"And how did you get here?"

"Uh…"

"Are you after my treasure too?"

"…"

The man's words flashed through my mind: same kind, scent, polymorph, and treasure. But most of all, what caught my eye was the red status window shining in front of me.

「The Evil Dragon, Fafnir」

The evil dragon the dwarf mentioned was the man standing in front of me—a dragon who had taken on human form. Because the scent of Yong-sik and Yong-sun still lingered on me, he must’ve mistaken me for another dragon and walked up to me. I could instinctively tell I was in danger. I backed away, but he caught me almost immediately.

“Ugh…!”

“Hm, did that little rat who ran away the other day bring you here?”

I said nothing, but the dragon guessed right. I bit my lip and shot him a glare as he tightened his grip on my hand.

That damn dwarf said the dragon was asleep… that he was in hibernation!

I cursed the dwarf inwardly, remembering the cheerful look on his face when he said it. But the dwarf had said it under the effects of a confession potion—it couldn’t have been a lie.

He simply didn’t know he was mistaken. The dragon had let him go on purpose. And that clueless dwarf truly believed he’d escaped on his own because the dragon was asleep.

But why? Why let him go? Did the dragon expect something like this to happen? What could he possibly gain from going through the trouble…?

“…!”

Did he intentionally let the dwarf go? To catch them all at once when he brought his companions?

I looked at the dragon in shock.

“But you guys don’t look like those little rats…”

“Ugh…”

“No way… Are you really human?”

The dragon scanned my body in surprise, and his gaze sent a chill down my spine. Now that he was up close, I could see that his black eyes had vertical slit pupils.

The only human-like thing about his eyes was their color. Otherwise, they looked more like those of a feline or a reptile. The moment I met those strange, alien eyes, my whole body stiffened.

“Hm. How did humans manage to get in here? Damn it. It’s been strangely noisy for a while now… so it was because humans came in. How annoying…”

The dragon muttered under his breath, but his gaze was sharp. And I was completely thrown off by the fact that a dragon—technically classified as a monster—was speaking to me in human form. Boss monsters in dungeons did talk sometimes, but it always sounded stiff and unnatural, like they were reciting lines from a video game. It never felt like a real conversation.

But the fact that he looked this perfectly human… Even in the novel, no monster like this had ever appeared—at least not in the parts I’d read. Was this some hidden setting in the Svartalfheim Dungeon?

Or a bug triggered because I made a different choice from the original story? Or maybe there was a scene like this in the parts I hadn’t gotten to yet? While I stood there completely confused, the dragon, who had been silently watching me, finally spoke again.

"Either way, I should deal with you right here and now… No, wait."

"…!"

"There might be others who came to steal my treasure."

"…"

“Hmm,” the dragon muttered to himself. He must have pretended to be asleep and let the dwarf go to lure in other intruders. In that moment, Do-gyul and Eden—who had gone to retrieve the legendary weapons—flashed through my mind. It would be dangerous if the dragon noticed them.

"Um, if I bring over my teammates—the ones who came here with me—would you be willing to let me go?"

"What?"

"I’m not here for the treasure. I came to catch that bastard."

"…?"

I pointed at Joshua Lehmann. He looked bewildered by the sudden turn of events, but when I openly singled him out, he panicked and shouted.

“What are you trying to do, Han Yi-jin?!”

"What do you think? I’m selling you and your teammates out."

“Hoo?”

The dragon stroked his chin, seemingly intrigued by my words.

Seizing the moment while Joshua Lehmann was left speechless in disbelief, I continued speaking.

“There are a lot of his teammates here. I can tell you where they are… or even bring them to you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“How can I trust you?”

“That’s…”

Honestly, who would trust someone they just met? I was completely bluffing.

That’s what I was thinking, but I made sure not to show it as I replied.

"Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? Even if I were lying, it’s not like a dragon like you would be at any real loss."

"Hmm… that’s true."

"…"

One way or another, I had to make sure the dragon and Liam White met. There was no way I could undo Joshua Lehmann’s restraints—but if I could get him to Liam White, we might be able to come up with a solution. There was no way I could handle a monster that looked stronger than an S-rank on my own.

