Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 224 Family Gathering
"She looks so pretty, or rather, beautiful."

The carriage stopped near the city gate, and Princess Dania, smiling, led her entourage to greet it.

Her Majesty no longer put on airs; she slowly stepped out of the car and waved to her welcomeers and supporters.

It was an elegant and graceful gown, without excessive embellishment, but paired with a sapphire crown, it exuded a noble air that had stood the test of time. The black veil that she always wore in the past had also been removed, and her faint smile revealed a slight weariness.

She's very beautiful, extremely beautiful, but quite different from what Rean remembers.

The impetuousness and bookishness of her youth are gone; her azure eyes now hold a resolute will and a hidden sorrow. It seems she is not doing well.

Compared to the chubby cheeks of the girl in his memory, she was now much thinner. Although she had everything she should have and the fullness of a mature woman, she had an icy temperament like an iceberg. The worry in her eyes made Rean think only of negative emotions such as "loneliness" and "betrayal".

Of course, people who aren't very familiar with her wouldn't be able to tell these things.

What they saw was the Queen smiling as she accepted the flowers from her daughter and waving happily to the crowd.

"The princess who couldn't act at all has matured. She, who never compromised, can now even force a smile."

Rean touched his head and sighed. The influence of the dream was still there; he needed some time to adjust.

In his own experience, one day is enough. After all, these are not his own memories and experiences, and they will soon become blurred and difficult to distinguish from his own memories.

In the end, it will be more like a memory of "watching a movie" than the feeling of "experiencing it firsthand".

The princess and queen began their slow procession through the streets. Seeing that the welcoming ceremony seemed to be going smoothly, Rean also wanted to slip away.

His main purpose was to verify the "princess's" identity. Once he confirmed that she was not the queen herself, he naturally prepared to leave.

"Rean, Her Highness Dania wants us to wait at the city lord's mansion; the Queen wishes to see us."

Well, there's no escaping it now.

Considering everything that had happened before, and Rean's special status, it seemed only natural for Dania to introduce Rean to the Queen.

I don't know if the introduction is "the spokesperson for the Heroic Spirits" or "the daughter's friend". Either way, Rean has a very bad feeling.

But some things cannot be avoided, especially with something still watching him from the shadows. Rean does need the support of the royal family.

Rean had anticipated a meeting, but he never expected it to happen so soon.
"Why so slow!"

However, the actual development is always quite subtle. After the Queen entered the city, it took a considerable amount of time just for the trivial ceremonies and to meet with people of higher priority.

Around noon, he dined with some high-ranking nobles, archmages, and high priests. Dania went to keep him company, while Rean could only silently nibble on his bread.

He still needed to wait to be summoned at any time and it was inconvenient for him to leave, so Rean got to experience the treatment of a "subordinate".

It wasn't until almost dinner time in the afternoon that Rean and Suliman saw Her Majesty the Queen again in a side room.

There was no one else in the side room. Marianna was reclining in a chair, one hand on her cane, her eyes half-closed, seemingly listening to her daughter's whispers. But Rean knew that she probably wasn't listening to anything. In this state, she was probably having another migraine.

Once she drinks ice water or works overtime, she falls into this "nervous lion" state. At this time, even the slightest noise will give her a bigger headache. She will bite anyone who provokes her and will be extremely unreasonable.

In the past, Lex would particularly like to come up with important business to attend to at this time, and would even speed up and run around the area.

The queen, her eyes half-closed, watched the male figure enter and listened to the footsteps.
She slowly opened her eyes, and in the light, she saw the faint silhouette of that warm figure, that man who knew no fatigue or fear.
"A single-celled organism?" Despite not being able to remember its appearance clearly, Marianna, who suddenly sat up straight, could sense that it was him! It was him!

She blurted it out instinctively, but the person opposite her, backlit by the sun, frowned, that familiar flick of the corner of their eye. There was no mistake! It was him!

"Your Highness, I apologize for the missing front tooth!" Even though she instinctively stepped back, it was too late.

The Queen stood up abruptly, her phoenix eyes widening in shock and disbelief.

