Once a year, the Chrono King Festival was forcibly brought to an abrupt end due to the unprecedented chaos caused by the appearance of an uninvited dragon.

As expected... or rather, as one might have feared, the residual energy waves from the Shadow Dragon that suddenly manifested in the Arena spread throughout the entire royal capital. Many people caught sight of its form, and all of them likely thought the same thing:

“Ah, so this is how we are all going to be irrationally slaughtered by that dragon that looks down upon the world.”

However, in reality, the dragon paid no heed to the countless commoners in the kingdom. It abducted a single girl, made a self-indulgent declaration of war, and then suddenly vanished without a trace.

For the majority of those who had been enjoying the festival, they must have felt relieved to be spared and grateful to the world for their survival. But for me, the entire situation was an endless series of incomprehensible events.

——

The day after being forced to witness a terrible nightmare, a powerless and wretched day, I was summoned to Chronostaria Castle.

Why?

The reason was obvious. Yesterday’s commotion caused by the Shadow Dragon, its words, and all the related matters. Yesterday, His Highness had told me, “I would like you to come to the royal castle soon.” But I never expected his words to become reality so quickly. In two ways, this was the worst possible outcome. Yet, at the same time, it was convenient. I still didn’t fully understand the meaning behind that damn lizard’s words.

——Did it say Dragon Slayer War?

The specifics of this audience were entirely unknown to me, but I had no doubt it would be related to that term.

“Suu——”

Formally having an audience with the King of this country, Lycas Chronostaria, was something that had never happened in my first life.

I had been to the royal castle before, but that was when I had committed a grave crime and was thrown into the underground dungeons. Honestly, there was no sentimentality in this visit, only trauma I would rather not recall.

“Compared to last time, the treatment is vastly different——”

Back then, my mood and the conditions in the prison were both the worst. But even now, sitting in this overly luxurious reception room within the castle, waiting for the dignitaries to prepare, I still felt uncomfortable.

“Well, I suppose that’s only natural...”

As far as I knew, I hadn’t committed any wrongdoing this time, nor was there any reason for me to be thrown into a dungeon. This level of treatment wasn’t strange at all, and yet, I couldn’t relax in the slightest.

Adjusting my position on the uncomfortably plush sofa, I let my gaze wander around the room—until my eyes met those of a waiting palace maid near the door.

“Hii...!!”

She let out a small shriek and immediately averted her gaze.

Some noble-minded thought like “How dare she be so rude to a guest who is about to have an audience with the ruler of the nation” never even crossed my mind. Instead, I simply felt sorry for scaring her.

——I must look like a true murderer right now.

I hadn’t checked in a mirror, but as I lightly touched my face, I felt an odd sensation, enough to make a reasonable guess.

My expression was stiff, my eyes sharp as if glaring into the void—an undoubtedly intense, deranged look. But there was nothing I could do about it. Under normal circumstances, I might have managed a poorly constructed smile, but right now, even that seemed impossible. No matter how much I tried to compose myself, my face inevitably settled into a grimace.

“......”

Compared to yesterday, my anger had settled deep within my gut. My thoughts were calm, and I wouldn’t let my emotions drive me into reckless actions. However, alongside the anger, an unfamiliar level of hatred boiled within me.

On the surface, I felt cold, but inside, I was seething with rage beyond its boiling point. It was an oddly contradictory sensation, like two opposing forces coexisting within me. At the same time, I became painfully aware of my own immaturity and foolishness. The more I thought about it, the more I replayed yesterday’s disgrace and nightmare, my mind clouding with negativity. Each time, I forced myself to remain rational. I had been doing that repeatedly since last night.

“Haa...”

Just as my thoughts were beginning to sink into a negative spiral again, I reached for the water pitcher in the room—when the door suddenly opened.

I didn’t need to look to know who had entered. The voice alone made it clear.

“—I apologize for summoning you so soon after yesterday, Clay...”

“No, it’s fine, Your Highness.”

The visitor was none other than the prince of this kingdom and my classmate at the academy—Chronos Chronostaria.

As he entered and saw me, his eyes widened in obvious surprise. That was only natural. Even a mere glance from a palace maid had elicited a shriek—my current expression was undoubtedly unfit for meeting royalty.

——Am I about to be banned from the audience?

As such foolish thoughts flitted through my mind, Chronos sat down across from me and carefully observed my condition.

“Clay... You haven’t slept, have you?”

“...Huh? If you’re asking whether I’ve slept or not, then... yeah, I haven’t. Ah, do I have bad dark circles? Sorry... I wasn’t really in the right frame of mind to care about that, even though I’m about to meet His Majesty...”

“That’s not the issue... Are you really okay?”

From an outsider’s perspective, did I look that terrible? Chronos was now clearly concerned about me.

“...No, I’m sorry. Of course, you wouldn’t be okay after what happened yesterday... If your condition is really poor, we can postpone the audience to another day—”

“It’s fine, Your Highness. Besides, we don’t exactly have the luxury of time, do we?”

To put it bluntly, my physical state or feelings didn’t matter. Even if I closed my eyes, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. More than that, I couldn’t allow myself to rest peacefully in a warm, safe bed.

This was all my fault—brought about by my own weakness and foolishness. I couldn’t let others be inconvenienced because of my selfishness. I might look exhausted, but I wasn’t in bad shape.

“But...”

Even as I insisted, Chronos still hesitated. He was a kind person—kind enough to extend a hand even to a selfish and wretched person like me.

“I’m really fine.”

That was precisely why I couldn’t burden him with my issues. Sensing the reason for his visit, I stood up.

“You came to fetch me, didn’t you?”

“Ah... Yeah.”

“Then let’s go. Keeping His Majesty waiting could be a grave offense, right?”

“No, that’s not—”

I gave a wry smile, but Chronos looked troubled. Of course, such jokes wouldn’t land with royalty.

——Damn it, my thoughts are going in weird directions.

I reflected on it internally, but at the same time, I was relieved to finally manage a strained smile. Compared to a sullen face, this was—

“Hii!?”

—Or so I thought, but judging by the palace maid’s reaction, it didn’t make much of a difference.

Even so, I didn’t drop my smile. No matter what, a smiling face was better than one that looked ready to kill. And so, guided by Chronos, I left the room.