Schneizel looks down at the two men in black robes.

"Did you just say 'Sieg'?

　It seems that Ichijou had heard the words he had spoken. Schneizel looks down at the two heads hidden by the hood to see what's going on. He is watching their reactions.
　Currently, there are dozens of golden knights led by Schneizel against the two of them. They were in a state of being surrounded by them and had an advantageous position. That being the case, one can't let one's guard down because they are considering the possibility that they are the heart of the dragon.
　Of course, the two of them fall under that very organization. And Schneizel was dimly aware of it.

''That (you), is that Zeke the Dragonslayer?''

　《Long shot》 is Sieg's alias. The source of it is not clear, but Zeke must have done enough to be called that before, and he must have done something to give the impression of being a 《rong》, magic or appearance.

　Ichijo once again tells Zeke in a whisper, "I'm sorry," in response to what he had said. But there is no reply.
　But Zeke had been thinking about it.
　As a rule of the organization, I can't let my identity be known. I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world. It is because of this that this organization has been protected.
　But that doesn't mean we're going to let the soldiers of Dames Aldan kill all the kings?　Is that an act worthy of justice, or of what we believe in? -- Zeke asked himself that question and thought about a way out.
　It's not about justice. My priorities are my beliefs. Act according to your rules. If you follow those rules, you shouldn't be in combat with Dahms-Ardan.

　But that idea is put back into perspective by Schneizel's next words.

'You mean, you are with the dragon, my lord? ...the heart of the dragon, shall we say?

　The heart of Schneizel's question is cheap. No one knows the origin of the organization's name any more. But everyone wants to know. Why do they call it the Dragon?　In other words, Zeke the Dragon Shooter. But there's another reason. The most important reason is that I was here, and that is the most important reason.

　It had been a long time since Schneizel and the others had begun to examine the scene in Pasquantin, but none of the survivors had been found.
　They determined that this was a case involving the heart of a dragon, and then they rushed to the scene. And they couldn't help but think so of these two unknowns who appeared there. This is a very natural reaction.

　The question posed, the answer pressed.
　And after pondering, Zeke found the answer.

'We are the heart of the dragon.'

　Zeke gracefully takes off his hood, revealing his true face. Following that, Ichijou also takes off his hood.

''That one........''

　Schneizel soon realized that the other person was Ichijo, the one he had fought with in the Demon Wars before.

''Ichijo-dono. I'm sure you're the one from this organization.

'Yes, it's been a while. Mr. Schneizel.

　With a mysterious expression on his face, Ichijo answered without hiding it. Zeke said nothing.

''I see, Sieg of the dragon attack, the hero Ichijou. I am Schneizel, King of Dahms Ardan. I have come to you at the urgent request of Pasquantin. But this is what it looks like.

　Schneizel showed them the devastation in front of them and another one.

"I want to ask you two a few questions. First, can I assume that you don't have the will to fight?

Yeah, we don't do combat. I want to talk to you too. O King Feng, this is a decision I made because I deemed you worthy of trust. I hope you understand that.

　-- I mean, don't say anything else. And Schneizel understands.

　The conversation between Schneizel and Zeke is short and, from the outside, one might wonder if that's enough. But the two of them have been peeking at each other, probing at each other, and in the spirit of what they have revealed, they have decided that there is no need for caution.
　This was largely due to the experience of the two men.

'Before we talk, I want you to take a look at something. We haven't touched it at all yet.

　Then the wall of the gold knight opens and Schneizel invites them to a place. And it was recognizable even from a distance - the "Danjo" just in front of the main gate.

　The blood that dripped from above on the sides of the sandal floor is scentless and hardened. I could see it adhering to the surrounding pebbles and gravel as well.
　And the two who had come to the front of it were already in sight, but they went up to the top of the dan and saw the devastation.

''This is........''

　Zeke is speechless.

'Ugh..........'

　As soon as Ichijo started to eek out, he got off the dancer and vomited in the shadows.
　Just like that, the golden knights in the area twisted their heads. Some of them asked, "Is that really the heart of a dragon? Some of them smiled at him, as if he was half-ridiculing them.
　But Ichijou wasn't used to this kind of thing yet, so it couldn't be helped.

''Just to be sure. Is this the work of those guys?

　At the podium, Schneizel asked Zeke that.

