Chapter 66

Chapter 66

066. I'm the Ruler of the Central Plains?

So why had the dragon come here?

Just as I was about to ask—

GRUMBLE!

A sound came from her stomach.

Her gaze was fixed on the food I had prepared.

Her eyes trembled.

"I don't know what brings you here, but would you like to eat first?"

"Hmm, sure."

Her hands immediately reached toward the food I had made for the S-Rank trio.

"That's for them over there. I'll make something new for you."

"......Understood."

"What kind of food would you like?"

"Meat. Any meat dish is fine."

"Got it."

First, I served the S-Rank trio their food.

Tuna kimchi stew with rice and simple side dishes for the Sword Saint.

A double bacon Detroit-style pizza with pickles and cola for Eriksson.

A mortadella sandwich and orange juice for Santos.

While serving the food, I asked them to relocate.

After all, both the dragon and the three of them would feel uneasy being close to each other.

With that, the S-Rank trio picked up their trays and moved to a corner table.

I then began grilling a beef sirloin steak for the dragon's meal.

While cooking, I asked her.

"How would you like your meat cooked?"

"I prefer it with a slight trace of blood."

"Medium rare should work, then. Do you have anything to pay with?"

I had to collect what was owed.

If she did not have anything, I would put it on a tab.

"Valuables, you mean? I do."

She extended her hand toward the empty air to her left.

A subspace appeared.

'Subspace is everywhere these days.'

Following Ruina, now even a dragon had one.

She pulled gemstones from the subspace.

"I have gems like these, and gems like this."

Hmm, I could not really gauge the value of gemstones.

Was there anything more straightforward?

"Do you have any magic stones instead of gems?"

"I don't have magic stones. Dragons don't devour magic stones, so I don't collect them separately."

"Then what about something gold?"

"Gold coins, you mean? I have those."

She pulled out a pouch of gold coins and showed me its contents.

Gold coins gleaming with a brilliant golden luster.

They looked thicker and larger than a 100-won coin.

"Are these pure gold?"

"They're made entirely of gold."

She then snapped a gold coin in half.

As easily as breaking a cracker.

Looking at the cross-section, it was indeed solid gold.

"Excellent. One gold coin per serving will suffice."

Each gold coin had to be worth at least 500,000 to 600,000 won.

I plated the finished steak alongside the asparagus I had grilled with it.

I poured red wine sauce over the steak.

On the side of the plate, I added mashed potatoes that I had prepared in bulk and stored in Acresia beforehand.

I served the plated dish to her and said,

"Your food is ready. Please enjoy."

"Thank you."

The dragon then, without using a knife, stabbed the entire 300-gram piece of meat with her fork and began tearing into it.

'A dragon is a dragon, after all......'

No matter how tenderly the meat had been cooked, every bite ripped through the flesh as if it were being sliced by a machine cutter.

The knife was nothing more than decoration.

The dragon devoured the steak in an instant.

She polished off the mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus as well.

"Delicious......, but not enough."

She then pulled eight gold coins from the pouch and held them out to me.

"Cook me meat worth this amount."

"I'll have it ready right away."

The sight of gold coins made me instantly more attentive.

Big-appetite customers were a treasure.

"Shall I offer you a glass of wine on the house?"

"Wine, that sounds good."

I threw in a complimentary service, entering full customer-retention mode.

I kept grilling steaks after that.

The dragon inhaled each one as fast as I could cook them.

'She eats almost as much as Fenrir.'

For the final serving, I grilled a thick, one-kilogram porterhouse steak.

Only after devouring that did the dragon seem satisfied.

Before I knew it, twelve gold coins had found their way into my possession.

"That was delicious...... The wine was good too. You're quite skilled."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. By the way, what is the reason you came to see me?"

I finally got around to asking.

Had she come to express gratitude?

Or to demand I return the bones of her mother, who had been turned into a Bone Dragon......?

If that was the case, Acresia had already devoured them, and nothing remained.

If not that......, was she here to demand I hand over her mother's dragon wine that I had gulped down......?

There was still plenty of the Wine Imbued with Dragon Mana left, and it held tremendous value.

'Please, anything but that......!'

The dragon spoke.

"You're breaking into a cold sweat. I have no intention of making things difficult for you. I merely came because Fenrir told me there was an amusing human who was good at cooking. He said I could get very fresh meat from you."

