A Dragonslayer's Peerless Regression - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

At the mention of the Elder Dragon, Duke’s face hardened.

Arthur slowly began to speak.

“No matter what, that artifact must never fall into the Emperor’s hands.”

Duke nodded in agreement.

Arthur rose from his seat.

“While I’m away, Duke, I’ll need your eyes and ears to keep watch on the Emperor.”

“You’re leaving me with all the troublesome tasks.”

“It’s not like you have to do the dirty work yourself. Stop whining and pay attention.”

Duke clicked his tongue and shook his head.

Simply being strong might make one the head of the Draker clan, but it wasn’t enough to last long.

The man in front of him had held the position of head of the Draker clan for the longest time in its history.

He was overly calculating, but it was precisely because of this that he had been able to handle so many enemies.

Duke finished his whiskey and stood up.

“I won’t bother seeing you off. Take care.”

And with that, Duke vanished.

Arthur Draker, left alone, took a sip from his whiskey glass and then suddenly looked around.

‘I felt something… Was it my imagination?’

Arthur didn’t believe there could be a presence that could deceive his senses.

* * *

‘An artifact of the Elder Dragon?’

Zeke, who had left the Headmaster’s office after meeting with Arthur Draker, remained near the main building instead of leaving.

Outside, he used ‘Hearing’, the ability of his Soul Perception, to eavesdrop on the conversation between Arthur Draker and Duke.

Wheeeeeen!

Zeke, withdrawing his Hearing, felt a strong wave of dizziness.

He had been able to use Soul Perception after absorbing the Heart of Bahamut, but the side effects hadn’t completely disappeared.

He closed his eyes for a moment and waited for the dizziness to subside, finally regaining his composure.

Soul Perception was a technique that used the power of the soul, not aura, so he was able to eavesdrop on the conversation between the two Black Knights.

As Zeke returned to the Platinum Floor, he replayed the conversation between Arthur and Duke in his mind.

Knowing the future, Zeke knew better than anyone how cold and calculating Arthur Draker was.

He wasn’t a thirteen-year-old kid.

Having gone through all sorts of hardships, Zeke wasn’t naive enough to be fooled by a moment of kindness.

He suspected that the head of the clan had some ulterior motive and had secretly eavesdropped on the conversation with Duke.

Zeke pondered over the words ‘artifact of the Elder Dragon’ and ‘Ice Mountains’ that Arthur had mentioned.

No matter how he looked at it, it seemed to refer to the black dragon statue he had brought back before his death.

The problem was that Zeke had discovered that artifact in the Ice Mountains 19 years from now.

He had no idea that the Emperor of the Rom Empire was already searching for the artifact at this point in time.

Zeke recalled the time when he had found the artifact before his regression.

‘Even if he is the head of the Draker clan, it would be impossible to find where that artifact is hidden.’

Zeke himself had found the artifact through a series of coincidences.

Thinking about the situation back then, he could somewhat understand why the Emperor hadn’t been able to find the artifact for over 19 years.

After a moment of thought, Zeke opened his status window and read the title written on it.

[Blessed by the Elder Dragon]

It was certain that the artifact he had discovered was related to the being called the Elder Dragon.

However, he couldn’t figure out how this system, visible only to him, was related to the immortality that the Rom Emperor desired.

It seemed that the Emperor of the Rom Empire was on a wild goose chase.

‘I guess I’ve gained a clue to figure out the true nature of that artifact.’

As Zeke left the main building, he replayed Arthur Draker’s words in his mind.

The head of the clan had called him trash who couldn’t even awaken his aura.

Zeke clenched his fists.

He no longer felt any fear or tension towards Arthur Draker.

He reaffirmed his resolve to become the strongest, using the Draker clan as a stepping stone to bring the entire continent under his feet.

He aimed to become the absolute ruler, the strongest on the continent, encompassing not only the Central Continent but also the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Continents.

‘I’ll make the head of the Draker clan, the Emperor, and everyone else kneel before me.’

* * *

After the visit of the head of the clan, Arthur Draker, the academy became busy with another matter.

It was none other than the approaching semester evaluation period.

As an educational institution created by the Draker clan, with a foundation of thorough competition, the academy was filled with evaluations, big and small.

Among them, the semester evaluation held the most significant weight in determining advancement.