'Of course not, it wasn't us,'

　--there was Tonpar's dead body.
　A long silver table set up on the parlor floor. On it was the figure of Tong Paar, a lump of flesh or something, no longer recognizable to who it was.
　Both arms and legs had been severed and fallen under the table, and the torso was headless.
　The head had fallen to the corner of the ebony, but it was so missing that it was no longer discernible.
　And both severed limbs, the torso and lower body on the tabletop, and the head lying in the corner. All of these were pierced with silverware, such as countless forks and knives.
　Blood, parts of flesh that seemed to have been stripped off, and parts of the flesh that no longer belonged to any part of the Tom Paar are scattered about the sandal floor, making it difficult to find a foothold.
　But there were countless other pieces of silverware scattered about. It's probably because there was no space and it didn't sting.

　Zeke checked each one of them with his eyes and imagined the tragedy that occurred here.
　Then he came into view, the lower half of the corpse's body.
　Just in the crotch area, there were three handy, large stones placed on it. The flesh, stretched out like minced meat, with a few streaks left on the stones, is sticking to the stones along with blood. He had probably used this stone and smashed it up - Tonpar had no reproductive organs.
　Whether he was crushed alive, I don't know.
　But from it, I felt a private feeling for this king - a terrible resentment.

'I don't need to tell you that the torture took place.

Hmm. And this is definitely Tom Paar. You can see the faintest hint of a face from the missing neck, and the eighteenth coat of arms was found inside the clothing that had fallen to the ground below. Judging by his size and stature, there is no doubt that he is the person himself.

　In other words, this is proof that Pasquantine has been destroyed. With this, it has been decided that this kingdom has been completely destroyed.

'But there is another problem. I suppose you can already see it, though.

Yeah.

　By the time they came to the parlor, it was already in sight.
　Schneizel left the eaves, and when he did, he led Zeke there.

'--this is what it looks like,'

　The two of them reached just in front of the main gate. Then Ichijo runs to the side, having finished throwing up in the corner.

　Zeke sees the further devastation. But it's no longer a matter of whether or not it's right to call it a "devastation".
　Because - the country that should be visible from the main gate. All of it has disappeared, as if there was never anything here in the beginning, not a speck of dust.

....

　-- A "huge hole" that could swallow the grounds of a great country.

　Zeke was speechless and just looked at the scene. No, there is no sight. There was nothing there anymore.
　Only the frame of the main gate remained unnaturally. From there, the attacker's bizarre side could be seen.
　And the huge hole spreading out from right underneath the main gate that was left behind. The ground has been dug deep and wide.

When we rushed over, there was no one here and it looked like this. At first I thought it was them. "The Tong Paar had a history of bad behavior that warranted their attention.

But that wasn't us. We kept him alive on purpose. We kept him alive because this country was a deterrent. But we knew it was something we'd have to deal with at some point...

　Zeke is astonished in his mind that there are still people other than Nito who can do this.

'This is, to put it bluntly ... serious.

　That was Zeke's honest opinion. 'We can no longer deal with this on our own.

'Whoever it is, we can't deal rashly with someone who has this much power. It's too different in dimension.''

　In that hole that could swallow a great nation whole, Zeke realized that he was defeated. No, it might be too early to compare it to defeat, given that they hadn't yet faced each other. But that hole was that unusual and unbelievable to everyone.

''Feng Wang, the fact that we came here. And the information about our identity, all of it, is strictly forbidden. We do not act against our beliefs. Nor do we have the will to wage war with Dahms Ardan. But I suppose it's up to you.

I'll keep that in mind. I'll keep my mouth shut and let everyone know that we don't need to fight.

　There's nothing to worry about. The Golden Knights are an elite unit under the king's direct control. It is governed in power and thought, and only those who are obedient to the king's commands belong to it.

"And I don't want it known that I had anything to do with the heart of the dragon.

　The head of the country should not be linked to a terrorist organization, for example. If it is known, it will definitely go beyond just antagonizing people.

　There is no more use for a ruined country. Zeke, judging that there is no way to save the situation, tells Ichijo to return to the headquarters.

''I'm sorry, Lord Ichijou, aren't I?''

　Then, suddenly, Schneizel apologizes. Ichijo didn't know what he was talking about and had a question mark on his face.

The reason for Johannes' outburst was that they and other brave men were summoned to this world. It's a compulsory summons. Not only that, I didn't expect that they belonged to the heart of the dragon, which supports this world from behind the scenes, and as the king of the eighteenth, I would like to apologize to you. I am truly sorry for getting you involved in the affairs of this world.

