It was clearly a place blocked by thick walls.

    Yet, from beyond those walls, Ian could sense the presence of something.

    ‘A black dragon and a red bird?’

    The two beings were crouching in their respective positions.

    Although they were at a distance, it felt as if they were resonating with the entities inside Ian’s body; the sensations were vivid.

    Jealousy was with the black dragon.

    was with the red bird.

    What was troubling was that the black dragon, representing the Seven Sins, seemed unusually powerful compared to the red bird, which symbolized the Seven Virtues.

    However, there was no time to dwell on it.

    ‘I need to deal with this before Sir Nathan returns.’

    Given Nathan’s abilities, he would likely be back within an hour.

    Ian had to act before that.

    Despite Nathan being his knight, this was something he couldn’t reveal.

    ‘These will become my hidden cards.’

    The formidable First Prince was Ian’s enemy.

    His talent had been famous since he was a child.

    [At the age of ten, he surpassed the captain of the royal guard in swordsmanship.]

    [At twelve, he went on a military expedition with King Eloin and made immense contributions.]

    [At sixteen, he became the only one recognized by the Guardians and Duke Lavaltor.]

    He was the only genius who had ascended to the position of crown prince before even holding his coming-of-age ceremony.

    And such a genius was gathering the Seven Sins.

    ‘To defeat him, I must gather the Seven Sins.’

    No, Ian intended to obtain everything, including the Seven Virtues.

    The foundations for that were already sufficiently prepared.

    But then, a problem arose.

    [Only one thing can be obtained here.]

    A choice demanding the sacrifice of one.

    However, Ian had no intention of giving anything up.

    Instead, he recalled the events of his past life.

    ‘In this place, I obtained magical tools that could change the balance of the continent, along with supplies crucial for war.’

    Garcia had obtained many things from this dungeon.

    At that time, there was no mention of the Seven Virtues or the Seven Sins.

    But after that, someone suddenly appeared in the world.

    [The Evil Dragon Knight, John Bartul]

    He was a demon who had ridden a massive evil dragon, crushing everything in his path. Strangely enough, he served Garci?a and led the charge against all enemies of the duke, proclaiming himself as the vanguard captain.  R?

    Now Ian understood the reason for that.

    ‘He must have given the power he obtained from this dungeon to that knight.’

    But what if he could not only create an evil dragon knight but also obtain a Seven Virtues that was as strong as him?

    There was something clearly written in the notebook that Ceres had possessed.

    The black dragon was the most powerful and the worst among the Seven Sins.

    The red bird was the weakest and the best among the Seven Virtues.

    He absolutely could not afford to give up the remaining one.

    He still hadn’t properly obtained three relics of the First King that lay dormant in his space ring. He intended to gather them all eventually, but he did not want to lose what was right in front of him.

    Walking towards the wall, Ian placed his hand on it.

    ‘The image is singular, but two buttons await.’

    According to the sensation at his fingertips, there was some mechanism connected to the buttons.

    It was invisible to the eye due to the solid wall blocking it.

    But Ian wasn’t worried.

    Instead, he began to invoke one of his knights’ oaths with his body.

    Woong!

    His body trembled violently.

    It was none other than Sir Nathan’s Oath of Swiftness.

    Ian’s body shook as if it were vibrating due to the incredible speed.

    ‘In fact, Sir Nathan’s Swiftness increases the sensitivity of the nerves, allowing him to move at an incredible speed and in a different time from others.’

    This ability came with derived techniques.

    Ian had learned one such technique from Nathan, which was particularly useful.

    “It’s a technique I often used when stealing from my brother’s safe. It’s to locate the safe by vibration.”

    Woong!

    The vibrations emanating from Ian’s hands spread out like a bat’s ultrasound.

    It appeared he had made contact with something, and some information was reflected back to him.

    ‘I can see it.’

    Through the returning vibrations, Ian could visualize what lay beyond the wall.

    There was a mechanism connected to emblems of a dragon and a bird.

    It resembled a seesaw, with one end attached to a device that would unlock the door while the other end collapsed.

    ‘It’s advantageous that it’s an enclosed space underground; this makes it easier to decipher.’

