Thunk! A dull sound was heard, but there was no sound of anyone stumbling backward.

“What’s this guy…?”

A massive man coming out of a tavern alleyway squinted his eyes at Shaik, who was in contact with his shoulder.

Shaik was by no means small in stature.

On the contrary, he had a good build and excellent physique, to the point of being considered more muscular than his peers.

However, the man who collided with Shaik boasted a towering figure as if he had the blood of giants running through his veins.

He seemed to be over 2 meters tall, maybe even a few dozen centimeters taller.

‘What’s with this guy? He didn’t even stagger after colliding with me…’

The man who emerged from the tavern took a step back and looked Shaik up and down with a grimace on his face.

He was the kind of guy the man disliked—handsome and charming.

A moderately tall stature, deep eyes, and smooth skin.

Despite his somewhat pale complexion, he was a handsome young man who wouldn’t be out of place as a prince from any country.

‘He’s unfortunate in his appearance.’

They were the type of guys the man couldn’t stand.

Those pretty-faced guys who rely solely on their looks!

Most women liked these bastards, and the man, with his brutish size, detested them for being intimidating.

Those women just a moment ago wouldn’t have treated me so disrespectfully if this bastard had talked to them.

The memory of what happened earlier came to mind, and the man’s insides boiled like a giant.

Perhaps because of that.

Even this bastard who was trying to pass by while politely apologizing didn’t sit well with him.

“I’m sorry. I was in a hurry. I’ll be on my way.”

“Wait.”

The man blocked Shaik’s path as he tried to pass by.

His sneering face didn’t give a favorable impression.

He flicked at the spot where Shaik had collided, speaking while grinning.

“What about the moisture on your clothes? Is this how the people here treat foreigners? Ah, I’ve heard that the Purito people are so well-off… Shouldn’t you compensate me or at least take off that expensive-looking garment and give it to me?”

“What kind of nonsense is this?”

There was a slight moisture on the edge of the man’s clothes from Shaik.

Pointing at it, the man cruelly laughed.

“This, this.”

Shaik stared at the man with a cold, stern gaze.

Then, other men with a similar appearance to the man approached, somewhat hesitantly.

“What’s going on, Gepetto?”

“What’s the trouble? You got into a fight? I’m already feeling tipsy from the alcohol, so let me help you with a punch.”

“That guy bumped into me earlier and got on my nerves!”

The expressions of the approaching colleagues were far from friendly.

Calling themselves foreigners, they seemed like wandering individuals.

It was strange.

Since Purito restricted the entry of visitors, just anyone couldn’t come and stay. Especially with Kalia’s strict security measures, Purito was considered a safe country even if one wandered around at dawn.

‘The smell of the sea… They seem like sailors. Those who board ships for a day or two and then leave.’

He had heard stories of occasional trouble caused by those who came in for a short while, did some repairs, and left.

Not everyone was like that, but perhaps due to the perception that leaving on a ship would put an end to the matter, they were often confrontational or lacked a sense of lawfulness.

‘Annoying bastards.’

If Shaik had enough time, he would have subdued them all and handed them over to the security forces to teach them a lesson so they wouldn’t cause trouble again. But right now, he didn’t have that luxury of time.

“Get out of the way.”

“Oh, where to? If you’re leaving, either pay for the medical expenses or apologize flat on the ground, begging for forgiveness. If not, strip down and leave.”

The man revealed this with a menacing tone.

Rather than engaging in a fight, it seemed faster to quickly subdue them and leave. At that moment, as that thought crossed his mind, Drea walked out of the entrance of the tavern where the men had emerged from.

Both Drea and Shaik were startled and widened their eyes upon seeing each other.

However, before any joy could settle, Shaik flinched and reached out his hand.

That was because as soon as Drea spotted Shaik, she turned her back and walked back inside.

The alley entrance was now occupied solely by Shaik.

But it seemed unlikely that the store didn’t have a back exit.

Shaik became anxious at the thought of Drea going there.

“Oh no, can’t you let me pass?”

However, the men who were causing the trouble didn’t easily let go of Shaik.

“Annoying.”Shaik skillfully dodged the hands of the men trying to grab him and rushed into the tavern.

“That bastard!”

“Hey, man! That’s why you should lose weight. You can’t even catch one guy like that. It’s because you’re so fat.”

“Shut up!”

The large man, not bothered by the teasing remarks of his colleagues, confidently chased after Shaik into the tavern.

‘Where did Drea go?’

Shaik scanned the inside of the tavern, but Drea had vanished like magic.

It was not a big establishment, just a small pub that imported dark beer from a foreign country, yet Drea had disappeared within it like a wisp of smoke.

With her ability to use magic, she could avoid his gaze in any way possible.

As Shaik became restless, chewing on his lip, a hand forcefully grabbed his shoulder.

“You bastard!”

The infuriated man blindly threw a punch at Shaik.

Shaik, who was attempting to casually dodge the punch, suddenly froze in motion due to a thought that crossed his mind.

Thump.

The rock-hard fist struck Shaik’s jaw.

Shaik’s limp body soared through the air and crashed into a nearby table.

Thud!

“Aaaah!”

A scream erupted among the few remaining customers.

The owner, who was tidying up the bar, held his forehead.

Shaik briefly surveyed his surroundings, brushed off his body, and stood up to address the man.

“Is that all you can do?”

“…”

“That’s too weak.”

The man’s face turned red as he mumbled his words.

He widened his eyes and charged at Shaik.

“I’ll make sure you won’t be able to speak anymore!”

Thump! Thud! Thud!

The man’s punching resumed.

