'Ruobheidra?'
Roberta repeated inwardly.
It was the first time she had ever heard the name. As a Priest, she was more educated than most nobles, but most of what the lord in front of her was saying was unfamiliar.
A lizard with four legs and two wings was born before dwarves and fairies? Also, the first life to be gifted with intelligence was a dragon, and it was named Ruobheidra?
It was a story not found in any scripture she had read and memorized countless times, nor in any literature.
'It's not a joke, is it.'
She narrowed her eyes and looked at him.
As always, his expression was calm and composed, too young to discuss the passage of time. But every time he opened his mouth, an undeniable story came out.
Looking back, he had said something similar the first day she met him. Explaining the origin of etiquette she didn't know, implying that the etiquette taught by the Public Church was wrong.
Still, etiquette had results. She had succeeded in the Infant Sacrament without adhering to the etiquette. How could she say it was wrong when she had seen the results with her own eyes?
On the other hand, the story of Ruobheidra and his race was beyond what she didn't know; it was an old tale that perhaps even the Pantheon and the Pope didn't know. It was an assertion that was impossible to prove true or false.
"Since you asked me about dragons, I had no choice but to mention their ancestor. It's the best example to explain what kind of race dragons are."
Whether he knew her concerns or not, Lord Ulrich of Ditmarsken leaned against the backrest of the bed prepared in one side of the ger and continued to speak.
"As you know, long ago, when the world was covered in fire, the gods drew water from other worlds to extinguish the fire and make the land fertile. But when life did not rise on its own, they decided to intervene in creation."
He quoted a passage from the scripture.
'He conceived life on the earth.'
It was the first book of Genesis, established by the Pantheon. It was content that Roberta had heard and memorized to the point of exhaustion.
The gods, who had created an environment conducive to life, created all kinds of flora and fauna, and dwarves and fairies were born at that time. Dragons were the same.
"Ruobheidra was a dragon conceived at that time. Genesis states that dragons were created along with dwarves and fairies, but the reality is different. Just as humans were not yet conceived when the two races were born, the two races were not conceived when dragons were born."
Ulrich added that, therefore, Ruobheidra was born before dwarves and fairies and was the first being to possess intelligence.
"Roberta, you serve Lady Ganymea."
She said yes.
"You also know that Ganymea had an adopted son, that he was human, and that he received the name Hestio."
"It's common knowledge that even non-Priests know."
Ulrich lightly laughed, saying, "That's right."
"Today, he is regarded almost as a god of humans. Why do you think that is? As I said before, Hestio was not a god but a human, merely adopted by Ganymea and lived in heaven, so why?"
"You're not really asking because you don't know, are you?"
Roberta said, narrowing her eyes.
"Think about his achievements."
Ganymea's adopted son, Hestio, transmitted heavenly knowledge to humans when they were living primitive lives and remained on earth beside humans when the gods of heaven departed.
He could have followed the gods to the world that the Pantheon calls heaven, but he refused for the sake of his own kind and was the only one to descend to earth.
And until the era of dwarves and fairies ended and the era of humans arrived, he led humans and then suddenly disappeared.
"Countless lives were created by heaven. It is said that there were civilizations as powerful as dwarves and fairies shortly after the gods left. But today, even their names are not known. It is only said that once-powerful races built their power."
The scriptures say that humans were treated no differently from monkeys in that era. Roberta mentioned this and asked, what about humans today?
"Humans, who were despised as monkeys, humans who built civilization the latest, have become a race that leads a longer era than any previous era. Because there was a shepherd who led us correctly in the midst of the storm."
"······."
"That person is Hestio, and although he eventually left our side... our very existence is his achievement. That is why we praise his work and yearn for his return."
According to the scriptures, records of Hestio cease at the end of the fairy era. The Pantheon explains the reason as that he had accomplished all his tasks and followed the gods of heaven.
However, some Priests and theologians, including Roberta, read it differently. Even if he was the adopted son of a god, he was human, so could it be that he did not reach eternal life?
Of course, it is an interpretation that cannot be uttered. The Pantheon has chosen to believe that Hestio's departure is temporary and that he will return someday to lead humans again.
"Yearning..."
Ulrich muttered as if chewing over the words.
"Why did you ask about him?"
"Ruobheidra was the same as him. Although you don't know it."
Same?
Roberta tilted her head, unable to grasp the meaning.
"He too was taken to heaven and came down for the sake of his earthly kin. And on the day the gods left, he was offered to leave with them, but he refused. Just as Hestio left Ganymea's embrace to remain with his kin, so did he."
"Yes?"
Her eyes widened.
"It's a content that is missing from the scriptures compiled by the Public Church. It's not that it was deliberately omitted, but it seems to have been lost in the process of being passed down through oral tradition. That's because who would be interested in someone else's history?"
She was speechless, her lips twitching. It couldn't be helped. The most frequently used phrase when referring to Hestio is, 'The only one who remained.' But, in fact, he wasn't the only one who remained.
Should she shout that it's blasphemous?
Hesitation intertwined in her pupils, trembling severely.
Watching her, Ulrich sighed briefly.
"Does it matter how many remained?"
"Of course—"
"Does what he did change in value because of that?"
Roberta closed her mouth.
