Chapter 66 : Family (3)

Albinus looked at the woman who introduced herself as an Apostle passing by.

The first thought that crossed Albinus’ mind upon seeing her was:

‘…Is she insane?’

Even dragons, who live for eternity, rarely encounter an Apostle, yet this woman spoke as if meeting one was as common as passing a random pedestrian.

Naturally, she was bound to be considered crazy.

Of course, the truth was that the presence of an Apostle was indeed necessary at this moment.

Apostles—those granted a portion of a god’s power, serving as divine agents.

They were the highest authority a living being could attain in their lifetime, and an existence that could never emerge from dragons, who had long forgotten their gods.

‘…One of the gods made our daughter an Apostle last time, didn’t they?’

Minho, who saved Emila.

The message that appeared back then had clearly referred to Minho as a god’s Apostle.

In any case, the reason an Apostle was needed was simple: only gods and their Apostles could heal souls.

However, Albinus couldn’t bring himself to ask his daughter to heal someone in this state.

The child wasn’t mentally strong enough for that.

It was a purely fatherly instinct—he wanted to protect Minho’s innocence.

But if the woman lying before him wasn’t treated, she would die.

‘…I saved Bell’s father and his older sister, but if the mother dies…’

A child left without a mother.

And a family left with that child.

‘…El.’

For a brief moment, Albinus thought of his own family.

He turned his gaze back to the woman lying on the ground, struggling to breathe.

With each breath, the lower half of her body was becoming more and more stained with blood.

She had to be saved.

Her physical wounds were being held at bay by a continuous outpouring of magic.

The combined magic of two dragons had managed to keep her alive so far.

But unless her soul was healed, her body would continue to collapse.

The moment the two dragons’ magic ran out, the woman would die.

“…You said you’re an Apostle?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“You figured out that I’m the king?”

“The only one who can speak so informally to an Elder is Your Majesty.”

A woman gently caressing a child’s head, wearing a benevolent smile.

Albinus decided to trust her.

“…I’ll leave it to you.”

“I will heal not only this woman but also every beastman here whose soul has been wounded.”

“…What?”

“…?!”

The woman spoke with a smile, uttering something utterly ridiculous.

Even Hader, who had been continuously pouring magic into the woman, flinched and looked at her in shock.

It was only natural—no matter how powerful an Apostle was, directly mending a soul was an arduous and dangerous task.

Healing a single soul required immense power, yet she intended to heal nearly 700 people all at once.

Even if it were possible, the caster’s life would be in danger.

“Haa… It’s been a while since I’ve done this, so I’m a bit nervous…”

“W-Wait!”

Albinus tried to stop her in a panic, but it was too late.

—Flash!!!

A massive magic circle, formed at an unknown moment, began healing the beastmen.

“Kh…!”

The woman trembled in pain but did not stop casting her spell.

She gently cradled the child in her arms while sending magic through her staff with her other hand.

Pure white energy spread across the ground.

‘…White?’

White was the unique magic of the vanished Grand Magus.

In other words, it wasn’t divine power.

Without divine power, healing a soul should be impossible.

And yet, the condition of the surrounding beastmen and Yura was visibly improving.

‘How is she doing this?’

The brief flash of light faded.

“Your Majesty, their condition has stabilized.”

“……”

Bell’s mother, Yura, now had a perfectly stabilized soul.

However, before Albinus could even feel relief, he approached the woman who was soothing the frightened child.

With a cold expression, Albinus stared at Rose.

Sweat poured down Rose’s face as she tightly gripped her staff.

She wanted to stand up, but having completely drained her magic, her body lacked the strength.

She could barely hold herself up, trembling as she leaned on her staff.

“Haa… haa… Baby, don’t cry…”

Her breath was ragged, and her body trembled violently before she finally collapsed onto the ground.

“…Haa…”

Lying on the ground, Rose found herself meeting Albinus’s cold gaze.

With a shaky voice, she asked,

“…Are you going to question my identity?”

“……”

“…Or take my life?”

Rose truly believed Albinus might kill her.

Right now, with her magic depleted, she couldn’t resist a dragon.

And on top of that, she had used the lost Grand Magus’s magic.

The Grand Magus—the one who had harmed his two daughters.

A being worthy of his hatred.

But the words that came from Albinus’s mouth were unexpected.

“Hah… What’s the point of digging into the past? Holding onto it will only make the child suffer.”

“…What?”

“You must have given birth not too long ago.”

Letting out a small, weary laugh, Albinus showed her how to properly hold the child.

“My first daughter was a half-blood, you see.”

“…I see…”

“The baby looks only a few months old, yet you’re pushing yourself this hard.”

“……”

“…Where’s the father?”

Rose’s mind went blank for a moment.

