Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 182 The Approaching Storm

"Danya's mother? The Kingdom's Ice Queen, Mariana Elise?" Rean suddenly realized.

Dania's slip of the tongue revealed the news of Queen Marianne's imminent arrival.

"Your Highness," the guard quickly reminded her.

Dania was momentarily dazed, then snapped back to reality and glared at Rean.

"Don't let this get out."

Then she lost interest in chatting with Rean, got up and left to make preparations.

The queen and the princess are two different things. The travels of the kingdom's top leader are often grand political events, not personal matters at all.

Once the itinerary is confirmed, all the preparations, from the ceremony to the actual schedule, will be very complicated. Even if Rean doesn't tell anyone, the news will definitely leak out quickly.

This kind of thing can't be hidden at all; too many people have a stake in it, and even the princess herself, who might have received the letter, might have found out quite late.

As she put down the thin letter that resembled a notification, Dania's feelings instantly became extremely complicated.

She didn't know why her mother, who hadn't left Xindu for many years, had come all the way here.

Was it to support himself? Then there was absolutely no need for him to come in person.

If it's to oppose me, or to arrest me and take me back, then it seems unnecessary to come in person; a public announcement or a secret letter would suffice.

Dania couldn't guess that the mother and daughter actually spent very little time together, and the princess might even know less about her than her guards did.

One reason is that the Queen is too busy, and another reason is that she remains quite indifferent or even cold towards her own children, which is the origin of her title as the Snow Queen.

Seeing Dania leave in a hurry, her plans disrupted by the sudden news, Rean knew that there was probably nothing more to say today.

After thinking about it, it seemed unnecessary to specifically discuss the matter of "Rean organizing a small group to participate in underground exploration" with someone of the princess's caliber. It would be appropriate to have Sallyman handle it.

Registering an adventurer's group or mercenary organization should be enough; the "Weaver Knights" that Dimon mentioned before also seems to work.

This was something Dimon had Rean do. There were already quite a few powerful individuals in the small groups gathered in the dock area, and they planned to participate in this underground exploration as a group.

This is said to be one of the conventions for the "Heroes of Valhalla," and it is also the reason why Dania is so eager to gain control of the narrative.

Perhaps this small group is still quite weak, but look at Dimon's growth rate. If there are a dozen or so Heroic Soul successors and a corresponding number of elites, it will become a considerable young force in less than ten years.

This core group has now begun its operations centered around the dock area. They need some official support, at least enough to grant their odd-looking members a pass to enter the city.

"I wonder if this city will even last another ten years."

Considering Dania's thoughts, Rean gave up on discussing the matter with her, otherwise, if she really shamelessly "forced her way in," everyone would have a headache.

The Queen's arrival seems to have no impact on people of Rean's level, but the city's higher-ups are having a headache. However, on another level, Rean seems to have been dragged into it.

"do not move."

After leaving, Rean took out the Heroic Spirit Compendium. Ever since he heard the name of Queen Mariana, "he" had been itching to do something.

"Lex Thorne, the Warrior of the Continent."

The previously silent Heroic Spirit Card, emitting a faint golden light, finally reacted.

Previously, the conditions for activating this reclusive hero card were either to meet the "princess" or to find out the truth of the current events. Judging from the current situation, this should be Lex's own "last wish".

Since he's using truth as a condition, Rean guesses he's probably still a fool.

Looking at the shimmering Heroic Spirit Card, there was no need to guess anymore; the princess in his condition was Queen Mariana. So, all he had to do was wait for the Queen's arrival to activate the Heroic Spirit Card, right?

"Snake, in my current state, can I activate this second Heroic Soul Card?" Rean was somewhat expectant; finally, he had a legitimate Heroic Soul.

This is a hero, a once-famous and powerful hero of this continent. He shouldn't disappoint.

Am I about to take off?

"Yes, I'm not possessing you, it's just..."

The snake laughed gleefully; it had seen so many interesting things that it even felt a little tempted to forcibly interfere with the Queen's arrival.

"Never mind," he shook his head. "Mariana is, after all, the queen of a nation. Interfering with her fate would backfire and kill Rean. Yes, it's Rean. Now the snake is involved in all the karma, all under the name of 'Li Ensu.' And with that demonic oath, the karma will fall directly on Rean's head."

It could be said that this demonic oath has enabled the serpent to do more, but fortunately, he doesn't want the Infinite Dragon to reincarnate so soon.

"Tsk tsk tsk, this queen is quite a formidable figure. It's a pity I don't have much time left, I won't be able to see this good show." But the snake still laughed happily.

In response to Rean's question about the spirits of the fallen, he added.

"...Lex? I advise you not to get your hopes up too high. Would a normal heroic spirit become withdrawn? He's just a piece of trash."

The snake gave a rather harsh evaluation, leaving Rean stunned.

This was the former star of this kingdom. But thinking about it, given the snake's level, ordinary heroic spirits probably wouldn't even be in its sights.

"No, do you think Lee Eun-suk would easily look down on someone just because they're less capable than him? That's not what I meant. You'll see later." Of course, Snake wouldn't spell it out, otherwise what if Leon ran away?

