Stella stared at the boy with a faint smile in front of her, stunned, and remained there for a long time.
When she came to her senses and realized she had been staring at the other person's face, Stella's pretty face inexplicably turned red, and she began to stammer as she spoke.
"Who, who would seek refuge in your place!"
That reaction was already quite strong.
"Otherwise what?" Leo shrugged. "Where else can you go?"
Stella immediately bit her lip.
Yes, where else can I go?
In this era, I can't go anywhere.
"----Can you help me find the Dragon God?"
Stella suddenly said this, as if she had just thought of something.
" Dragon God?" Leo frowned and said, "You mean the Great Red?"
"----That's right." Stella paused for a moment before saying, "I want to see that Dragon God."
In fact, during Stella's lifetime, no one knew the name " Great Red ".
Although the Vermis Kingdom worships Dragon God, they do not know the true name of their Dragon God, nor even the title "True Crimson God Emperor".
However, it's normal not to know the title. Whether it's "True Crimson God Emperor" or " Uroboros Dragon," these are titles given by later generations. Those two Dragon God never referred to themselves as such.
As for their true names, in the ancient era when the Vermis Kingdom still existed, there were very few legends about the two Dragon God. They were not the type to announce their true names everywhere. In fact, unless there were special reasons, they would only stay in the Dimensional Gap and would not appear in the Human World. Therefore, very few people in that era knew the true names of the Dragon God. At least the names " Ophis " and " Great Red " did not spread.
Therefore, even in a kingdom like the Vermis Kingdom of Familion, which was favored by the Dragon God, people's knowledge and titles of the Great Red were limited to "the true red dragon," "the dragon among dragons," "the god among dragons," etc., and they were completely unaware that he was the famous "True Crimson God Emperor" Great Red in this era.
The royal family members, including Stella, directly addressed him as the Dragon God. It wasn't until today, when Leo and Ophis broke into the Throne Hall and broke his seal, that Stella learned the true name and title of her Dragon God.
To be honest, Stella was quite surprised when she learned that Ophis was also Dragon God, and that he was of the same rank as the Dragon God god she worshipped.
In her previous understanding, or rather, in her time, the entire Vermis Kingdom only knew of the Great Red Dragon God, and had no idea that there was another Dragon God in the world.
Moreover, this Dragon God seemed to be an enemy of the Dragon God god her family worshipped, which surprised Stella even more.
If Ophis hadn't already left, Stella certainly wouldn't be able to remain calm right now.
Faced with Leo, who could directly communicate with the Dragon God and even seemed to have had direct contact with Dragon God, Stella couldn't help but have some thoughts running wild.
You must know that after the Vermis Kingdom was destroyed, they used all their national strength to seal their last Dragon Bloodline and Dragon Treasure in the royal city, and then sent the entire royal city to the Dimensional Gap, all in the hope of seeing the Dragon God again and obtaining the Dragon God's help.
They hoped that the Dragon God would personally descend upon Stella after noticing her existence, break her seal, and assist her in returning to the Human World world to restore her Vermis Kingdom and bring back its former glory.
Unfortunately, the Great Red didn't even notice that his former benefactors had appeared in his territory, or rather, he did notice but didn't extend a helping hand to them as the people of the Vermis Kingdom had hoped.
Admittedly, the Great Red was once drawn to the dream of the first king of the Vermis Kingdom and descended into the Human World. However, only the first king could attract it; the rest of the people of the Vermis Kingdom had no power to do so.
Since they failed to attract the attention of the Great Red, the Great Red naturally wouldn't pay them any special attention, and never even considered them as its subjects.
Rather, the Great Red, as the Dragon God, doesn't follow the path of faith at all; he doesn't need others to believe in him or worship him.
In other words, after bestowing the Dragon Bloodline and the Dragon Treasure, the Great Red withdrew from the fray and had no interest in the Vermis Kingdom itself.
In some ways, Great Red, like Ophis, has a very simple and pure personality. She is interested in dreams that attract her and is curious about the owners of those dreams, and is willing to directly offer help to them.
Just like the protagonist in the original work, he once attracted the Great Red, who did not hesitate to provide its own flesh and blood to rebuild his body. The Great Red also took him into the Underworld, where they merged to defeat the rampaging super monster. Afterwards, he leisurely sang a song and left without any interest in cleaning up the mess.
Great Red completely ignores those it is not interested in. Even if someone points a knife at its neck, it will just wobble and fly over the other person's head like an old man taking a walk.
How could it possibly allow a group of whimsical royal family members to restore its kingdom?
Don't forget that the Vermis Kingdom later expanded its territory by relying on the Dragon Bloodline and the Dragon Treasure, and became immersed in violence, which eventually led to its being besieged by a coalition of major forces and its eventual destruction.
How could such a group of people, who abuse the power it grants, possibly still harbor dreams of attracting the Great Red, even if they later come to their senses?
It's only natural that the Great Red would ignore Stella's existence and the castle.
From the very beginning, the Vermis Kingdom miscalculated, which led to the situation where their princess could only sleep in this sunless castle for countless years, eventually even her life force withered away.
If it weren't for meeting Leo, and if Leo hadn't intended to take her as a familiar and performed a reincarnation ritual on her using Evil Piece, thus reviving Stella, Stella would have remained here in eternal slumber.
Leo didn't know if Stella understood this.
However, Stella truly wanted to see the Great Red, and the Dragon God the Vermis Kingdom had always worshipped.
This is the only thing that has any connection to her.
"Do you really want the Great Red to help you restore your country?"
Leo's brows furrowed deeper and deeper before he asked the question directly.
"----This is the task left to me by my predecessors."