"Ah......"

What a relief.......

She had come simply because of meat.

"You came to purchase meat from me?"

I had no plans to sell meat separately, though.

"That was my initial intention, but after coming here and tasting it, I think it's better to eat what you cook directly. I prefer lightly cooked meat over raw meat."

"I see. Please visit anytime."

"I shall."

"By the way, how do you know Fenrir?"

The dragon answered each of my questions without hesitation.

"When I recently came to this floor of the Rift, I went to the lair where my mother used to reside, and Fenrir was there. I treated him as an intruder and we fought until we were both exhausted, then started talking, and I realized I had been mistaken."

"I see."

So Fenrir was still staying at the lair of the dragon who had entered Eternal Rest.

If she had fought Fenrir to exhaustion, this dragon could not be all that powerful.

She must still be underdeveloped, remaining at the Transcendent-Grade level.

'In that case, Ria could handle her.'

Not just Ria—if the S-Rank trio, who were finishing their tea after the meal, joined forces, they could hold their own against her as well.

Of course, the dragon showed no intention of attacking us, so I was merely considering the worst-case scenario.

I continued the conversation with her.

"So you came to this floor of the Rift recently."

"That's right. The link with my mother was severed, so I learned she had entered Eternal Rest. I came to take over her lair."

"I see. Then did you drive Fenrir out of the lair?"

"I didn't drive him out. Fenrir left on his own. And he and I agreed to become co-rulers of the Northern Frozen Wastes."

Rulers.

Fenrir had mentioned it before.

On the Fourth Floor of the Rift, Transcendent-Grade or higher monsters with intelligence claimed dominion over their respective territories.

Then the dragon said something I never expected.

"I was told you are the ruler of the Central Plains."

"......Me?"

"That's what Fenrir said. He told me the one who contributed most to defeating the Lich and the Bone Dragon was a male human. A powerful being with a terrifying Subspace Storage that devours monsters."

"Well, he's half right, I suppose......"

I had, after all, played the decisive role through absorption.

Still, was Ria not the more fitting actual ruler?

Since husband and wife are one, perhaps it was the same thing?

"Please, I beg you, don't devour me."

"I won't......"

The dragon then pointed toward the S-Rank trio and continued.

"Your subordinates look quite strong as well."

They were not my subordinates......

Before I could object, the dragon went on.

"Ruler of the Plains, dragons desire order. Therefore, I do not seek unnecessary territorial conflict."

Well, since she said she did not want a fight, I would go along with it for now.

"Neither do I."

"Let us coexist peacefully."

"Agreed."

And just like that, a peace accord of sorts was reached.

However, there was something I needed to clarify.

"It is all right to hunt monsters in the Northern Frozen Wastes, correct?"

Hunters would be arriving soon.

They would be heading out to hunt in every direction.

They would likely set foot in the Frozen Wastes as well.

"As long as it's not excessive, I won't take issue."

"Does that apply to other humans besides me?"

"Aren't they your subordinates? The same rules apply. Just make sure they don't approach the vicinity of my lair."

Suddenly, every hunter arriving on the Fourth Floor had become my subordinate.

In any case, no party would be able to reach where the lair was located.

Their supply lines would never hold up that far.

Even for Ria and me, who had no supply concerns, traveling on foot to the dragon's lair without Fenrir's help would be a difficult task.

That was how vast the Fourth Floor of the Rift was.

Of course, one click of a Gate portal and it would take only a moment.

"Understood."

Just like that, the dragon had come to recognize me as the ruler of the Central Plains.

Having concluded her business, the dragon Ashley rose from her seat.

"Then I'll come again next time."

"Take care."

"You are a ruler equal to me. Speak casually."

"......Got it."

"What is your name?"

"My surname is An, my given name is Seon-u."

"Noted. My name, as I mentioned earlier, is Ashley."

"Yeah, Ashley."

"Very well, Seon-u. Until next time."

She said that, then murmured something in the Ancient Language before her body flashed brightly and vanished.

Before disappearing, she said one last thing to me.

'Thank you for what you did for my mother,' she said.

So even dragons had filial devotion toward their parents.

"The storm has passed."

No—it had not passed yet.

I sensed an enormous presence of mana at close range.

The S-Rank trio and I rushed outside, and high in the sky, Ashley was transforming into a dragon.