"Rather, think about it. Roberta, if what I say is true, why wasn't it known? He lived the same life as Hestio, so why was he forgotten?"
She hesitated a little and asked the reason.
"Because he failed."
Ulrich asserted.
"He knew that a period of chaos would come when the gods left, and he also knew that his race would not survive. So, the two had the same intention and tried to save their kin, but the results were different."
"······."
"The only reason they didn't even leave their names is that. Even if records were lost through several dark ages, humans prospered, so they remember Hestio, but they didn't."
He emptied his teacup and put it down.
"Why did he fail?"
"I don't know all the details either."
However, he added.
"What is clear is that dragons do not form groups. To put it nicely, they have a strong sense of pride, and to put it badly, they are an arrogant race. They do not tolerate anyone standing above them. Even if the other party is the ancestor of the species."
Is that why the age of dragons did not come?
"If there is a reason for failure, that would be it."
Roberta thought about Ruobheidra.
He lived the same life as Hestio, but unlike him, he failed. The humans whom Hestio wanted to lead willingly followed, but Ruobheidra's kin did not.
As a result, the dragon race became as mysterious as a creature in a fairy tale. Their ancestor, who should have been their shepherd, is forgotten in history and is only told in the words of one man.
"How does the lord know him?"
"Would you believe me if I said I met him in person?"
"Well... to be honest, it's hard to believe."
Roberta smiled, thinking he was joking.
"For a dragon born in the beginning to be alive until now, it would have to have a really long lifespan. Even if fairies accumulated several generations, it would not be enough. It would be better to say immortal... or an eternal being. Wouldn't it be?"
He did not answer. Instead, he smiled following her.
At this, she felt a prick in one side of her chest.
"...Are you saying he's still alive until now?"
"No. He died. Around the time the empire changed."
He added that he had reached the end of his lifespan.
"As you said, he had a very long lifespan. He didn't know he would live that long either. He wasn't immortal, so he eventually had to face death, but he was the only dragon who lived to a ripe old age."
The time when the empire changed refers to the period when a new dynasty was established.
For example, the Second Empire was the empire of the Istria Dynasty, and when it collapsed due to misgovernment, it experienced division and was re-established by the Yokerster Dynasty.
The divided empire was not completely unified, but the Yokerster Dynasty, that is, the beginning of the Third Empire, was recognized for the throne with the consent of the feudal lords. That was about 1,400 years ago.
"······."
Roberta's two pupils trembled.
He had mentioned his age before. While talking about the Little Ice Age, he said that he was from before the establishment of the Third Empire, and while calling himself a pure human, he subtly revealed himself as being born in the beginning.
At that time, she treated it as a bluff. How could someone who is neither a dwarf nor a fairy have a lifespan of over a thousand years? Moreover, while maintaining youth.
But as time passed, and as meetings with the lord continued, that conclusion wavered.
'How much of it is true?'
Is there even any truth in the first place?
She couldn't know. Because there was no basis.
Ruobheidra was an existence not left in literature. Ulrich had no records before coming to Ditmarsken. Even if someone Roberta believed in appeared and threw a word, 'It's true,' it was not an assertion that could be easily believed.
Even so, the assertion shook her head.
'If it's true...'
What if everything he said was true?
The consequences of that one assumption were too great.
She quickly shook her head to forget it. It was a reckless, blasphemous, and dangerous speculation. Her common sense shouted that it couldn't be.
"Now you know."
Ulrich said.
Roberta abruptly raised her head. In the gap where she was lost in thought, he had gotten up from his seat and was standing in front of the entrance. Morning sunlight shone through the open door of the circular tent, the ger, and a warm breeze blew.
"Dragons are a fallen race. They haven't gone extinct, but they will soon. From the moment Ruobheidra failed, their fate became destiny."
"······."
"How many people would be interested in such a race, a race whose ancestor has even been forgotten? And how many people would believe that they are still alive today?"
She hardened her expression and touched her lips.
She had seen all kinds of races while living in the Nua Grand Temple, but she had never heard of dragons. She only believed in their existence because they were left in old literature.
If asked if dragons are still alive, she would have blurred her words, saying, 'Maybe they are somewhere.' If she, a Priest, is like this, it would be even more difficult for other people to believe in their existence.
"But our guest came to find a dragon."
Roberta recalled the day she welcomed the guest.
They arrived near the end of the day. When the Yeongji people, who had settled at the foot of the hill, were lighting fires to prepare for dinner, six strangers arrived in the city of Freieiche.
It was rare for strangers to visit Freieiche, or rather, Ditmarsken. What reason would there be to visit the harsh polar region? At best, it was a criminal with nowhere to go struggling to the end.
Since Lord Ulrich was in a deep sleep in the Bard tribe, butler Bernhardt greeted them as the lord's representative. He asked them their business. Then they replied.
"We have come to find a dragon. We need a guide."
Bernhardt hesitated for a moment and asked Roberta to wake up the lord and tell him the situation. He said that he would come up with an answer in some way, whether he came or not.
"What should we do? Should I tell you separately?"
"No."
Ulrich shook his head.
"Didn't they say they need a guide?"
As he came out of the ger, tribal chief Kurt brought a horse.