A Dragonslayer’s Peerless Regression

Chapter 42

Rumble!

The entire Lair shook under Bahamut’s aura.

He spoke to Shaton Draker.

「Leaving the method to kill the dragon to me? I knew you were an audacious fool, but I didn’t realize you were insane.」

Despite Bahamut’s murderous intent, Shaton stood firm, unwavering, and continued to speak.

「Even Chronos agreed with me. And you, Bahamut, know better than anyone why.」

At that, Bahamut raised his head and roared.

「Chronos has been bewitched by humans and has lost his standard as the Arbiter! I don’t believe in that absurd prophecy he spoke of!」

Bahamut bared his fangs at Shaton Draker.

「Leave my Lair at once. Otherwise, I’ll kill you, as well as every single human in the Kingdom of Chronos.」

「If you do such a thing, Bahamut, even you won’t escape Karma’s restraints.」

「Because of that Kysir fool, this continent has far too many humans. Do you think killing a mere few tens of thousands of your kind would disrupt Karma’s balance? Leaving your kind to multiply like insects is what truly breaks the balance!」

As Bahamut reacted violently, Shaton sighed, as if resigned, and pulled something out of his coat.

It was an old clock.

Shaton held the clock up toward Bahamut.

「Chronos told me himself. The Master of Dusk will never accept my request.」

With those words, Shaton opened the lid of the pocket watch.

Immediately, black mirages began rising from Bahamut’s body.

「You think the power of Chronos can do anything to me!」

He unfolded his massive four wings.

The black mirages coalesced into sharp spears.

It looked as though those spears could fly toward Shaton at any moment.

And then—

Eeeeeeeeng!

The pocket watch began spinning rapidly.

Bahamut, who was about to attack Shaton, froze in place.

As Bahamut suddenly stopped moving, Zeke realized that the pocket watch in Shaton’s hand was exerting some kind of power.

‘A clock imbued with Chronos’ power?’

At that moment—

Rumble!

Bahamut moved again, twisting his body and letting out a deafening roar.

「Kraaaaaaaaah!」

It was a cry as if his very soul was being torn apart.

When Bahamut barely managed to calm himself, he glared at Shaton and spoke.

「You… What in the world have you done to me?」

Closing the pocket watch, Shaton replied.

「I merely made you experience a portion of the prophecy that Chronos spoke of.」

Bahamut glared at Shaton with intensified murderous intent, exuding even darker hostility.

But the black spears, which seemed ready to be unleashed at any moment, vanished without a trace.

He folded his wings and approached Shaton.

「Damn it. The very act of making a contract with humans was a mistake.」

「I think so too. Humans should have risen through their own strength, not by relying on the power of dragons.」

Bahamut exhaled roughly and spoke to Shaton.

「Hand it over. That damned thing you call the Dragonslaying Art or whatever it is.」

Shaton pulled a booklet from his coat.

The booklet floated into the air and opened in front of Bahamut’s eyes.

After reading its contents, Bahamut glared at Shaton and said:

「You’ve created something outrageous.」

「It’s to protect this world.」

「Nonsense. It wasn’t for the world—it was for humans.」

Soon, the book in front of Bahamut turned to ash and scattered.

Bahamut spoke to Shaton.

「I will keep this. If the prophecy Chronos spoke of does not come to pass, this will never see the light of day.」

「Even without the Dragon-Cutting Sword Technique, humans are finding ways to grow stronger to kill each other more effectively. With time, they’ll naturally discover how to use aura on their own.」

「If that happens, I’ll have to personally intervene and kill all humans. This power is too dangerous for them to possess.」

Shaton Draker spoke to Bahamut.

「One day, you too will find a soul-bound contractor. When that time comes, you’ll understand Chronos’ intentions.」

With those words, Shaton Draker left Bahamut’s Lair.

Left alone, Bahamut curled up again and sank into the depths of the abyss.

But for a long time, Shaton Draker’s words lingered in his mind.

