Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

That night, inside a tavern in the capital city of Lutherias—clunk! phew!—Cleo slammed her mug onto the bar counter with force. Slumping over, her mind flashed back to what had unfolded just a few hours prior.

***

Blam!

Cleo was back in front of Alexius and Mateo. Alexius slammed his fist onto the desk, his face red with rage, causing Cleo to flinch slightly. Mateo tried his best to calm the king’s temper.

”You are a Royal Mage! I didn’t ask you to just post a bounty at the Adventurer Guild! I instructed you to recruit adventurers and lead an expedition north to track down that black dragon and the man you claim is an Ancient One!” Alexius roared.

”But Your Majesty... if I leave, who will handle the official affairs here?” Cleo asked.

”Mateo, summon Fergil,” Alexius ordered.

”At once, Your Majesty,” Mateo replied.

As Mateo stepped out, Cleo gritted her teeth. She knew Fergil all too well—he was a guy two years younger than her, a former junior of hers who harbored wild ambitions of stealing her position as Royal Mage. On top of that, he was a friend of Dion and Luna from the Thetor Kingdom, boasting an SS-rank Sage class.

”You will hand over all royal duties to Fergil. I expect you to take full responsibility for concealing a matter of this magnitude from the crown,” Alexius said sternly.

”But Your Majesty, Fergil isn’t as strong as I am. If the kingdom is threatened... there’s no way he can erect a barrier strong enough to protect this realm,” Cleo protested.

”That is precisely why you are the one who must go. Fergil could never face a calamity dragon. I expect you to understand and since there is now a shortcut leading directly from our kingdom to Minatheras, I cannot simply dispatch our standing army. That is why I need you to assemble the Adventurer Guild,” Alexius countered.

Cleo went quiet for a moment. She understood the king’s line of thinking. It was true: because of the massive crater splitting the mountain and erasing the forest, a wide, open road now connected the Lutherias Kingdom to the Minatheras Kingdom, and both nations would undoubtedly race to secure control over that shortcut. Ultimately, Cleo resigned herself to her fate.

”Understood... Your Majesty. I see your point. I will not disappoint you, and once again, I offer my deepest apologies,” Cleo said, bowing low, though her hands trembled as she clenched her fists so hard her knuckles turned white.

”Now leave. Go back to the guild and inform them that you will personally accompany the adventurers up north to hunt down that rampaging black dragon, Gemmeth, that was set free,” Alexius commanded.

”Understood... Your Majesty. I shall take my leave,” Cleo replied, taking a heavy gulp and bowing once more.

***

Back in the present, Cleo slouched over, gripping her mug tightly. She raised it to her lips and tipped it back, but not a single drop came out. ”Tch,” she clicked her tongue in annoyance.

”Ale! Bring me another mug... wait... make it two!” Cleo shouted, waving her empty mug in the air.

”You’ve had way too much to drink, Royal Mage,” the bartender said, looking concerned.

”Huh?! You’re not my dad, so stop lecturing me and just pour the drink!” Cleo barked at the bartender.

The bartender merely grunted, filled two large mugs of ale from the tap, and set them down in front of her. Without missing a beat, Cleo chugged one mug completely. Phew! She slammed the empty glass back onto the wooden counter.

”Damn it... Dion... you should’ve just come with me to see the king... but... if you got executed, I’d actually be miserable... aaaah... my life is a disaster!” Cleo yelled, completely wasted and disheveled.

”Are you... Cleo?”

Hearing a young man’s voice behind her, Cleo turned her flush-red face toward the speaker. Her eyes scanned from bottom to top, taking in a handsome young man clad in golden armor with messy blonde hair, dark circles under his eyes, and bloodshot gaze. She let out a sneering laugh, turned back to the bar, snatched her second mug, and chugged it down.

The young man, who was none other than Rene, took a seat beside Cleo. He reached over and grabbed her glass mid-drink, stopping her.

”You’re drunk,” Rene said, holding onto her mug.

”So what? What’s it to you?!” Cleo snapped, snatching the mug right back.

”What happened, Cleo? Why are you like this?” Rene asked, showing genuine concern.

Cleo stared at Rene sitting beside her. Hic! She hiccuped loudly, releasing a wave of alcohol fumes right into Rene’s face. Then, without warning, Cleo burst into tears.

