Chapter 255: The Dragon Duchess (1)

"The Dragon Duchess?"

This was the first time Eugene had heard of her. However, he immediately recognized that Noir was referring to the young master of the Dragon Demon Castle, whom he'd had a suspicion about for some time. Noir's confirmation regarding the young master made Eugene all the more certain.

'As expected, the one in the Dragon Demon Castle must be Raizakia's hatchling.'

However, due to his wariness toward Noir, he didn't show any indication of this on his face. The offer was certainly tempting, but he couldn't fathom why the eccentric woman was willing to provide assistance in infiltrating the Dragon Demon Castle.

"Well, only those who know of her existence call her the Dragon Duchess. Her real name is... Right, it's Ramira. Yes, I know. It's quite a dead giveaway, isn't it?" Noir quipped, with her eyes twinkling mischievously.

"...Wasn't the master of the Dragon Demon Castle the Black Dragon, one of Helmuth's three dukes?" said Eugene.

"There's no need to pretend, my dear," Noir replied with a sly grin as she crossed her legs seductively.

Although Noir's appearance was alluring, Eugene remained unfazed. In fact, he always felt an intense urge to chop off her head and crush her heart whenever she behaved in such a manner.

Noir leaned forward. Her eyes were glinting with amusement as she addressed Eugene directly.

"Eugene Lionheart," she said with her voice taking on a playful lilt, "you came here because you knew that Raizakia was absent from the Dragon Demon Castle, didn't you?"

Eugene pulled his features into a blank mask, feigning ignorance.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied coolly.

Noir giggled at his response, tilting her head to the side. In a sudden burst of magic, her clothing vanished, leaving her in nothing but her underwear. The sudden display of skin was clearly intended to distract Eugene, but he remained resolute, and his expression was unchanged.

Eugene's response was sharp and to the point.

"Fuck off," he said curtly, clearly unimpressed by Noir's attempts to manipulate him.

He knew all too well what she was doing; she was using the Demoneye of Fantasy to create illusions and play with his mind.

Eugene felt a sense of disdain toward her fraudulent ability, but at the same time, a chill ran down his spine as well. In her true form, Noir could conjure illusions that left no room for predictions or foresight. There seemed to be no limitations to her power, making her a dangerous adversary to face.

In contrast, the Demoneye of Darkness—which belonged to Iris, the Abyssal Princess—could only be utilized under certain conditions. Iris could only create dark matter within her line of sight, and the moment she produced it, her eyes would glimmer. The stark difference in limitations between the two Demoneyes was not lost on Eugene.

However, Eugene had learned that the limitations of Iris's abilities were not absolute. He had observed her create dark matter without displaying any indicators, suggesting that her powers were more versatile than previously thought. It was evident to Eugene that if Iris had been capable of generating dark matter without showing any signs right from the start, she would have done so.

This realization gave him an idea of the extent of her powers. It was no easy feat to produce dark matter without displaying any telltale signs. In contrast, Noir Giabella was able to do precisely that while using her Demoneye of Fantasy with ease. This was a clear indication of the power disparity between Noir and Iris.

"Is this not to your liking? Or is your heart unshaken because you know this is just an illusion?" asked Noir.

"I told you to fuck off," responded Eugene.

"Well, what's wrong with this? I was just trying to be fun because I thought you might get bored during our conversation. If you have any preferences, then... Ah, how about this?" Noir smiled mischievously and pointed at her face, turning her dark hair purple. "Did I go too far?"

Thud.

Noir's head rolled off her shoulders and fell onto her lap, but she simply adjusted the position of her head and flashed a smile.

Fwoosh!

Noir's appearance changed once again, marking the end of the illusion. She had not actually been standing there in her underwear, and her head was still securely attached to her body. Giggling to herself, she pushed her sunglasses higher up on her nose.

