Chapter 77 : She is XXX!

In the dark room, heavy curtains over the windows and a firmly locked door ensured not a sliver of light could enter.

The space was consumed by pitch-black darkness, making it impossible to see anything within.

Suddenly, a small light flickered to life.

The source of the light was a young mage with blue hair—Olivia.

The soft glow illuminated her blue locks, giving them a faint, ethereal shine.

Though the light was small, it was enough to chase away the darkness in the room. 

As the surroundings brightened, Olivia seemed satisfied and carried the light with her as she approached her bag.

She began rummaging through it with determination.
“Where is it…”

It was clear she was searching for something. A moment later, her face lit up with relief.
“Found it!”

Olivia pulled out a book. Carrying it to her desk, she opened it and began reading intently.

“Good… Looks like I managed to smooth things over this time, too.”

After some time, she closed the book, revealing its title as the faint light reflected off its cover: The Dragon’s Play.

Olivia stared at the title and let out a heavy sigh before muttering,
“Why did a dragon have to appear…”

Dragon.

The most powerful, intelligent, and magically adept beings in existence.

Dragons were legends, often featured in countless stories. In children’s fairy tales, in the songs of bards, in history books, and in myths and legends.

They appeared in many forms—kings, prophets, mages, or monsters.

Because of their diverse portrayals, scholars endlessly debated their nature.

But there was one universally agreed-upon fact: dragons were absolute power.

Throughout history, dragons have shaped the world.

As kings, they built the mightiest nations. 

As mages, they advanced magic to unprecedented levels. As monsters, they united humanity against a common foe.

With their unparalleled strength, brilliant intellect, and supreme magical prowess, dragons could reshape human history at will.

Such was the essence of a dragon.

And now, Olivia was convinced one had appeared.

“Agnes, you idiot. What do you mean she’s ‘just a human’?”

Olivia recalled the events of the past days, particularly the moments when Saint Ruina cast her magic.

She replayed in her mind how Ruina had done it.

Simple. Brief. A single word was all it took for her to unleash magic.

This starkly contrasted with mages like Olivia, who required long incantations to cast spells.

Of course, this alone wasn’t enough to declare Ruina a dragon.

But Olivia had witnessed something that left no room for doubt.

While others saw Ruina casting ordinary magic, Olivia—able to sense the flow of mana—saw something entirely different.

Outwardly, Ruina’s magic seemed normal. 

She even performed an incantation, albeit a short one.

But the mana was the issue.

That day, all the mana in the vicinity bowed to her will.

This was unprecedented.

Mages were petitioners, not rulers. 

They borrowed the power of mana, offering their magical energy in exchange to cast spells.

This placed mages in a subservient position to mana, which was governed by the natural world.

Yet Ruina was different. She didn’t request mana—she commanded it.

It was as though a master was ordering a servant.

And that was something only dragons could do.

For Olivia, who had lived her life as a magical prodigy, witnessing this was both awe-inspiring and terrifying. 

At just fifteen years old, she had reached the pinnacle of human magic. 

Taught by the greatest mages, she had always been treated as special.

Yet, none of her esteemed teachers could replicate what Ruina had done.

The sight confirmed it: Ruina had to be a dragon.

But one thing troubled Olivia.

Why had the dragon come here, hiding its true nature?

Furthermore, why was it posing as a prophet—a Saint of prophecy?

There were generally three reasons why dragons interacted with humans:

Entertainment. Dragons sometimes disguised themselves to live among humans, seeking to alleviate their boredom.

Revenge. When humans harmed them, dragons would retaliate.

Aid. On rare occasions, dragons appeared to assist humanity during times of great crisis.

Given these possibilities, Olivia had spent days pondering Ruina’s motives.

Eventually, she concluded that Ruina had come to aid humanity.

The reason was simple: the Demon King’s army included a dragon.

For another dragon to oppose it seemed logical.

The Second Duke, Black Dragon Gawain.

Olivia cautiously speculated that Ruina might have come to stop him.

One puzzling detail was Ruina’s decision to disguise herself as a prophet—and a Saint, no less.

However, Olivia rationalized this as an attempt to offer support without revealing her full strength. Dragons, after all, were known for preferring to remain unseen.

Her collapse that day? Likely just an act to maintain her disguise.

Though Ruina couldn’t fool Olivia’s sharp insight and keen observation.

Since discovering Ruina’s identity, Olivia had been grappling with a crucial question:

Should I reveal her true identity?

She felt reluctant, and above all, it seemed dangerous.

Ruina clearly wished to keep her identity hidden. While Olivia couldn’t understand the reason, she assumed it was a matter beyond their comprehension.

Revealing Ruina’s secret could provoke unpredictable consequences.

If exposed, Ruina might take drastic measures—silencing them with spells, erasing their memories, or, in the worst-case scenario, eliminating them to keep her secret.

Such an outcome must be avoided at all costs.

Thus, Olivia had chosen to keep silent, not daring to predict how Ruina might react.

But her decision to stay quiet came with its own set of problems.

Ruina’s every action now caught Olivia’s attention. She couldn’t help but observe her, no matter how much she tried to look away.

Especially during interactions with Agnes.

The meeting earlier had left Olivia feeling as though her chest would burst.

It was Agnes’s tone when speaking to Ruina—casual, almost dismissive, like royalty addressing a subordinate.

It drove Olivia mad.

Of course, Agnes was unaware of Ruina’s true identity, so such behavior was understandable.

If Olivia didn’t know, she might have found it acceptable too.

But she knew.

And knowing made it unbearable.

‘How dare you speak like that to someone akin to your ancestor!’

She had silently screamed this in her heart countless times, even wanting to voice it aloud.

But when she opened her mouth to speak, she caught Ruina’s unreadable gaze, her expression neutral but observant.

At that moment, Olivia realized: Ruina was already suspicious of her.

“Fine,” Olivia muttered to herself, extinguishing the faint light.

She approached the window and drew back the heavy curtains, letting the soft moonlight filter into the room.

Opening the window, she allowed the cool night breeze to wash over her, its touch refreshing and invigorating.

Feeling the wind, Olivia reaffirmed her resolve:

‘No one must find out that she’s a dragon! And she mustn’t realize that I know!’

Simultaneously, she made another decision:

‘I need to ask her about magic.’

A dragon’s presence was both a crisis and an opportunity. 

While they were natural disasters in their own right, they were also humanity’s greatest teachers in magic.

Recently, Olivia had felt as though she had hit a wall in her magical studies. Despite her ongoing research, she couldn’t see the path forward.

This was her chance. Dragon magic was said to be far superior to human magic.

If Ruina could provide answers—or even a hint—it would be an invaluable breakthrough.

But to achieve that…

‘I need to get closer to her first.’

Only after building rapport could she ask without arousing suspicion and expect a sincere answer.

So how should she approach this? A gift would be a good start for building a connection.

But what kind of gift would satisfy a dragon?

Olivia began contemplating seriously.

“Gold… maybe? Or meat?” she murmured.

Her internal struggle had only just begun.