“Well, you certainly have the bravery to stand by the side of the king. Or is this simply foolishness?”

The voice boomed into my head, echoing around and causing a mild headache.

“Perhaps both, but that is not for you to judge; my motives are my own. I needed power, so I obtained it.”

What, what on earth am I saying!?

I was being snide, with the first king and a literal dragon.

What exactly is going on with me?

“Alright, that’s enough of that. You have good compatibility with power. [Judgement End].”

Following the first king’s proclamation, the oppressive aura seemed to vanish. All at once, I was suddenly terrified and collapsed to my knees while shaking. The dragon followed this all with its singular unblinking eye, before slowly reverting back to the form of a man it had first been in.

“This should make it easier to talk… Rupert, once she recovers, bring her to the source and I will bless your marriage.”

That said, the man turned and walked off. Idly, I noted that the ground around did not react like one would expect from such a creature. Unlike my own illusion which would not change the size of my footprints, whatever the first king had done seemed to properly disguise him.

Some sort of polymorph or shapeshifting, then.

Rupert stood impassively a short distance away from me. He made no moves to help, nor did he seem to be in a hurry. It was infuriatingly as though he had predicted this outcome and was content to wait it out. Eventually, my heart rate slowed and the shaking stopped. It was a small blessing, but I had managed not to soil myself. Sitting up onto my knees, I paid no mind to the fact that my dress was getting dirtied.

“W-what was that?”

Rupert had a distant look in his eyes, as though he was reminiscing about some long past event, “The King’s Judgement. One of the magics of the royal family, and arguably the harshest. It only targets members of the royal family and forces your true nature to the surface so that your worth can be judged... You are quite strong-willed, to think your true self would talk back to that.”

It sounds nice, but was that really me? I would say that I am rather timid. Certainly not that arrogant.

If that really was my true self… It was scary that I did not recognize it. There was silence, save for the wind whistling around the rocks and ice.

“…Maybe, though after whatever it was, look what happened to me. If that really is me… I have a long way to go before I am anything like that.”

“Ha.” Rupert let out a short, dry laugh.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. It is just that, I had a rather similar reaction when I was judged by my father.”

“…I see.”

Rupert’s ‘true self’ huh? I would be lying if I said I wasn’t curious… and I feel like it would only be fair for me to know, since he just saw mine…

He fixed me with a stern look before shaking his head begrudgingly, “I was eight. Your uncle had just been found guilty of treason, and I had beseeched my father to spare yours. We were alone, and my father asked me if that was what I really wanted, before using the spell on me. With my true self dragged out, I withdrew my request and apologized for my impertinence… My father pronounced me unworthy of being king then and there.”

“But in the end, he granted your request.”

“He did. He also named me the crown prince.” Again, we fell into silence.

So Rupert’s true self is pragmatic and calculating. I’m sure there are details he left out, but I’m glad I didn’t have to actually ask to get him to tell me.

I did not fault him for changing his stance on my parents; after experiencing the same spell on myself just now how could I? Besides, it did not matter in the end as they had been spared anyway. It did raise the question of what was going on in the king’s head. The current king, not the first one. The few times I had met him, he had seemed rather set in his ways. Certainly not the type of person to bend the law at the request of a son he had deemed unworthy. Likewise, there was the fact that in the end, he had proclaimed that same son to be the next king over his eldest.

“…A king must be true to themselves?”

In response to my muttered comment, Rupert raised an eyebrow.

I shook my head, “Nothing. I can go on now if you are ready.”

After a moment of hesitation, I reached up with one hand. Rupert looked at it with mild surprise then grasped it and hauled me up. Though it was regrettable it couldn’t be said that he helped me up, to do so would be a lie. That was fine though, if my theory was right everything would make some degree of sense.

It’s backwards as hell, but it makes sense on a fundamental level. The first king is a dragon, and the current king rules with a philosophy that strength is all-important. But that’s just the current king. The first king didn’t seem to respect my own strength, despite the fact that he has to know what happens down in the capital. He tested my personality.

In short, what mattered was not the strength of the ruler, but the strength of their character. The king needed to be true to themselves in order to rule. Rupert had been pronounced unworthy when he demonstrated that he was going against his nature by feigning compassion… Then, when he embraced his cold and calculating side he began to plot and scheme so the king changed his evaluation.

Of course, that theory fell through with my own nature. I did not see how my actions followed after the arrogance and pride that the dragon had said I had. It would be worth asking him when we met again, as long as it looked like I’d get away with it. Angering a literal dragon would be a stupid idea. Even if he was weaker than Five, he was stronger than Sitri, just judging by his mana.

While my own mana could eclipse his it would require me to disconnect from the system again, which was probably not possible without [Cold Hearted]. Emotional control might be one of my strengths, but good control was far removed from outright disabling. Not to mention the fact that doing that would probably kill me again, and as far as I was aware, there were no more green mushrooms available.

