"And those hatchlings in the incubation chamber... they're just the tip of the iceberg. Over the years, Black Steel has been attempting to mate with various monsters to create an offspring capable of fully inheriting the energy of the earth's veins."

Dragons, lesser dragons, humans, and any other high-level creatures on record.

The majority are through mating; however, Black Steel forcibly injects his genes into the bodies of those that refuse to cooperate.

This thick stack of research reports is Black Steel's "criminal record" from over the years. He closely monitors the birth of those offspring. Initially, he was unable to properly control the earth's vein energy, resulting in malformed offspring that perished shortly after birth. Nowadays, he can stabilize the state of the young more effectively.

But even that doesn't satisfy him.

In Black Steel's eyes, these young beings are far from his ideal state and hold no value in existence.

"This page mentions the woodland spiked dragon..."

The cat's paw stopped on a piece of parchment, "She was deemed an unqualified mother and held no research value, thus escaping disaster. The azure dragon on the altar wasn't as fortunate. With a pure bloodline akin to nobility among the Dragon Race, Black Steel lured her here and imprisoned her in his lab for close observation."

Before her death, the azure dragon suffered numerous inhumane transformations. The dragon's formidable vitality made this process excruciatingly long, and after her death, Black Steel had another "genius" idea—he left the newly hatched hatchlings on the altar, forcing them, in unbearable hunger, to gnaw upon the azure dragon's corpse.

Perhaps such cannibalism might bring about unexpected changes.

"This idea is derived from some folk legend; you've heard of ghouls, right?"

"Yeah."

Ethan nodded, "There were traces of ghouls near Ximu Town before. 'Introducing You to 100 Types of Dark Creatures' mentioned them, and the Demon Hunter believes they resulted from human cannibalism. During famines, they appear en masse within the empire."

This was once his main occupation.

When he worked at the Adventurer's Guild in Ximu Town, his duty was to document any information regarding targets into task announcements—the more detailed, the fewer unexpected casualties.

It seemed Mr. Black Steel had dabbled in various customs across regions, but he misused his intellect and knowledge.

"If that ancient tree's prophecy is true, then it's interesting."

The woodland spiked dragon, deemed valueless by Black Steel, gave birth to the offspring he dreamt of, one capable of absorbing the energy of the earth's veins.

Fate truly is unfathomable.

"According to Black Steel's plan, he'd take that dragon whelp to the earth's veins, throwing it into the 'Blue Lake.' If it can survive and swim back to shore, it'll become a dragon surpassing Black Steel and possess unprecedented power."

On some future day, the black dragon that claimed the earth's vein power will face off in a fateful showdown against the Kingdom's hero.

In the prophecy mentioned by the ancient tree, the hero will die but will lead the Kingdom's people towards a new era.

The emergence of mechanical monsters and plagues suggests Black Steel's patience is waning.

To return to the real world.

To overthrow the false reign of the Crimson Queen.

This goal is branded into his heart like a steel seal; integrating into human society, he views his offspring as experiments, all for this ultimate goal.

Ethan bowed his head in silence.

Once again, he confronted "fate," with the King of Gold treating it as a surefire trump card, implying that not even the guild founders could easily change its trajectory, only the Goddess they mentioned holds higher authority.

Then what is the Crimson Queen's purpose?

She seems content staying in the treetop cabin, silently observing the world's fate.

After millennia of peace, Black Steel emerged, influenced by Argos' will, deciding to become the harbinger of this era's destruction.

But judging from the battles in the manor earlier, Black Steel's abilities don't match his ambition.

Even after absorbing the earth's energy, he barely reaches the threshold of a Saint.

"The crux lies in Argos. It's the grudge between Him and the Crimson Queen."

"Perhaps you are also part of fate."

The cat on the table suddenly spoke, "Rowena said you're a bad star, and in a way, she's right."

Whenever Ethan appears, bad things often happen.

It has been proven countless times.

"...I find this lacks scientific basis."

"Not everything can be explained immediately, so that's why you're here, isn't it?"

Those bright red eyes fixed on Ethan; for a moment, Ethan felt the cat's demeanor overlay with her future self.

"But it's not your responsibility. The true bad star is fate itself; you merely set fate's wheels in motion."

She paused, "Imagine if you hadn't come to this dimension, what would have happened then?"

Black Steel would continue his research for five, ten, twenty years... he's long since accustomed to repeated failures.

And his judgment of the woodland spiked dragon wouldn't be wrong—she only gave birth to a regular hybrid dragon hatchling.

Charlotte, having completed her coming-of-age ceremony, might receive a dragon egg and, like all young adventurers, leave her hometown to embark on her journey.

No invading mechanical monsters, nor spreading plagues.

All upheaval would remain dormant until Ethan's arrival.

The cat on the table smiled at him, "Now everyone knows you're a 'bad star,' but only you can uncover the reason behind it."

...

Meanwhile, at the earth's veins.

Black Steel stood before the azure lake, his reflection hazy in the luminescent waters.

Blue Lake is the name he gave it.

Anyone seeing it would be drawn to its beauty, overlooking the nearby danger. They couldn't resist touching the peculiar surface, and then...

Black Steel glanced at his right hand, where part of the black scales on his palm had vanished, replaced by cold metal. That portion, absorbed by Blue Lake, could no longer feel skin or flesh; it became a precise energy conveyance device.

Soaking one's entire body in Blue Lake would lead to a transformative rebirth.

Just like those mechanical creatures, mindless, driven by instinct toward the Divine Tree.

They are products of experiments too.

Black Steel originally didn't intend to let them appear in humans' view, but only days before, he dreamed a strange dream; the hanging figure in it told him the time had come.

Even now, the Hanged Man's whispers echoed in his mind.

—"Ignatius Votigan, can you defeat this man?"

He hesitated.

Defeat made him aware of the gulf between himself and the human, an insurmountable divide.

And the Hanged Man once again saw through his heart and guided him.

Whenever he wavered, he'd appear in dreams, hearing the Hanged Man's whispers.

"Ignatius, you know where to go, and you know what to do."

Black Steel gazed at his reflection in Blue Lake. Under the glowing cover, he couldn't discern his expression.

He knew what to do, but at this moment, his instincts stood opposed to his reason.

"What are you hesitating for, Ignatius?"

He felt he must be hallucinating, for the Hanged Man's voice echoed from lake's depths. This wasn't a dream; they were close, just a hand's reach away.

Yet this time, instinct gradually took command.

"I haven't found a suitable young one yet..."

"There's no time left."

The voice from the lake replied.

The tranquil lake water began to stir, as if something was swimming towards the shore.

"No, no way!"

Black Steel stepped back.

The next moment, a hose from the lake wrapped around his legs, the voice from the depths no longer calm, now icy and aggressive, "This is your only way to defeat him."

Black Steel's claws surged with dark red energy, his eyes blood-red, his mouth opening to release scorching dragon breath; yet all he did couldn't change the preordained outcome.

A heavy splash echoed from the lake shore, followed by silence.