A Dragonslayer’s Peerless Regression

Chapter 44

Melissa Alencia.

Judging by her healthy appearance, it seemed she had recovered from the Crimson Blossom Disease thanks to the remedy Sieg had given her.

He bowed his head toward Melissa.

"I have heard much of Princess Melissa's renowned reputation. I am deeply grateful that such an esteemed individual has attended my promotion party. It is an honor to meet you in person."

The compliments were so saccharine that they made his skin crawl, but such words were a necessity in noble society.

Before coming to the party, he had hastily learned several lines from Andre as a crash course. Without that preparation, it would have been difficult to match the atmosphere.

Melissa responded with a smile to Sieg's words.

"I am overjoyed that the youngest Blue Knight in the continent knows of me."

"I have been very interested in the charitable projects you oversee, Princess. While some may think it's as simple as sharing what one has, relief work for the public requires meticulous attention to budgeting and numerous other concerns, does it not?"

Melissa's expression shifted at Sieg's reply.

The mask-like smile she had been wearing broke, replaced by a genuinely surprised look.

The young knights she had encountered so far were mostly brimming with a thirst for glory and competitiveness, their words filled with shallow bravado.

Even when they mentioned her charitable work, they only spoke of its surface-level aspects, using it as casual conversation fodder, completely oblivious to the hidden difficulties it entailed.

But Sieg, in just a few words, had pinpointed the true challenges behind her charitable efforts.

'As Cliff said, he might not be just an ordinary knight.'

"Thank you for recognizing that. I shouldn't take up more of the party host's time. It was a pleasure meeting you. Until next time."

Melissa offered her farewell, deciding she needed to learn more about Sieg, then stepped away.

After Melissa, Sieg was swarmed by an endless stream of royalty, nobles, politicians, and other key figures, leaving him completely drained.

'I'd rather go through Master Kaiser's hellish training.'

The Draker Household was not only a knightly family but also deeply intertwined in the politics of various kingdoms.

As a stabilizing force on the central continent, other kingdoms regarded their relationship with the Drakers as crucial and actively sought to maintain alliances with them.

Despite being a single family, their influence was greater than that of any kingdom or empire.

Such was the transcendent nature of the Draker Household.

At that moment, a group of people approached Sieg.

As they drew near, the others stepped aside to make way for them.

Despite being attendees of the party, some individuals entered wearing armor instead of formal attire, changing the atmosphere of the venue.

At the forefront of the group, a young man stepped forward and greeted Sieg in the imperial manner.

"Sieg Draker! The youngest Blue Knight in the continent!"

The youth, seemingly tipsy, acted as if he were familiar with Sieg. His flashy hairstyle and gleaming armor drew attention as he gave Sieg a wide grin.

"I am Carus Nerva Constantinus, the 4th Prince of the Grand Rom Empire."

Hearing his words, the Central Kingdom dignitaries around them buzzed with surprise.

No one had expected a member of the Rom Empire's imperial family to attend a private promotion party.

Facing Carus, Sieg found himself deep in thought.

'Why the hell is that blasted prince here?'

Although Sieg didn't know him personally, he recognized Carus as the one responsible for the desolation of Atlas in his previous life.

Suppressing his discomfort, Sieg forced a polite expression and greeted the prince.

"Your Highness Carus, thank you for attending my promotion party."

Frankly, he didn't even want to talk to him.

However, Carus ignored Sieg's reluctance and stepped closer, exuding a sense of familiarity.

"Come on, don't be like that. Let's share a drink together. Hey, bring some drinks here! We need the finest wine to commemorate this historic first meeting between Carus, the continent's greatest connoisseur of pleasure, and Sieg Draker, the man destined to become the continent's greatest knight!"

Upon Carus's command, a servant hurriedly brought over a tray of drinks.

Carus paid no attention to the gazes of others, pressing a glass into Sieg's hand before raising his own in a toast.

"Since this is wine gifted by the imperial family, you must drink it to the last drop."

The prince's words caused some of the onlookers to frown.

While the Draker Household might technically be "just a family," its influence was so vast that such rude behavior toward them was unacceptable.

The murmurs among the crowd grew louder in response to Carus's audacity.

Sieg, however, downed the wine in one go.

Carus clapped his hands in delight.

"Excellent! Wonderful! Sieg, let's drink until we're utterly smashed tonight!"

At that moment, Abel approached from behind Carus.

"Your Highness."

Carus turned to see Abel, his face lighting up with enthusiasm.

"Oh, Abel! Thank you for inviting me to such a delightful event. Come, join us for a toast!"

Abel, maintaining a carefully composed expression, spoke to Carus.

"I am overjoyed to see you in good health, Your Highness. I had something I wished to discuss with you, so perhaps we could share a drink and talk for a moment."

"Hmm, I'd rather not deal with anything troublesome."

"It's a matter that requires your insight, Your Highness."

At that, Carus finally nodded.

"I suppose I have no choice. Sir Sieg, let's discuss the epic ballads extolling the legend of the Dragonslayer next time over drinks all night!"

With that, Carus dramatically swished his long cape and strode off.

The moment he left the banquet hall, others let out audible sighs of relief.

They then lowered their voices, whispering among themselves.

"It's astonishing that a prince of the empire behaves like that."

"Well, the Rom Empire is a place lacking in tradition. With such a foundation, it's no surprise their emperor and princes turn out that way."

"That aside, lion Sword's handling of the situation was truly remarkable. He stepped in quickly and resolved the matter himself."