'Never mind. Either way, we won't be able to go back to the world we came from, and even if there was a way, we'd have to live in this world for the time being. Then we'll just have to think that this is our world now, and that's all we can do. Besides, this is what I wanted. I'm the one who chose to join this organization. So don't worry about it.

　Ichijo is no longer thinking about returning to Japan. All there is to do is to find 《Hitaka》.

''Huh.......I see. That's a strong man.''

'Really?　I'm not strong, I threw up just looking at that thing, and I threw up, right?

　In the midst of all this other talk, when I do, Zeke makes some kind of disturbing movement. He put his fingers to his ears and listened to something.

'Zeke, can you hear me?'

Alford?

　The words that leaked out, Ichijou's expression became tense as if something had happened.
　I'm sure they were planning to just do a preliminary inspection and return to headquarters immediately if nothing happened. In other words, the fact that there was a telepathic message means that something happened that needed to be announced immediately.

What's the matter?

　Zeke asks Alford while keeping Ichijo and Schneizel waiting.

''I'll explain later, just listen to me first.''

"Yeah.

...and force Eliza to move there.

　At those words, Zeke's expression changed drastically to a grim one. He read that mood in Ichijo and guessed that something was wrong.

''Zeke, for now, we don't have time. Once you get Eliza in transition, you'll hear about the situation from Eliza. Don't let Eliza know, if she finds out, it's over.''

　If he got caught, it was over - at those words from Alford, Zeke imagined what he might look like now.
　When Alford warned him that he didn't have much time, he asked, "What happened? Zeke couldn't get the words "I don't know what to do" out of his mouth.
　The fact that he didn't explain anything, just told them to transition Eliza, of course, he didn't know the details, but Zeke knew - the two of them were in danger.

'I'll go.'

　But Zeke knows.

"You're not going to get in on this, you know?

....

　If we needed help, we would have told them so from the beginning. But Alford hadn't said so. He asked me to transfer Eliza first, and he had said so from the beginning. That's why I knew Alford's response.

''Once Eliza is transferred, I'm next. But first, take care of Eliza. I'll send you the signal, so until then, keep the magic circle deployed and wait.

　Slightly disturbed telepathic communication. Perhaps he's talking in motion.

"Zeke please. Quickly, Eliza.

　Zeke already knew what this decision meant, and he already knew what it meant. But this was Alford's decision.

"Okay... now, we'll get Eliza into transition.

"Thanks, Zeke. I owe you.

Alford! --

　So once there, a telepathic story that breaks off. Zeke's voice doesn't reach me.

'Mr. Zeke?'

　Ichijo waited for instructions, watching Zeke's expression, which was clearly not just a matter of course.
　And after a few moments of silence, Sieg got right to work.

''Ichijo, prepare the transition magic.''

Is it transference magic?

Yes. Forced transfer of Eliza to this location.

　Not knowing what was going on, Ichijou hurriedly deployed his magic circle.

　Transmigration magic is the first magic that is taught to you when you join this organization. It's terrible for those who can't use transposition, but if you can't use it, you can't join unless you're an exception.
　Unfortunately, Ichijou was a brave and all-powerful person.

''Sieg-dono, what the hell are you doing?''

I'll explain later. Our friends who are on their way to Utopia are in danger, and it seems that they have encountered the enemy. In the meantime, we're going to force them to come here. Can you lend me your magic?

Of course!　All of you!　Surround the magic circle and supply the magic!

　Schneizel realized from Zeke's impatient expression, which he hadn't explained, that it wasn't just a matter of time, and ordered the Golden Knight to do it.

　Ichijo deploys a magic circle and urges him to stabilize. Those around him supply the magic power. It's perfect magic. This will allow for a smooth transition.

　《Forced transference》 is just what the name implies. Regardless of the opponent's intentions, it casts a transference spell and encourages them to move through space. This is not a magic name, but rather an application of transference magic.
　The random transfer that Aries had previously cast on Masamune, for example, fell into this category.
　And the more magic power this spell has, the more it can be activated in a near-casting-free state. Hence, it is often used when escaping.
　Eliza's character position is informed by the ring she wears on her finger. But because of the distance, it will take a little longer to activate it. It's also the magic power that makes up for it.

　Next to Ichijou, Zeke also enters the supply of magic power.

''Ichijou you two are in danger.

　Zeke whispered, and that was all he told her.

''Yes ... yes.''

　Ichijo was at a loss for a response. It was because Zeke had such a serious expression on his face.
　However, with the meaning of that expression on Sieg's face uncertain, the chanting to transference began in the wilderness of Pasquantin.