"I get it, I get it. I'll stop. Don't be upset. Let's continue our conversation," Noir said. "As I was saying, Eugene Lionheart, you came here with the knowledge that Raizakia was not present at the Dragon Demon Castle, right?"

"And I thought I told you that I don't know what you are talking about," retorted Eugene.

Noir Giabella's words were dripping with honeyed sarcasm as she spoke to Eugene. He could see the amusement dancing in her eyes as she continued to question him.

"Really, it's very adorable that you keep trying to feign ignorance," Noir said with a bright smile on her lips. "Eugene Lionheart, if you really met Siena Merdein and became her successor, then she must have told you about Raizakia. Am I wrong?"

Eugene knew that Noir was right. Sienna had indeed informed him about Raizakia, but he was not willing to give Noir any information.

He kept his face stoic and asked her, "Why do you think that?"

Noir cackled in response. "I guess you don't want to talk about it. That's okay. Are you wondering why I'm talking about this? Well, Raizakia's a dragon who's gone bad, right? The dragon who betrayed his kind. Everyone knows that he killed the former Dragon Lord and swallowed his heart whole."

Eugene's eyes narrowed as he shot back, "So what?"

He was growing tired of Noir's teasing and wanted to cut straight to the point.

Nevertheless, Noir simply chuckled, undeterred by Eugene's sharp tone.

"Raizakia was very, very obsessed with power," she said in a contemplative tone. "However, there wasn't really a good way for him to build up strength. Even though he is a fallen dragon, a dragon is still a dragon regardless."

Raizakia, the fallen dragon, was just as haughty and headstrong as any of his kind. He refused to enter into contracts with demons to bolster his influence and might, and given his contempt for humans, he also declined to collect their life force or make deals with them. His refusal to seek out alternative avenues for power meant that he was left with limited options for building up his strength.

Noir began to divulge the information that Eugene was seeking. "Then what would he have been left with? What would he have been obsessed with? Dragon Hearts. That arrogant lizard always said—and he was quite sincere—that the only thing that could fatten him was the precious hearts of other dragons. He was also greedy for the Dragon Heart in Vladmir, but at that time, His Majesty the Demon King of Incarceration was managing Vladmir... Moreover, most dragons had gone into hiding as well, so it was quite difficult to find them," she explained.

"...So?"

"In the end, Raizakia turned his attention to Sienna Merdein's Akasha. Raizakia even created a Draconic spell for the purposes of searching for and getting responses from Dragon Hearts. He pondered if there were any ways for him to take Akasha away from Sienna," Noir revealed.

"Then why didn't he try to kill Lady Sienna and take it from her earlier on?" asked Eugene.

"He obviously could not have done such a thing. Do you know how sensitive everyone was during that era? Even though Raizakia was completely out of his mind, he realized that he could not hit Sienna Merdein at a time when peace was just blossoming," answered Noir.

With a grin, she glanced at Mer, who was standing behind Eugene with Kristina. Nonetheless, Mer simply stood still due to her fear of and hatred toward Noir.

"Now, it's only my speculation from here on. The three Dukes of Helmuth—Gavid, Razakia, and myself—are always keeping each other in check. In particular, Raizakia is a greedy dragon, so Gavid and I have no choice but to pay particular attention to him. We never know when he might do something crazy," continued Noir.

In Eugene's opinion, Noir Giabella was equally as crazy, and Gavid Lindman wasn't far behind them either. Obviously, the same was true of Raizakia. That crazy dragon was the first traitor of the dragons.

"When Raizakia left the Dragon Demon Castle, I knew that he had left, though I wasn't sure of the reason. But what's this? Sienna Merdein just so happened to go into seclusion at the same time! So, let's let our imaginations run wild. Raizakia attacked Sienna Merdein to take away Akasha, even though he had sat still before. Why, you ask? Because Sienna Merdein had been staying in Aroth until then." Noir's eyes curved into a smile. "The Samar Forest—a place away from any spying eyes of the continent, the forest of elves. It's a place that is difficult to enter unless you're an elf. Raizakia would have searched for Akasha and realized Sienna Merdein had entered the elves' forest. He must have thought it would be worth a shot in the elves' forest, away from all the crowd in Aroth."

