Chapter 5: The Father’s Confession(5)

The Demon Dragon King couldn’t hold on any longer.

Rather than saying her defeat was certain, it was more like her strength was gradually fading.

As the seconds ticked by, the Hero’s afterimage remained, while the Demon Dragon King’s movements became visibly sluggish and heavy.

I stood up silently, gripping my staff and aiming at that afterimage.

The magical light condensing at my fingertips shone steadily.

This time, the magic precisely ensnared the Hero’s form.

*Squelch* —

The soft sound of a blade piercing flesh echoed as the Hero’s sword finally ran through the Demon Dragon King’s body.

The battle was decided then and there.

I was watching the show with my arms crossed, thoroughly enjoying myself and preparing to clean up the aftermath.

Suddenly, a familiar force wrapped around my waist.

It was that beautiful figure again!

‘No way. There are several other members of the Hero’s party watching nearby!’

‘Why am I the one being kidnapped again?’

I frantically reached for the life-saving scrolls and charms in my robes, but a deep voice stopped me.

“I swear by my Demon Core that I will not harm you in the slightest. I only ask that you listen to a few words of mine.”

It was the Demon Dragon King’s voice.

If she was willing to swear by her Demon Core, she likely wasn’t lying to me.

I stopped my movements half-heartedly and allowed her to drag her wounded body, pulling me into a basement.

***

*Clang!*

The heavy stone door locked with a loud thud.

Without my magic to help them, the Hero’s party would have to go through a lot of trouble to break it down.

“Human, you are very interesting. Do you want to hear my proposal?”

The Demon Dragon King had dropped the playful tone she used during the fight.

Clutching her bleeding wound, she spoke with a serious expression.

“Wh… what proposal?”

I waved my hands hurriedly.

‘Don’t even think about asking for healing or help!’

The Demon Dragon King laughed softly.

Enduring the pain, she stood up and walked deep into the basement, pushing open another heavy iron door.

The sight behind the door nearly blinded me…

Glittering gold coins were piled into small mountains, and gemstones and pearls were scattered all over the floor.

This was wealth I hadn’t seen in my past two lifetimes combined.

In the very center of this treasure hoard, a dragon egg lay quietly on a soft red cushion.

The egg was smooth and lustrous; one look was enough to tell it had been cared for meticulously for a long time.

Just then, the Demon Dragon King staggered and collapsed heavily to the ground.

Her breath weakened instantly, clearly exhausted from excessive blood loss.

She tremblingly slipped off the ring on her right hand, her voice faint but clear.

“This is a storage ring. It can hold all the treasure in this room. I know… about those two children.”

Before her voice could even fade, the ring flicked toward me.

I failed to catch it with one hand, so I scrambled to grab it with both, nearly letting it hit my foot.

“Could you… use this treasure to trade for my daughter’s life? I beg you, be her foster father and protect her as she grows up.”

The Demon Dragon King pointed a finger at the dragon egg, her tone filled with supplication.

‘Another demon baby? Now I have a nightmare, a blood kin, and a dragon kid. This is too awesome.’

“You really are an interesting person.”

As if seeing through my thoughts, the Demon Dragon King’s gaze remained sharp, but it lacked any mockery.

“What is your goal? Is it really just to satisfy some twisted hobby?”

I blinked, shook my head, and looked up at her.

My voice was firm.

“The world says demons are born violent and that it’s easier to change a mountain than a nature. They say the malice of a demon is carved into their very bones and can never be changed.”

But I refused to believe that nonsense.

I didn’t adopt those children for fame, or because I wanted to raise a demon successor, and certainly not for some “twisted hobby.”

“I think you’ve seen what they looked like when I first met them. Every one of them was in a desperate situation, looking so pitiful.”

“Take little Zia, for example. When I found her behind the throne, she couldn’t even speak; she could only express everything through crying. Those clean, watery eyes—where was the violence in them?”

It takes ten years to grow a tree but a hundred years to cultivate a person.

When a drifting baby’s cradle is found, even the stubborn stones by the river can be polished smooth by the stream.

So why wouldn’t a group of little demons who long for a hug be the same?

I wanted to teach them to read and write.

I wanted to teach them not to use their claws to scratch those who tried to get close.

I wanted to teach them to distinguish right from wrong.

I wanted them to taste what it felt like to be cared for and loved.

Perhaps many would laugh at me for being a fool, saying I was gambling my time on a hopeless dream and that I would eventually be consumed by the demons’ nature.

But I believed that sincerity could move even mountains.

Even if this path was long and difficult, and even if I never lived to see the day humans and demons shook hands in peace, I still wanted to hold their hands and walk forward one step at a time.

At the very least, I wanted them to live this life cleanly and happily, without having to hide or fear being abandoned.

“It seems… I was shallow.”

The Demon Dragon King’s voice was airy.

The sharp light in her golden eyes had long since dissipated.

She leaned limply against the ground, no longer possessing even the strength to lift her hand.

She coughed twice.

The scales on her chest had lost their former luster, turning a dull gray that was painful to look at.

“I have lived for so long and grown used to human ambition and the slaughter of demons… I forgot that there are really people in this world who take ‘love’ seriously.”

Her breath grew weaker and weaker, but she managed to lift her eyelids.

There was a trace of a relieved smile in the way she looked at me.

“If there really is a day when demons and humans can put down their swords and get along… this Queen would truly like to see it for herself…”

Before she could finish, she suddenly coughed up blood.

Her eyelids grew heavy, and she moved no more.

Wait?

The Demon Dragon King just left after saying her piece?

Sigh, such is the heart of a parent.

I’ll give you a proper burial later.

I stared blankly at the ring on my left hand.

With all this treasure on the floor, I only needed a single thought to store it all inside.

I walked to the center of the room and reached out to activate the spatial ring.

A green light shone from it, covering the entire room.

After a brilliant flash of light, everything in the room…

Aside from the dragon egg, was still there~

*Boom!*

Just then, the Hero’s party finally arrived, breaking down the door.

Seeing the fallen Demon Dragon King and the treasure scattered everywhere, they immediately swarmed forward like madmen, fighting to snatch it all up.

Watching the scene from the side, I couldn’t help but let the corners of my mouth curl up.

“Everyone, there’s no need to leave a share of this wealth for me!”

I turned around and called out as I walked away.

But those guys were too busy fighting over the loot to even hear me.

Whatever.

The story of the Hero slaying the dragon had reached its conclusion.

I was safe and sound, and that was enough.

I touched the storage ring on my finger, feeling the faint sensation of the dragon egg through the metal.

I walked with a light step into the twilight outside the door.

Behind me was the clamor of the Hero’s party fighting over treasure and the silent, lying form of the Demon Dragon King.

Heh, look at the greed in the eyes of these heroes.

Is there really any innate good or evil?

It all just depends on whether the person you meet is holding a sword or reaching out a hand.

To me, it didn’t matter if the gold and silver were stolen.

How could those external things be as precious as the children’s smiles?

The evening breeze brushed against my hair as I smiled and quickened my pace.

My goal was clear.

I needed to get down the mountain and play with those two little munchkins who had probably just woken up~

Hee-hee.

“A Father’s Confession”

The End