Melusine, Become my Noble Phantasm!

"Lord Vortigern… Lord Vortigern, congratulations! It's a boy!"

The voice stirred Vortigern's consciousness. He blinked, taking in the warm sunlight filtering through a window—a rare brightness in a world lately invaded by darkness. The servants before him were familiar, the decor old-fashioned. Slowly, he realized: he was dreaming again, memories from long ago resurfacing.

"Lord Vortigern?"

The servant's voice was close by, but Vortigern barely heard it, lost in his thoughts.

He gazed at the tiny, wrinkled infant in his arms, then at the woman lying exhausted from childbirth. His eyes, sharp and greedy, locked on her—but the smile that crept across his face was not one of joy, but mockery.

Children? He'd never planned to leave an heir. Why bother? He was the dragon destined to end this island's fate—what use was a child?

The woman before him wanted to trade a child for power and favor. No, it was not love in her eyes, only ambition—an unmasked desire for money and influence.

Vortigern himself had treated her as a tool to satisfy his desires. She used him the same way, a machine to gain status. Fair trade.

He held no hatred for such ambition—in fact, he admired her boldness. But such unrestrained human greed only strengthened his resolve to destroy the island.

If she wanted power, he'd give it to her—only to watch her be consumed by it. A cruel spectacle to pass the idle time.

As for the child… since it had been born, he'd keep it. Maybe the boy might prove useful someday. Besides, raising one more was no burden. The infant was quiet—premature and uncrying—survival was uncertain.

Vortigern rose and stepped down the corridor. Time quickened; the world around him shifted.

"Big sister! Over here! Come catch me—ouch!"

A sharp bump interrupted his thoughts. Looking down, he saw a blond boy rubbing his forehead, chased by a maid breathlessly apologizing.

"I'm sorry, Lord Vortigern! Master Aslan and I weren't careful! Please forgive us!"

The voice stirred a long-buried memory in Vortigern's body: Where did this little devil come from in my castle?

It made sense. Someone who cared so little for offspring could abandon a child without a thought.

Years had passed. The wrinkled infant had grown—grown into this blond boy.

"Master Vortigern… Master Aslan is your child," the maid said quietly.

The boy's mother? She'd been destroyed years ago by her own greed. Vortigern's memories of her were hazy—a pair of calculating eyes the clearest image.

The child and maid in front of him were blurred in memory too, except for the boy's pale blond hair and light blue eyes, which remained vivid.

Vortigern's mind stirred with vague recollections: he had brought a band of outsiders to the island then and needed a way to win their trust. This cheap child solved the problem.

"Since he carries my blood, I'll take the brat," he had said.

The boy had cried when Vortigern grabbed him roughly by the head, but he only watched with cold interest.

Amid the boy's tears, Vortigern dragged him into darkness.

Now, sitting on his rotten throne, Vortigern opened his eyes slowly, his body aching.

"Memories long buried… Am I getting old? I actually remember my own child…"

He only had one. He didn't forget entirely, but the memory was shallow. Rumor had it the child escaped into the forest long ago—likely dead by now.

Why dream of this?

Under the island's dark power, no dream was meaningless. Could it be his "dear" child was still alive? Surprising, but the island was doomed. Even if his child lived, what did it matter?

Footsteps and clanking armor echoed again. The subordinate who promised King Arthur's head had failed—but that was expected. With the Red Dragon Soul protecting him, Arthur wasn't so easily killed.

Vortigern sat straighter, determined not to leave this time. They would all stay.

The hall doors swung open, letting in fresh—if tainted—air.

Artoria and several old knights followed. Familiar faces he no longer wished to see. But there were newcomers.

Vortigern's gaze fixed on Aslan.

-End Chapter-

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