”It’s all because of Dion... If he hadn’t created a shortcut from Minatheras to here by erasing a whole mountain... erasing the seal and flying off on a legendary dragon... my life wouldn’t be such a nightmare... hic... hic... I just wanted a peaceful life... hic,” Cleo sobbed uncontrollably.

Cleo proceeded to pour her heart out, spilling everything to Rene without a single filter. She explicitly blabbed that everything was Dion’s doing, right down to him riding the legendary dragon. She wailed like someone who had been utterly ruined by Dion’s antics.

Rene leaned forward, attempting to wrap his arms around Cleo to comfort her, but his chin was abruptly stopped in mid-air. Cleo had extended her staff, jamming its blue glowing orb firmly under his chin.

”What do you think you’re doing?” Cleo asked, her voice turning sharp despite the tears still welling in her eyes.

”I just wanted to comfort you... We’re both suffering because of Dion... We’re in the same boat,” Rene answered gently.

Hearing those words, Cleo suddenly remembered who the guy sitting next to her actually was—he was a former party member of Dion and Luna. She spun around on her stool to face Rene directly, grabbed him by his golden chestplate, and pulled her drunk, flushed face right up to his.

”You think I hate Dion? You think I want revenge on him? Everything I did, I did to cover for Dion! So don’t you dare talk slick around me unless you want me to blow you up right here and now... Oh, that’s right. Aren’t you the pathetic loser who kicked Dion out of his own party?” Cleo asked in an ice-cold tone.

Hearing Cleo’s sharp tongue, Rene’s face flushed bright red with embarrassment, especially seeing how Cleo fiercely defended Dion even while dead drunk. He slapped her hand off his armor to free himself, stood up from his stool, and turned to leave with his pride thoroughly crushed. But yank! Cleo grabbed the hem of his cloak.

”Hey... what the hell are you doing?!” Rene grumbled, thoroughly irritated.

”What’s your name again? You’re the guy who used to follow Dion and Luna around, right? How about I give you a job hunting down a calamity dragon?” Cleo smirked, completely drunk again.

Rene’s anger boiled over. He yanked his cloak out of her grip, spinning around ready to yell and snap at Cleo, only to find that she had already collapsed face-first onto the bar counter, drooling soundly with her eyes shut tight.

”Damn it!”

Rene turned on his heel and stormed out of the tavern. He walked back to his inn with a storm of chaotic emotions brewing inside him, mostly pure hatred directed at Dion. He pulled a folded sheet of parchment out from under his armor, an official expedition quest issued alongside the Royal Mage to hunt down the calamity dragon Gemmeth and locate the Ancient One.

Crumple.

Rene squeezed the parchment tightly in his fist. His bloodshot eyes stared straight ahead, his teeth grinding and his jaw clenching so hard it looked ready to snap.

”Damn it... damn it all to hell... I’m the Hero... but everyone only ever looks at Dion! As if he could actually erase an entire mountain... I know he’s strong, but did he really create that massive crater too?! Damn it... I utterly despise Dion. He stole everything from me... But lucky for me, Cleo got drunk and spilled every single secret. Just you wait, Dion. I’m going to hunt you down,” Rene thought to himself as he trudged back to the inn.

***

Meanwhile, back at Dion’s estate—achoo!—Dion, who was relaxing in the living room enjoying a cup of tea, suddenly let out a loud sneeze. Gina immediately levitated over to him, her little face filled with worry.

”Kyuuu?”

”I’m fine... but why did I sneeze out of nowhere like that... Is someone talking about me behind my back?” Dion wondered out loud.

”Kyuu... kyuu!”

Gina suddenly landed on Dion’s head, wrapping her little arms around his head from behind and resting her chin right on top of his hair. Her eyes were already half-closed; she looked completely exhausted and ready to pass out. Sigh. Dion let out a soft sigh, though a warm smile spread across his face this time.

”If you’re tired, don’t use my head as a pillow,” Dion said softly.

”Kyuu...”

”Alright, alright... let’s go to sleep,” Dion coaxed.

Dion stood up from his seat, gently scooped Gina off his head, and carried her in his arms as he walked out of the living room, heading upstairs toward his bedroom.