Leo's ears burned from the whispers, though he didn't flinch. The words barely touched him, not personally, but something about their persistence tugged at him. He tilted his head, watching their expressions more than listening. The villagers weren't just mocking him. They were sure.
Certain of something he hadn't caught on to.
That alone was enough to make him move.
He stepped away from Roxanne, gently peeling her fingers from his sleeve. She clung a little longer, her grip hesitant, before letting go and pulling Ai closer like a warm pillow against her chest.
Leo approached a small knot of villagers, their laughter faltering as he came near.
"What do you mean by that?" he asked, his voice even, his face unreadable.
One of the men, broad-shouldered and draped in patchy armor, barked a short laugh. "You really don't know, do you?"
Before he could go on, a voice sliced through the air like a whip.
"You fools."
An old woman stepped forward. Her back was straight despite her age, and her walking stick tapped against the stone with force that demanded attention. Her eyes swept over the crowd, judging, measuring. She reached Leo's side and nodded once, approvingly.
"Forgive the townspeople for their foolishness," she said, her voice softening as she turned to him. "They mock what they fear. What they don't understand."
The murmuring around them died quickly, replaced by the shuffle of feet and awkward, ashamed glances.
Before Leo could respond, a young girl hurried toward him, robes fluttering behind her. She wore simple priest garments. Neat, unadorned, but clearly well-cared for. Her eyes sparkled with something between reverence and obsession.
She stopped just shy of him, breathless.
"It's beautiful," she whispered, as if speaking too loudly might shatter the moment. "I never thought I'd get to see it up close…"
Leo blinked. "See what?"
"The Blight of the Vanquished," she said, and her voice trembled. "The curse that only appears on those who've slain a system user." Her words spilled out in a rush. "It's rare… so rare. Deadly. Unstable. But it means you did something unthinkable."
She stepped back slowly, eyes wide as though she were staring at something divine. Her lip quivered. Then—
Drip.
A thin line of drool slid from the corner of her mouth.
Before the moment could devolve further, three adventurers dashed over. One, a tall girl with a bow slung across her back, grabbed the priestess and pulled her back firmly. A boy with a shield steadied her as she stumbled, half-hypnotized. The third, shorter, with a chipped staff in hand, bowed deeply.
"Sorry," he said quickly. "She's our healer. She has… unusual tastes."
Leo gave a small nod. "It's fine."
The boy offered a grateful smile and ran after the others.
Then, silence.
Not the awkward kind. The reverent kind.
One by one, the villagers dropped to their knees. Heads bowed, foreheads brushing the dirt. Some whispered prayers. Others simply knelt, eyes closed.
Leo stared.
"What are they doing?" he asked, baffled.
Beside him, the old lady smiled. "They kneel because they remember."
Roxanne watched quietly from behind, her heart pulled taut with something she couldn't name. Awe? Pride? Dread? She wasn't sure.
"The Dragon Lord once accepted a quest from this village," the old woman continued. "A dungeon subjugation. That very dungeon your team is heading toward."
Leo's expression shifted.
She nodded. "He came back empty-handed. Said the quest was a trap. Then he nearly razed the village."
Her voice dropped, the memory pressing down like a cold wind.
"We returned from our own mission too late. Half the village was gone."
Leo stared at her. "And you intimidated a system user like that?"
The old woman snorted. "Me? No. I was just baggage back then."
She smiled, looking far beyond the present. "But one of my party members… he was the real deal."
Leo's curiosity flickered. "Who?"
The old woman's eyes lit up with memory. "Kael."
Her voice lifted slightly, brushing against something both proud and wistful. "He wielded twin blades and carved through monsters like they were smoke. He was fast. Precise. Like he danced through death itself."
She took a breath. "But more than that… he had heart. Kindness. He made people feel safe just by standing beside them."
Leo frowned. The name echoed in his mind.
"He fought the Dragon Lord?" he asked.
"He didn't have to," she said with a chuckle. "The Dragon Lord saw him and ran."
Leo tilted his head slightly. "What happened to him?"
She pointed toward the distant peaks, where the shimmer of distant towers cut against the sky. "Now? He runs the human kingdom."
Leo's heart stopped.
Kael… He'd heard that name before. Seen it.
Yesterday.
The king. The Sword Master. The one he saw patrolling the streets yesterday. Was that Kael?
Ai slipped out from Roxanne's arms and walked over, her hand brushing Leo's sleeve.
"Yes, that was him," she said, confirming what he already suspected.
Leo's mind spun. That man… that easygoing king… was once the blade that stopped a Dragon Lord cold?
He turned toward the old lady. "Can we talk more when I return?"
She laughed, loud and full of life. "I'm old, and I'm not going anywhere."
Leo smiled faintly. His hand rose, pulling the hair tie from his wrist. With a swift motion, he bound his hair back into a neat ponytail. The wind picked up, brushing against his cheek like a whisper.
Turning to Roxanne, he called out, "I'm running ahead."
She nodded, a soft smile blooming on her face.
Leo raised his right hand.
Roxanne's body shimmered. Then she dissolved. Her form exploding into hundreds of crimson butterflies, each one trailing sparks of light. They circled around Leo, gathering, compressing, converging—
—into a gleaming sword.
Leo gripped the hilt.
His knees bent.
And then. He vanished.
A thunderous boom followed a heartbeat later, kicking up dust in his wake.
The old woman laughed again, shaking her head. "Brat moves like lightning."
Ai, still standing nearby, bowed once.
Then she and the cats disappeared in a flicker of golden light, leaving behind only wonder-struck silence.
Leo cut through the wind, the sword warm in his grip, the village far behind him now. The old woman's voice lingered in his thoughts. So did Kael's smile.
There were dungeons to conquer.
And legends to catch up to.