Dragon Raja 4; Chapter 8: Journey to the End of the World (8)

Dragon Raja 4

The old man was hunched like a shrimp, his head drooping as if his frail spine could no longer support his body. Yet, he carried an air of dignity and grace, dressed in a handmade black suit with a gold chain holding a pocket watch, and a pigeon-blood ruby sparkling on his finger. His white hair was slicked back, appearing as if he were attending a grand banquet.

He stopped in front of Chu Zihang: “My name is Vincent, our Saintess’ valet. Mr. Chu, you visited her last night, and I am here to return the visit this morning.”

A group of waiters rushed in, tidying the tables, mopping the floor, and cleaning the windows, seemingly oblivious to Chu Zihang and Vincent. With their efficiency, the dining room would soon return to its original state.

Chu Zihang and Vincent sat down at one of the freshly cleaned tables. Without needing any introduction, two cups of hot coffee were placed before them, and the atmosphere suddenly became cordial as they stared directly into each other’s eyes.

“Young people can be so impulsive, disturbing Mr. Chu’s breakfast. I apologize on their behalf,” Vincent continued, “but please understand, Mr. Chu, the safety and reputation of the Saintess are of utmost importance to us.”

Such lies were clearly meant for children and couldn’t deceive Chu Zihang. The timing of Vincent’s appearance was too precise, undeniably making him the orchestrator of this assassination plot.

Chu Zihang was only uncertain about Reginleif’s stance on this matter. However, given her temper, if she held a grudge against him for intruding into her bedroom, she would likely come to witness his demise personally.

Vincent sighed deeply: “If I am not mistaken, Mr. Chu, you are from the Abraham Covenant, correct? Only such a grand organization could produce a hero like you. Yet, we do not understand why, after separating from the Covenant a century ago, and having carefully avoided conflicts with secret factions while changing our organization’s name, the Covenant still sends such a powerful envoy as yourself after a hundred years.”

Chu Zihang was stunned: “Are you saying that The Far North used to belong to the Abraham Covenant?”

The organization known as the Secret Party does not actually have a fixed name; in modern history, it is most commonly referred to as Cassell College and the Abraham Covenant. According to Vincent, The Far North once belonged to the Secret Party, but this information was not included in Chu Zihang’s mission briefing. Given EVA’s meticulous approach, such an omission is unimaginable. Could it be that Herzog was actually one of their own?

Vincent also showed an expression of surprise: “It seems you are unaware of our connection.”

“I came here to investigate a person named Herzog, who was once a member of The Far North,” Chu Zihang stated plainly.

“So it’s for Herzog, that despicable scoundrel and reckless ambitious fool.” Vincent seemed to let out a sigh of relief. “Unfortunately, I have been serving as Miss Maria’s attendant since 1942, and by then Herzog had mostly left the organization. My understanding of him also comes from Miss Maria and does not exceed what Miss Reginleif might know. However, if you need our help, rest assured, we will do everything in our power to gather relevant information about Herzog.” From Vincent’s expression, Chu Zihang could understand why the other side had acted so ruthlessly against him, even in a public place like the dining room. Compared to the purity and reputation of the Saintess, Vincent was more concerned about why the Secret Party had come knocking on their door a century later. It seemed their split with the Secret Party was far from peaceful; even now, the powerful and terrifying image of the Secret Party was deeply engraved in their memories, even if Vincent himself had not experienced that split.

“So the Covenant has not initiated an investigation into us, and our relationship with the Covenant remains one of mutual non-interference, correct?” Vincent confirmed again with Chu Zihang.

“At least in the task I was given, there was nothing like what you mentioned.”

Vincent nodded: “I will compile the information you need about Herzog as soon as possible. Your safety before your return journey will be ensured by The Far North. Besides that, we will not disturb your trip. But we would like to know, you spoke with the Saintess for a long time last night. Did you discuss anything else besides Herzog?”

“You can ask Reginleif about that. When I was talking to her, weren’t your people just outside the door?”

“Miss Reginleif ordered us to withdraw, so we had to leave. But we must confirm with you, Miss Reginleif did not mention anything other than Herzog, did she?”

“We did not discuss anything else.” Chu Zihang shook his head.

Vincent’s expression grew more relieved: “We also hope for your assurance that there will be no further private contact with Miss Reginleif.”

Chu Zihang frowned slightly: “Your tone makes it sound like you are her guardian rather than her attendant. But she is no longer a child. The Saintess, in a sense, is like a witch; they represent both the sacred and the forbidden. They are not born as children.”