Her body was not particularly large, but it was an utterly mystical sight.

'She did not teleport far away—she moved into the air to transform into her dragon form.'

She shifted into a silver dragon and flew northward at incredible speed.

"Good heavens......"

"Wow......"

"A dragon......"

The S-Rank trio displayed expressions of sheer amazement at the sight.

I felt the same way.

"What a sight."

"Indeed...... A dragon that can take human form. Could that dragon also be a being from Lady Ria's world?"

When the Sword Saint asked, I shook my head.

"I've heard that dragons are rare even in Ria's world. And according to Fenrir, the dragon that was her mother didn't come from the Continent of Bellinta, which was Ria's world."

Fenrir had crossed over from the same Continent of Bellinta as Ria, but the Silver Dragon had come from somewhere other than the Continent of Bellinta.

"Then there might be other worlds connected to the Rift besides the Continent of Bellinta."

"Could be. I'll have to ask her about it next time she visits."

***

Back at the Rift house, I shared a glass of wine with Ria that evening and told her about the day's events.

Ria then asked,

"Is that dragon...... a female?"

"Yeah, it was a female dragon."

"What did she look like?"

"She had pointed ears, white hair, gray eyes, and very long ribbon-braided hair. Her outfit was unusual too. She wasn't wearing shoes—she was barefoot. At a glance, she had this mystical aura that was clearly different from a human."

"You observed her quite closely."

"Huh? Did I?"

Ria's cheeks puffed up slightly.

Is she getting jealous again?

Ria continued in a prim tone.

"Starting tomorrow, I'm going to the restaurant too."

"I'd love having you there, Ria. But are you jealous?"

"No......!"

"Your face says otherwise. Cute."

"Hmph......"

"I can't hold back. Come here!"

I pulled Ria into my arms.

Ria struggled, trying to escape.

"Stop it."

Her words said stop, but there was no strength in the hands pushing me away.

If she had truly wanted to push me off, she could have done it easily with one hand.

A playful smile filled Ria's face.

I released her and looked her in the eyes.

"I'll only ever look at you, Ria. Only ever love you. How could I let my eyes wander when I have such a beautiful wife?"

"Really......? You'll never take a mistress or a concubine?"

A mistress or concubine......

As if I would ever.

"I swear. You're the only woman in my life, Ria. If I ever break this oath, just cut me down."

"......How could I ever cut down Seon-u? I'll just trust you."

"All right."

"But I still want to help out at the restaurant. We're newlyweds, and I feel like we don't spend enough time together."

"I'd appreciate that."

***

Ria brought Rin along and came to the restaurant, helping out for at least three hours each day.

There were still no customers, but she worked on prepping ingredients in advance and storing them in Acresia.

Then on the sixth day since the restaurant opened, customers finally arrived.

The first to arrive was the Emperor Guild, the guild that had departed earliest three weeks ago.

There were four S-Rank Hunters in the country.

Sword Saint Hwang Myeong-u, Han Se-a who had led the Follow-Up Expedition, and Hunter Association Vice President Choi Cheol-ho.

The remaining one was this man—Blade Saint Kim Gang-hyeon.

He was the leader of the Emperor Guild, ranked first among domestic guilds.

"I never expected to see Master Hwang Myeong-u in a place like this. What a surprise......"

"I never expected to see you here either, Blade Saint."

Sword Saint and Blade Saint—people considered these two rivals.

'They really do not look like they get along.'

Sparks seemed to fly as they stared each other down.

'The Sword Saint originally used a single-edged blade.'

Master Hwang Myeong-u.

The title of Master referred to someone who had achieved 9th dan or above in kendo.

Kendo was a martial art that used single-edged blades.

However, after his Second Awakening, the Sword Saint learned the thrusting skill "Single Point Pierce" and began using a straight sword better suited for thrusting rather than a single-edged blade.

That was how he ultimately earned the title of Sword Saint.

People said that if the Sword Saint had continued using a single-edged blade, Kim Gang-hyeon would never have been called the Blade Saint.

While the two glared at each other in silent confrontation—

Ria stepped outside the restaurant.

"Seon-u, what's going on?"

The moment the Sword Saint saw Ria emerge from the restaurant, he immediately withdrew his presence.

The Blade Saint, Kim Gang-hyeon, did not.