This was because if one failed to achieve excellent results here, it was impossible to advance to Valhalla.

Graduating from the academy alone earned one good treatment in most kingdoms, but it was nothing compared to those who graduated from Valhalla.

This was because entering Valhalla itself was seen as a guarantee of success.

The cadets of the special class, who had an advantage in advancing to Valhalla, were also busy preparing for the semester evaluation.

Those who received support from their families even hired knights for private tutoring.

This was also the reason why Reina had offered Zeke her clan’s support.

Receiving tutoring from experienced knights and preparing according to the semester evaluation criteria made it easier to manage grades, thus increasing the chances of exceeding Valhalla’s admission threshold.

However, such things weren’t much of a problem for Zeke.

“Damn evaluation exams. I know everything, but it’s annoying to have to go through it again.”

Zeke, who hadn’t awakened his aura, had been relentlessly bullied by the instructors.

The instructors would give Zeke, who had failed, even more difficult additional tests, putting mental pressure on him.

Since he was a direct descendant of the Draker clan, they couldn’t expel him immediately,

so they used that pressure to signal him to withdraw voluntarily.

However, despite being bullied by the students and instructors, Zeke endured and held on, refusing to withdraw.

In the end, though, Headmaster Howard himself stepped in and kicked him out of the academy.

Zeke gritted his teeth as he thought about that time.

“This time, it will never happen again.”

In the private training room, Zeke tirelessly honed his swordsmanship, wielding a practice claymore.

The swordsmanship he was practicing was the Basic Dragon Slayer Technique, consisting of eight forms.

The Basic Dragon Slayer Technique, which he had been steadily practicing since his previous life, was the swordsmanship Zeke had trained in for the longest time.

He performed the Dragon Slayer Technique, raising his mana and overlaying it with Soul Perception.

Whoosh!

The mana imbued with the will of ‘Severing’ coated his sword.

Zeke then performed the first form, first verse of the Dragon Slayer Technique, Sky Cleaving.

Whoosh!

The moment he performed the Dragon Slayer Technique, the mana coated on his sword scattered.

Zeke looked down at his sword.

“It’s not working, as expected.”

He had tried to see if the Dragon Slayer Technique, which should be performed using aura,

was possible with mana, but it was impossible.

The mana energy imbued in the sword scattered before he could even properly execute the Dragon Slayer Technique.

Zeke held his sword and once again imbued it with the will of Severing.

Whoosh!

When he performed a normal horizontal slash instead of the Dragon Slayer Technique, the mana did not scatter.

Zeke lowered his sword and sighed.

Although he had learned Soul Perception from his master, whom he met in the forbidden Forest of the Forgotten, Zeke, who had broken his oath and left the restricted area in the middle of his training, had not learned all the techniques properly.

Because he only knew half-baked Soul Perception, he was limited in performing high-level swordsmanship without the Solar Sword Gram, which converted mana into aura.

The problem was the semester evaluation.

In order for Zeke, who couldn’t use aura, to be evaluated, he needed Gelion’s sword, but even after several months, there was no news from him.

If he took the evaluation in his current state, he would surely fail, just like in his previous life.

However, in order to open Terakan Draker’s security vault, he had to go to Valhalla.

Because it was forbidden to outsiders, the only way to enter was to be admitted.

“It’s one mountain after another.”

Zeke gave up on performing the Dragon Slayer Technique with Soul Perception and devoted himself to swordsmanship training again.

Having grasped the basic principles of the Gale Force, Zeke already possessed the skills of a Purple Knight.

Zeke, who had already reached the level of a Red Knight in his previous life, bore fruit in his efforts to regain his former level as quickly as possible.

After finishing his training and returning to the floor, Decker approached Zeke.

“Young Master, a fellow student has come to see you.”

Zeke, who had no friends at the academy, had no one to call a fellow student.

Puzzled, he went to the reception room and found an unexpected person waiting for him.

“Liam Stone.”

Liam Stone, the future mercenary king, stood up with a stiff, nervous posture.

Then he immediately walked up to Zeke and knelt.

Zeke, seeing Liam like that, said,

“What is this?”

Liam raised his head and said to Zeke,

“Please accept me.”

Zeke was taken aback by the unexpected words.

“Accept you? What do you mean?”