Shaik, with his strength withdrawn, endured every blow.

It was a lie to say that it didn’t hurt, but he wasn’t incapable of taking the hits.

‘But I shouldn’t let my face get hit anymore.’

…Drea loves this face so much.

Shaik deftly avoided the man’s punches by evading his face, which seemed to further infuriate the man. He yelled as if seething with anger.

“Grab that guy! I’ll give that cocky face a good beating!”

The incoming men flooded in, pushing the customers aside and chuckling to themselves.

The bewildered tavern owner quickly instructed the waiter to call the security guards.

‘…I can’t let my face get hit.’

Shaik wondered how long he had to endure being held down by the men restraining his arms and legs.

He glanced around but still couldn’t spot Drea anywhere.

‘Do I have to hold on longer?’

In reality, even if he had a few cuts now, Simon’s power could easily heal them.

Did his powerful Archmage father, who could almost restore the dead, have any formidable opponents like this?

Shaik sighed as he briefly glanced at the men reaching for their switchblades.

Seeing the rusty blades, he thought that the wounds they would inflict might hurt more than expected.

The moment the sharp edge touched his cheek, he exclaimed:

“You, you, you bastards! What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

As the sound of footsteps descending the stairs from the second floor echoed, Drea appeared.

“Ugh, crazy! You’ve really stirred up trouble!”

Drea’s eyes rolled when she saw Shaik, who had fallen to the ground while being subdued.

Beneath Shaik’s lips, which were about to form a slight smile upon finding Drea, blood trickled down.

“Blood… blood! I’ve cherished Shaik so much all this time, and these… these… these bastards!”

Flames of anger flickered in Drea’s pupils.

Her heart pounded heavily due to her boiling rage.

Soon, an ominous aura began to emanate around her body.“What, what is it?”

In that brief moment of surprise and hesitation from the gang, crackling sounds reverberated outside.

Crash-crash-crash-crash-crash!

A lightning bolt struck down from the sky right at the entrance of the tavern where they had gathered.

“…!”

The startled gang members trembled, unable to escape as they were stunned.

The swirling aura around Drea intensified, gradually changing in size.

“I can’t forgive. I… can’t forgive.”

Crash!

Once again, a dry lightning bolt struck down.

“How dare you touch my Shaik… Shaik…”

This time, it hit the roof of the tavern accurately.

Simultaneously, the enlarged form of Drea burst through the roof of the building.

Creak, creak! Flash! Crash, crash, crash!

The roof collapsed on the horns of Drea’s head, which had transformed into a dragon’s body.

The second-floor storage room of the pub collapsed, spilling dark beer, and the charred debris from the lightning scattered in the air.

The pristine white body of Drea, which had disrupted everything, became stained with black marks.

“H-h-hey, it’s a Black Dragon!”

“Aaaahh!”

“Save us!”

“Call the guards! No, inform the palace!”

Continuous screams erupted from the people who had fled outside due to the sudden appearance of the dragon.

“D-Dragon…!”

The men who had been hit by the debris from the collapsed building cowered in fear on the ground.

A few tried to escape, crawling on the floor, but the rest, their strength drained, remained sprawled on the ground, their eyes filled with terror as they stared at the colossal Drea.

Kalexia, who entered the interior of the shop a little later, witnessed this spectacle.

He groaned and muttered to himself.

“…A Black Dragon. Goodness.”

* * *

“A Black Dragon?”

Kalexia, who had been invited to the banquet of the gods, asked the Sun God.

The Sun God tapped his glass and shrugged his shoulders, saying,

“How would I know? The Oracles, you see, are not words that I personally speak, but rather stories that the threads of fate attach to and weave, flowing through my influence and reaching humans.”

“But the origin of those stories ultimately comes from you, right? So the Oracles descended to your temple, the Temple of the Sun God.”

“Oh, well, that’s true.”

The Sun God smiled as he tilted his glass and took a sip, then grinned.

“For the time being, there won’t be any destruction or calamity in that world. Unless there’s a dimensional distortion, who knows… Anyway, that world is under my jurisdiction, so I know it best. Besides, there’s no Black Dragon there, right?”

“Then?”

“As I mentioned earlier, the Black Dragon is just a metaphor that the threads of fate have attached to.”

“You’re saying that the notion of the Black Dragon desire is a metaphor?”

Are you telling me that it’s a metaphor for something that will happen? What about the oath of the white flower?

The God chuckled as he glanced at the perplexed Kalexia.

“The child who was my apostle will know the answer.”

“What do you mean?”

“It may be a little late, but please take care of that child. The Fairy King.”

“…That child, is it the one I’m thinking of?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? Your grandchild.”

The Sun God laughed heartily as he took a sip of his drink.

“I promised. In that child’s past life. A promise for the next life…”

The Sun God’s gaze shifted towards a dimensional rift somewhere in distortion.

From that rift, unfamiliar landscapes flowed around the Sun God, as if he had summoned them from his concept.

In the hazy illusion, the back of a young man collapsing and dying could be seen.

The sight seemed oddly familiar, and Kalexia furrowed his brow.

Before the thought ‘could it be’ fully formed, the Sun God spoke again.

“I promised to bring him happiness. As a reward for serving as a god’s apostle, so that in the next life, he may find happiness…”

He took a sip of his drink.

“But it seems he doesn’t remember that. Perhaps I made him suffer too much. He’s always anxious, which is a bit poignant… So, Kal…”

“Yes?”

“Go and tell him. In this life, he can strive to be happy without any pain or suffering.”

The god smiled.

Is there a more trustworthy smile than that?

“…That’s what his next chance at life is for.”