We can't see the future "Lee Eun-suk" right now, but just looking at the people around him is enough to recreate the fun of this situation.

Rean wanted to ask more questions, but the snake vanished without a trace. Rean, left behind, felt numb. He sensed this was a bottomless pit, but was the Heroic Soul Card he held in his hand truly destined to remain unactivated?

Rean could clearly sense that the power contained in the Lex card was much greater than that of Sul and Kuku.

“How about I investigate the truth of what happened back then myself? Even if I can’t activate the Heroic Soul Card, I can still make a judgment. If I really meet the Queen and activate the Heroic Soul Card, it’s hard to say what ‘he’ will do.” Rean remembered that when he was in the state of being possessed by the Heroic Soul, he was out of control.

If Rex really did something, let's be careful for now.

Rean shuddered and made a new decision.

The snake's actions caused fate to tilt again, and also allowed Rean to escape the fast track to "hell" slightly.

The "snake," which had been nowhere to be found, suddenly stopped.

In the void, he rolled on the ground in despair, crying tears of regret.

But then he laughed, because fate's "correction mechanism" was quite powerful, and the cause-and-effect relationship had long been a tangled mess.

Often, just when you think you can avoid it, fate will immediately throw you into a fierce battle.

An encounter is inevitable, and there will be plenty of fun. By observing "Marianna's" situation, the snake has already seen a lot of fun, and twists again like a snake.

Rean himself simply put away the Heroic Soul Card, rented a carriage, and returned to his home in the South Gate District.

He could walk back, but considering Lana's accompanying maid and the goods he had purchased, he didn't need to be so frugal.

"I'm back! I'm back! My home, I'm back!"

Lana was very excited, and she immediately ran around in the yard.

Rean carried his things into the mansion, and soon, a delicious aroma wafted from the kitchen.

As night fell, the small mansion was dimly lit, and Rean, who was having dinner with them, felt inexplicably touched.

Is this what home feels like?
He felt somewhat at ease watching Lana happily smear soup all over her face and the maid chasing after her to clean it up.

The thought, "Will the awakening of the previous hero drag her in?" suddenly popped into his head, leaving him somewhat bewildered.

"Probably not. The Hall of Heroes recruits people based on compatibility. Does a blank slate, a degenerate species, have the qualifications to become a new hero?" Rean shook his head with a smile. It was all because of the snake's nonsense that he was becoming suspicious.

While he was enjoying precious family time, the city's top officials were destined to work overtime through the night.

The Queen's sudden announcement naturally sparked much speculation and preparation. She did not specify the exact time of her visit, and it would take a month or two to get from the new capital, but since she had already given the notification, it would be within the next few months at the latest.

At the same time, another woman, whose life was destined to be intertwined with Rean's, had just fallen asleep.

"Phew." In her hotel room, Purple Rose had barely gotten into bed when she was fast asleep.

She was exhausted, not only because she had to travel, but also because she had to help take care of and stabilize the condition of the two younger people. She had already tried her best to return to her "dear" side as soon as possible.

The two little girls slept together on the bed next to each other. They might need Purple Rose to look after them when they "have an attack" at night.

"Bai" was still looking at the storybook she had brought by the dim light. Compared with the days before, her condition was getting worse and worse. Her antlers had swelled up quite quickly, and her body had many more traces of bestiality.

Compared to "Snow," her beastification progress was significantly higher, and her condition deteriorated much faster.

After losing her "contractor," her transformation into a beast has become unstoppable. If a new stabilizer is not found, she will likely soon completely transform into a new "deer."

She had actually thought it through. If she really couldn't be saved, then she would transform into a deer and make a pact with "Snow," which might save her.

"Coward!" And as always, she experienced the usual routine of multiple personalities, being called a coward by another personality.

She sighed, knowing that she wasn't particularly strong. Perhaps her condition had worsened faster than expected because she lacked the will to survive. Perhaps her limited toughness was directed towards her new "sisters."

She blew out the lamp and quickly fell asleep.

In the dream, there should be no abnormality or pain from the beast transformation, nor the discomfort of forcibly healing after the body has shattered.
"What a good child! Would you like to sign a contract with Uncle?" A cute little black snake suddenly appeared in front of her as she was half asleep.

"Absolutely not!" Instantly, Bai snapped out of her daze and remembered the seemingly cute contracted beast from before.

"Never refuse? Okay, okay." But how could that beast prince compare to the real monster before him, the true inventor of the magical girl contract?

The tiny black snake instantly transformed into the all-consuming darkness of night, swallowing the little creature whole.

The new contract instantly replaced the vacant contract slot.

The next morning, Bai, who had returned to her pure white girl form, looked at her perfectly fine self in the mirror and was completely bewildered.

"This isn't a dream. Uh, I've made a contract with another 'me'?!"

"Wait, I can be summoned? What's this strange?"

Twin sisters will probably need some time to get used to the rare kindness of a bad person.

He himself was a snake, yet he climbed onto the bedside of another "woman," laughing happily.

"What a good child. Would you like to sign a contract with your uncle?"

(End of this chapter)