After preparing quite the spread for dinner, the group celebrated their victory over the Frenzied state and took the evening to relax a little.
They even took turns bathing, and once everyone said their goodnights and prepared for bed, they split into separate rooms.
Marcille and Izutsumi went upstairs to share a room. Chilchuck chose the sofa near the upstairs stairwell. Senshi and Laios took a room downstairs.
The Hunters all stayed in the warehouse, which had plenty of space—and it also gave them a chance to search for Yaad, who had been transformed into a grass doll by Thistle in the original storyline.
Yet amidst the silence of the wilderness, someone remained awake. After confirming that the others had fallen asleep, one person quietly rose from bed.
Kairo Retsu stepped out of his room and went straight to check on Thistle's condition.
Thistle had been left alone on purpose—to lure out the Winged Lion. But the Winged Lion had made no move.
Feeling a bit disappointed, Kairo Retsu headed downstairs. There, he noticed the two copies of the Winged Lion's Book still sitting on the table, seemingly untouched.
One of them, held by Thistle, remained sealed.
The other, already unsealed by Marcille, had only revealed a lion's head.
Kairo Retsu sat at the table, staring at the Winged Lion's Book. He tapped his fingers on the surface as if weighing thoughts in his mind.
And then—
Kairo Retsu opened the Winged Lion's Book in front of him.
A furry lion's head emerged from the book, its eyes half-closed as it looked at Kairo Retsu, the corners of its mouth curling into a satisfied smile. "It's quite late… Aren't you planning to sleep, Mr. Kairo Retsu?"
"Can't sleep. I wanted to talk," Kairo Retsu replied, locking eyes with the Winged Lion. "About unsealing you tomorrow… and becoming the Master of the Dungeon."
"Is that so? There shouldn't be any issues then," the Winged Lion responded with a calm smile. "Tomorrow, once you're all well-rested, have that Marcille unseal the other book—and I'll make you the Master of the Dungeon."
Its lips curled upward. "Laios has many ideas. I believe he'll make a better dungeon master than Thistle ever was. Even the people of the Golden Country—and the monsters—I think Laios would make an excellent leader."
"That's where the problem lies," Kairo Retsu stared intently at the Winged Lion. "It's not 'we' becoming the dungeon master. What I want to talk about is…"
"—how I become the dungeon master," Kairo Retsu said bluntly. "If Laios becomes the dungeon master, no one else can, right?"
"Hm? Aren't you all companions? Helping Laios resurrect his sister?" the Winged Lion asked. But its grin only widened.
"As a companion, I'll make sure Laios resurrects Falin," Kairo Retsu said. "But what I want to do… can only be done by the dungeon master. Laios definitely wouldn't help me do it."
"…Can you tell me more?" the Winged Lion asked, observing the fervor building in Kairo Retsu's expression.
"Sure." Kairo Retsu leaned forward with both hands on the table, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Have you ever heard of the—Dahren Mohran Serpent?"
Chilchuck had been sleeping soundly near the stairs on the second floor, but the Halfling's sensitive ears suddenly picked up some noise. Groggy, he rubbed his eyes and sat up from his sleep.
From below, voices could be heard—one in particular, filled with excitement.
"…At the summit of the towering sacred domain, Thousand Blade Mountain, where one can overlook the Sea of Clouds, when uninvited guests arrive, it appears alongside the divine Radiance—it is a titanic Elder Dragon, said to possess a form as colossal and serpentine as a chain of mountains…"
The voice spoke passionately. "It's praised as the Eternal King, a cataclysm surpassing all mortal comprehension. That's what the ancient texts from our homeland say."
"But that's not the part that excites me the most."
Chilchuck could hear it clearly—Kairo Retsu speaking below, his voice full of excitement, as if in conversation with someone. "An entity beyond comprehension means one beyond reason itself. No matter what happens, nothing would be surprising…"
"There's a theory—that makes me desperately want to become… the dungeon master!"
That declaration from Kairo Retsu wiped all drowsiness from Chilchuck's mind. Alarmed, he quietly moved toward the staircase, peeking through the gaps to spy on what was happening below.
He saw Kairo Retsu gesticulating passionately, speaking like a prophet toward the lion's head that had emerged from the book on the table.
"In that theory, the Dahren Mohran Serpent might not just be one—it could be an enormous species!"
Kairo Retsu threw his arms wide open in excitement. "Just as humans don't know how many stars exist in the void of deep space—so too might there be countless Dahren Mohran Serpents beneath the earth!"
"They together form the land itself!" Kairo Retsu shouted with fervor. "When it emerges, bearing a thousand blades, upon the summit of that sky-piercing sacred mountain—the earth is annihilated!"
"Winged Lion! I want to become the dungeon master!"
Kairo Retsu declared with raw sincerity, "I want to personally create that myth!"
"I want to witness the Dahren Mohran Serpent twisting across the peaks of winding mountain chains!"
"I want to see a sea—no, an entire new continent—formed by countless Dahren Mohran Serpents rising from the ocean, forging a landmass with their bodies!"
"According to legend, when its life ends, its blood becomes the sea, its flesh becomes the land, and its bones become the forests—a cradle for all life."
Kairo Retsu continued, "The Dahren Mohran Serpent is the first step toward the New World! And then… a new breed of Dragons will run across that new land!"
As Kairo Retsu's excitement reached a fever pitch, the images of his desire became clear to the Winged Lion.
This man truly possessed such a desire—so intense that the Winged Lion nearly wanted to consume it then and there.
"Do you truly want to see that wish fulfilled?" the Winged Lion asked, barely restraining its hunger. "If it comes true… it would mean changing the very world."
"Then let the world change."
Kairo Retsu smiled. "Besides… I don't plan on hurting anyone."
Still smiling, Kairo Retsu added, "People always adapt to changing environments. That's what nature is."
"!"
Chilchuck saw Kairo Retsu's expression and could no longer bear to watch. Frightened, he quickly turned and went to wake Marcille upstairs.
Meanwhile, in the warehouse…
Kazuma, Joseph, and Naofumi Iwatani were still wide awake.
"The Guildmaster's probably already talking with the Winged Lion by now, right?" Joseph muttered, hands behind his head. "If I didn't know our plan… I'd seriously think he was a villain trying to destroy the world."
Beside him, Kazuma and Naofumi both silently nodded in agreement.
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