Vol. 6 Ch. 86.1

"This sentence was only meant for Albert to hear. The referees of the Divine Stallion Tribe in the audience couldn’t pick up on it.

Once it was confirmed that Albert wouldn’t be able to fight again in the short term, the referee announced Leon as the winner of the round.

Of course, as previously stated, this hand-to-hand combat trial wasn’t meant to eliminate any participants.

It was simply a preliminary evaluation that would influence the later trials.

Leon turned and stepped off the arena stage.

Just as he was about to leave, he heard Albert calling out from behind.

'Hey, human brat.'

Leon paused and glanced back. 'Something else?'

'If this big black brute isn’t convinced and wants to fight Leon another three hundred rounds, he’s welcome to give it a shot.'

Albert clutched his sore abdomen, staggering a few steps forward.

Standing beside Leon, he asked,

'You just said… you’ve killed a lot of Dragon Kings.'

Leon nodded silently.

'Then… did you kill Constantine?'

At those words, Leon’s steps froze.

He hesitated for a moment, considering how to answer that somewhat awkward question.

After a brief pause, he replied,

'Yeah. Twice.'

'…'

Now it was Albert’s turn to be utterly confused.

'What do you mean… you killed him twice? Don’t think you can make a fool out of me just because you beat me in a fight.'

Leon shrugged helplessly.

He had already tried to make his answer as simple and less abstract as possible.

But it still wasn’t exactly something easy to explain.

'I’m not messing with you. Constantine and I are actually friends now. But we… had some past grudges to settle.'

Leon sighed and explained patiently,

'So if I start telling the full story, it’ll take forever—and with your personality, I doubt you have the patience to sit through it.'

'Uh…'

'Looks like I was right.'

Leon smirked. 'Alright, then let me ask you something instead.'

'Why did you come all the way here just to ask me if I killed Constantine?'

'This…'

The massive black-skinned warrior hesitated for a moment, suddenly looking a bit uneasy.

He scratched his head before answering in a low voice,

'A hundred years ago, when Constantine defeated me, he told me I was a decent opponent. He said that if we ever had the chance, he’d like to fight me again when I was stronger.'

'Since then, I’ve been training non-stop, hoping that one day I could defeat that bastard.'

'He’s an arrogant bastard, sure—but I can’t say I hate him for it.'

'But I don’t know where to find him in the Dragon Race, and I don’t have any way to send him a message. So for the past century, I haven’t been able to reach him at all. I thought maybe I’d see him in this trial… but I didn’t expect the Divine Stallion Tribe to outright ban dragons from participating. Looks like I’ll never get my rematch with that dragon again.'

A deep sigh followed.

One filled with disappointment and helplessness.

Leon silently watched the towering black-skinned warrior.

To be honest, he wanted to tell Albert the truth—

That no matter how strong Constantine had been a hundred years ago…

The Red Flame Dragon King of today was already far beyond his reach.

But after a brief moment of hesitation, Leon decided not to say anything that harsh.

He could tell that Albert was a battle maniac at heart—

Only a guy like him would describe Constantine as 'arrogant but not annoying.'

Albert had been looking forward to a rematch with Constantine for the sake of proving his own strength.

But if he were to find out that Constantine’s power had skyrocketed, leaving him completely out of reach, it would only send Albert into a deep spiral of self-doubt.

Leon had no grudge against this big brute.

There was no reason to crush his confidence.

Pressing his lips together, Leon simply replied,

'Getting stronger isn’t about fighting a specific person. It’s about being able to survive in this dangerous world and protecting the people you care about.'

He paused for a moment before adding,

'Wasn’t that the reason you first came to take part in the Divine Stallion Trials?'

At Leon’s words, a flicker of realization passed through Albert’s gaze.

After a moment, he slowly lowered his head.

'Yeah…'

'Mm.'

Leon didn’t try to preach any further.

He wasn’t the lecturing type—

As long as Albert understood what he meant, that was enough.

Leon turned away and continued walking toward the exit.

'But the people I wanted to protect…'

Albert’s voice echoed behind him.

'They’re already gone.'

Leon’s footsteps halted.

The tone in Albert’s voice was heavier than before, it carried a profound sadness and resignation.

Yet when Leon turned back, wanting to ask what had happened, the towering black-skinned warrior was already gone.

…

'That was amazing, Leon! You passed the first trial so easily!'

At the resting area, Veilai from the Merchant’s Guild cheered excitedly upon hearing of Leon’s victory.

Leon scratched his head with a wry smile.

'Senior, honestly, by the rules of this trial, anyone can pass the first stage.'

Cecilia blinked her beautiful eyes rapidly.

She raised a delicate hand, pointing at herself with an innocent look.

'Then why didn’t I pass?'

'Uh…'

'Why? Why?? Didn’t you just say anyone can pass?'

'…'

Seeing his devastated mother-in-law, General Leon could only silently pray in his heart—

"Moon, when you grow up, please don’t be like this. Moon, please—don’t be like this!"

