"Won't you stay for the Kingdom's banquet?"
"No. We have more important matters to attend to."
Under the vast blue sky, at the gates of the Royal Capital, Naohara was saying his farewell.
They hadn't informed anyone else. Only Evileye had come.
After learning that Gagaran had attacked Entoma, Momonga and Herohero had formed a very poor impression of her. It was better not to meet.
"I look forward to seeing you again."
Naohara reached into the air and drew out a vial of Dragon Blood.
Well-traveled as she was, Evileye immediately sensed the immense magic contained within it. The way she looked at Naohara grew even stranger.
A mysterious background. A fondness for adventure. Overwhelming strength.
There was something about him she couldn't quite grasp, yet it felt familiar.
It reminded her of two hundred years ago, when she had fought alongside the captain of the Thirteen Heroes.
Clues overlapped with distant memories. Recalling old conversations with the captain, a terrifying possibility formed in her mind.
She parted her lips, wanting to press him for answers, but in the end she held back.
"What are you… to me, exactly…?"
"Didn't I already give you that answer?"
Naohara smiled faintly, waved once more, and boarded the waiting carriage.
A long while later, Evileye held the Dragon Blood close, feeling the faint pulse within it. A small smile appeared on her lips.
...
On a country road, a carriage sped along.
It looked ordinary, yet gave off a faintly unsettling presence.
The driver was a peculiar-looking man dressed in a German-style military uniform, his gestures exaggerated and theatrical. It was Pandora's Actor, the guardian of the Nazarick Treasury.
"Oh~ For the Supreme Being, my most revered father, Momongasama~!"
"Shut up, Pandora!"
Pandora turned toward the carriage and tipped his hat in an overly dramatic display of reverence, only to be cut off by an angry shout.
Inside the carriage, Momonga, surrounded by a green glow, clenched his fists. The flames in his eye sockets flared brightly, as if he were about to carry out righteous execution upon his own creation.
Beside him, Herohero and Naohara were barely holding back their laughter.
"Why did you have Pandora come along?!"
Suppressing his embarrassment, Momonga demanded an explanation. If possible, he would have preferred Pandora to never leave Nazarick.
The NPC he had created was nothing but a walking record of his black history.
"There was no choice. Sebas and Shalltear are still in the Kingdom. Cocytus is forging a divine-class weapon. Sephis and the others are assisting Demiurge with the dragon creation plan."
"The only ones strong enough and available are Albedo and Pandora. If you'd like, we can send Pandora back and have Albedo come instead."
"Uh… no, forget it."
Just the thought of Albedo made Momonga shudder. Compared to that, Pandora was almost acceptable.
Their destination this time was the Dragon Kingdom. They were going to meet the Brightness Dragon Lord.
To be safe, they had brought ten World-Class Items in addition to Pandora.
The Dragon Kingdom.
Although the name contained the word "dragon," it was not a nation ruled by dragons.
The reason it bears that name is because it was founded by one of the few remaining True Dragon Lords, the Brightness Dragon Lord.
The current ruler of the Dragon Kingdom, Draudillon Oriculus, is the offspring of the Brightness Dragon Lord.
Because she possesses the bloodline of a True Dragon Lord and an inborn Talent, the Dragon Queen is capable of wielding Wild Magic. For that reason, she is known to the world as the Black Scale Dragon Lord.
However, Draudillon is far too weak. She inherited none of the overwhelming might of the Dragon Race. Forget surpassing her progenitor, the Brightness Dragon Lord. She cannot even defeat the White Dragon Lord.
Furthermore, although Draudillon can technically invoke Wild Magic, it requires souls as fuel.
And she cannot bring herself to do that.
Draudillon is a ruler who cherishes her people. She is kind-hearted and lacks the ruthlessness required.
As a result, her Wild Magic is little more than decoration, something she cannot truly use.
Because of this, she has earned the mocking nickname [False True Dragon Lord], a way to distinguish her from genuine Dragon Lords.
It infuriates her, yet there is nothing she can do. She is weak, and she cannot use Wild Magic.
In this world where the strong devour the weak, weakness means being beaten.
Under Draudillon's rule, the Dragon Kingdom's situation is dire. Every year, massive waves of Beastmen invade, pushing the kingdom to the brink.
If not for assistance from the Slane Theocracy, and the Beastmen's intention to capture the Dragon Queen alive for breeding, the Dragon Kingdom would have long since been crushed by their armies.
Recalling the intelligence regarding the Dragon Kingdom, Naohara fell into thought.
"We need to be careful. This could very well be a trap."
Although the Brightness Dragon Lord had expressed a willingness to submit to Nazarick, no one could say whether it was genuine. They had to prepare for the worst.
"In the historical records, the Eight Greed Kings died under mysterious circumstances. We can't afford to be careless."
"If something goes wrong, Momonga, activate [The Goal of All Life Is Death] immediately. We'll buy you time."
Herohero spoke to Momonga.
The Wild Magic of a True Dragon Lord is extremely powerful. It surpasses tier magic and even Super-Tier Magic, rivaling World-Class Items.
However, Wild Magic has no resurrection spells.
That is our advantage, and we must make full use of it.
"I understand."
Momonga nodded. This was already part of their plan.
If something unexpected happened, Naohara and Pandora would handle the main assault. Herohero would provide interference. Momonga would deliver the finishing blow.
They had even taken out Touch Me's equipment and handed it to Pandora to use, just to ensure there were no mistakes.
"Relax. We don't even know if it's a trap yet. No need to be so tense."
Naohara shook his head, though he understood their caution.
The stakes were enormous. A True Dragon Lord, and one that supposedly wanted to pledge allegiance to Nazarick.
This was directly tied to whether the three of them could gain insight into Wild Magic, an entirely different magic system.
"If there's a problem, we kill them all, resurrect afterward, and go work with the Platinum Dragon Lord to contribute to Nazarick."
"We can always wait for Demiurge's dragon creation plan. We don't absolutely need a True Dragon Lord."
"Works for me."
"A group dragon hunt, huh? Sounds pretty exciting."