    Had it been in an open space, it might have presented more of a challenge.

    After all, Ian had not yet fully mastered this technique from Nathan.

    But perfection wasn’t the concern at the moment.

    ‘So, this mechanism was designed to ensure that only one item can be taken at a time?’

    Certainly, finding a solution wasn’t impossible.

    If he could simultaneously strike both ends of the hidden seesaw between the thick walls, he could open both doors at once.

    ‘The issue is how to breach them.’

    Nathan was very tired, which was uncharacteristic of a knight.

    It couldn’t be helped.

    “It’s unbelievably heavy,” he muttered, referring to the fountain he had just transported, weighing tens of kilograms.

    Nathan had securely placed the object in Helgaia as per Prince Ian’s instructions.

    ‘I hope nothing else has gone wrong in the meantime...’

    As the exhausted Nathan trudged toward the abandoned mine, a massive tremor shook beneath his feet.

    Rumble!

    This vibration differed from what he typically experienced; it was a natural earthquake.

    ‘Could it be coming from that direction?’

    The tremors were clearly emanating from the direction of the mine where Ian was.

    Nathan instinctively sensed that Ian was in danger.

    He began to sprint, using his oath to enhance his speed.

    But at that moment—

    “Everyone, take cover! It’s collapsing!”

    The mine was about to collapse again, this time due to the earthquake.

    The ruins that had been revealed thanks to the earthquake were about to disappear as well.

    Yet, Ian, their lord, remained inside.

    “Has Prince Ian come out? What? He’s still inside?”

    “Find the prince! Hurry!”

    “Bring a pickaxe—let’s dig!”

    It was only natural for Nathan’s face to turn pale along with the mercenaries’ urgency.

    But what was going on?

    The mercenaries, who had been frantically trying to dig, suddenly started shouting in shock.

    “W-what’s happening?”

    “Wh-what is that?”

    Of course, Nathan felt the same way.

    ‘W-What is that?’

    The reactions were understandable.

    Crash! Crash! Crash! Boom!

    Something was surging up from the collapsed mine due to the earthquake.

    People recognized it at a glance and began to shout.

    “Is that a dragon?? It’s a dragon!!”

    “Someone is riding on its back! It’s Prince Ian!”

    “Could it be true that Ian is the dragon’s contractor? Oh my gosh!”

    A black dragon soared into the sky.

    And on its back was clearly a man who looked like Ian.

    Of course, Nathan noticed immediately.

    “That’s not a dragon.”

    “Huh? If that’s not a dragon, then what is it?”

    “That’s right, Sir. A creature flying like that is indeed a dragon. But don’t you think it’s too large to be a wyvern?”

    “Surely, it must be the dragon that contracted with the prince coming to rescue him!”

    But Nathan shook his head.

    He knew for certain that the dragon contracted with Ian was the green dragon, Rio Banzaim. Furthermore, the creature Ian rode now was clearly black.

    And its appearance was different from a typical dragon.

    ‘It resembles those creatures labeled as dragons in the Kingdom of Magicians?’

    Following the dragon, a pinnacle magical creature known as a dragon soared.

    What had the prince gotten himself into now?

    As Nathan gazed up at the dragon soaring above, he suddenly heard—

    “Whoa, whoa?”

    “Um... Sir? That dragon is heading this way!”

    “Hmm?”

    Nathan’s eyes widened in realization.

    The black dragon Ian rode was charging directly towards him.

    Roarrr!

    It opened its huge mouth as if to swallow him whole.

    “Run... run away!”

    Instinctively, Nathan threw himself to the ground to evade the dragon’s jaws.

    Yet, in that moment—

    Kieeeek!

    Crash!

    The huge black dragon was thrown to the ground.

    And behind it, Ian, covered in dust, landed on the ground.

    “You damn beast. It’s so vicious.”

    “???”

    Speechless, Nathan sought answers from Ian through his eyes.

    What kind of dragon was that? And what had Ian done to provoke it?

    Ian, however, shrugged nonchalantly.

    “I asked it to give me a lift because it’s convenient.”

    “Huh?”

    “It’s far more comfortable than riding a dragon.”

    “?”

    Ian was brightening up, clearly pleased with his new mount.