He thought to himself that he would never take a human as his contractor.

* * *

“Gasp!”

When Zeke came to his senses, he found himself standing with his sword drawn, having momentarily lost consciousness.

For a brief moment, Zeke vividly experienced a fragment of the past—Bahamut meeting Shaton Draker.

It seemed that the Dragonslaying Art, created by Shaton Draker, had been passed to Bahamut, and that vision had then been conveyed to Bahamut’s contractor, Terakan Draker.

Zeke wondered why Bahamut, who disliked humans, had changed his mind, formed a contract with Terakan Draker, and passed down the Dragonslaying Art.

There were no proper records left, making it impossible to discern the truth.

‘Could the head of the Draker Household know about such hidden secrets of the past?’

With all traces of Terakan Draker erased, it was unlikely that the hidden history between Bahamut and Shaton Draker still remained.

At that moment, Zeke felt something change.

‘Has my Ether Hall expanded?’

He could sense that his Ether Hall had grown significantly larger than it was before he began practicing the Dragon-Cutting Sword Technique.

Wooooong!

The amount of Ether he could handle increased, and his aura conversion became much faster.

Zeke tested the Elemental Sword.

Fwoooosh!

As he activated the Field of Fire, flames erupted fiercely from the blade.

The increase in the amount of Ether he could control had also enhanced the power of the Elemental Sword.

“I’m still far from reaching Master Kysir’s level, but at least with this, I won’t die a pointless death somewhere.”

The southern continent was a place where danger began the moment one set foot on its soil.

Since it was a land where he could not afford to let his guard down for even a moment, it was essential to strengthen himself as much as possible before heading there.

Zeke began swinging his sword again.

* * *

As Zeke alternated between Valhalla and the training grounds, continuing his relentless practice, the long-awaited messages finally arrived.

The first was from Cliff, notifying him that the preparations for Zeke’s first request were complete.

The second was from Kay of the Syndicate, informing him that she had decided to accept Zeke’s proposal.

To handle the matter with the Syndicate first, Zeke disguised himself as Zeke Murray and went to meet Kay.

The meeting was set in a luxurious lounge bar operated by the Syndicate, a place that rigorously guaranteed the anonymity of its clientele.

Upon entering the bar, a guide was waiting for him.

“Mr. Zeke Murray, please follow me.”

It was an area accessible only to VVIPs, not to regular patrons.

Various security spells were in place from the entrance of the section onward.

Inside the lounge, Kay sat in the center, waiting for him.

“Welcome.”

Kay greeted her partner, Zeke, with a pleased expression.

Zeke took a seat beside Kay.

“I didn’t know Atlas had a place like this.”

In his past life, Zeke had visited Atlas only after it had already become a territory of the Empire.

The war had left Atlas in ruins, and the landscape was vastly different from what it was now, stirring complex emotions in him.

As Kay poured a drink into Zeke’s glass, she spoke.

“This is one of the Syndicate’s side ventures. People who conduct business in the shadows are always looking for discreet places to talk.”

Zeke glanced at the drink Kay had poured for him and shook his head.

“I don’t drink. It’d be nice if you could prepare tea next time.”

At his words, Kay laughed, as if she found it unexpected.

“Don’t tell me you don’t drink because you’re still underage?”

“I just don’t drink because I find it uninteresting.”

In his previous life, Zeke had never particularly enjoyed drinking.

Moreover, now, thanks to the Healing Factor, no matter how much he drank, he couldn’t get drunk.

Spending money on expensive alcohol that had no effect seemed pointless. Instead, he preferred drinking tea, which he genuinely enjoyed.

At his words, Kay laughed and clapped her hands. A servant entered the room, and Kay ordered tea for Zeke.

Soon, a luxurious tea was served. As Zeke sipped it, a satisfied expression appeared on his face.

“The service here is pretty good.”

“If you need anything else, let me know. The desserts and food here are great too.”