After a moment of thought, the dragon finally let go of my arm, which he’d been gripping so tightly it hurt. Only then did the blood start to flow back into my wrist. And the moment he released me, his gaze shifted to the potion I was holding.

“What’s that you’ve been holding this whole time?”

“Oh, this?”

I glanced down at the potion I’d been planning to give Joshua Lehmann, feeling a little flustered. It seemed smarter to just be honest with him. I had already made it clear we were on opposing sides, and lying now would only make me seem more suspicious.

“I was planning to give it to him. It’s an S-grade confession potion.”

“…Confession potion?”

“Yeah. If someone drinks it, they have to answer any question honestly.”

“And what were you trying to get out of him with that?”

“…”

Why was this dragon so curious about everything? Do dragons normally interrogate people who trespass into their lairs like this? Or maybe it was the leisure of a predator that knows its prey can’t escape.

If he could crush his opponent at any moment, there was no need to rush. Maybe he was just toying with his prey—like a cat that’s already caught the mouse and sees no need to finish it off right away.

That chilling thought crossed my mind for a moment, and with a displeased look, I started talking about Joshua Lehmann.

“He pretended to be one of my teammates, then turned on us.”

“Kuh…”

Joshua Lehmann looked like he wanted to protest, but had nothing to say in return. The dragon simply watched him with interest.

“I see. So he was a total bastard.”

“…You actually believe me?”

“Hmm. Maybe it’s because you smell strongly of our kind—your words feel strangely convincing.”

“…”

Was that supposed to be a good thing for me?

Still, the fact that I was using younglings of his species as summons probably wouldn’t sit well with him. I decided to keep that part to myself for now and continued speaking.

“I was just about to give him the potion and force him to talk when you showed up.”

“I see.”

The dragon nodded, his expression unexpectedly gentle. Just like he said, it seemed he felt a sense of familiarity toward me because I carried the scent of his kind.

I couldn’t help but think of Yong-sik and Yong-sun, who I’d had to leave behind at the accommodation. Who would’ve thought that lazing around with them all day before coming here would actually end up helping me?

The dragon standing in front of me could kill me at any moment—the power gap was obvious, especially since his rank was unidentifiable. But instead of killing me, he was letting me live—to use me as bait to lure in the rest of the exploration team.

I couldn’t afford to forget that. Just as my body had started to relax at his seemingly easygoing demeanor, I tensed up again.

"It's interesting."

“Yes?”

“Humans always manage to create things that seem useless at first, but turn out to be pretty ingenious. Like a confession potion.”

The dragon chuckled softly and held out his hand. I stared blankly, my eyes shifting between his face and the hand he’d extended.

“Give it here. I’ll make him drink it.”

“Uh… really?”

“I mean it.”

“…”

The dragon waved his hand with a cocky air. I watched him for a moment, then silently handed over the potion. A smirk slowly curled at the corner of his lips.

"All I have to do is make him drink this, right?"

"Yes…"

"I understand."

“Ghhk—!”

The dragon strode over to Joshua Lehmann and, without a hint of hesitation, shoved the potion into his mouth. It was even more brutal than when Kang Yoo-hyun had done it. I could only stare, stunned.

“Eupp…!”

“Come on now, don’t spill any—drink it all.”

He tilted Joshua Lehmann’s head back, making sure he didn’t spill a single drop. Joshua Lehmann may have been S-rank, but against someone just as powerful and while bound, he couldn’t fight back.

“Kugh… Eup…”

“He drank it all.”

The dragon tossed the empty potion bottle aside, smiling in satisfaction.

I watched from behind for a moment, then walked over to Joshua Lehmann.

“Joshua Lehmann?”

“Ugh…”

Joshua Lehmann lowered his head, just like the dwarf had after taking the potion. He looked dazed, probably feeling the same dizziness. But unlike Kang Yoo-hyun, I didn’t wait—I questioned him right away.

“Joshua Lehmann. Answer me.”

“Uhh… yes…”

The confession potion worked best immediately after it was consumed.

Getting a high-ranking hunter to drop their guard and answer honestly wasn’t easy. I couldn’t afford to waste this golden opportunity.

"Tell me who the being behind you is."

“That…”

“That?”

Joshua Lehmann slowly parted his lips. And then, he spoke a name. My eyes widened the moment I heard it.