After everyone had settled down again, a nagging thought itched at the minds of some of the people from the TBOAH!World.
"Does this mean that simply having dragon-nims join the battle would have been enough to stop the White Star?" TBOAH!Alberu asked feeling strange the same moment the question left his lips. His dark elf blood seemed to be intrinsically chiding him for his inappropriate thoughts.
TBOAH!Zed beside him frowned for a moment and then nodded, an arrogant sense of entitlement suddenly filling the former Roan King of the TBOAH!World. Grigori strongly clenched her fists and frowned in disapproval as she read his thoughts that were arrogantly mocking and scornfully lamenting the deaths of the useful dragons who could have fought and won the war on their behalf.
"Ahem! Some of you seem to be misunderstanding something right now... so allow me to give you something that will help you gain a proper sense of perspective." Grigori's gaze was harsh and her tone lacked the usual traces of affection and warmth.
She purposely raised her hand and changed the record that had been cued up to begin, putting on a new scene of a familair battlefield - the Battle of the Capital of the Mogoru Empire. In partucular the scene began at something that had been left out of the earlier viewing of the records showing this battle.
<Chapter 333: Who are you?! (3)>
Cale heard a voice in his head at that moment.
– Cale Henituse.
Cale flinched as he looked at Mary. Eruhaben. He heard the ancient Dragon’s voice.
– I think I may have found the White Star.
‘…Excuse me? You found who?’
TCF!Eruhaben who recognized this scene pressed his lips into a thin line and squeezed his eyes shut for a brief moment. He wondered what new and unknown information would be revealed. He could already tell from the fierce aura radiating from the Goddess beside him that she was about to show everyone exactly what went down back then. He sighed softly and accepted his fate.
Cale’s expression had a rare look of being completely baffled. That was how shocking it was. It was at that moment.
A deafening explosion shook the image within the Palantír - signifying the intensity of the blast.
He heard the loudest explosion he had heard all day. Cale turned his head. The Mogoru Empire’s palace.
Some people who had been paying attention earlier when they'd watched Hannah, Jack and Mary battle against the Lich Bernard, gulped as they recognized the familiar explosion that they hadn't paid much attention to before.
An explosion had occurred at the palace that was still bright because of the emergency.
Cale could see a light shooting up from the site of the explosion. It was a white gold light.
TBOAH!Eruhaben realized what must be going on the moment he saw his counterpart on the Palantír.
"I see... so you actually fought that thing?" TBOAH!Eruhaben asked his counterpart telepathically. TCF!Eruhaben opened his eyes and tilted his head to nod as discreetly as possible in response to TBOAH!Eruhaben's question. Before TBOAH!Eruhaben coukd ask jow hebhad fared in the battle, Naur continued the record.
The ancient Dragon Eruhaben was shooting up into the air with his white gold aura around him. Cale heard Eruhaben’s voice even as he watched him fly.
– Cale Henituse, you are a fake.
‘Excuse me? A fake? What is he talking about?’
"Ahem... I apologize, as you already know by now I had mistaken you as a Dragon Catcher..." TCF!Eruhaben apologized to Cale in a quiet and slightly embarrassed tone. Cale nodded and waved off his concerns, assuring him so that he wouldn't worry about it anymore.
It was as Cale’s face slowly turned into a frown.
– I thought you were the heir to the Dragon Slayer household, but your bloodline is not the Dragon Catcher bloodline.
Cale could see someone else shooting up to the sky behind Eruhaben.
Eruhaben calmly continued to speak.
– The White Star was the true descendant of the Dragon Slayer bloodline.
‘The White Star is from a Dragon Catcher household?’
Although this was information that everyone knew about by now, it still made the TBOAH!Dragons squirm with discomfort in their seats. However, the Goddess continued to play the record, laying all the facts down so that all those humans who thought merely of the dragons as useful strong weapons to use against their kingdom's enemies would remember their place and their manners.
Usually Grigori was the type to let things go to a certain extent, however this time she was very angry and upset that such an audacious human existed.
Cale could see a person descending from the palace’s roof at the distance. It was a man with red hair who was wearing half a mask. The man turned his head. The two of them made eye contact.
Kim Rok Soo subconsciously flinched in his seat. Noticing his reaction, TCF!Alberu turned his head to look at him. He found Rok Soo's forehead peppered with a cold sweat. He frowned and then reached out and grasped Kim Rok Soo's shoulder the same way he did to Cale when he noticed Cale getting lost in his records and turning pale.
"You okay there?"
"Urgh... y-yeah! Sorry man! I'm fine."
Unconvinced, TCF!Alberu frowned and then looked down at TCF!Ohn when she placed her paw on TCF!Alberu's knee and urged him to give Rok Soo the saucer with the slice of apple pie that appeared in front of them. The apple pie came from Raon, the request for them to pass it on to Rok Soo came from Cale.
