Deep within the royal palace of the Dragon Kingdom.
Inside a vast chamber created through magic.
In his dragonoid form, the Brightness Dragon Lord stood with a deep frown.
A long sword made entirely of crystal floated in midair.
The blade was slender and engraved with intricate runes, giving it a refined and pleasing appearance.
The Brightness Dragon Lord extended a finger and tapped the blade.
A crisp sound echoed through the chamber.
At the same time, waves of Wild Magic spread outward.
"Still not working…"
After carefully sensing it for a moment, the Brightness Dragon Lord let out a sigh.
He had possessed this guild weapon for quite some time now.
As one of the rare scholar-type True Dragon Lords among dragonkind, he had originally believed that with his knowledge he might be able to uncover the secrets hidden within the weapon.
But after numerous attempts, he realized that he had overestimated himself.
At the same time, he had underestimated the complexity of a guild weapon.
"If only I could dismantle it and study it more deeply…"
The thought suddenly crossed his mind.
Because of the unique nature of guild weapons, he could currently only examine the surface.
But if he could bypass the exterior and directly observe the internal structure, he might be able to make a breakthrough.
However, the Brightness Dragon Lord quickly shook his head.
He immediately abandoned that dangerous idea.
According to the information he had obtained from Nazarick, a guild weapon could only exist once per guild.
Its highest possible grade was that of a divine-class item.
It served as the symbol of the guild.
If it were destroyed, the guild itself would collapse.
If his research accidentally caused the Eight Greed Kings' guild to collapse, the Brightness Dragon Lord could easily imagine how miserable his fate would be once his king learned of it.
After all, Nazarick already regarded the guild of the Eight Greed Kings as its private property.
"No wonder that guy Platinum held a guild weapon for nearly two hundred years and still failed to discover anything."
The Brightness Dragon Lord sighed helplessly.
He now somewhat understood the reasoning of the Platinum Dragon Lord.
Rather than risk an accident through reckless research, it was safer to simply safeguard the weapon and use it as leverage against the NPCs of the Eight Greed Kings' guild.
"Well, I'll take it slowly."
After thinking it over again and realizing he still had no solution, the Brightness Dragon Lord chose the safest method.
He would simply wear it down with time.
With his intelligence, he refused to believe he could not eventually understand a single weapon.
Of course, this also meant he would have to continue hiding the existence of the guild weapon.
If someone discovered it during that time, things would become troublesome.
"If I'm careful… it should be fine."
"One year… no… at most half a year."
"No matter the result, I must hand the guild weapon over by then."
The Brightness Dragon Lord paced back and forth across the marble floor.
If he lost this opportunity, he would likely never have another chance to study a guild weapon again.
Half a year was enough.
After hesitating for a moment, the Brightness Dragon Lord finally made his decision.
He absorbed the guild weapon into his body and wrapped it with Wild Magic.
This both protected it and prevented others from sensing its presence.
After that, he took out a book and sat down on a sofa, beginning to read.
The book had come from the library of Nazarick.
The Brightness Dragon Lord had specifically borrowed it.
Whether due to system limitations or incompatible magical frameworks, he himself could not learn tier magic.
However, that did not stop him from studying it.
After all, magic shared many underlying principles.
As a scholar-type True Dragon Lord, he might not rank particularly high among True Dragon Lords in terms of combat ability.
But when it came to research and development, the Brightness Dragon Lord had considerable confidence.
By studying tier magic, he hoped to create similar forms of Wild Magic.
That was his goal.
However, just as he became immersed in the knowledge within the book, a sudden spatial disturbance interrupted his thoughts.
"I told you before, didn't I? Don't disturb me unless there's something important."
The Brightness Dragon Lord continued reading his book without even raising his head.
From the aura alone, he already knew who had arrived.
The Dragon Princess.
Among all his descendants, she was the only one who had inherited Wild Magic.
Even so, the Brightness Dragon Lord still felt a trace of irritation.
"Um... Grandfather..."
The Dragon Princess spoke, her tone somewhat strange.
It sounded like she wanted to say something, yet did not dare to.
The Brightness Dragon Lord immediately noticed something was wrong.
Something isn't right!
Just as he was about to raise his head, another voice sounded.
"I asked the Dragon Princess to lead the way. Though it seems my arrival has interrupted your studies."
"My apologies. You wouldn't mind, would you... Brightness?"
A familiar voice echoed through the chamber.
The Brightness Dragon Lord trembled slightly, and his heartbeat quickened.
Under normal circumstances, he would not react so strongly.
As a True Dragon Lord who had lived for centuries, he had long mastered control over his emotions.
