Chapter 787
Episode 194: An Unexpected Encounter (Part 1)
The messenger who had shown Jet the Fire Seal and claimed to be Keliak’s envoy introduced himself as “Pai”—and he was a dragon.
Barely over a hundred years old, Pai was practically an infant by dragon standards. In his human form, he looked even younger than Latri.
He was also in a pitiful state. His hood, which covered his entire body, was nothing but tattered rags, and his face was smudged with soot.
The group watched as Pai devoured the food voraciously.
He looked every bit like a starving beggar, but his disheveled appearance wasn’t just a sign of hardship.
Jin and his companions could detect the acrid scent of burnt flesh and blood on him—a strong, unmistakable smell of the battlefield that even the fresh, warm soup and Latri’s fragrant cookies couldn’t mask.
It was strange.
Dragons Pai’s age typically had very little combat ability. Being essentially newborns in human terms, they couldn’t survive without protection from older dragons.
That’s why Quikantel and Latri felt uneasy just looking at Pai. Though he was technically an enemy, he was still a young dragon who should have been under protection—and yet he was carrying out a dangerous mission.
“Huff… Well, that was delicious! I feel like I can finally breathe again…”
Pai said as he finished the last plate clean.
“If you need more, just say so. I’ll bring you more food.”
Jin spoke to Pai in a tone that was firm but not overbearing, mindful of Quikantel and Latri’s presence.
“No, this is plenty. I didn’t expect such hospitality—thank you very much.”
Pai lowered himself with a humility that almost seemed designed to soften the hearts of the Tikan members. It was as if the weak-willed had sent a kind, young dragon on purpose.
“Now then, let’s get to why you came to us.”
Yuria stepped forward.
“From now on, I will use the power of my eyes to verify the truth of everything you say. I hope you don’t find that unpleasant.”
“Of course, of course. First, I came to negotiate on behalf of Lord Shinu and Sir Keliak.”
The unexpected name came out right away.
“…Shinu?”
“Yes, Lord Jin. Lord Shinu wishes for you to assist Sir Keliak.”
“Assist? Before I hear what kind of help is needed, I need to understand the situation. Why was Keliak attacked by Veradin at the Tower of Stories?”
“Treason. Sir Keliak has been falsely accused of coveting the power of the Evil God and purged. Veradin Ziphl committed treason to swallow the family.”
Between Pai and Yuria’s gazes, a blue thread of truth appeared.
“Why did Veradin commit treason?”
“Lord Shinu and Sir Keliak suspect it’s a side effect of a mind control experiment.”
“I want to hear more details. Why did Keliak conduct mind control experiments on Veradin, and what was he trying to achieve?”
Pai didn’t seem surprised by the question.
“Sir Keliak sought to become the new Fire God through Veradin Ziphl.”
“…What?”
“For some reason, Lord Shinu is slowly fading away. So he tasked Sir Keliak with becoming the second Fire God, and all the experiments on Veradin were to realize that.”
The blue thread of truth continued to form.
The shocking revelation left a brief silence.
“This must be hard to accept, but it’s all true. The reason others besides Sir Keliak could use Lord Shinu’s power was because fragments of Shinu’s fading power were given to them—people like Veradin Ziphl and Midor Elner.”
“How can Keliak become the Fire God through Veradin?”
“Sorry, I don’t know the exact method. But I do know it’s possible if Veradin is used as a vessel for the Demon God Stone.”
The Demon God Stone vessel.
The moment Jin heard that, he recalled that Veradin had contracted with two gods—the Water God Itelmion and the Earth God Rikta.
It’s a well-established fact in magical studies that a single human cannot contract with two gods simultaneously.
Jin had wondered about this when Veradin made those contracts near the end of his preliminary training but never pressed him on it.
—By the way, you’re not going to ask?
—Ask what?
—How I managed to contract with two gods.
—Your potential must be exceptional. And is this really the time to ask?
The situation was urgent then, and Jin assumed Veradin himself didn’t know the reason. If he did, he would have said so.
“The Demon God Stone contains the power of all gods… So Keliak has been experimenting to make Veradin the core material of the Demon God Stone!”
If Veradin had acquired the properties of the Demon God Stone, it would explain how he could contract with both Itelmion and Rikta.
