Shadow Dragon: The Fallen Angel Is My Teacher

'Yuna, get ready to use your luck-increasing ability when I give the signal.'

She blinked once, faintly tilting her head as she heard my sudden thoughts.

"What happened, Lord of Shadows?" she asked softly.

Her tone wasn't loud, but it carried worry.

'Yuna, that woman in Japanese clothing is possessed by a Rank 4 Parasitic Type Cursed Spirit. Although the chances of her attacking us are low, we still need to be ready to escape.'

Her lips parted, and her expression became serious in an instant.

A Rank 4 Cursed Spirit was not something we could take lightly.

Especially one whose narrative allowed it to disguise itself and infiltrate Exorcist Clans.

Cursed Spirits like that had narratives that gave them a lot of freedom to move around.

They were the reason several old clans were destroyed from the inside.

I stayed seated at the largest table in the inn.

It was wide and clean, placed near the center of the hall.

People around us kept glancing toward me, but no one came close without clear purpose.

The first ones to approach were a pair wearing turban-style clothing.

The man had a warm brown complexion, thick eyebrows, and a proud, bushy mustache.

The woman beside him had a relaxed smile and held a small satchel.

Both looked like friendly traders who traveled a lot.

The man stepped forward with an easy grin.

"Greetings, Rune Sage. It's my honor to meet someone as knowledgeable as you."

He extended his hand.

I looked at it, then looked back at him without moving.

"Name and organization?"

He chuckled, withdrawing his hand without any irritation.

"Rank 3 Exorcist, Nadar. People call me Night Wind. As for my organization, I'm from the Nightforge Consortium. We mainly trade Cursed Items and other resources extracted from Cursed Spirits."

He then gestured toward the woman.

"And this is my partner, Safiya."

Safiya nodded politely.

I returned the gesture.

"Caelum Nocthera. Mechanic and Runesmith."

"Nocthera?" Nadar repeated with interest.

He had probably guessed I was connected to Nocthera because of my white hair and blue eyes.

But his calm reaction showed he was experienced. He didn't show surprise at the revelation of my name.

"Sit. I want to talk to all of you," I said.

Nadar and Safiya sat down with relaxed movements.

The next group to arrive moved together in perfect sync.

Two identical men.

Their steps matched. Even their breathing matched.

They bowed slightly.

"Unity," they said at the same time.

They didn't offer personal names. They never did.

I asked, "Designation numbers?"

A flicker of surprise passed through their eyes.

It was faint, but noticeable.

They likely didn't expect me to know that Unity members used designation numbers.

"1001," the one on the left said.

"1005," the other added.

I nodded.

Unity was a special organization.

Their members shared a single hive-like existence.

There was no individual identity.

They all functioned as one.

The numbers only indicated how strong a body was among their many hosts.

A number in the early thousands meant the body was among the stronger Rank 3 forms the Unity possessed.

The twins sat down quietly.

The next group approached, but the moment I looked at them, my mind felt hazy.

I couldn't determine their exact appearance.

Their faces refused to come into focus.

And their clothes looked like shifting shapes.

But even with that strange blur, one word surfaced unnaturally in my head.

[Exorcist.]

My mind was telling me they were Exorcist.

"Color me surprised. I didn't think New Order would come today," I said.

The taller one tilted his head.

"We had to. Your ability is precious."

His voice sounded deeper than normal, almost echoing.

It didn't disturb me, but it wasn't natural either.

I nodded once, and they sat without me needing to say anything more.

New Order was a Cursed Spirit supremacy organization.

Many of their members were Cursed Spirits themselves, or humans who had become Cursed Spirits through contamination.

Their goal was simple.

Destroy every Exorcist Clan, and bring an era of Cursed Spirits.

They almost never attended peaceful meetings, and mainly employed force for all negotiations.

The fact that they were here today for a peaceful meeting showed how rare of an ability to steal a God was.

Before I could think further, two more figures approached.

Both were women.

Their skin was pale grey.

Their ears were long and elegant.

Their white hair was tied in neat styles.

They stopped in front of me.

The taller woman stared with wide eyes.

"A-Are you really a Nocthera?"

"Yes," I said with a smile.

For once, I didn't act distant or cold. "It's nice to meet you. Seeing your appearance… you're descendants of survivors from the Nocthera Empire, right? I'm glad to see you two look healthy."

"Prince!"

She dropped to her knees so fast the chairs around her shook.

She tried to hold back her tears, but her shoulders trembled.

"I… I cannot express how happy I am to see someone who still carries the Bloodline of the Great Emperor."

The other woman crossed her arms.

She didn't kneel. Her expression was sharp, almost suspicious.

"My name is Velyra, and this emotional fool is Serine," she said with a sigh.

Velyra then grabbed Serine by her collar and pulled her up before dragging her toward a seat.

Serine wiped her eyes quietly while glancing at me with deep respect.

Velyra, on the other hand, watched me like she wanted to see through every lie I might speak.

Clearly, she wasn't convinced yet that I was a true descendant of Emperor Legion, the last ruler of the Nocthera Empire.

After they settled in, I turned to the final group from the Prime Five.

My main target today.

A young man stepped forward.

He was barely in his twenties.

His golden hair was radiant like sun, and his robe looked worn, as if he didn't care about appearances.

But his eyes were striking.

Mechanical eyes.