But today was different.
After all, he had just decided to conceal the guild weapon. Not long after, the very person it belonged to appeared before him. It was only natural that he felt uneasy.
"Brightness, your emotions seem a little off."
Naohara said slowly as he looked at the Brightness Dragon Lord.
His perception was already extremely sharp.
And when facing a dragon, that sensitivity became even stronger.
The Brightness Dragon Lord's emotional fluctuations could not escape his notice.
As he spoke, Naohara also glanced at the Dragon Princess beside him.
Her emotional fluctuations were also very strong.
At first he thought she was simply nervous, so he had not paid much attention.
But now it seemed things were not that simple.
The Brightness Dragon Lord and the Dragon Princess.
Both of them were hiding something, and they were afraid he might find out.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
The Brightness Dragon Lord was already drenched in sweat.
What should he do?
He never expected that a moment of nervousness on his part would lead to such a serious situation.
"My King... actually... there is something I must report to you!"
Feeling the atmosphere grow heavier, the Brightness Dragon Lord's mind began racing as he desperately searched for a solution.
He could not mention the guild weapon.
If he did, his situation would only become more dangerous.
Secretly keeping a guild weapon was something that easily invited suspicion.
If he were asked why he had not handed it over immediately, he would have no way to defend himself.
After all, prejudice in a person's heart could be as immovable as a mountain.
Just as the Brightness Dragon Lord struggled to think of an explanation, inspiration suddenly struck.
He quickly adopted a posture of apology.
"Oh? Let's hear it."
Naohara said calmly.
He did not doubt the Brightness Dragon Lord's loyalty.
Not long ago, the Brightness Dragon Lord had obtained the unique Wild Magic of the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord, [Heaven's Fall], and handed it over to Nazarick.
And considering everything that had happened recently, the Brightness Dragon Lord would have to be foolish to even consider betrayal.
But not betraying him did not mean he had no personal thoughts.
So Naohara wanted to hear what explanation he would give.
"Some time ago, I captured several humans within the Dragon Kingdom. However, these humans appear to have some connection to you, my King."
The Brightness Dragon Lord slowly presented his excuse.
At the same time, he waved his hand.
A vortex appeared in the air.
As the space twisted, several crystal statues fell out.
When Naohara saw those statues, his expression froze for a moment before quickly returning to normal.
"I never expected we would meet again like this. Fate truly has a strange sense of humor."
Looking at the crystal statue before him, whose face still carried a smile, Naohara lightly tapped it with his finger.
His tone carried a hint of emotion.
The adventurer team [Blue Roses].
When the Kingdom was conquered, they escaped disaster thanks to Renner's secret interference.
Originally, it was assumed they had simply hidden themselves under new identities.
No one expected them to end up in the hands of the Brightness Dragon Lord.
"I heard that during your travels you once worked as an adventurer for a time and had good relations with several humans, so..."
The Brightness Dragon Lord continued with his head lowered.
"If that is the reason, then you need not worry about it."
Naohara waved his hand dismissively.
Although the explanation sounded somewhat forced, considering the personality he had displayed before, it was not unreasonable.
Despite possessing overwhelming power, he had still chosen to maintain friendly relations with beings as insignificant as ants.
From the Brightness Dragon Lord's perspective, that was indeed unusual.
Moreover, through magic, Naohara could sense that the Brightness Dragon Lord was not lying.
"Whether they live or die has nothing to do with me. Everyone must bear the consequences of their own choices."
Naohara did not care why Blue Roses had fallen into the Brightness Dragon Lord's hands.
After all, Gagaran had once attacked Entoma.
If not for Naohara's presence back then, Momonga and Herohero would have killed Blue Roses on the spot.
(PS: In reality, Gagaran only swung her hammer once and did not even cause any damage.)
"I understand."
The Brightness Dragon Lord immediately pretended to relax.
Although it was an excuse, everything he said was technically true.
"My King, may I ask why you have come to the Dragon Kingdom this time?"
After successfully avoiding suspicion, the Brightness Dragon Lord asked.
He truly could not think of any reason for Naohara to suddenly visit the Dragon Kingdom.
Logically speaking, there should be nothing here worthy of such a personal visit.
"I simply came to see an old acquaintance. And while I was here, I decided to check on your situation."
"Though thanks to you, one of my doubts has been resolved."
"About why she suddenly came to the Dragon Kingdom."
Naohara said while glancing at the crystal statues.
Then his gaze shifted.
His senses pierced through the protective barriers and finally locked onto a presence somewhere within the Dragon Kingdom.
A masked girl wearing a red robe appeared in his sight.