Noir was only voicing her speculation, but it was quite close to the truth. Raizakia had headed to the elves' forest to rob Sienna of Akasha. He came to realize that Sienna had sustained a fatal injury, then he made the decision to kill her to take Akasha away.

"But Raizakia has not returned for two hundred years. The same goes for Sienna Merdein. The two must have fought, and... Raizakia failed. Well, at least, that's what I imagine happened. Honestly, I'm not convinced that the Black Dragon was defeated by a human wizard, but I don't think it's out of the question since he was up against Sienna Merdein," concluded Noir.

She had initially thought that Sienna Merdein was dead, but seeing that Akasha was now in Eugene's hands, it was clear to her that Sienna Merdein was still alive.

"If you really met Sienna Merdein and personally received Akasha from her, then you should have heard about Raizakia. Are you continuing to play dumb for Sienna Merdein's sake? Or is it just pride?" asked Noir.

"This is the first time I'm hearing that Raizakia had a hatchling," Eugene said nonchalantly, ignoring Noir's questions despite the fact that she had spoken in a lordly manner with her chest all puffed out.

Noir puffed up her cheeks as well for Eugene to see and stared at him. "Of course it's the first time you've heard of it. It's not something that's known to the public."

Even a dragon wasn't capable of reproducing without a partner. They could not lay an egg alone.

"Raizakia already had an egg when he surrendered to Helmuth. Well, this is, of course, quite obvious. Where could you find a dragon who would be willing to sleep with and lay an egg for the one that had betrayed their entire race?" said Noir.

Dragons possessed long lifespans, but this also meant it took them hundreds of years to fully mature. Even hatching from an egg would take a hundred years, give or take a dozen.

Raizakia had been revered as an Ancient Dragon long before he betrayed his own kind. He had mated with another dragon, and together they had fought alongside their brethren against the Demon King of Destruction and the Demon King of Incarceration. However, in the midst of battle, Raizakia's mate perished at the hands of the Demon King of Destruction. Seizing the opportunity, Raizakia consumed the lord's heart before turning traitor, taking his egg with him.

"...So, I guess even that traitor has paternal love. I can't believe he bothered to take the egg when he turned sides," muttered Eugene.

"What did you just say?" asked Noir with a curious expression.

"Even that traitor has paternal—"

"Ahahahaha!" Noir couldn't contain her laughter as Eugene attempted to finish his sentence.

Her amusement was overwhelming her even though Eugene had gone through the trouble of repeating himself. Noir clutched her stomach and let out a roaring laugh, not even bothering to hide her mirth.

"Paternal love? Raizakia? Ah, I understand. Eugene Lionheart, in the end, you're still a human, so it may seem like that from a human's perspective. Raizakia loving his children...? We're talking about the crazy Black Dragon, right? There's no way he could have such emotions."

"Then what is it?" asked Eugene.

"It's obvious, right? He brought the egg so that he could raise his child before eating them," responded Noir.

Just as Noir couldn't understand the concept of paternal love, Eugene couldn't understand her words either. He stared at Noir with a look of disbelief.

Noir couldn't help but chuckle as she recounted Raizakia's depraved plans to Eugene.

"Ah, to be exact," she said, "he planned to raise his child, have them give birth, and then eat them. Ah, and this isn't my speculation. As I said before, Raizakia was arrogant and ostentatious. He would tell me all about his plans when we sometimes met in Pandemonium."

The gathering of the Loyalty at Babel in Pandemonium was a longstanding tradition, initially conceived as a means for the three Dukes to keep each other in line. Over time, the meetings evolved into a more relaxed and social affair, spanning centuries.

"It's not a pleasant thing to talk about, but Raizakia planned to raise his hatchling, have them lay eggs, and have the new hatchlings breed to give birth to more dragons... Well, that's how he planned to raise his descendants."