'Actually, the Tower Master just arrived here.'

Veilai quickly changed the subject."

As he spoke, Vida reached into his pocket and pulled out a crystal.

Leon looked at the crystal in Vida’s hand and raised an eyebrow. "The Tower Master sent this?"

After a brief pause, Leon added, "Wait, the Tower Master also knows that we’re looking for the Fire Spirit Crystal Core?"

Vida nodded and explained,

"The Twilight Tower of Sky City has always been monitoring our progress over the past hundred years, as it originates from Sanctis Academy of the Holy Tower."

"And in this operation, our two daughters not only have to protect the Chronoai Scroll, but also fulfill their duty as Dragon Kings, guarding their people and lands. That’s why they couldn’t come with us."

"This also means that if we encounter a powerful enemy, we might not be able to get reinforcements in time, and we could end up losing the Wind Spirit Crystal Core again."

"When Tiamat heard about this, he sent this Teleportation Crystal."

"He specializes in spatial magic formations. Once the crystal is activated, Isha or the little girl can instantly teleport across vast distances to assist us, skipping travel time entirely."

After hearing his father-in-law’s explanation, Leon pondered for a moment before asking,

"If it’s this useful, why didn’t he give it to you earlier? If the Tower Master had provided this Teleportation Crystal sooner, the Wind Spirit Crystal Core might not have been stolen by Kaiser."

"In Tiamat’s letter, he mentioned that this type of Teleportation Crystal is something he only recently succeeded in developing."

"Unlike regular magic, spatial magic doesn’t have the luxury of low-cost testing."

Vida continued, "With most magic, you can immediately see whether it works in combat. But if something goes wrong during spatial magic testing, the losses and consequences are immeasurable."

"Tiamat must have gone through countless failures and adjustments before finally stabilizing the Teleportation Crystal’s function enough to entrust it to us."

Leon nodded in understanding. "I see…"

Vida stored the Teleportation Crystal away carefully. "There’s only one, meaning we only have one chance to summon reinforcements. We must use it wisely."

"Understood, senior."

…

…

A few hours later, Senel arrived at the resting area to call for Leon.

"The second trial stage is about to begin. Please follow me."

Leon followed behind the horse-tailed girl.

"What’s the second trial about?"

"Heart’s Inquiry."

Leon blinked. "Heart’s Inquiry? …What does that mean?"

Senel stopped in front of a door, turning to explain,

"The Fire Spirit Divine Stallion only bestows its power upon those who truly need it and ensures that power won’t be misused by those with impure intentions."

"The Heart’s Inquiry helps the Divine Stallion Tribe determine whether a trial participant is qualified to continue the trial."

"So, from this stage onward, some participants will be eliminated."

"Leon, we look forward to seeing the results of your Heart’s Inquiry."

With that, Senel gently pulled open the door.

Leon peered inside—

The room was simple yet elegant, filled with a faint scent of redwood.

Both visually and olfactorily, it gave off an atmosphere of tranquility and introspection.

In the center of the room, five or six people were already seated, waiting.

One of them was a towering, muscular, dark-skinned figure—

"Albert…"

The black-skinned warrior spotted Leon immediately.

His normally serious face managed to pull off a small smile as he raised a hand in a brief wave.

A casual greeting.

Leon nodded back in response.

"Alright, our final participant for this session of Heart’s Inquiry has arrived. Please take a seat, and we’ll begin shortly."

The Divine Stallion Tribe member seated at the far end of the room spoke.

Leon walked over.

By coincidence, the only available seat was right next to Albert.

As they sat down, the two exchanged polite nods.

At the same time, Leon took note of the trial participant on his other side.

A woman—her long black hair tied up into a high ponytail.

The tips of her ponytail were dyed a deep violet.

Due ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) to his angle, Leon could only see her side profile.

But even just her side profile was enough to tell—this was a woman of stunning beauty.

Her elegant, sculpted features looked as though they had been carefully chiseled by a master artisan, bathed in soft, warm light.

She sat with perfect posture, wearing a black vest over a tight-fitting bandeau top, leaving her slender waist exposed.

She wore simple, fitted trousers with low-heeled boots, and both of her hands were wrapped in fingerless bandages.

From the sharp muscle definition on her arms, Leon guessed that she was likely a skilled hand-to-hand fighter.

"Alright, now that everyone is here, let me briefly explain the rules of Heart’s Inquiry."

"No need to be nervous—just think of it like casual conversation."

"You can talk about your origins, your past, or anything else you wish to share."

"There are no time limits or content restrictions."

"We will evaluate each participant’s inner desires based on what they say and determine if they are qualified to continue the trial."

"The rules are simple. Now then… Let’s start with our cool-looking young lady over here."

The Divine Stallion Tribe member gestured toward the woman seated next to Leon.

Despite being called out first, she showed no hesitation at all.

She spoke calmly,

"My name is Safina. I am from… the Human Race."