Vincent raised his gnarled hand, signaling the girls waiting by the door. Hervor immediately moved behind him to push his wheelchair, while Olrune took the plate from the waiter and respectfully placed the mushroom braised beef in front of Chu Zihang. The breakfast had long been prepared, but the waiter did not dare interrupt Chu Zihang and Vincent’s conversation.

By this time, footsteps and voices were already coming from outside; early-rising travelers were heading towards the dining room.

“We are not suited to appear in front of the tourists. We can discuss other matters when I present a report on Herzog to you.” Vincent bowed and prepared to leave.

“The Far North is not your original name, right? What was the previous name?” Chu Zihang asked, watching Vincent’s retreating figure. Vincent hesitated for a moment: “Ask the oldest person among you if they still remember ‘The Twilight Dogma.’”

The girls escorted Vincent out of the dining room. At the door, Hervor leaned close to Vincent: “If you had arrived a few minutes later, Olrune and I might have…”

Vincent shook his head: “He didn’t even try his best. Among us, only the Saintess, and only after she awakens, could confront him!”

Hervor and Olrune exchanged a glance and simultaneously turned to look at the young man calmly enjoying his mushroom braised beef in the dining room.

A few minutes after Vincent and the others had disappeared, Chu Zihang’s eye twitched slightly. He spat the chewed beef onto his plate, stood up from the table, and quickly left.

Back in his cabin, Chu Zihang immediately rushed to the bathroom. Before he could even close the door, he bent over the sink and began to vomit, the vomit mixed with black clots of blood.

He hadn’t used the Blood Rage forbidden technique for a long time and was very cautious when using the King’s Blaze. Today, it was unavoidable. If Vincent had been a few minutes later, it would have been hard to say who would have broken down first.

Dizziness hit him in waves, and everything before his eyes had a vivid red tint. The world roared in his ears, and the sound of running water in the pipes resembled the rumble of thunder. His lungs felt as if they were splitting open, and his breath was filled with a strong metallic smell of blood. Chu Zihang went to the desk, took out a medicine box from the drawer, swallowed two dark blue pills, and then returned to the bathroom to continue vomiting.

He experienced various hallucinations, sometimes feeling like an all-powerful giant capable of destroying the world with a wave of his hand, and other times feeling uncontrollable rage, wanting to shatter some invisible cage. He clenched his fists tightly, trying to control himself. The veins on his skin all bulged out, resembling twitching blue snakes. After a few minutes, the medication began to take effect, the hallucinations receded from his mind, and the turbulent waves of blood in his body gradually calmed. Exhausted, he sat on the toilet until his breathing steadied, then walked into the shower, turned on the faucet, and sat on the floor, washing himself and his clothes repeatedly.

This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. He knew how to handle it; he couldn’t call the cleaner, as they would think it was a crime scene.

Since the Tokyo incident, his body had started to malfunction. The original bloodline defect had been magnified by the repeated use of the Blood Rage technique. Dragon blood was quietly eroding his body. Externally, he still appeared to be a normal human, but his skeletal structure, seen through X-rays, had characteristics of both mammals and reptiles, and even some parts resembled birds. Sometimes he would sleep for two or three days, dreaming of a giant tree that reached the sky and the earth, its branches forming intricate dragon-like patterns. Strangely, Chu Zihang could understand them.

The Dragon Raja was calling to him, and perhaps every Death Servitor had a similar experience.

He said he would eventually become a note on the bulletin board, not out of false lament, but because he knew his lifespan was shorter than others. Sometimes he wished his mother and stepfather would have another child to fill the void he would leave behind.

Chu Zihang emerged from the shower, changed into clean shirts and pants, and sat back at the desk, silently gazing out the window.

A black-headed Arctic tern spread its wings, seemingly hovering in the wind. This bird migrates from the Arctic to the Antarctic, making it the species with the longest migration distance in the world. It spends almost its entire life in flight, even being able to sleep while flying. Some say it is the prototype of the “footless bird,” which flies from birth and dies when it lands.

Chu Zihang suppressed his negative thoughts, opened his notebook, and connected to EVA: “Query the term ‘Twilight Dogma.'”

EVA was unusually silent for a few seconds: “You’ve triggered the sensitive word system. I mean, ‘Twilight Dogma’ is a sensitive term for me, and I need to get approval from the school before I can give you the results.”

“The college has a sensitive word system?” Chu Zihang was hearing about it for the first time.

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