"..."

"He would devour the descendants who were lacking, and instead of demons, he would make dragons into his subjects. Usually, inbreeding results in odd results, but I wonder if it's the same for dragons. I was curious about that, but since Raizakia disappeared, I have no way of confirming it."

"Crazy bastard."

Eugene had never imagined that the Black Dragon would be so depraved. No, in the first place, was doing such a thing as he'd planned even possible?

"His plan wasn't an impossible one. Even though Raizakia was crazy, he wasn't lacking in ability."

In the moments leading up to Raizakia's sudden disappearance, his hatchling had just emerged from its egg. Raizakia wasted no time in taking a piece of his own Dragon Heart and implanting it into the newborn's forehead. With this act, he ensured absolute control over the hatchling, whose sole purpose was to lay eggs indefinitely.

"It couldn't have been Raizakia's intention, but the Dragon Duchess is able to rule over the Dragon Demon Castle thanks to the dragon heart that he gave her when she hatched" said Noir.

Raizakia's few subjects were bound to the Black Dragon by contract and, in turn, also to the hatchling who possessed a portion of his Dragon Heart.

"It would've been useless if Raizakia had died though. So, my dear Eugene, are you going to continue playing dumb? I know you heard the story about Raizakia from Sienna Merdein. I don't think he's dead, considering that the contracts and the Draconic spell of the Dragon Demon Castle are still intact," said Noir.

"I told you, I don't know," repeated Eugene.

"You just keep telling blatant lies, don't you? I guess you don't have any intention of telling me the truth. Then, let me ask you something else. My dear Eugene, why are you trying to infiltrate the Dragon Demon Castle?" asked Noir.

"I want the Dragon Heart," said Eugene.

It was an excuse, but it was a convincing one.

"Ah, as expected. Are you the same as the rest? Dragon Heart... It really is a rare treasure. If I knew that the world would turn out like this, I would have killed some dragons and taken their hearts three hundred years ago," Noir said with genuine regret while licking her lips. Then, she turned her gaze to Eugene with a deep smile. "So, I was right about what you said after all. You came because you knew Raizakia wasn't at the Dragon Demon Castle. You weren't sure about the existence of the Dragon Duchess, but you had speculated about a hatchling."

"Think as you please," said Eugene.

"Hehehe, it's truly adorable how you so desperately pretend. My dear Eugene, I can also guess why you are greedy for the Dragon Heart. It's because you're anxious, right? You want to build up your strength as fast as possible. Then that leaves me no choice but to cooperate," said Noir.

"...I don't understand that. Noir Giabella, why are you cooperating with me? I am your enemy," said Eugene.

He needed to know for sure, which was why he asked, but his words made Noir hug her chest with an erotic moan.

"Enemy... You said 'enemy.' Ah, I love it. Why am I cooperating with you? Because I want you to be strong like Vermouth and run rampant like Hamel," explained Noir.

'What nonsense is this?' Eugene felt startled, but he desperately kept a straight face.

"That's all?" he asked.

"I guess you don't like my answer? Then I'll give you another reason. I don't like Raizakia, and I don't like the Dragon Demon Castle. I've always wanted to kill him myself, but I was never in a position to do that. Why? Because Duke Gavid, the wonderful Blade of Incarceration, is always wary of me reigning solo."

In fact, Noir had never been fond of the name 'Three Dukes.' Rather than having Raizakia, who wasn't even here, she sincerely believed it would be better for someone else, like Edmund or other new demons, to ascend to the title.

In other words, what Noir wanted was a break in the status quo, and this fueled her desire to help Eugene. Eugene Lionheart, the Hero, would cause the Dragon Demon Castle to sink. She couldn't help but be excited about what further changes it would bring.

"Firstly, you will need to figure out how things are in Karablum. Do you know the current situation?" asked Noir.