There was also the fear that the first king had been somehow masking his true mana; he had spoken of Adroni as though he knew who that was. That meant this dragon was rather old, though being a dragon that was hardly surprising. But if he knew Adroni, that would mean that he probably predated the system. The fact that he used magic outside of it lent credence to the theory as well.

Well, if I think I can get away with it, I have a lot of questions. At this point, it’s pretty obvious why that jerk wanted me to come here so soon; so that they could see my reaction to the dragon.

Given everything I knew about Adroni, the only reason they would conceivably have for giving me that little nudge was just to make my reaction happen sooner. It was going to happen within the next few months anyway since this first king evidently had to judge me. Adroni was probably simply too excited to wait.

In the future, I will be ignoring any further communications from that asshole.

Together, Rupert and I crested the absolute peak where the first king was waiting. His human form was sitting cross-legged in a meditation pose of sorts. Before him lay a single gleaming silvery-white scale. It was pretty obviously one of his own, and yet it was somehow even more dazzling than the ones still attached.

Without opening his eyes, he spoke as we approached, “My heart scale, and the reason why I despise the third child so much. Stahlia von Drakas und zu Ris, place your hand on the scale.”

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Well, that just adds more questions.

Still, it would not be a good idea to anger him by refusing. Stretching out my hand to touch the heart scale, I felt resistance similar to the barrier that surrounded the mountain summit. There was an electrifying sensation that I recognized as mana that passed through my arm, and then words appeared in my vision.

“Obtained Title: [Princess of the Silver Dragon]”

“I recognize you as kin. That makes you the second in a thousand years, be honored.”

It took a moment for things to sink in but when they did, I realized that Rupert was showing a very rare smirk.

Ignoring him for just a moment, I tried very hard to keep my voice level and asked the first king, “The second?”

“Your mate has the cunning and pragmatic outlook of a dragon. You have our pride and our greed. It has been a thousand years since I last recognized the rulers of this kingdom as kin.”

I shot a glare at Rupert, “You could have told me. Actually, why didn’t you?”

It was the first king that answered by interjecting, “Because I forbid him. For the test to be wholly accurate, you could not be expecting it. You should be proud of him; given the provisions of your contract not telling you was rather difficult.”

No wonder he looks smug, when did Rupert set this up…? A while ago. This would explain why most of my interactions have been through Gustav or some other proxy. So, he wasn’t giving me the opportunity to lie or not tell the truth. He was giving it to himself. Cunning, I guess.

Before anything else, I took a moment to quickly check the title’s effects;

[Princess of the Silver Dragon]: Awarded to those women recognized as honorary kin by the Silver Dragon. Effects: Cloaks the holder in the aura of a silver dragon; laces the words spoken to those beneath the holder with a compelling effect.

It was about what one would expect.

Well, I probably won’t use this one. Unless the ‘aura of a silver dragon’ has an effect besides making my words compel people. I can already use the voice of the king if I really need to force my will on someone, and after everything, I’ve been through… Yea, I don’t really want to use the ability to do something like that.

“Thanks, I guess.”

The first king opened his eyes and fixed them on me, “You are welcome. With the two of you in power, the kingdom should be secure for another few hundred years.”

He shut his eyes again, as though to say we were done talking. Rupert turned to depart, but I decided to try and ask at least some of my questions.

“Excuse me, but why do all this?”

Rupert gave a start and reached his arm towards me, “Stahlia,”

Inadvertently stepping out of his reach, I felt my pulse quicken as my hands shook slightly.

Knock it off, just breathe.

After forcing myself to calm down, I fixed the first king with a look awaiting an answer. When he did not immediately show ire, Rupert relaxed. Evidently, he had been curious as well.

“Do what?” The man’s voice was calm, but I knew all too well that it could merely be an act; anger could hide behind the calmest of facades. Still, it should be safe to push on at least for a little while; I doubted very much that he would explode at me right after naming me honorary kin… Though the jury was still out on exactly how big of a deal that was; titles were only as useful as the people who respected them.

“Rule through a proxy, allow a Hell King to run rampant in the kingdom you founded, stay up on this mountain for so long instead of interacting with the world.” There was a lot more rolled into my “this” but those three were the key points.

“I see. It appears that there is a fundamental misconception, no doubt in part due to how Rupert introduced us… I do not want to rule this kingdom, nor did I found it. Something so trite would be beneath me. The kingdom was founded around the mountain where I lived already. I merely allowed it.”

So he isn’t the founder, then first king would be...

“First King was a title bestowed on me by the founder of Drakas, but I was never the king of this kingdom.”

“I am sure. But why let someone like Five run around freely? You clearly care about the kingdom all the same.” I pressed on; this was what I really wanted to know. If something like a dragon was living in the capital, then how come I had to do everything I did?

