Reborn as an Extra Chapter 561: Raika and The Lyre of Faith. Part-4.
Previously on Reborn as an Extra...
Before Rio had a chance to probe further, Raika rose from his chair and turned his eyes toward the statue.
"Don't worry about me... You've journeyed this far through so much hardship; wouldn't it be great to learn more about this place?"
Raika's slender fingers danced across the strings, producing a sorrowful tune, while he sang in a soft, soothing voice.
...
The melody recounted the saga of the 'Shadow Dragons'; it was one Rio remembered hearing Ellie hum as a bedtime song to soothe Liam during his injury-induced sleepless nights.
This tune wove the story of the Shadow Dragon King, who turned against humanity, shattered the global alliance treaty, and inflicted massive devastation upon all.
Because of his treachery and that of his followers, the world alliance came perilously close to ruin, allowing demons to almost claim victory in the millennium-long battle to eradicate them.
Had King Allen perished back then, that 'thousand-year demon extinction' conflict would have been remembered as 'the war that doomed the world.'
No, there might have been no survivors left to even label it; it could have spelled the utter end for every life in this solar system.
The song's closing words, 'the direst curse upon the dragon,' clearly alluded to how the dragon king and his entire retinue were exiled to the spirit realm.
They were cast into a domain of endless torment and agony; their doom proved far harsher than instant execution.
'Could it be...'
Rio glanced at the shattered statue, and catching his stare, Raika let out a light laugh before speaking evenly,
"That's right! You've figured it out; this is the likeness of that doomed dragon, indeed! This is the monument to that scheming shadow dragon king, 'Mayur Perperum'!"
"This stands as the effigy of the shadow dragons' ruler who dragged his followers into a destiny worse than oblivion!"
Rio's brow furrowed at Raika's declaration, prompting him to question,
"Who would bother erecting a statue for a traitor like him? Don't say his loyalists still viewed him as blameless and built this despite his exile?"
Following the massive betrayal by the shadow dragon king and his cohorts, the majority of shadow dragons faced banishment, while those who resisted were slain or fled the solar system entirely.
Rio had visited the dragon valley, home to scores of varied dragon species.
Flame-wielding red dragons, water-commanding blue ones, earth and foliage-manipulating green dragons, and so forth, each with their own sovereign, overseen by a single supreme ruler for the whole lineage.
Such is the fundamental order among dragons.
Shadow dragons were scarce from the start, numbering just over a hundred, most serving directly under their monarch.
Thus, their exile effectively erased the shadow dragon lineage from the wider world.
"Hehe, what fate do you imagine befell the shadow dragons after centuries trapped in the spirit realm?"
A playful expression crossed Raika's features as he delved into the shadow dragon lineage's past.
"The whole spirit realm brims with miasma... their end must have been truly grim..."
Rio recalled that Ellie, as a Shadow Dragon akin to dark elementals, possessed strong defenses against miasma and corruption, yet she remained vulnerable to it to some degree.
Miasma works relentlessly and subtly to unravel a being's life and essence.
Regardless of one's defenses or power, over time and with persistence, it can turn even the mightiest existence into a wretched parody.
For ordinary creatures, a single direct brush with miasma spells a agonizing demise, and shadow dragons endured a miasma-saturated realm for over a thousand years!
This very concern often fueled fears about Liam associating with a shadow dragon.
No one could predict the state of Ellie's true form, rendering her a potential explosive threat that could erupt unpredictably.
Yet that wasn't his primary worry now; Raika's reminder of the song shifted Rio's concerns elsewhere entirely.
'Don't say that massive, mighty shadow dragon I glimpsed slumbering atop a highland in those wicked spirit's recollections...'
'...is none other than the infamous 'Betrayer King of Shadow Dragons'! ?... Please, let this not be the case...'
Should that prove accurate, rescuing Liam and Ellie might forever elude Rio.
Against a feeble SS-ranker, Rio could adapt his strategy, scooping up Liam and Ellie to flee!
But confronting a world-alliance defector deranged by betrayal for intel on them would make extraction virtually unattainable.
'Worse, miasma's taint could warp him, sparking an assault on me instantly upon approach, much like that beast surge...'
'This quest has grown immensely challenging...'
If Rio were an SS-ranker himself, he'd dismiss any dormant shadow dragon without a thought, but his present capabilities fall short against such a foe.
"Why share all this with me? What's in it for you?"
In response to Rio's query, Raika offered a warm smile, trailed his elegant fingers over the lyre he held, and replied.
"Your friendship, nothing more!... hehe, anyway, I've shared everything I meant to!"
"We'll cross paths again shortly, my dear companion, Rio Flash~"
Ere Rio could intervene or react, Raika vanished once more.
He erased himself from being entirely, leaving no hint behind no matter what Rio attempted to uncover.
"What sort of being is he?... How does he materialize and evaporate like this without warning?..."
Had it involved an elemental technique or similar ability, Rio would have mastered and mimicked it by now.
Yet Rio detected zero ripples in the local miasma flow or elemental energies!
No spatial ripples occurred, and the space-time weave remained utterly steady, ruling out teleportation or dimension-bending!
'What manner of odd power is this?... Sensing no soul waves or psychic traces only complicates it further...'
Even Ashtel Rex trails faint spatial echoes when warping away, but this enigmatic figure upended Rio's understanding with his uncanny gifts.
'Could it stem from that peculiar lyre he wields?'
Much like Rio's blade as a fabled armament, countless other mythical relics surely dot this expansive cosmos.
Rio's sword excels in ruin and fury, but Raika's odd lyre could harbor potent concealed traits for masking his aura and shifting locations.
'With teleportation at his command... he could pose the greatest obstacle when I attempt to whisk Liam and Ellie away via a teleport scroll...'
Should Raika navigate spaces freely, he might persistently shadow Rio and emerge as a future hindrance.
'I must address this fellow eventually...'
These twin meetings weren't fruitless; Rio had tested various routine scanning approaches on Raika, most yielding nothing.
Though detection eluded him, he began pinpointing the issues; the next meeting might reveal insights.
Rio shook off the thought, cast a final look at the ruined statue, and resumed his path toward the goal.
'Even if peril looms... I lack alternatives at present...'
This drove Rio's vow to retrieve Liam and Ellie prior to embarking on this undertaking.
When oaths bind someone and demand fulfillment at any cost, they summon their utmost effort!
That's why Rio sealed off all retreat options before launch; embracing an unyielding resolve proved crucial for this endeavor.
'Death holds no appeal, with so much yet undone in this existence... Yet progress demands venturing into danger...'
An image of a certain blonde maiden surfaced in his thoughts, bringing a grin as fresh resolve propelled him onward.
'I won't falter; Lia awaits my return. Victory and homecoming lie ahead...'