Zeke stared at the floating message in bewilderment.
"The Fairy Forest rejects the Immortal?"
Michelle waved from beyond the stone towers, gesturing for Zeke to hurry.
"Whatʼs wrong? Letʼs go."
Zeke pondered the message for a moment before stepping into the domain.
Suddenly, the surrounding stone towers began to tremble.
Rumble rumble rumble—
Dozens of stone towers collapsed outright, scattering rocks across the ground.
The scattered stones then merged together on the ground, forming a single shape.
"W-what is this?"
Even Michelle, seeing the scene for the first time, panicked and rolled away to hide.
The clustered stones transformed into the form of a massive giant.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The giant made of stone rubble glared at Zeke and bellowed.
"You who defy the laws! Leave this sacred land at once!"
As the words ended, the giantʼs body disintegrated back into stones, which flew toward Zeke amid a fierce gale.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Zeke raised his cloak to block the incoming stones.
Boom!
True to its swordproof nature, the cloak repelled the flying stones.
He wasnʼt injured, but Zeke looked troubled by the raging stone wind.
"System, is there no way to stop this?"
In response to Zekeʼs words, the system searched for information and displayed a message.
[Activate the Dragon Divine Body while holding the sacred relic of the Divine Dragon
Poseidon, and the domain will recognize you as a dragon.]
"Itʼll recognize me as a dragon?"
Though puzzled, Zeke pulled out the iridescent orb he had received from Poseidon and activated his Dragon Divine Body.
His eyes turned into Dragon Eyes, and dragon scales emerged on his skin.
Gradually, the stone wind began to die down.
[The domain "Fairy Forest" is re-recognizing the user.]
[The domain "Fairy Forest" recognizes the power of the dragon.]
[The domain "Fairy Forest" halts security measures.]
The stone wind receded, reforming into the original stone towers.
After the fierce gale passed, Michelle, who had been hiding and trembling, finally emerged.
"W-what just happened?"
Ignoring Michelle, Zeke cautiously approached the stone towers.
Unlike before, he could now enter the Fairy Forest domain.
"System, do I have to stay in the Dragon Divine Body state the whole time?"
[The Dragon Divine Body can be deactivated, but the sacred relic of the Divine Dragon must be kept on your person.]
Zeke deactivated his Dragon Divine Body and pocketed Poseidonʼs sacred relic.
He turned to Michelle.
"Letʼs keep going."
Zeke and Michelle passed through the stone towers and ascended the forest path.
At the top of the hill lay an open clearing with the peaceful sight of a village.
Druids in leather garb, their homes built of wood and earth, gathered in the village square.
Surprisingly, each druid was accompanied by a mythical beast.
Spotting the villagers, Michelle raised his hand high and ran forward.
"Iʼm back!"
Unlike Michelleʼs joyful shout, the druids in the square looked indifferent.
When they showed little reaction, Michelle awkwardly approached the eldestlooking one.
He pounded his chest and declared.
"Village chief! Look! Iʼve brought someone to heal the Mountain Lord!"
The old man with multicolored threads braided into his hair and beard sat on a tree stump, leaning on his staff.
Wise eyes peered from beneath his long eyebrows.
The village chief rose from his seat.
The other druids around him, including the chief, were mostly sturdy in build, though not quite as much as Michelle.
Then, without warning, the chief swung his staff at Michelle.
Crack!
"Ow!"
The staff struck Michelleʼs head and then expertly thrashed his body.
At the same time, a torrent of colorful curses poured from the chiefʼs mouth.
"You little shit! You goddamn bastard! You broke village rules and snuck out alone, you fucker! And now you bring an outsider here? Do village rules look like a joke to you?" The chiefʼs staff moved with dazzling skill, pummeling Michelleʼs body.
"Gah! Ch-chief! Gr-grandpa! W-wait a sec!"
"Wait my ass, you little shit! Youʼre getting five yearsʼ worth today, you worthless brat!"
The other druids finally intervened, pulling the chief away after he had thrashed Michelle for a while.
Still fuming, the chief huffed.
Zeke clicked his tongue inwardly at Michelle, who clutched his battered spots and curled up.
"So she didnʼt have permission to leave."
The druids hadnʼt shown themselves to the outside world for centuries.
To maintain that, they had strictly isolated themselves and secured the villageʼs location.
There had been occasional cases of outsiders finding the village, but those were the result of their own persistent efforts.
This time, however, Michelle had brought a stranger he had just met without permission, so it was natural for the chief to be furious.
After one more whack on Michelleʼs head with his staff, the chief turned to Zeke.
"As you can see, weʼre not in a position to welcome outsiders right now."
Zeke realized the druids in the square had taken combat stances and watched him warily.
He stepped forward toward the chief.
"I apologize for intruding so suddenly. My name is Zeke Draker." At the name Draker, the druids behind murmured in surprise.
"Dr-Draker?"
"I heard Drakers have horns on their heads and sharp teeth."
"Y-yeah. And they always laugh like demons, kekeke." Zeke swallowed hard at the druidsʼ whispers.
"Why do even the druids have such weird rumors about us?"
Unlike the murmuring druids, the chief eyed Zeke sharply and spoke.
"Why has a Draker come all this way? Did you trick that fool to desecrate our village?" Zeke shook his head.
"I have no such intention. I didnʼt come as a Draker in the first place. The reason Iʼm here is to find the Fairy Lake."
The druids gasped at Zekeʼs words.
"F-Fairy Lake?"
"A Draker is after the Fairy Lake to destroy it."
"Sc-scary Draker!"
Once the misunderstanding started, it snowballed uncontrollably.
"This is a headache."
With no choice, Zeke pulled out Agamemnonʼs Mask from his inventory.