Not simple cybernetic replacements, but advanced models.

They zoomed in and out like camera lenses, capturing every detail of me and the entire table.

He placed one metallic hand over his chest.

The sound of metal against fabric was clear.

"Saint Marvick from System Church," he said politely.

He gestured behind him.

"This is Judy. My partner."

A small, hovering automaton floated closer.

Judy was round and smooth, with a tiny black screen on its front.

Two fluorescent lines shaped like eyes glowed on the screen.

Behind it hung a metal tail that flicked lightly.

It wasn't just a simple machine.

If it was following a Saint, it likely had a soul.

'Saint Marvick… System Church sent a big one.'

He was Rank 3 now.

But he would reach Rank 5 in the future.

My house, House Daelthorn, had existed for generations.

In all that time, fewer than five members had ever reached Rank 5.

So the fact that this young man in front of me would reach that level said a lot about his talent.

Marvick sat down, and Judy hovered near his shoulder like a quiet guardian.

With that, every group from the Prime Five had greeted me.

The hall grew quieter for a moment.

Then the last group arrived.

The human Exorcists.

One stepped forward with confident strides.

She wore a standard Exorcist uniform with slight Japanese design influences.

Her hair was tied back neatly, and her eyes were sharp but polite.

"I am Tomoe from Exorcist Union," she introduced.

Beside her stood a tall grey kangaroo.

He had bright yellow eyes that scanned the room with steady focus.

His uniform was specially made to fit his shape.

A metal staff rested on his back, strapped with thick belts.

He bowed slightly.

"I am Roojin," he said in a calm voice.

The inn grew almost silent at the sight of an intelligent kangaroo speaking perfect tongue.

Several crewmates turned their heads, impressed or confused.

Roojin didn't mind the attention.

He simply stood there with good posture, waiting.

Tomoe and Roojin then took their seats at the long table.

Yuna stayed beside me quietly.

Her gaze kept shifting to the woman possessed by the Rank 4 Parasitic Type Cursed Spirit.

I tapped my fingers lightly on the table.

Everyone was here.

I waited a moment before speaking.

"Once again, I'm Caelum Nocthera. I have a lot to say, and there is a reason I created a commotion by summoning a God. It was to bring people from the Exorcist Union and the Prime Five here."

I looked around the table.

Some faces were calm.

Some were anxious.

Some were calculating.

"But before I explain why I called all of you here, let's have a Q&A session. I'm sure you're curious about me. So go ahead. Each group gets one question."

I smiled lightly, keeping my tone relaxed.

Tomoe from the Exorcist Union spoke first.

"Where were you until now?"

"Living in this domain. I was born here, and I only left a few days ago," I replied.

Tomoe nodded slowly.

She didn't seem convinced, but she didn't push further.

Nadar from the Nightforge Consortium leaned forward next.

"Where did you learn about the runes?"

"From my master," I answered simply.

Safiya's eyes showed a bit of curiosity, but she stayed silent.

The Unity twins spoke next.

Their voices overlapped perfectly.

"Who is your master?"

"An automaton left by the Legion to raise his successor," I said.

Several people froze.

Even the air felt still for a second.

Being connected to Legion was not small.

He was the last emperor of the Nocthera Empire.

A legend who had once ruled the Planet Moon.

A mechanic without equal, defeated only by the Monkey King. Even then, it had taken considerable effort.

Records claimed Legion was Rank 6.

A level most people would never even see in their lifetime.

Being raised by someone like that changed everything.

The large Exorcist from New Order cleared his throat and asked his question.

"Can you prove that?"

I met his eyes.

"Is that your question?" I asked.

"Yes," he said firmly.

"I can give you proof of the Soul-Vector Mechanics Formation Theorem, which is used to bind mechanical souls to automatons."

The entire table went silent.

Not a single person moved.

The theory was something only Rank 5 Mechanics could understand.

And even then, very few had ever mastered it.

Of course, knowing theory and understanding it were different.

They understood I was not a Rank 5 Mechanic, but saying I knew it meant I had been taught by someone very knowledgeable.

Yuna, who was sitting on top of my head, sighed loudly.

"You really do have a talent for lying, Lord of Shadows. I've never seen you hesitate while speaking lies."

'Is she praising me or making fun of me?' I thought.

Probably both.

I let my gaze move across the table again.

None of them asked me to actually show the proof.

My confidence was enough to silence them.

And after stealing a god just days ago, they understood I wasn't someone to underestimate.

"P-Prince, are you going to return to us?" Serine from Broken Oath asked suddenly.

Her voice cracked a little.

She looked hopeful and frightened at the same time.

"Depends on how this meeting goes," I said casually.

Her shoulders tensed at the vague reply.

Finally, I turned to Saint Mavrick.

"Your question?"

He rested his mechanical hand on the table and asked calmly, "What is your goal? Why did you suddenly come out and show yourself now?"

"My goal is connected to why I called all of you here."

I reached into my pocket and took out a folded photograph.

The paper was old and slightly wrinkled from being carried around.

I placed it in the center of the table.

The picture showed a boy wearing thick clothes that hid every bit of skin.

His face was covered by a plain white mask.

Alan Verituis.

My alias.

I had taken this photo only a few days ago.

I tapped the picture lightly.

"The disciple of Monkey King who revealed himself a few weeks ago… I'm going to kill him, and then the Monkey King."