Chapter 73: A Confrontation of Loyalties

Eileen slowly walked in. The moment she reached Saiana, she was met with a barrage of insults.

“You’re too slow! How dare you make me wait so long?!”

“I thought you weren’t aware you’d kept me waiting for quite some time,” Hanna remarked, her voice laced with dissatisfaction.

“You knew how pressing the time was, yet you left me outside for an entire hour?”

“Do you have a problem with that?”

“…I have no problem,” Eileen replied, taking a deep breath.

“Just tell me who the targets are.”

The initial objective for these two had been to eliminate those loyal to Faltis.

Conveniently, the names Saiana just mentioned were individuals Eileen could place some trust in.

“I understand. It’s these ten people on the list, correct?” Eileen held a list in her hand, bearing the names Saiana had just spoken.

The names of Sophis and Setia were also on this list.

However, Setia’s name had a peculiar instruction: ‘capture alive,’ as per Saiana’s request.

This was understandable. Setia was weak, and having once served Faltis, she would possess certain knowledge. Capturing her would likely yield crucial information.

Yet, what left Eileen somewhat exasperated was the thought: were there truly only ten individuals in the Golden Dragon Temple worth noting?

Eileen found it hard to imagine how much Faltis must have struggled before her arrival.

Her subordinates were almost all traitors. Although Eileen herself had once been among them, Faltis had always held her firmly in her grasp.

From this perspective, Faltis either chose to overlook these matters or lacked a certain critical catalyst to act.

However, what truly surprised Eileen was the absence of her own name on the list.

‘Damn it! So I was involved too!’

“Is that all?” Eileen inquired.

“Yes.”

‘?’

‘They really didn’t include me? It must be because they can’t defeat me!’

“I heard there was a rather formidable Dragon King, wasn’t there? Someone named Eileen, I believe?” Eileen persisted, unwilling to give up, and pressed further.

“Yes, she is my student.”

‘?’ Eileen looked up. ‘You’re suddenly dropping that bombshell now?’

Had Eileen not known that the fire magic-proficient elf was there at Saiana’s behest, she might have genuinely believed Saiana to be a good person.

“What’s wrong? Have you grown soft? Moreover, wasn’t it your request this time for us to bring a mage skilled in fire elemental control? Wasn’t that meant to deal with her?” Eileen asked.

“Originally, I had no intention of dealing with her, because she truly is a genius. However, she seems to have become overly loyal to Faltis, and I detest that, especially in the past few days!” Saiana declared.

“Then us?”

“You won’t be needed. I will handle her myself. I want her to know who her true teacher is. I want her to understand what it means to respect one’s mentor,” Saiana stated.

So that was it. Eileen could now rest completely at ease.

Though, to be fair, Eileen had never intended to spare her either.

“Then perhaps I should offer you my thanks, Teacher Saiana?” Eileen extended her hand and crushed the dragon scale emblem on her chest.

Eileen alone could not yet completely conceal her aura, preventing a Dragon King-level dragon from recognizing her.

“You are…” The instant the emblem shattered, Saiana sensed it.

“Teacher Saiana,” Eileen said, removing her helmet.

“I never imagined that after only ten days apart, our reunion would be met with such emotions.”

“Why?”

“Teacher Saiana, what exactly do you mean by ‘why’?”

“Are you asking why I wasn’t detected by Teacher Saiana? Or why we know about this? Or perhaps, how we managed to pull off such a deception?” Eileen gazed at her.

“It seems you’re quite confident that you alone can defeat me,” Saiana said, her expression of confusion vanishing.

“It’s not so much that I am confident, but rather that Lady Faltis has great confidence in me, and so I must live up to Lady Faltis’s expectations.”

Eileen knew full well that while Saiana was advanced in years, she was by no means an easy opponent to overcome. She was not as frail as she appeared.

“What a truly touching relationship,” Saiana sneered, rising from the sofa. Her figure hunched, making her appear considerably shorter than Eileen.

“I’ve always had a question I wanted to ask you, Teacher Saiana.”

“Must you still feign civility at this point?!” Saiana straightened her back.

‘She was this tall?’

Her stature was almost three times Eileen’s.

“Not at all. Teacher Saiana certainly taught me many spells, though she withheld much from me most of the time,” Eileen shrugged.

Many times, she followed Saiana’s instructions precisely, yet the spells simply wouldn’t work. Sometimes she would figure them out herself, but other times she needed the help of Eileen’s other teacher, Faltis.

“Of course, I wouldn’t ask Teacher Saiana to answer my question for nothing. In return, I will answer one of yours. How does that sound?” Eileen offered.

“Very well, but on the condition that I ask first.”

“No problem.”

“Faltis, when did she find out?” Saiana questioned.

“Teacher Saiana, why would you believe that a queen, a Calamity-tier Dragon, would be unaware of your petty schemes behind her back?” Eileen looked at Saiana.

“Do you truly think, Teacher Saiana, that any of your careful machinations could escape Lady Faltis’s eyes?”

“Lady Faltis has always given you opportunities. If she had wanted to, perhaps things would have ended long ago, but she chose not to.”

“You once said that Lady Faltis was the worst Golden Dragon Queen you had ever seen. But the Lady Faltis I see is quite the opposite. Of course, it’s possible I’ve only ever known Lady Faltis as a Golden Dragon Queen, but that doesn’t change the fact that I believe Lady Faltis is the best Golden Dragon Queen in this world.”

“…”

Eileen could see Saiana’s body trembling with rage.

“Are you saying that Faltis knew about this from the very beginning?”

“Teacher Saiana, you seem to have some misunderstanding about Golden Dragon Queens, or perhaps Calamity-tier Dragons?” Only after encountering them could Eileen more directly perceive the true terror of Calamity-tier Dragons.

“Now, I have answered two of your questions, Teacher Saiana. It’s my turn, isn’t it?” Eileen looked at her opponent and asked the question she had always yearned to know: “Teacher Saiana, why do you dislike Lady Faltis so intensely?”

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