"...I heard that the lord of Ruol, who is located next to it, is picking a fight," answered Eugene.

He had come to an understanding of the situation from the news he gathered after arriving.

"It was simple provocations until now, but Count Karad seems to be wanting something more. He's preparing for a real war," explained Noir.

"I thought he was unaware of Raizakia's situation," said Eugene.

"Well, they are located adjacent to each other. He must have gotten a hint about it after two hundred years of silence, but that's not his only reason," continued Noir.

The mining district of Karablum was under the jurisdiction of the Dragon Demon Castle, and the dwarves there were being spotted in the black market.

"Count Karad is blatantly preparing for a territorial war, but the Dragon Demon Castle isn't showing any response at all. On the contrary, the inhabitants of Karablum are hoping for Count Karad to become their new lord. That's how bad the public opinion is right now."

The lord of the Dragon Demon Castle had not appeared in public for two hundred years. He was a lord who neglected his territory and its residents. The only reason they could not openly blame him was that they feared him as he was a dragon.

"The more scared and anxious the people are, the more desperate they will be to find peace of mind," said Noir with a grin. "Obviously, there are many Night Demons in Karablum. Firstly, I will let you into Karablum using my children. That will be very easy."

"And then? The place I want to go to is the Dragon Demon Castle," retorted Eugene.

"Well, that won't be very difficult either. The easiest way would be for me to use the Demoneye of Fantasy, but... I have no intention of getting involved. I don't want to be forced to take responsibility later," said Noir.

"Aren't you already involved?" asked Eugene.

"This is different. I'm only helping through my children. That way, if it ever becomes a problem, I could resolve the problem by giving them the heads of my children," answered Noir without hesitation.

Even though she was referring to them as her 'children,' she didn't seem to possess any feelings toward them.

"Only the chosen aristocrats live in the Dragon Demon Castle, and because of Raizakia's stupid idea, I never got any of the Night Demons into the castle. However, both commoners and nobles wish to have pleasant dreams, right? Among my diligent children in Karablum, there are high-ranking Night Demons who deal with the nobles of the Dragon Demon Castle. I should be able to get inside using them as a connection."

"...It can't be that easy. I'm a human after all," Eugene expressed his doubts.

"It wouldn't be, but that's only if Raizakia were still present. My dear Eugene, there's no need to think too hard about this. In these two hundred years of his absence, Raizakia's territory has rotted. Ah, of course, it would be impossible for you to infiltrate the castle by yourself," Noir stated, making sure to emphasize the significance of her help. "Additionally, even though it's me, there's one thing I can't do. Kristina Rogeris, you will not be able to enter Karablum. You should know why, right?"

"I knew from the beginning," responded Kristina while maintaining a calm expression.

With her divine power, she would stand out like a sore thumb among the demons.

"I'm glad you're quick to understand. Now then, should we start with a stage name?" said Noir with a brilliant smile.

Neither Eugene, Kristina, nor Anise understood what Noir was talking about. aced with their questioning gazes, Noir looked confused too.

"Why are you looking at me like that? I just told you, right? My dear Eugene, you will infiltrate Karablum with the Night Demons under my rule," said Noir.

"...Right."

"So, that means you'll have to pretend to be a Night Demon as well, right? Otherwise, it wouldn't be fun. You're too big to be a succubus, so that would be... No, maybe it doesn't really matter since they're demons anyways. Some like the muscular ones, and you have a pretty face compared to your body, so if we put on makeup and get a wig—"

"Don't... fuck with me."

"Ah, then shall we go with an incubus? That shouldn't be too hard."

Noir's earlier words, 'Otherwise, it wouldn't be fun,' indicated there was no reason for Eugene to pretend to be a Night Demon. In other words, the disguise was just a fun activity for that lunatic.

"You can't use the name Eugene, so we will need something else. A stage name... What would be good? What about Terius? It's a favorite for the incubi."

"Get out," spat Eugene with contempt.