"Indeed. It seems there's a good reason people sing his praises."

Sieg observed the departing figures of Carus, Abel, and the members of the Zimmens Household, lost in thought.

'A prince of the empire, the Zimmens family, and Abel... It feels like they're scheming something.'

His eyes gleamed sharply.

* * *

The promotion party stretched on for several days.

For nobles, parties and banquets were incredibly significant.

They were a vital indicator of a family's influence and prestige in the eyes of others.

If a family chose to hold a banquet, they had to ensure their guests were well-entertained and satisfied before leaving.

As a result, Sieg, the centerpiece of the event, had to entertain and interact with guests for several days.

Only after the official banquet ended was he finally able to catch his breath.

"Hosting a banquet is a million times harder than training."

He threw off his stifling formal attire in frustration.

Then, he retrieved the note he had received from the head of the household.

"The Draker's Vault, huh."

True to their name as a Dragonslayer household, the vault contained an unfathomable collection of items amassed over a thousand years.

Without hesitation, Sieg headed toward Winterkeep, where the Draker Vault was located.

The necessary orders had apparently already been issued. Once Sieg's identity was verified, he was promptly guided to the underground vault.

'The temperature is low here.'

Following his guide into the subterranean area, Sieg noticed the magically cooled environment.

"Please proceed through here to complete the formalities."

As he walked down a narrow corridor, he saw over a dozen knights of the household standing guard before a massive door.

Sieg approached the desk to complete the formalities.

"Your identity has been verified. Per the head of household's orders, you are permitted to take one item from the vault. The interior is quite expansive, so it may take considerable time to explore everything. Once you exit, you cannot re-enter, so if you wish, you may bring supplementary food, a portable toilet, and bedding inside."

Apparently, it wasn't uncommon for people to spend days inside the vault, carefully selecting the item they wanted.

For Sieg, who had an inventory system, such provisions were unnecessary. He declined and confirmed he was fine as he was.

"In that case, I will open the vault."

The desk attendant pressed a switch, and the enormous doors of the vault began to open on their own.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

As Sieg stepped inside, the doors closed shut behind him.

"Wow, what is all this?"

The vault was a colossal repository of items.

Tens of thousands of items were displayed on massive shelves, meticulously organized.

Seeing this, Sieg could now understand why some people spent days here searching for a single item.

He had known the vault was impressive, but he hadn't anticipated it being to this extent, and he couldn't help but marvel at the sight.

"There's so much here, I can't tell what's what. Guess I'll have to examine their functions one by one."

Sieg activated his skill, dragon's Eye.

Immediately, information about the items in his field of vision flooded his mind.

Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of data, he quickly deactivated the skill.

"Damn it, this is going to drive me crazy."

After deliberating for a moment, Sieg opened the system interface.

"System, is there a faster way to locate useful items?"

『Searching for available functions per the administrator's request.』

『Activating the system-link function of the Intermediate Administrator.』

『The Dragon's Eye skill is now linked with the mini-map feature. Item information will be marked on the map.』

"I'm not sure what that means, but go ahead and do it."

『Linking functions now.』

Soon, item details began appearing one by one on the map where Sieg's gaze landed.

"So, this is what the system-link function does, huh?"

It seemed the system could only display information for items that came into his line of sight.

Using Shadowless Footwork, Sieg moved swiftly through the vault, scanning items in every corner.

Even so, the vault was so vast that the process took a considerable amount of time.

"Phew, this should be enough, right?"

After thoroughly combing through the vault, Sieg switched the mini-map to a 3D view to examine the data he had gathered on the items.

Yet, even then, the sheer number of items was overwhelming.

"System, can you sort the items to show only the type I'm looking for?"

『It is possible.』

"Great. Then exclude all non-magical items from the list."

Over half of the marked items disappeared immediately.

"Okay, nice. Now remove all one-time-use consumables too."

Once again, half of the remaining items vanished.

"How many items are left now?"

『2,832 items remain.』

"Still quite a lot."

Sieg decided to inspect the remaining items directly. Using Shadowless Footwork, he moved swiftly through the vault, examining the items.

"Why are there so many swords? System, exclude any swords that are less powerful than Bahamut."

In an instant, the number of items halved again.

Sieg scanned the remaining items. It seemed there were no swords left that outperformed Bahamut, as none remained visible.

While searching, he noticed something unusual among the marked items.

"What's this? Why does its information show up as question marks?"

The item was marked in black on the map, and its description in the information window was filled only with "???".

Curious, Sieg made his way to the location of the item.

It wasn't in a typical display area but was stored in a corner designated for unclassified items, housed in a plain box.

The area was almost overlooked, but Sieg's thorough exploration had ensured it was scanned.

He cleared away the piled-up preservation boxes and finally uncovered the item deep inside.

"What could be inside this?"

Sieg opened the preservation box and began examining the items inside.

The box contained a jumble of miscellaneous objects thrown together without care.

Sieg pulled them out one by one to inspect them.

"It's not this, not that either."

Eventually, his hand brushed against something unusual.

"Is it this?"

It was a rough-looking bracelet with a sky-blue gem embedded at its center.

Sieg tilted his head as he examined it.

"Why isn't any information appearing, even with Dragon's Eye?"

At that moment, a message popped up.

『The title Terakan Draker's Successor has been activated.』

『You have been registered as the inheritor of the Sacred Guardian Stone.』

『The Sacred Guardian Stone allows the user to summon a familiar aligned with their soul.』