He opened his eyes again before speaking further, his voice now rising a bit, “What makes you think that I care? I existed before this country and will exist long after.”

He was clearly getting a bit angry, but as long as I picked my words carefully it should be fine, “Well, you granted the royal family magic in your name from what I know, and you mentioned how you approved of the ruler a thousand years ago. The same way you approved of Rupert and myself.”

“Do not play games with my words.” He was staring at me hard now while beginning to exert some of the pressure from before.

Then, all at once, the pressure vanished, “Even if I did care, there is nothing I could have done; I am bound to this place through my heart scale.”

Yea, ok, isn’t that what you call Tsundere? “Even if I did care.” Whatever, the point is, he’s stuck on the mountain? Because of his heart scale? As much as I want to know more, I feel like that would be a very touchy subject… I also kind of already have a pretty good idea what happened based on context.

Adroni is the third sibling of the three gods, and even if it was a test, the hatred he held in his words about Adroni’s divine oath I have was real. So, the jerk did something to him, which resulted in him being stuck here. Well, I could be off base, but I doubt it.

“So you were stuck up here, forced to watch as the fifth seat ran rampant… That must have been awful, I’m sorry.” My sorrow was real, I knew all to well what it was like to feel powerless and be forced to watch the world run around you.

“Well, it does not matter; you dealt with it easily enough on your own… That man was right.”

The way he spoke, reminded me of an old person reminiscing about the past.

Looking at him now, it is kind of easy to see him as a broken, lonely, old man. It would not be hard to forget his true form if I wasn’t careful. But what’s this about a man being right about something?

I wanted to ask, but it seemed like the timing would be wrong if I did now. Taking a step closer to Rupert, my voice lowered to a whisper, “Is there anything that would prevent me from coming back later now?”

Subtly, he shook his head, “No, but I would prefer if you did not; you do not seem to realize the line you are treading right now.”

There was a retort that could be made, but I held my tongue. Starting an argument here would be pointless, and if I could come back later that was all that mattered.

I’ll just need to be careful and judge how hard I push for answers. Rupert obviously doesn’t think that the risks outweigh the potential benefits, but that’s just bias given the relationship between the dragon and the kingdom. With my own outside context, this dragon is basically just a giant info dump. As long as I watch myself, I could learn a lot of incredibly useful information from a being that’s live more than a thousand years.

My feet carried me away from Rupert, until I was only a few meters away from the man, “One last question, if I may?”

He shook his head, rousing himself from the memories he was no doubt lost in, “Oh? You two are still here? I had expected you would be long dead by now. What question?”

“Right… What is your name? Prince Rupert introduced you as the first king and my titles refer to you as the Silver Dragon, but what should I actually call you?”

The man blinked, “My name? As much as I would like to tell it, you do not have a decade. I have named you as kin, call me as you wish.”

Ok… Well shit. If I choose wrong here, he’ll definitely get angry. Pride in names and all that…

I glanced at Rupert for assistance; he might actually know what the man used to be called back when the kingdom was founded. Unfortunately, it would seem as though he did not. I spent several minutes thinking on the matter, coming up with several names but throwing them all out for one reason or another.

Names that had the benefit of remarking on his appearance were the first things thought of, but I rejected them because they were too basic. Next, various well-known dragons from Earth mythology. But each of those had a problem of its own; the most well-known were all evil, and the ones that were not tended to be named after a specific personality trait. I would be screwed if he asked me how I came up with the name.

Well, I could be cheap and just say that I can’t think of anything worthy. That would be safest, but it wouldn’t earn me any favors… Alright, lets go with…

“Drakas. I will call you after the kingdom that, whether or not you care about it, owes its existence to you.”

Please like it, or at least don’t be angry!

“…Ha! Hahaha! ‘Drakas’ she says! Very well, you may call me such.”

Ok… humor is not what I was expecting… This is good though?

Rupert had turned pale and was staring at me with his mouth open in blatant surprise.

It did not look like Drakas was going to stop his mirth any time soon, so I excused myself with an awkward smile and a word before making my way back down the path with Rupert.

“Stahlia, do you have any idea how lucky you are?” He sounded rather tired.

“I agree that the name was not the most creative, but it did not anger him.”

“…You gave him our name. Rupert von Drakas, Stahlia von Drakas und zu Ris. He could have taken that as a grave insult.”

My feet slowed to a stop. That little tidbit had eluded me in my deliberations. I could feel the blood drain out from my face as I turned pale, “You could have said something!”

“Had I spoken up, there is a good chance he would have gotten upset by the interruption.”

After a moment we resumed walking, though my steps were a bit shaky now.

Talk about missing the forest for the trees! I thought that was a decently safe suggestion!