Consciousness returned slowly.
Like rising from the bottom of a dark ocean.
Kel first heard the sound of volcanic winds.
Soft.
Distant.
Then came the faint crackling of fire from nearby mana lanterns.
After that—
The scent of medicine.
Ancient wood.
Dragon incense.
His eyelids slowly opened.
The ceiling above him was unfamiliar.
Dark crimson stone carved with ancient draconic patterns stretched across the chamber roof while silver lantern flames flickered softly near massive windows overlooking the burning skies of the Dragon Realm.
Night had passed already.
Kel quietly stared upward for several moments without moving.
His body felt heavy.
Exhausted.
Every mana circuit inside him throbbed painfully from overuse.
Sairen's voice echoed softly through the soul-link.
"…Finally awake."
Kel slowly closed his eyes briefly again.
"How long?"
"…Nearly an entire day."
The black-haired man exhaled quietly.
Long enough.
Then—
His eyes narrowed slightly.
Something felt wrong.
Kel slowly raised one hand toward his face.
Smooth skin.
Human skin.
The illusionary draconic disguise was gone.
No black scales.
No slit draconic pupils.
No horns.
Only his original human appearance remained beneath the flickering lantern light.
"…Troublesome."
Sairen softly laughed inside the soul-link.
"…That's your first concern after nearly dying?"
Kel ignored her.
Because now—
Everything had changed.
His identity was exposed.
The door to the chamber quietly opened afterward.
And two figures entered.
Velor.
And beside him—
The Crimson Princess.
The room grew still.
The princess now walked slowly beneath the lantern light wearing elegant crimson robes lined with silver draconic embroidery. Her long crimson hair flowed softly behind her while her previously pale complexion had regained warmth and life once more.
Healthy.
Alive.
Beautiful too.
Not merely physically—
But in the quiet ancient elegance surrounding her movements.
Meanwhile—
Velor walked beside her silently.
Those burning crimson eyes remained fixed upon Kel carefully.
Different now.
Not suspicious.
Not hostile.
Thoughtful.
The future Dragon Emperor quietly approached the bedside while volcanic winds moved softly beyond the chamber windows.
Then—
For several moments—
No one spoke.
Because the atmosphere itself felt strange.
A human lying within the heart of the Crimson Dragon Mansion.
The hidden heir of hatred standing before him.
And the princess whose fate had been rewritten entirely.
Eventually—
Kel slowly sat upright despite lingering pain.
Then calmly—
He spoke first.
"…Sorry."
The single word caused both Velor and the princess to pause faintly.
Kel quietly looked toward them beneath the lantern light.
"I entered your Dragon Realm."
His gaze lowered briefly toward his own human hands.
"And more than that…"
A faint pause followed.
"…I disguised myself as a draconic human."
The chamber remained silent.
Kel calmly continued.
"And after that…"
A small tired smile appeared faintly.
"…I caused all this trouble."
The volcanic winds softly brushed against the windows.
The Crimson Princess quietly observed him now.
Carefully.
Because the human before her did not resemble what dragon society described humans to be.
Not weak.
Not greedy.
Not fearful.
Instead—
He carried an ancient calmness difficult to understand.
Meanwhile—
Velor finally stepped closer.
Then quietly asked the question lingering within his mind since yesterday.
"…What was your motive?"
Silence spread softly afterward.
The future Dragon Emperor's crimson eyes remained locked upon Kel.
"What was your reason for saving me from those nobles?"
A brief pause followed.
"…And curing my sister?"
The question felt heavier than politics.
Because Velor genuinely wanted to understand.
Why?
Why interfere with dragons at all?
Why risk death for strangers?
Why save someone destined to drown the world in hatred?
Kel quietly looked toward the Crimson Princess standing beside Velor now.
Healthy.
Alive.
Then calmly—
He answered.
"About you…"
His eyes shifted toward Velor directly.
"…you were the only dragon I found worthy of my assistance."
Silence.
Velor's expression changed faintly.
Kel continued quietly.
"The moment I entered this realm…"
His gaze slowly drifted toward the burning skies beyond the windows.
"…all I saw were dragons boasting about pride."
A faint pause followed.
"Bloodlines."
"Victory."
"Status."
"Superiority."
His dark eyes narrowed slightly.
"Everyone seemed obsessed with proving themselves greater than others."
The Crimson Princess silently listened now too.
Kel's voice remained calm.
Yet strangely honest.
"But you…"
He looked back toward Velor.
"…were different."
The future Dragon Emperor remained silent.
Kel softly exhaled afterward.
"You carried hatred."
The chamber grew quieter.
"But not arrogance."
Velor's crimson eyes trembled faintly.
"And your sister…"
Kel slowly looked toward the Crimson Princess beside him.
"…it was obvious why I saved her."
The princess quietly met his gaze.
Kel's voice lowered slightly afterward.
"I didn't want you drowning completely in hatred."
Silence.
Deep silence.
Because somehow—
Those words struck deeper than gratitude itself.
Velor slowly lowered his gaze briefly afterward.
And internally—
Something inside him felt strangely unstable.
Because this human…
Understood him too well.
Meanwhile—
The Crimson Princess quietly watched her younger brother.
Then slowly—
For the first time—
She truly noticed it.
Velor's hatred had paused.
Only slightly.
Yet undeniably.
And the reason stood directly before them.
Then eventually—
Velor spoke again.
"…Then the story you told me…"
His crimson eyes narrowed slightly.
"…was fabricated too?"
Kel blinked once.
Then softly laughed beneath his breath.
"No."
The future Dragon Emperor looked slightly surprised.
Kel calmly leaned back against the bed afterward.
"That part was entirely true."
The image of silver moonlight beneath ancient trees surfaced faintly within his mind.
"I met a silver dragon woman."
A faint smile appeared briefly.
Small.
Almost nostalgic.
"She gave me the name Vael."
The Crimson Princess quietly listened with interest now.
Kel continued softly.
"She told me no one in this world is worthless."
Silence lingered gently afterward.
Then Kel slightly tilted his head.
"Though…"
A faint amused expression appeared.
"…the story I told her about being a border-born black dragon…"
He quietly shrugged.
"…that part was half true and half fabricated."
Velor narrowed his crimson eyes slightly.
"…Half true?"
Kel calmly looked toward the burning skies beyond the window.
"I really did grow up near borders."
A faint pause followed.
"Just not dragon borders."
The room fell silent once more afterward.
And strangely—
Neither Velor nor the Crimson Princess seemed disturbed anymore by the fact he was human.
Because after what he had done—
Species no longer mattered much.
Instead—
The human sitting before them now felt like something far rarer.
Someone who entered a foreign realm carrying neither conquest nor fear.
Only purpose.