Show Me Your Stats!-Chapter 183

"Is there... another dragon in my estate right now?"

Janus, lying on his arm like a pillow, gazed at her with a languid stare. His eyes looked surprisingly gentle — as if he hadn’t just torn through a horde of Karkal and another dragon in a savage bloodbath.

"No. I’m the only dragon in this estate right now."

"Then what the hell was that dragon?"

"It must’ve been drawn in while I was calling the Karkal. It probably got provoked and wandered near my land. Dragons — whenever they get the chance — want nothing more than to kill each other."

Janus fell into thought briefly, then added an explanation for Ayra, whose brows had furrowed deeply.

"Ayra, not all dragons are as strong as I am. I told you before, right? That one was just bite-sized."

To be honest, Ayra had thought that “bite-sized” remark was just Janus boasting. But after seeing what happened today, she had no choice but to admit it had truly been bite-sized. It hadn’t died instantly like a human would, but the whole thing had happened with terrifying speed.

"I didn’t even notice until it was close because it was acting too human."

Apparently irritated in retrospect, Janus snarled, his nose wrinkling into a scowl.

"Weaker ones take on stronger forms to avoid guys like me. But doing that just makes them more fragile. Like humans... If that thing had shown up in its real form, it wouldn’t have gone down so easily."

And if it had shown up in its real form, I would’ve noticed the moment it set foot on my land. Janus snorted.

Ayra muttered, correcting him, "My land, not yours."

"That dragon... it clearly seemed like it was targeting me."

"It was trying to beat me — so it aimed for my mate. We’ll do anything to kill each other."

Janus spoke casually as his hand slid down his waist suggestively. Ayra was too mentally overloaded to stop him from handling her body as he pleased, and she sank deep into thought.

At that moment, the system window popped up again:

[Territory upgrade in progress. 12%......]

[Dragon Janus Rehzedet is taking root in Solar......]

The progress bar had surged forward while she wasn’t looking. Ayra stared at it intently, then asked Janus directly:

"Let me just ask you something, just in case..."

Janus, who had been teasing her earlobe, replied with feigned innocence, "What?"

"You don’t... plan to destroy my estate or anything, right? Like, demolish buildings, kill residents, cause earthquakes—"

"Why would I? You’re the lord of this land."

"I’ve told you a hundred times. It’s my land, not yours."

Ayra corrected him automatically, but the unease between her brows wouldn’t vanish.

Janus’s explanation had no holes. And yet, Ayra still felt like he was hiding something. No matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t figure out what. When she glanced at Pebble, the little spirit perked up its ears and tail in an overly cutesy way and dove onto the back of her hand, acting all innocent.

Janus smoothed out the crease between her brows with his fingers, then asked nonchalantly, "Wanna do it in the study tonight?"

"I’m kind of hyped after spilling blood."

With those words, he suddenly sank his teeth into her nape. Ayra let out a short gasp, and before she could catch her breath, he was kissing her — rough and wild, as if trying to scatter the tangled thoughts in her mind.

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The next morning, Ayra woke to find that the Doomsday counter, which had dropped the night before, had risen by three days.

Whatever had happened when Janus killed that dragon, it was definitely a major trigger in the timeline of destruction.

By midday, it dropped by four. In the evening, it rose by two. For several days, it stretched and shrank like a rubber band.

‘What... the hell...? What exactly did Janus killing that dragon do to affect Doomsday?’

At first, Ayra had despaired thinking the estate was doomed due to its debt. But now that felt meaningless. If it wasn’t Janus causing the end, then what was? What could possibly threaten this land, protected by such a powerful dragon?

After long, fruitless pondering, Ayra sighed.

And then, surprisingly, smiled.

"Well... I’ll figure something out."

Doomsday loomed right ahead — but so far, every crisis had been overcome. And just like always, Ayra had no doubt she would overcome this too. She wasn’t placing her trust in a dragon — she believed in her own knowledge and skill that had brought her this far.

The fog of confusion in her heart cleared. She realized that now wasn’t the time to waste energy on fear — it was time to prepare for every possible outcome. She looked over at Janus.

‘Come to think of it, a dragon and a mage do make a pretty good pair.’