“If you take me in, I will dedicate my loyalty to you.”

“Huh, you mean you want to be my subordinate?”

“I will serve you as my lord.”

It was absurd for a mere thirteen-year-old to talk about loyalty and lordship.

Zeke, looking at Liam, said,

“Do you even know what an oath of loyalty means?”

“I understand your concern. Although distant, I am also of Draker blood. I fully understand the weight of an oath of loyalty.”

Zeke criticized his past self for lecturing Liam Stone like an old man.

He hadn’t expected Liam to come to him to pledge his loyalty.

“Is it because of Leon’s group? If there has been continued unfair violence since then…”

“It’s not because of an idiot like Leon Conrad. If I’m hit, I’ll get hit, and if I’m insulted, I’ll endure it.”

“Then there’s no need for you to do this.”

“I want to go to Valhalla.”

In his past life, Liam didn’t go to Valhalla.

That was because Jakenn Vardec, who had taken him in, didn’t support him.

Based on skill alone, there was no reason for Liam not to go to Valhalla.

He had the ability to break through the barrier of a Red Knight on his own, without anyone else’s help.

“You know my evaluation at the academy. It’s absurd to say you’ll pledge your loyalty to me and go to Valhalla. Do you have something in mind?”

“It’s my gut feeling.”

“Gut feeling? You’re going to pledge your loyalty to me based on such an uncertain feeling?”

“I’ve always had a good gut feeling. When I was with Jakenn Vardec, I wasn’t satisfied, but I felt like I would gain something if I stayed with him.”

“But that feeling was wrong. Are you sure you have a good gut feeling?”

“If it wasn’t for the duel with you, Zeke, Jakenn wouldn’t have abandoned me.”

Jakenn pretended to be magnanimous, but he was the most petty among his cousins.

This was evident from the fact that he immediately abandoned Liam after his defeat to Zeke in the Pankration.

Zeke looked at Liam kneeling in front of him and pondered.

‘Should I accept this guy?’

Zeke had many secrets that he couldn’t reveal to others.

If his secret were to leak before he could properly develop his skills, he could die without a trace.

Having experienced the rough storms of life, it was natural for Zeke to have such thoughts.

Then Liam, looking at Zeke, said,

“If you tell me to be mute, I’ll be mute, if you tell me to be blind, I’ll be blind, and if you tell me to be deaf, I’ll be deaf. Please, just take me in.”

Zeke sensed a desperation in Liam.

He didn’t think the proud mercenary king would cling to him like this based on a mere feeling.

He opened his mouth to speak to Liam.

“Get up.”

Liam flinched and looked at Zeke.

Zeke spoke again.

“I said get up.”

Liam sprang to his feet.

“Follow me.”

Zeke led Liam to the training room.

Then he handed him a sword.

“If you can withstand my attack, I’ll take you in.”

Liam was surprised by those words.

“You’re saying I just have to endure it?”

Liam had awakened his aura and even formed his Ether hall with his outstanding talent.

He had heard that Zeke was receiving individual training from a high-ranking knight, but he didn’t think there would be such a big difference since they were the same age.

Zeke said no more and raised his claymore.

And he used the Draconian skill ‘Dragon’s Majesty’.

Saaaaaaaaaa!

Liam almost dropped his sword from the oppressive pressure that tightened around his body and the murderous intent that pierced his lungs.

He barely managed to hold onto his sword and gritted his teeth to resist the oppressive energy.

Just then, Zeke stepped forward, holding his sword.

Wheeee!

He executed a high-speed movement skill mixed with the essence of the Gale Force.

At the same time, the sword, laden with heavy energy, fell towards the crown of Liam’s head.

Liam forced his stiff muscles to move, raising his sword to block Zeke’s attack.

Clang!

However, the moment he clashed with Zeke’s sword, Liam couldn’t withstand the pressure and ended up dropping his sword.

Simultaneously, the energy that was pressing down on him disappeared.

“Gasp, gasp…”

With his palms completely torn from the momentary clash, Liam was drenched in cold sweat and gasping for breath.

Liam trembled in fear as he looked at Zeke standing in front of him.

Even though Zeke hadn’t used his aura, there was an insurmountable wall between them.

Then Zeke said to Liam,

“You’re pathetic.”

———