The next moment, two tear tracks appeared on his cheeks, and his height, which was even taller than Rean's, gave the man a considerable sense of oppression.

The Queen was even more troubled.

The faces, the portraits, the sculptures—the holes that had been erased—were filled one by one.

The fragments of her lost memories are being gradually pieced together. How could there be a perfect memory erasure spell? The moment someone recognizes the Thousand-Faced Dragon, all her erased memories and impressions will be retrieved!

"You, it's you."

This face, this face, although there are some subtle changes, although it looks younger, I will never forget it even if it is burned to ashes!
"Lex! Lex Thorne! How dare you face me!"

The Queen's roar echoed throughout the side hall, and its contents, if spread, would cause a great uproar.

“Your Majesty, this is Rean Sudar, not the hero,” Suliman stepped forward at this moment. This is her man, not yours!

Dania? She was stunned.

My eyes widened as I looked at my mother, who had never shown any emotion before, and saw her so angry.

What did she say? What was she saying?
Lex Thorne? Lex? The Hero's Father?!
Rean, is he your father?! Are you kidding me!
At this moment, the princess was completely dumbfounded. Too much information was swirling in her mind, and she couldn't understand what was happening at all. She was utterly stunned.

"I am not Lex."

Rean was also stunned. This was a completely unexpected development. He had thought that he might leak information, but he did not expect it to happen so quickly.

They found out as soon as we met?! What the hell is going on?!
He was still struggling to find the right words, trying to continue his sophistry, but someone had been waiting for this moment for far too long.
"Is it a family gathering today? Why didn't you tell me?"

Sweet words suddenly rang out from behind the Queen.

Marianna turned around abruptly, her face showing complete disbelief.

"Why...are you still alive?" The princess couldn't understand why people who were supposed to be dead were appearing in the world one by one.

"Why? I don't know either. Why don't you ask my dear why you let me live?" The black-haired princess looked at the only man in the room with her honey-like eyes.

Honey?
When the sisters turned their gaze to Rean, he was stunned.

How would I know? I really don't know!
"By the way, little Hela, this is your father. Greet him."

"dad."

From the shadows emerged another girl without any other beast-like features. She resembled Dania by at least 70%! She looked like an older version of her!

A class reunion? A family gathering? A battleground? No, it was a hellish party!
In just a moment, the scene was completely chaotic. Rean was still in a daze, but the Heroic Spirit Card on his chest had already become extremely hot.

"elder sister."

The smiling black-haired princess, the ominous second princess, has waited far too long for this day.

Facing her beloved older sister, the one who once loved her most, she smiled and uttered the cruelest words.

"I originally planned to kill you with my own hands the moment I saw you, my dear."

But the next moment, the "girl" shook her head and said with some regret.

"But it's a real shame, it doesn't mean much anymore. My dear, he doesn't remember us anymore, so he won't feel any pain if you die."

The ominous princess, once again smiling, vanished into nothingness, seemingly about to disappear.

"I chose to kill her."

Slender fingers emerged from her chest. The blonde girl clutched her chest as a strong smell of blood filled the air. She couldn't understand what was happening.

“Rean.” Dania reached out, as if to grab something, but ultimately stopped, her eyes gradually losing their light.

Behind her, the black-haired princess, who had vanished and reappeared, laughed happily.
"Daughter!" The Queen was instantly enraged and swung her staff, ready to strike.

But there were others who were even angrier than her, far angrier!
"Rosalind!"

A deafening roar echoed throughout the world, causing the entire city and continent to tremble slightly.

Those dragon eyes burned with flames from hell; the invincible warrior returned to the mortal realm.

The snake's contract has been fulfilled, and on this day, Lex will be the most complete hero!

He drew his sword.

The ends of her hair were ablaze.

Longan, transformed into a star.

Then, dawn broke.

On that day, everyone witnessed the enormous sword energy that split apart from the middle of the city, and saw the sun burning fiercely on land.

The strongest, the most wicked, the most invincible hero has returned to the human world.

(End of this chapter)