Like warrior and mage, they complemented each other’s weaknesses. Her gaze softened. As if sensing it, Janus, who had been snoring peacefully, shifted in his sleep.

Ayra decided to put estate concerns aside for now and pulled out a blank sheet of parchment. She began refining her magical formulas to use in preparation for Doomsday. As she concentrated, Pebble popped up a system window:

[There’s a commotion at the temple!]

Ayra’s lips curled. The alert she’d been waiting for.

She kept refining her formulas for a bit until Ginas entered the study.

"My lord, I apologize for disturbing you, but I believe you need to come down. The townspeople are surrounding the temple."

"Really? Then I’d better go quickly."

Only after hearing Ginas’s report did Ayra rise, as if just learning of the unrest. And like a ghost, Janus, who hadn’t moved a muscle in sleep, immediately sensed her presence and opened his eyes.

"......Where are you going?"

"Just going down to the temple. I won’t be long. Go back to sleep."

"Mmh, okay... Well, today doesn’t seem like any trouble’s coming."

Janus hesitated for a moment, but sleep won out. He wished her a safe trip and lay back down. Ayra now knew — when Janus slept, the estate upgrade progress accelerated. He was devoting himself to rooting into Solar. Ayra left the study quietly, careful not to disturb him.

When she arrived at the temple, the furious townspeople had swarmed the place like hornets, surrounding the building from all sides. The doors, usually wide open, were tightly shut. A few priests tried to calm the crowd but were pelted with trash and forced to flee.

"Teon! Come out, you coward!"

"Because of you, my family died!"

"You bastard, show yourself!"

"Give me back my money, you damn fraud!"

Ayra, hood pulled low, observed the depth of the residents’ fury with satisfaction. It was precisely the reaction she’d wanted — seething, boiling rage.

"My lord."

Hera approached with her usual cocky swagger. She grinned mischievously.

"Just like you said. Operation complete. Looks good, doesn’t it?"

"It really does. Excellent work, Commander Hera."

Ayra nodded approvingly as one of the residents hurled a rotten pumpkin.

After the main quest <The Woman Wandering the Forest (3)> appeared, Ayra realized he needed to quickly recruit his fifth retainer. But waiting for Act to fall into peril naturally might take too long. So he decided to push things forward — just a bit.

And Hera was perfect for the job.

First, she hired a few mercenaries who’d recently been injured. She had them make a scene at the temple, loudly complaining that the talismans Teon had sold were completely ineffective. Then real residents who’d been harmed while relying on those talismans joined in. They spread the story across pubs and gathering spots: the talismans were scams. Hera then assigned people to tail Teon’s ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) every move.

Teon quickly noticed the rising tide of public resentment. One night, he slipped out of the temple, laden with valuables.

At that moment, the disguised patrolmen — Hera’s agents — staged a ruckus, pretending to discover him by chance.

"Thief! Stop that thief!"

"He’s fleeing with stolen offerings from the temple!"

Startled, Teon panicked, but then reverted to old habits and barked at them in fury.

"You dogs! Shut your mouths! How dare you call me a thief!"

"He’s the former High Priest! Watch your tongue!"

A priest tried to intervene, but the patrol — clearly waiting for this — shouted even louder.

"What?! Are you mocking Lord Teon? Why would the former High Priest skulk around like a thief in the dead of night?"

They drew their swords. Hera had handpicked these guards for their strength. In front of the pale-faced Teon and priest, they slashed open the sacks on the wagon. Magic stones and glittering treasures spilled out.

They kicked over the cart with a dramatic crash — and right on cue, the bell tower rang.

The people of Solar, conditioned by the treasure hunt to recognize the sound, woke immediately. Lights came on in homes one by one. And those who stepped outside with torches saw a thief clutching spilled riches — and the patrol.

"Lord Teon?"

"What in the world is going on?"

As the residents appeared, the patrol raised their voices in exaggerated cries.

"Thief! A thief is stealing the temple’s riches!"

"Lord Teon, the former High Priest, has committed a heinous crime!"

"Teon is fleeing to Sobletz!"

The sleepy townsfolk soon understood the situation. Their faces, flickering in the torchlight, twisted in fury. Teon, panicking, abandoned his loot and fled back into the temple, slamming the door shut behind him.