“…I don’t know who the father is.”

“Is that strange?”

“…Well, I suppose you have your reasons.”

She had given birth to this child herself.

She planned to keep it a secret from Autumn, but since she couldn’t find a suitable mother, she had no choice but to become one herself.

‘…Honestly, if I had to start over, I’d rather have been a man.’

During the early stages of pregnancy, she had felt an overwhelming sense of self-doubt.

The pain of childbirth had been so unbearable that she never wanted to go through it again.

But whenever she looked at Autumn, sleeping peacefully in her arms, she couldn’t help but smile.

‘How could I possibly hate you?’

Watching Rose smile, Albinus finally spoke.

“…Dragons always repay their debts.”

“I owe you my gratitude.”

With that, Albinus bowed his head in respect.

Rose’s eyes widened at the sight.

Then, with a bright smile, she said,

“…Let’s just say I’ve settled an old mistake.”

Albinus watched her quietly before handing her a piece of paper.

“This is the land of Lake Dragon, where the air is fresh.”

“…Isn’t that the place with vengeful spirits?”

“You know about it? Well, they were exterminated recently, so no need to worry.”

“What!? That monster was defeated?”

As Rose expressed her shock, Albinus’s shoulders shook with amusement.

“Thanks to a certain adorable dragon, you see.”

“A very cute one,” he added with a smirk.

“…Ah, I see…”

“Living here must be exhausting in many ways, right?”

“…You already know everything, don’t you?”

“Roughly.”

“Then why haven’t you killed me?”

‘…How could I kill the mother of a child?’

There was likely another reason, but Rose could tell Albinus wouldn’t say more.

She simply nodded.

“You can live there for now, and later, you can become a professor at the academy.”

“…You’re entrusting an Imperial citizen with that position at this time?”

“Why not? The Dragon Kingdom is neutral, after all.”

“Most people don’t usually say that after killing an emperor.”

“How do you know about that?”

“The faint scent of blood.”

“Hooh.”

Despite having erased the traces with cleaning magic, Albinus was intrigued that Rose still picked up on it.

“You should leave now, shouldn’t you?”

“Ah, right.”

Turning around, Albinus once again expressed his gratitude.

Rose watched as the dragons departed and gave a slight bow in return.

Then, she looked down at Autumn in her arms.

“I love you, my son.”

Hearing her words, Autumn smiled softly.

“Gasp!”

Yura regained consciousness.

She woke up in an entirely white room, touching her body with a bewildered expression.

“…What? I was definitely in the void…?”

“Urk?!”

As she moved abruptly, pain surged in her lower abdomen.

“…7100…”

She barely had time to marvel at the fact that her body moved as she wished before she collapsed back onto the bed.

“…It hurts…”

Tears welled in Yura’s eyes.

As her soul and body fully reconnected, the hope of reuniting with her family ignited in her heart.

At the same time, she started to question why she had been healed.

‘…Are they planning to use me as a toy again?’

That would be the worst-case scenario.

Returning to the Empire’s underground prison, where death was the only liberation, was something she would rather die than face again.

“…Then, what can I even do?”

There was no point in resisting.

She had to stay alive if she wanted any chance of seeing her family again.

‘…My love, I miss you… Kan… I miss you so much…’

Tears dripped down Yura’s cheeks.

At that moment—

Creaaaaak.

The massive white door opened.

But the one who entered wasn’t an Imperial soldier.

“Mom!”

“…Bell?!”

It was her youngest daughter, Bell.

And behind her, her husband and eldest daughter, Ran, followed.

“…Mom…!!”

“Yura…!!”

“…Zt…! Zt…!!”

A tearful reunion of a family thought to be lost forever.

“Mom! Mom!”

“…!”

Her youngest, whom she had believed dead, was alive.

A reunion that felt like a dream.

As Bell leaped into her embrace, the lingering pain in Yura’s body was drowned out by overwhelming emotion.

But then, Yura’s gaze landed on a pale-haired child standing nearby.

Following the family into the room was that child.

The sight of them made Yura’s face turn deathly pale.

Deer-like antlers and a reptilian tail.

There was no mistaking it.

The most fearsome beings in this world.

An existence far more powerful than any Imperial soldier.

A dragon.

And that child was undoubtedly a dragon hatchling.

“Hello!”

“…Ah, hello.”

“Y-You can speak comfortably! I’m your friend’s mother, after all!”

The little dragon grinned brightly.

Seeing this, Yura suddenly felt a sharp pain in her stomach.

Observing her condition, Minho thought to herself—

‘She looks like she’s in a lot of pain. I should heal her quickly.’

And so, she prepared to use her skill: Hand of Salvation.

Yura (Bell’s mother)

Ran (Bell’s older sister)