked in the face of authority.

Though he hailed from the mainland of the Empire, his fundamental beliefs often seemed fundamentally at odds with those of its citizens.

One could speculate on many reasons for why someone from a coastal city—several days’ travel south even with access to railroads—might differ so much from the Empire’s nobles born and bred in the capital.

Nirvan, after all, had long been a remote, sleepy countryside untouched by power struggles.

It had only gained fame as a luxurious retreat within the past two decades.

Before that, it had been little more than a hidden gem known to a select few, famed merely for its decent hotels run by the local lord.

It was a peaceful, tranquil seaside town, far removed from power plays and distant wars—so much so that it seemed natural for its residents to develop a laid-back and easygoing nature.

That is, except for this strange man who performed feats worth more than a hundred men.

Despite being the darling of social gatherings since his youth—capturing the hearts of men and women alike—he remained unmarried at twenty-seven.

Among the eccentric nobles with too much time and means to indulge in odd pursuits, he was an unparalleled oddball.

Why had he suddenly come to Velon?

And why was he starting a business there?

The noble families of Velon had no answers, but one thing was clear: his presence would bring them no benefit.

Before he could ruin their plans any further, they decided he needed to be eliminated alongside the Grand Duke.

This was how assassins came to repeatedly infiltrate the Yudenet Castle.

“Such exhausting nonsense…”

He had once lamented to the ancient dragon itself, questioning why it had established a country in such an unyielding and precarious land.

But Yudenet had only snorted in response.

“This was Hildea’s homeland, and the land where the most glittering treasures were found.”

Then the dragon flicked its massive tail.

Dragons loved all things beautiful, rare, and shiny.

It was partly why Hernan continued to enjoy the blessings of his ancestor despite occasionally displaying an irreverent attitude.

“Let’s go confirm it in person.”

Hernan rose from his seat, masking all traces of weariness.

Anton, who had been impatiently waiting, followed him out of the study.

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Preparations for the princess’s birthday party proceeded smoothly after that.

With several additional practice sessions with the musicians, Hernan had managed to acquire a proper posture for dancing, and no longer needed to rehearse with someone close to his height.

Why didn’t he just admit he knew how to dance from the start?

Instead of lying that he’d never tried it before.

Watching his now well-practiced steps, I ground my teeth.

Well, at least everything had fallen into place.

The rare mineral exclusive to Velon was ready as a gift for the princess.

I had also selected an appropriate present to represent Nirvan.

Now, all that remained was to wait for the day to come.

* * *