Speaking concisely while being mindful of my surroundings, I asked. Rouge was visibly shaken when she heard we were heading to the Drefon Great Labyrinth for our off-campus training exercise. Lily, who has known her since childhood, should have some idea why.
Lily lowered her gaze slightly, looking out the window on the landing.
“It’s not the dungeon itself that’s the problem. It’s just…”
“The problem is ‘Drephone’?”
“Yes. Do you know about the Black Dragon Drefon, Hugh?”
“…No, I’ve only heard the name.”
To be precise, I skimmed through books about the Black Dragon Drefon, but it’s practically the same as not knowing anything. It would be more accurate to have Lily tell me.
Lily nodded once and began to speak eloquently.
“Two hundred years ago, a black dragon came from nowhere and spread disaster throughout the kingdom. The damage caused by the black dragon was immense, and the Kingdom of Reese, which was not as strong as it is now, was on the verge of destruction. At that time, an Adventurer stood up. He challenged the dungeon in the Spen Region, where the black dragon had its lair, all alone, and defeated the Black Dragon Drefon. The Adventurer who defeated the black dragon was hailed as a hero of the kingdom, and His Majesty the King at the time granted him the title of Earl and the family name of Drephone as a title for defeating the black dragon.”
So far, it sounds like a happy ending. But I guess the main point is from here.
“The House Drephone became one of the most influential noble families in the Kingdom of Reese. So much so that someone from the House Drephone was chosen as a concubine for His Majesty the King. Few people ridiculed them as upstart Adventurers. That’s how honorable defeating the black dragon was.”
“…But there was no such description in the textbooks, right?”
It seems like an achievement that should be mentioned first in history class, but there is no mention of the Black Dragon Drefon in history textbooks. It’s not like it’s omitted because it’s common knowledge that everyone knows… or so I thought.
“The House Drephone had its name erased from history seven years ago. Around the time when an Epidemic struck the Royal Capital.”
“The one Alissa-san was talking about earlier?”
“From the looks of it, it seems like the Pnosis Territory was not affected.”
“…Because it’s a backwater.”
When you live in the Pnosis Territory, you hardly get any outside information unless you try to get it yourself. When I was eight years old, my mind was still influenced by my physical age, so I was running around in the mountains and playing.
Maybe my father was aware of the Epidemic, and there might have been some impact on logistics. But as far as I know, I don’t remember the disease spreading in the Pnosis Territory.
“I was a child at the time, so my memory is vague. I remember living in the Royal Capital mansion with my father at the time, but I remember returning to the Pyridi Territory mansion to avoid the disease. There were deaths due to the disease in the Pyridi Territory as well, but it seems it was much better than in the Royal Capital.”
“Was the damage in the Royal Capital that bad…?”
“…Yes. Many people, both nobles and commoners, died. Lecty’s parents probably died from this Epidemic as well.”
“…Is that so?”
After hearing Alissa-san’s story, Lecty might have had something on her mind too…
“Ann said the Epidemic was a ‘Curse.’ What does that mean…?”
“The truth is not clear, but it is said that the first deaths from the disease occurred in the Spen Region… from the territory of the Earl Drephone. As the disease spread from there to the Royal Capital, rumors began to spread that this disease was the ‘Curse of the Black Dragon Drefon.'”
“Was there any basis for the rumors?”
“No. If I had to say, there is a story that the disasters brought by the Black Dragon Drefon included plagues, but it is not uncommon for diseases to spread in areas where there have been major battles.”
If many people died in the battle with the black dragon, the abandoned bodies would rot and the sanitary environment would deteriorate. It is entirely possible that an Epidemic broke out in the surrounding area. The cause of the Epidemic may not have been the pathogens spread by the Black Dragon Drefon.
“In any case, the Black Dragon Drefon was defeated two hundred years ago, right? If you think normally, there seems to be no connection with the Epidemic seven years ago… Just that the source of the Epidemic was the Drephone County.”
“That’s right… But there were many people who didn’t think so. People who suddenly lost their families and loved ones due to the Epidemic sought a target for their aimless emotions.”
“Don’t tell me, that was the House Drephone?”
“From what my father told me, it was a terrible sight. Statues and monuments related to the Black Dragon Drefon and the House Drephone were destroyed one after another, and books were burned to ashes.”
“…Could that be why it’s no longer in the textbooks?”
Lily nods to my question.
“Some nobles strongly insisted. Leaving a record of the Black Dragon Drefon’s subjugation for posterity would invite the wrath of the Black Dragon Drefon.”
“It’s almost a matter of faith…”
In Japan in my previous life, there was a custom of enshrining evil gods and spirits as gods. People who lost loved ones in the Epidemic seven years ago probably positioned the Epidemic as the wrath of the Black Dragon Drefon, who had been defeated.
So, in order to appease the wrath, they tried to erase the honor of the House Drephone, who had defeated the Black Dragon Drefon.
“What happened to the House Drephone…?”
“His Majesty the King confiscated most of the House Drephone’s territory and demoted the peerage to Viscount. However, this is not about the Curse or anything, but because they neglected to take the necessary Epidemic prevention measures and spread the disease throughout the country.”
“I see, so they were at fault.”
This world is not as globalized as my previous world, so if the true nature of the Epidemic was an infectious disease, it should have been possible to contain it to some extent by regulating the movement of people. If they neglected to take such minimal Epidemic prevention measures, they deserved to be punished.
I understood the ‘Curse’ that my classmates were talking about, and the reason why the Black Dragon Drefon and the House Drephone were not mentioned in the textbooks. …And why Rouge was shaken at that time. If it is explained this far, I can somehow guess the reason.
“…You said that a concubine for His Majesty the King was chosen from the House Drephone, right? Is that what it is?”
“…………”
Lily silently lowered her eyes without saying anything. Just then, someone’s footsteps were heard from the bottom of the stairs. When I turned around, Idiot was walking up the stairs towards us.
“What are you guys doing? Are you still here? We have to go back quickly, or class will start.”
“Oh, that’s right. Let’s go, Lily.”
“……Yes.”
We decided to hurry back to the classroom so as not to be late for class.
…Lily’s silence probably indicates affirmation. If so, the woman chosen from the House Drephone to be a concubine for His Majesty the King is Lucretia and Prince Lucas’s mother.
The reason why Prince Lucas initially failed to gain the support of the nobles in the Succession War was not only because of his eyesight, but maybe this was also the reason…
The maternal family, which should have been a strong backing, had fallen, and the nobles who compared the bloodline of the ‘Curse’ with the bloodline of the enemy country supported Prince Slay. Maybe the pressure on Prince Lucas is still strong even now, without me knowing it.
And the region we are heading to for this off-campus training exercise is the hometown of Lucretia’s mother.
It’s no wonder she’s confused. It can’t be a coincidence. If the Drefon Great Labyrinth was chosen intentionally, it must have been at the instigation of Prince Lucas.
What on earth is that older brother plotting…?