Stella remained silent for a long time before speaking.
"This mission is extremely unrealistic," Leo said bluntly. "I can tell you with absolute certainty that the Great Red will not help you restore your kingdom."
Upon hearing this, Stella became somewhat excited.
How will you know if you don't try?!
Overwhelmed by her emotions, Stella was unable to control her power, causing the crimson flames to ignite slightly.
"This is the only thing I can do, and it's a great mission entrusted to me by my ancestors, my family, and my people. I have to try, no matter what!"
At this moment, what flowed through Stella's eyes was no longer vigilance towards this unfamiliar era, but an overly heavy obsession.
Those sounds still seemed to echo in her ears----
"You are our last hope, Stella!"
"Go! Go and welcome back our esteemed Dragon God!"
Whether the glory of the Vermis Kingdom can continue to shine upon this world depends on your success!
"We cannot allow this great nation to perish in our hands. You must shoulder the responsibility of being a member of the royal family and revive the nation!"
These were the words that Stella's father, mother, brothers, sisters, and other siblings kept repeating before she was sealed away and fell into a deep sleep.
Recalling those words and the hope in their eyes and on their faces, Stella's heart burned with a fire.
That's right, the Vermis Kingdom shouldn't have been destroyed by its own hands.
She is the last princess of the Vermis Kingdom, the Crimson Lotus Princess with the purest Dragon Bloodline.
I have a responsibility to revive the nation and restore the glory of the Vermis Kingdom.
Therefore, seeking help from the Dragon God is essential.
"You----"
Seeing Stella's excited expression, Leo was about to say something when he suddenly looked up at the sky.
"Knock knock"
At the same time, the Dragon Treasure that was stuck upside down next to Stella suddenly vibrated, emitting a pulsation like a heartbeat.
Stella also felt the Dragon Bloodline within her boiling, burning, cheering, and leaping with joy, as if she were a lost child seeing her mother.
In a moment of inspiration, Stella also raised her head and looked up at the sky above the castle.
The next second, both Leo and Stella saw it.
"Boom----"
Amidst a tremor that shook the very atmosphere, the enormous black shadow appeared without any warning.
A giant dragon, over a hundred meters long, covered in crimson scales and with a ferocious appearance, appeared above the castle, slowly flying through the distorted Dimensional Gap.
It didn't unleash that terrifying aura, but it made no attempt to conceal its dreadful presence.
It didn't roar at all, yet wherever it passed, the ground trembled as if in worship, making quite a commotion.
" The Great Red ----"
Leo's heart suddenly started racing.
How did it end up here?
Were they drawn here by Stella's Dragon Bloodline and Dragon Treasure?
No, that's not it.
Leo immediately realized that the reason the Great Red was here was probably because it had finally detected the traces of Ophis's presence and had come to check on the situation.
Thinking of this, Leo immediately threw the Evil Piece with the "snake" of Ophis back into his storage space, his heart pounding.
Stella, on the other hand, became more excited than ever before upon seeing the Great Red.
" Dragon God! Dragon God has descended!"
Ignoring the last piece of clothing she had left to cover herself, Stella suddenly stood up and shouted excitedly at the sky.
"Great dragon! Great god! Have you finally turned your gaze upon your people?"
Stella's excited shouts received no response from the Great Red.
The enormous Red Dragon first flew slowly over the castle, and then its gaze did fall upon it, but it was not on Stella or Leo, but on the black vortex-like entrance that was still open and had not disappeared.
It gazed down at the black vortex for a moment, seemingly sensing Ophis's power from it.
It can be confirmed that Ophis is not actually here; it merely opened an entrance to the Human World and then ceased to pay attention to it.
"Hmph hmph hmph~~~()"
Humming a song that sounded like a triumphant victory, Great Red, as if certain that it had defeated its nemesis, flew off into the distance in a cheerful and leisurely manner.
As for Leo, Stella, and everything else in the castle, including the Dragon Bloodline and Dragon Treasure that were closely related to him, the Great Red ultimately chose to ignore them, as if he hadn't seen anything at all.
" Dragon God! Dragon God!"
Stella panicked when she saw this.
Please listen to my demands!
Stella shouted desperately at the Great Red, but no matter how much she shouted, the Great Red did not turn around to look at her.
Stella immediately unfurled dragon wings made of flames behind her, transforming into a streak of fire as she soared into the sky, chasing after the Great Red.
Please listen to me! I beg you!
Stella kept shouting as she chased after Leo, leaving him no time to stop her.
Great Red still ignored the girl behind her, seemingly flying slowly, but in reality, its speed was much faster than Stella 'Stella. The distance between them not only did not decrease, but continued to widen.
Not long after, the colossal figure of the Great Red vanished into the depths of the Dimensional Gap, never to be seen again.
""
Stella stopped, staring blankly at the scene, and remained motionless.
"Well----"
Leo, who witnessed this scene, didn't know whether he should breathe a sigh of relief or feel sorry for his new family.
Clearly, the Great Red had no intention of responding to the demands of the last princess of the Vermis Kingdom.
As mentioned before, it may not have been unaware of Stella and the castle's existence, but it ultimately chose to ignore them.
The fact that he completely ignored Stella's presence and leisurely walked away said it all.
"This is God."
God is both merciful and ruthless.
Even Dragon God with a simple and pure personality is still a god.
Stella's desire to seek help from the Great Red was an unrealistic idea from the start.
"Compared to the Great Red, Ophis seems to have more humanity, doesn't he?"
At least, that's how it is with Leo.
Remembering his promise to the other party, Leo felt a surge of emotion.
Perhaps, it's time to really think about what to do.