Chapter 991

Upon facing the castle from the foot of the hill, there stood a blond, gold-scaled dragonkin. Even at this distance, we could recognize the perfect proportions of his face.

The Abyss Eater’s aura prevented us from detecting the man’s mana, but we could easily tell he was extraordinary from the way he held himself.

「Is that Trismegistus?」

「Yeah, that’s him. He may appear to be a handsome gentleman at first glance, but don’t be fooled by his looks.」

「Nn.」

Frederick gave us some words of advice, though unnecessary. We could sense the man’s prowess even this far away. His skills were nothing to scoff at.

The adventurers who stepped foot on the hill at Izario’s urging all reacted in the same way. First they were horrified by the Abyss Eater’s aura, before eventually following Fran and the others’ gazes to Trismegistus.

It seems this was also their first time seeing Trismegistus in person, so all of them were just as surprised as us.

The golden dragonkin stood completely still. He simply kept staring, as if ordering us to climb the steps faster.

「Izario, what should we do?」

「This castle is his. We can’t ignore him.」

「But we still don’t know where he stands. Stay sharp.」

Frederick glared at the golden dragonkin, his eyes reflecting his suspicion of the connection between Trismegistus and the Dragon King.

The golden eyes of Trismegistus contained no hostility, but they did not seem welcoming either.

「……Let’s go.」

「Nn.」

Izario began climbing the stairs after all the adventurers had settled down, though everyone was still nervous.

There must be a lot of emotions in the air after seeing the mythical sinner in person.

Despite our caution, there were no traps in sight. We reached the top of the stairs without issue.

「Well met, Crimson Blade. Welcome to my castle.」

「Thanks for having us.」

「Pay no mind. To those aside from Crimson Blade and the brother of the priestess, I believe this is our first encounter. I am Trismegistus, the grand sinner.」

Seems a bit haughty. Well, he is a former king after all. Still, I couldn’t sense any real remorse from him despite the whole divine punishment thing.

Blond hair and golden eyes. Skin perfectly smooth without a single flaw. The scales on his arms and temple, as well as his horns, shone like polished gold.

Though appearing handsome at first glance, he was also tall and had a surprising amount of muscle mass. If I had to describe the man in a single word, maybe “picturesque” would be best.

And although we’ve been told he had the mind of an absolute monster, he certainly didn’t look the part.

What I could understand though, was his immense strength.

His martial prowess, as well as mana capacity, far exceeded all the dragonkin I’ve ever met. He could undoubtedly handle both melee and ranged combat. Depending on his skill in magic, he might easily exceed Rank A adventurers.

Come to think of it, the dragonkin tended to value strength as much as the beastmen. If he managed to become the king of his race, he must also be one of their strongest warriors.

And yet, he was said to be one of the most talented alchemists in the world. I guess he’s what one might call a true genius.

Meanwhile, Fran seemed to have noticed something from Trismegistus’ words.

「Brother of the priestess? Who’s that?」

「Hmm.」

「……!」

Trismegistus’ golden eyes turned to Fran. There was no sign of skill or magic. Yet, I felt a strange feeling, as if he saw right through me.

Fran seemed to sense this too, and stiffened her body. She barely managed to hold herself back from entering a battle stance, since Trismegistus was not yet confirmed to be an enemy. Still, she was ready to reach for me at any moment.

「This is my castle, although it does not truly belong to me. I do not intend to refuse any visitor, but hiding yourself is bit tactless, would you not agree?」

「Woof?」

What did he do? Right as Trismegistus looked down at Fran’s shadow, Urushi popped out of the shadow with a puzzled howl.

Trismegistus had clearly pulled Urushi out from the shadows, but I had no idea how he did it.

I couldn’t even tell whether it was magic or a skill. It seems this was no attempt at an attack, just Trismegistus wanting to see the hidden Urushi.

「A wolf, is it?」

He nodded in satisfaction, before quickly turning away.

『Urushi, are you okay? Could you tell what he did?』

（W-Woof?）

I guess even Urushi himself didn’t understand. It’s too much of a mystery to even form a hypothesis.

He’s already so strong, yet he had even more mysterious powers and immortality to top it all off. The danger level of Trismegistus in my mind had been immediately raised to Rank S.

I doubt he sensed our change in behavior, but his gaze turned back to Fran again.

「Ah yes, you were asking a question. The brother of the priestess is that evil dragon――No, that half-evil dragonkin. Though the evil energy he radiates is great, I have not forgotten his face. He is brother to Tilanaria, priestess of the Divine Dragon of Fire. Am I wrong?」

「That is true, but…… You remember me?」

Frederick was absolutely stunned. Trismegistus remembering him must have been completely unexpected.

Trismegistus was a legendary figure, even if in a bad way. Frederick could not help his surprise when recognized by a man of this caliber.

But if Frederick is the brother of Divine Dragon of Fire’s priestess, doesn’t that mean he’s the brother of Velmeria’s mom?

「Frederick, you and Velmeria are related?」

「In a manner of speaking. However, my name has been erased from the records ever since I became a half-evil dragonkin. That’s how I came to be Velmeria’s caretaker.」

Frederick would normally be able to attain a decent amount of status as the younger brother of a priestess. That said, he could no longer remain on the continent after turning into a half-evil dragonkin. He was sent to the Kingdom of Kranzel instead, to watch over Velmeria.

I’ve always thought the relationship between the two was a bit strange. It turns out they’re uncle and niece, in addition to mentor and student. I guess it’s only natural they didn’t behave as a normal lady and her escort.

「……Velmeria and the priestess should be here.」

「Hmm? Now that you mention it, Georg brought Tilanaria and another girl along with him. If that is who are you referring to, they are indeed here.」