Seeing the mask Zeke produced, the chief flinched.
"Thatʼs..."
"It seems you recognize it too. Itʼs one of the three sacred relics the Fairy King left in the phenomenal world. I came here to restore its power."
The chief looked at Zeke with a different expression than before.
"The tribe of light, was it?"
"If you mean the bloodline of Rubern, then yes." The druids stirred again at Zekeʼs words.
"A Draker is from the tribe of light."
"How could a scary Draker be from the holy tribe of light?"
"I donʼt know, itʼs scary."
They simply huddled together in fear of Zeke.
The chief glanced at Michelle, still curled up on the ground, and clicked his tongue.
He swung his staff and said.
"Come inside for now."
followed the chief into the earthen house.
The interior was surprisingly cozy and well-decorated. Flower vases made of clay adorned the windowsills with blooms, and woven textiles with beautiful patterns and traditional crafts hung on the walls.
"Sit here."
Zeke sat on the cushion on the floor, facing the chief.
The chief sat and spoke to Zeke.
"How did you meet that fool Turushino?"
"Turushino? You mean Michelle?"
So the feminine name was an alias; Michelleʼs real name was Turushino.
The chief clicked his tongue.
"That idiot Turushino went out without permission five years ago, claiming heʼd fetch some miraculous elixir. We hadnʼt heard from him, so we thought the dimwit mightʼve dropped dead on the roadside, and then he shows up out of nowhere with an outsider. Thatʼs why weʼre on edge."
The chief picked up a pipe from beside him, lit it, and puffed away.
Zeke said to the chief.
"Michelle was trying to get an elixir to heal someone."
He took out the elixir from his inventory and showed it to the chief. "But unfortunately, the elixir isnʼt a cure, so it canʼt treat the illness." The chief shook his head.
"I never thought that kid would actually bring back anything useful. He has unparalleled affinity with mythical beasts, but heʼs an utter dunce at everything else."
recalled the way Michelle had looked at the Dragon Horse King.
Sensitive spirit beasts usually guarded against strangers.
But oddly, Bucephalus hadnʼt been wary of Michelle. "It must be because of his affinity with mythical beasts." The chief looked at Zeke.
"I get why you came here, but you canʼt go to the Fairy Lake, so head back."
"That wonʼt do. To revive this sacred relic, I must go to the Fairy Lake." The chief frowned at Zekeʼs words.
"This isnʼt something stubbornness can fix, so go down the mountain." Then Zeke said to the chief.
"Is it related to the person Michelle said needs healing? He mentioned the Mountain Lord earlier."
At Zekeʼs words, the chief took a deep drag from his pipe and exhaled smoke.
Through the hazy smoke, Zeke continued.
"As a bloodline member of Rubern, Iʼm a healer class. I told Michelle, but I can heal this Mountain Lord."
The chief chuckled at Zekeʼs words.
"Healing the Mountain Lord is impossible."
"Why is it impossible?"
The chief scowled, set down his pipe, and snapped.
"Because the Mountain Lord isnʼt human."
furrowed his brow at the chiefʼs words.
Then he slowly asked.
"Is the Mountain Lord a spirit beast?" The chief nodded.
"Not a spirit beast—a divine beast. One who has lived here for thousands of years. A being far beyond human realms. How could a human heal such a oneʼs illness?" Zeke realized something from the chiefʼs words.
"You canʼt reach the Fairy Lake without the Mountain Lordʼs power, can you?" The chief fell silent at his words.
Zeke stood and said.
"If thereʼs no other way, it wouldnʼt hurt to let me try. Nothing to lose, so take me to the Mountain Lord."
The chiefʼs eyebrows twitched at Zekeʼs words.
He seemed to be weighing whether to expose the Mountain Lord to an outsider.
After a momentʼs thought, Zeke said to the chief.
"I am one inscribed with the soul of an Elder Dragon, and the successor of the Hero
King. So trust me and take me to the Mountain Lord." At the mention of Elder Dragon, the chiefʼs eyes widened.
He scrutinized Zeke thoroughly, then extended his hand.
"Place your right hand here."
Zeke placed his right hand on the chiefʼs as instructed.
The chief gripped Zekeʼs palm and examined it closely.
Alternating between the palm and Zekeʼs eyes, the chief swallowed.
"Huh... This doesnʼt make sense."
After staring at Zekeʼs palm for a long time, the chief nodded and stood.
"Follow me."
Zeke followed the chief out of the earthen house. Outside, the druids and mythical beasts who had gathered peeked curiously.
The chief swung his staff and shouted.
"What are you gawking at? Scatter!"
At the chiefʼs stern command, the druids and mythical beasts dispersed in a flurry.
Then the chief yelled at the fleeing Michelle.
"Turushino! You follow too!" Michelle panicked.
"W-why? To hit me more?"
The chief bellowed in frustration.
"You little shit! Shut up and come! Ugh, to think that fool is my grandson. Damn...." Surprisingly, Michelle was the chiefʼs grandson.
Recalling how Michelle had called him grandpa earlier, Zeke nodded belatedly.
Zeke and Michelle followed the chief up a narrow path behind the village.
At the end of the path was a cave.
Before the cave, the chief and Michelle bowed respectfully, clasping their hands in prayer.
Zeke mimicked their gesture.
After a moment, the chief led Zeke and Michelle into the cave.
A short way in, the surroundings brightened, revealing a space filled with beautiful grass and flowers.
Zeke sensed that the energy here differed from outside. "This feels... like when I entered Lord Poseidonʼs space." Zeke followed the chief into the flower field.
At the center stood a single tree. "The Mountain Lord is over there." Zeke approached the tree slowly.
He spotted the being leaning against it and was startled.