“That won’t be necessary. Still, I thought it would take you longer to decide, but you made up your mind faster than I expected.”

Hearing this, Kay shifted her posture and wore a serious expression.

“I had a lot to think about, but after seeing the items from your Northern Bank, I made up my mind. For some reason, I strongly felt that if it’s you, you’d actually pull it off.”

Kay downed the strong liquor in front of her in one gulp.

“Phew, this is the biggest gamble of my life.”

Zeke filled her glass and lightly clinked his teacup against her glass.

“I’ll make sure you don’t regret that bet.”

Zeke pulled out a set of documents he had prepared and handed them to Kay.

“What’s this?”

“Have you heard of the Reinhardt Trading Company?”

“Reinhardt? Isn’t that the group growing aggressively in Alencia? They have branches in both the North and the South, right?”

“I’ve created a clean cover through them. When I head south, I plan to operate from there as my base.”

Kay skimmed through the documents Zeke had brought.

“Deputy Manager of the Reinhardt Trading Company’s Southern Continent branch?”

“It’s a cover identity. I’ll use the Reinhardt route to travel to the South. Once there, let’s make contact at that location.”

Both Zeke and Kay needed to avoid the gaze of their respective pursuers—Zeke from the Draker Household and Kay from the Syndicate.

A safe house arranged by Reinhardt, which had no connections to either of them, would allow them to move unnoticed.

Kay nodded and tucked the documents into her bag.

“Alright. Let’s assume you meet Don Juan as planned. What comes next?”

At her question, Zeke put down his teacup and spoke.

“Do you know anything about the Pavela Cartel?”

Kay shook her head at Zeke’s question.

“No, not much is known about them. All I’ve heard is that they’re rough, nasty bastards.”

Zeke nodded at her response.

“That makes sense. Those guys used to be pirates.”

“What did you just say?”

Zeke’s words startled Kay.

“Pirates? Are you saying those bastards settled in the South and are running the Soma business? That’s ridiculous. Pirates would never be capable of something like that.”

“That’s exactly why no one has caught on to the Pavela Cartel’s true identity. Otherwise, how could such a massive organization operate undetected in the relatively small Southern Continent?”

Kay thought about Zeke’s words, and they started to make sense.

Realizing the implications, her expression twisted in frustration.

“Don’t tell me the Pavela Cartel has been pressuring us all this time just to seize control of our transport routes?”

“Bingo. The Southern Sea pirates are exactly the kind of scumbags who’d pull something like that.”

“Sigh.”

Now aware of the Pavela Cartel’s true nature, Kay let out a heavy sigh.

The Syndicate’s operational leaders were currently embroiled in heated debates over whether to continue dealings with the Mechain Cartel or switch to the Pavela Cartel.

If they had unknowingly switched to Pavela, their transport routes would’ve been seized by pirates, while also facing retaliation from the Mechain Cartel.

In fact, in the timeline before Zeke’s regression, the Mechain Cartel discovered Pavela’s true identity and sent hitmen and assassins to wage war against them.

Although the Syndicate avoided being absorbed by the Pavela Cartel in that timeline, they ended up as subordinates of the Mechain Cartel as a consequence.

Zeke turned to Kay and spoke.

“What do you think would happen if we told Don Juan about this? That the Pavela Cartel is a group of pirates and that Syndicate leaders are considering dealing with them?”

Kay was visibly shocked.

“You’re asking me to become a whistleblower?”

“It’s not whistleblowing if you wipe out all the current leaders and make yourself the boss.”

Zeke spoke such terrifying words with absolute nonchalance.

Only now did Kay fully grasp the dangerous waters she had waded into.

She hesitated for a moment before grabbing a bottle of liquor and drinking directly from it.

“Phew. Fine, let’s do it.”

“Good. Then there’s something we need to take care of first.”

“Take care of first?”

Zeke looked at Kay and said.

“The Soma you brought in from Mechain. Tell me where the warehouse storing it is.”