Cale did this simple gesture because he knew that the last time Rok Soo had made direct eye contact with the White Star was when he was at risk of dying and had struck the deal with the God of Death. Cale seemed to be the first to pick up that Rok Soo still had some unaddressed trauma from that experience.
Cale started to think to himself even though the man’s face wasn’t clearly visible as they were far apart from each other. An unfamiliar voice started to speak in his mind. The voice sounded extremely tired.
– Who are you?
The White Star was asking Cale a question.
"Wait... what?! Did he really do that!?" TCF!Eruhaben gasped, his eyes flashing with sharp alert attentiveness and outraged offense. He was clearly extremely offended that the White Radish had spoke to Cale and none of them had known about it.
"How did he do that?!" TCF!Choi Han demanded, his fist clenched around the hilt of his sword. He looked ready to draw it at any moment. Cale nervously licked his lips and pretended to be searching the table before him for something to snack on.
<Chapter 334 – Who are you?! (4)>
Cale was certain that he made eye contact with the White Star. He could not help but feel an odd sense of kinship at that moment.
"Tsk!" Rok Soo clicked his tongue and let out an angry huff of frustration. He then turned to the kittens. "Listen here, Kids, your dad has no concept of 'Stranger-Danger', so in the future..."
"Heehee, don't worry Uncle Rok Soo nyaa~! We already know that!" TCF!Ohn snickered and TCF!Hong let out a series of meowing chirps and playfully mocking laughter. Cale pouted and slouched in his seat.
‘He’s from the real Dragon Slayer family?’
Cale recalled what the ancient Dragon Eruhaben had said during their first meeting.
‘The Dragon Slayers existed long ago. They were a crazy bunch. They wouldn’t cower to Dragon Fear and even had a power that was on par with it. Their powers were said to be passed on to the heir every generation.’
‘However, the last heir is said to have disappeared, ending the succession of power at that point.’
Hearing the words of the Ancient Dragon brough back the reality of who and what they were up against and TBOAH!Alberu realized why he'd felt uneasy after he'd momentarily had a lapse in judgment and thought of the existence of the dragons as merely useful tools.
But those powers had appeared in front of Eruhaben once again. Dragon Slayer, otherwise known as Dragon Catcher. One of the powers associated with them was Cale’s Dominating Aura. There was also the sword of disasters that the Dragon Slayer Syrem, who was still barely alive in the Roan Kingdom’s underground prison, possessed. Finally, there was the white crown in Cale’s possession. Cale had two of the three powers, while the final power was pretty much in Cale’s grasp as well.
The guests of the Palantír Hall, now coukd understand why TCF!Eruhaben had made that mistake about Cale's identity.
‘Is that why?’
This person was from the Dragon Slayer household who had possessed all of these powers in the past. Was that why Cale was feeling this sense of kinship with the White Star?
Grigori's expression twisted as if someone had given her vinegar to drink while claiming it was a glass of water. She did not look at all happy, in fact she still seemed very upset about Cale's whole situation.
"It's all that foolish Death God's fault!" She muttered hatefully under her breath.
“Cale-nim!”
Cale could see Choi Han urgently pull him by the shoulder. Choi Han’s expression while evacuating the people who were no longer under Tower Master Bernard’s control was-
‘Vicious.’
TCF!Choi Han could only lightly clear his throat - embarrassed. TBOAH!Choi Han however was experiencing an entirely different form of emotions and thoughts.
"So... that's how you met him..." TBOAH!Choi Han mumbled without taking his eyes off the Palantír.
It immediately brought Cale back to his senses.
“Is he the White Star?”
Cale slowly took a step to the side after seeing the vicious gaze that Choi Han had on his face that reminded him of when Choi Han had beaten Adin up before answering back.
Since TBOAH!Choi Han was concentrating so attentively on the Palantír, he caught Cale's words quicker than the rest of his friends and allies.
"Hang on.. what does it mean you beat Adin?"
"It... well... it means I literally beat him." TCF!Choi Han confessed, awkwardly scratching his cheek and letting out an innocent, but short laugh. TBOAH!Choi Han's list of questions grew and he massaged his temples to alleviate the throbbing pain that he felt there.
“According to Eruhaben-nim, he is the White Star.”
“I see.” Choi Han clenched his hand that was holding onto his sword. Cale’s expression turned odd watching this.
"Don't blame me Cale-nim, that lunatic was the reason you couldn't get any rest!"
"That's absolutely right!" Cale gasped, re-affirming in his mind that now that the White Star was dead, he really would be able to achieve his Slacker Life with peace of mind. Everyone in the hall held their silence, certian that if their current situation was anything to judge by, Cale still would not be getting his Slacker Life any time soon.