“…Shinu, Keliak, and Ziphl. No matter how I look at it, they’re all madmen. And you, a young dragon, speak of such horrific things so calmly. Pai, you’re telling me that humans experimented on humans, that a father used his own child as a test subject. And you feel nothing?”
Quikantel said, outraged. She found it painful to see a young dragon speak so coldly about such terrible matters.
“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to feel… Is that the problem?”
“This is maddening.”
“Anyway, Pai, if I piece together what you’ve said, it goes like this: Shinu and Keliak wanted to create a new Fire God through Veradin, but at some point, Veradin stopped obeying and instead purged Keliak.”
“That’s right.”
“You say Shinu and Keliak think Veradin’s betrayal is a side effect of the experiments or a personal vendetta. But you left out Sanna’s story.”
“Oh, you mean the Sun Priestess.”
“Was it Shinu who saved Keliak when he was about to die at the Tower of Stories?”
According to the records Sanna had manipulated, it was Lokia Ganesto who saved Keliak.
Pai nodded.
“Yes, Lord Shinu saved him.”
Jin didn’t tell Pai that Sanna had tampered with the records. There was still a chance Sanna was cooperating with Shinu and Keliak.
“When did she start working with Ziphl? She seems to be cooperating with Veradin now. Did Shinu and Keliak get betrayed? You said at first that Sanna claimed Keliak sought the Evil God’s power.”
“That’s exactly what happened. I heard the Sun Priestess began cooperating with the family after the Evil God War ended. She approached the family, saying she could heal Sir Keliak.”
“So Shinu and Keliak accepted her words without suspicion?”
“I don’t know the full story. But given the circumstances, they probably had no choice. Anyway, the Priestess stood by when Veradin attacked Sir Keliak. Perhaps Veradin’s betrayal was even instigated by her.”
Since Pai wasn’t speaking directly with Shinu or Keliak, the information he could provide was limited.
And even with the power of truth verifying Pai’s words, Jin couldn’t fully trust everything. Yuria’s ability only confirmed whether Pai was lying.
“Pai is definitely telling what he knows. But some of the information Shinu and Keliak gave him is probably false.”
The claim that Veradin framed Keliak and that Shinu was fading were likely true.
Otherwise, Pai wouldn’t have come to Tikan for negotiations now. If it were just a ruse to lower the Vamel Alliance’s guard, pushing Keliak to rampage and purging him would be excessive.
Jin also sensed that Shinu and Keliak were in a tight spot.
“Now, tell me what Shinu and Keliak want from me.”
“Yes, Lord Jin. They want you to heal Sir Keliak.”
“And the price?”
“They said they would reveal many secrets about Ziphl that you would be interested in. Also, they promised to remove the pact made between Ziphl and Runkandel a thousand years ago.”
Jin chuckled.
“You’re throwing that out there casually. You don’t really expect me to accept that offer, do you? Besides, his chaos is beyond what my purifier can handle.”
“Lord Shinu said that might be possible if the purifier is upgraded someday.”
“Even so, I have no reason to heal Keliak. It seems things are bad enough for you to come all the way to Tikan with this proposal, which works in my favor. If I leave him alone, Keliak will be finished.”
“But breaking the pact and learning Ziphl’s secrets would surely benefit you as well…”
“I’m already handling the pact myself, and I have no interest in Ziphl’s secrets. I might be interested in information about Sanna, the Sun God’s Church, or Lokia Ganesto, though.”
Pai hesitated, unable to say more.
“To be clear, I have no intention of helping Keliak no matter what you offer. I’m sure Shinu and Keliak expected that answer. Where is he now?”
“In the Land of Fire, Lord Shinu’s domain.”
“Then bring either Shinu or Keliak here personally, or arrange for us to visit them. We’ll talk again then. And if you’re just sent to test me, tell them I won’t even listen next time. You may leave now.”
“W-wait! Lord Jin! Ughhh!”
In a sudden flash, a fierce spark ignited in Pai’s eyes as she urgently called out to Jin.
The others immediately felt an overwhelming energy ripple through the room—not just the presence of a powerful being, but something transcendent, otherworldly.
Startled, the companions instinctively took a step back, while Jin grinned and looked up at Pai, who now hovered in midair.
“As I thought. You’ve been listening all along, Shinu. If you had a request, you should have come in person from the start.”
The fire god Shinu had manifested through Pai.