Within the grand and spacious Dragon King Chambers…
Longjiu slept soundly, a look of pure satisfaction on her face.
The bedding was meticulously sewn from fabric that had once been slept on by him.
Every inch of the material seemed to retain a lingering scent that haunted her dreams.
The usually majestic and domineering Dragon Queen was currently like an innocent child craving warmth.
She hugged her pillow tightly, refusing to let go.
In her sleep, she would occasionally rub against it happily, greedily inhaling the scent that she missed so dearly — the scent that brought her peace and stability.
The contrast in the scene was so great it was almost comical.
However, deep within the castle’s darkest, dampest Dungeon, the scene was worlds apart and too tragic to behold.
The Hero, who had once been famous throughout the Continent, was now bound so tightly by thick, heavy iron chains that he could not move.
He was in a wretched state.
The constant dripping sound of water that usually echoed through the Dungeon had strangely vanished.
The reason for this could be traced back to Longjiu’s last inspection.
At the time, she had seen the Hero weeping until his face was covered in tears, creating a mess everywhere.
Finding it both noisy and filthy, she felt nothing but extreme disgust.
Without a word, she ordered the soldiers to forcibly place a heavy, airtight helmet on the Hero, firmly encasing his head.
This left the Hero truly wanting to cry but having no tears to shed; he was beyond miserable.
If he continued to wail, the tears would have nowhere to drain.
He might actually end up drowning himself inside the helmet.
Thus, the Hero forced himself to hold back his tears.
He did not dare to cry and could not move.
Nothing remained but a boundless, suffocating despair that swallowed him day after day.
His heart had already grown numb amidst the endless torture.
“Just then —”
*Click!*
A faint but clear sound of a lock turning suddenly shattered the dead silence of the Dungeon.
The Hero snapped his head up, his eyes nearly spewing fire.
He wished he could curse Longjiu a thousand times with a single glance.
But what entered his vision was not the Dragon King he hated to his core, but a Black-clad Man wrapped in a voluminous cloak, his face hidden from view.
“Who are you?!” the Hero croaked, shouting with every ounce of his strength.
The Black-clad Man remained silent, standing as still as a ghost.
In the next second, he slowly drew a cold, shimmering dagger from behind his back.
The Hero’s pupils shrank.
Terrified, his entire body began to tremble violently.
In that moment, he finally understood —
The assassin the Goddess had once mentioned, the one sent to take his life, had finally come.
He slowly closed his eyes, his face pale and his heart like dead ashes, as he quietly waited for the arrival of his tragic end.
“Ah — !”
A shrill, heart-wrenching scream suddenly erupted from the depths of the Dungeon, echoing through the empty corridors and making one’s skin crawl.
***
The next morning, as the sky was just beginning to brighten.
The sound of hurried, panicked footsteps rang out from a distance, echoing through the hallway of the Dragon Palace.
Accompanied by the crisp clatter of clashing armor, it broke the castle’s silence.
A soldier rushed desperately to the door of the Dragon King Chambers, pounding on it with reckless abandon.
*Thud, thud, thud!*
“Lord Dragon King! This is bad! A major incident has occurred!”
*Thud, thud, thud!*
Another round of violent pounding followed.
“Ugh…”
Under the covers, Longjiu was rudely awakened from her dream.
Her morning grumpiness exploded instantly, her tone filled with extreme dissatisfaction and irritation.
“What is all this noise about?”
Her impatient voice drifted from behind the door.
“Re — Report, Lord Dragon King! While your subordinate was on patrol, I discovered… I discovered that the secret door leading to the Dungeon has been opened!”
The soldier’s voice trembled, his soul nearly leaving his body from fright.
Longjiu’s sleepiness vanished instantly.
Her face paled with shock as she bolted upright in bed.
“What?!”
She threw back the covers, preparing to rush out.
Even the Bai Li Pillow she had been holding was tossed onto the floor in her panic.
But after taking only two steps, she suddenly lunged back.
She carefully picked up the incredibly precious pillow and placed it gently on the bed, meticulously tucking it in with the blanket.
She handled it with extreme care, as if it were the most valuable treasure in the world.
Only after finishing this did she turn around again and charge out like a whirlwind.
Longjiu moved with rapid strides.
The soldiers behind her tried their best to keep up, but they were still left far behind, gasping for breath.
“What are you all being paid for?! How could someone sneak into the castle?!”
Longjiu roared, her voice sharp with fury.
“Your subordinate does not know! Lord Dragon King! Everything was clearly peaceful last night. There wasn’t a single sound!” the soldier defended himself with a miserable expression.
“The lack of sound is exactly the problem!”
Longjiu gritted her teeth in anger.
She knew in her heart that it must have been an expert who infiltrated.
She stormed to the entrance of the Dungeon and shoved the heavy stone door open.
In the next second, Longjiu froze in place, her face turning deathly white.
‘…It’s over.’
Her heart sank as she realized something was terribly wrong.
Her scalp felt numb.
In the center of the Dungeon, the thick iron chains that had once firmly bound the Hero had been sliced clean through and lay scattered across the floor.
And within those chains, the Hero who was supposed to be trapped was gone.
There wasn’t a trace of him.
Longjiu felt a splitting headache.
She reached out to rub her throbbing cheeks, feeling as though her head were about to explode from the stress.
Of all times, this had to happen right when the Vampires were launching a massive invasion against the Human Empire and the Continent’s situation was in turmoil.
Her own backyard had caught fire, and such a massive blunder had occurred.
What made her heart race even more was —
“Where on earth had the Hero been taken?”
‘He absolutely… cannot die.’
Longjiu felt a surge of terror at the thought.
She had spent ten full years and expended immense effort to set up the Seal, suppressing his Divine Power and trapping him here.
“But if the Hero were to die…”
The consequences would be unthinkable.
The long-dormant World Law would choose a new Hero to descend.
When that happened, a brand-new Hero with full power and a heart full of justice would be born.
It would undoubtedly bring a second catastrophe upon the entire Demon Race.
“Dammit!”
The more Longjiu thought about it, the angrier she became.
She whipped around and barked orders at the low-ranking soldier behind her.
“Immediately summon every soldier in the city! Mobilize everyone and find that man for me!”
“Ye — Yes, Lord Dragon King!”
With a dark expression, Longjiu returned to her chambers and changed into a set of light, sturdy armor.
Before leaving, she still couldn’t help but walk over to the bed.
She lowered her head and pressed a gentle kiss onto the pillow.
Her movements were incredibly tender, as if Bai Li were truly right there beside her.
Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the window and unfurled the massive, magnificent Dragon Wings on her back.
She leaped out, transforming into a streak of light that shot into the clouds.
She had to personally hunt down the escaped Hero.
Counting on her incompetent subordinates would be nothing more than a pipe dream.
The Magic Circles and traps inside and outside the castle remained completely undisturbed; not a single one had been triggered.
It was obvious that the person who took the Hero was highly skilled and meticulous.
They were definitely no ordinary individual.
Longjiu flapped her Dragon Wings, soaring rapidly beneath the clouds.
Her gaze was as sharp as a hawk’s as she scrutinized every inch of the land.
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