– Just who are you?
Of course, the problem was that the final boss continued to speak in Cale’s mind. There was something that was an even bigger issue.
‘How does he expect me to respond to him?’
Cale started to frown.
‘Am I Eruhaben-nim or Raon? Do you think I can speak in people’s minds? It’s not like I can just randomly shout, ‘I am XYZ!’ in the middle of the battlefield!’
The people who were taking this record very seriously huffed at the sudden petulant attitude that Cale was showing in his thoughts, as amusing as it was and no matter how much it made them want to laugh and ridicule this idiotic White Radish, they couldn't do it.
To Cale the White Star was a persistent pest that got in the way of him achieving his goal, however to absolutely everyone else, the White Star was an enemy that could slaughter them with merely one gesture of his hand. Reality terrified them because it re-affirmed what they already knew about Cale Henituse and the level of authority he possessed.
Cale looked back at the white mask that was looking at him from the distance and started to speak.
“Choi Han, head over there.”
“…Will things be okay here?”
According to the Palantír, Choi Han could see Cale pull up the sleeves of his brown robe and the small silver light coming from Cale’s hand as he continued to look at the White Star.
“Yes, it’ll be fine.”
Choi Han understood this as Cale saying that he would personally step in if necessary and started to move.
– Don’t worry, Choi Han! Go help Goldie gramps! The great and mighty Raon Miru is here!
Choi Han quickly started to rush toward the palace instead of responding to the six-years-old Dragon.
"Hmmm... it's okay Strong Choi Han, I will forgive you because in that situation things were very urgent!" Raon proudly reassured TCF!Choi Han with a dismissive wave of his front paw.
The Palantír continued revealing even more details about the one-soded conversation between the White Radish and Cale. It revealed how the White Star knew from their very first meeting that TCF!Choi Han was from a different world.
The White Star noticed that Choi Han was different from the others in this world after seeing him just once. The fact that he realized that was not a big issue. Both Choi Han and Cale were part of this world now.
TCF!Choi Han smiled radiantly at that. He was very happy to hear and see that Cale also accepted the world as theirs even from that battle. TBOAH!Choi Han was shocked, his heart shook at how effortlessly the transmigrated Cale Henituse accepted this world that was so vastly different from their previous world.
Of course the fact that TBOAH!Choi Han still did know about the destruction that had befallen their world played a big role in deceiving him and tricking him into maintaining his calm composure even right now.
However, something else was making Cale nervous.
‘That was something that even the two Dragons had not figured out yet.’
He didn’t know whether Eruhaben really didn’t know, but he was certain that Raon did not know about Choi Han’s identity. But that White Star bastard had figured it out.
TCF!Eruhaben sighed again and shook his head with pity and sincere sympathy for Cale and Rok Soo.
"He figured it out because of the Ancient Power, right?"
"That's right..." Cale admitted with his own head bowed. Rok Soo, despite overhearing them wisely maintained his silence.
He then heard Raon’s voice.
– Human! What are we going to do about that White Star- never mind! It’s our gramps!
"Oh my!! How adorable!! That's so f**king adorable!!" Queen Jopis gushed. She had a tea cup clasped in one hand, while the other snapped a fancy lace-like fan opened.
A lot of white gold light that was enough to cover up the night sky started to appear.
“…Ho.” Cale could not help but gasp.
Tens of white gold arrows started to fly toward the White Star. Eruhaben only needed one flick of the wrist to launch this attack.
Cale could see Eruhaben’s cold expression as he stood in the sky facing the White Star who was standing on the roof of the palace.
“Ho.” He could not help but gasp once again.
Unfortunately, the White Star effortlessly used a wall of water to block it. Cale felt that this Ancient Power seemed to be similar to his Indestructible Shield. The Palantír then went on and showed a few more things, like how Cale felt that he and the White Radish were a bit too similar. According to the Palantír Cale thought about the World Tree's warning as he watched TCF!Eruhaben and the White Star fight.
The White Star’s water wall easily blocked the white gold mana arrows. A human had easily used a shield to defend against a Dragon’s quick but strong attack.
All thoughts of tools and backstabbing that TBOAH!Zed had, vanished in an instant. The fear a presence like the White Star could cause reminded everyone just how dangerous the White Star actually was.
An extreme aerial battle was taking place above the palace even though no noises could be heard. It was so scary because all of those arrows had disappeared without making a single noise.
– Human, that White Star is no joke.
‘Right?’
It was as Cale agreed with Raon’s assessment.
Rok Soo didn't know how to feel about the fact that the terrifying and infamous White Radish had become a 'no-good-lunatic-munchkin' because of his Soul Swap Partner, Cale.