Is the person you sculpt as cute as me?

Therefore, it is difficult to say whether the second generation's cruelty is due to hatred of humans - or... like the editor of this book, he thinks that it is a so-called emotional inheritance.

"Emotional inheritance?"

"An old dragon's rejection of humanity in one lifetime will weave a foundation of emotions that say, 'I suffer because of humans,' and this will permeate the soul. As the soul's magic ages and dissipates... the newborn may simply inherit these emotions, but be ignorant of the story."

"I see... But according to what was said before, the Ice Prison Dragon violently attacks everything, not just humans, right?"

"That's a sign of 'rejecting everything,' which actually proves the newborn dragon's mental immaturity."

But Yu Man didn't tell Xiaolu the more important news - she couldn't tell it.

According to the observations of generations of recorders, there are two very interesting experiences in the record of the Ice Prison Dragon II in this book.

"This dragon fought countless battles throughout his life, becoming nearly immortal. He faced countless battles, but was only defeated in two monstrous battles."

This is the only thing I can talk about with Senior Cat, and it is not something I should talk about now.

So, Yu Man said——

"Then, the Second Generation lived for a very, very long time... so long that it fills two-thirds of this book, with generations of recorders beyond my imagination writing down all sorts of texts. Finally, he died, temporarily ending the winter."

Since then, Shimla Bakken has also benefited from the warmer weather.

The ports and lighthouses that can be seen today, as well as all the trade imports that came before, were also acquired during this period.

But - shortly before the gods summoned the strangers.

The last generation of recorders wrote these words:

"The Ice Prison Dragon was born from the snow, singing to the world in a language we should know but no longer know the answer to.

Then—it intends to freeze the world."

"...That is our enemy, the current Ice Prison Dragon."

"Yes, it really is a newborn baby." Yu Man nodded, thinking that Miss World Tree had not gotten the time scale wrong.

101. The Beginning of the Story

At this point, Yu Man obtained several important pieces of information.

For example, not all Ice Prison Dragons are equally ferocious. Furthermore, they possess delicate and profound emotions, as well as considerable intelligence and communication abilities.

But at the same time, humans cannot expect the Ice Prison Dragon to try to negotiate with it.

If the theory of emotional inheritance is correct, then this generation of Ice Prison Dragons is likely to be far more ferocious than the previous generation.

Because its previous generation, the Ice Prison Dragon, spent his entire life in battle.

If the contents of the record are true, then players are everywhere among its enemies, and Yu Man is very clear about the level of chaos of the players. It has been fighting against players all its life... Even after losing to players twice, the hatred it has continued to this generation... How strong will it be?

So, Yu Man made a judgment.

Freezing the sea is undoubtedly one of its acts of revenge.

Not only that.

The second-generation Ice Prison Dragon has been battling players for a long time, and it's possible that it's passed down its experience to future generations. According to Yu Man, this experience has become a kind of combat instinct, an instinct—a gift to this generation's Ice Prison Dragon.

"Is there still a chance of winning?" the deer asked tentatively.

"It's not a question of odds - players can always win." It's just a matter of when they win.

The deer knew very well that Yu Man wanted to defeat it as soon as possible.

Since Yu Man's expression hadn't changed, and he hadn't given any new instructions, all she had to do was continue. She was about to get up and say goodbye, heading to the next instance—

But Yu Man gently tried to keep him.

"It's your turn."

"--good."

Although compared to what Yu Man said about the Ice Dragon's past, the third-level copy he just experienced was just a child's play...but that was not bad either.

……

The night of the real world ends, and we enter a sleep of total silence.

Yu Man switched to sleep mode and fell asleep in the warm bed with Senior Cat.

For eight hours before dawn, her soul will continue to explore another world.

……

"The question now is—"

After reading the entire Ice Dragon Record, Yu Man was very sure that he had collected all the important information.

The plot has progressed to the next step.

"This book probably doesn't contain all the content..."

According to the editor's numerous annotations, this volume represents the perspectives of the recorders and the content written by the recorders.

There is another volume that goes with it.

It was a collection of songs sung by the Ice Prison dragons, and their writings, compiled in their own words. That book must be quite important, otherwise no one would have taken the time to extract and re-edit them one by one.

In that case, go find it.

Soon, Yu Man left the guild territory and headed for the main city.

I have lamented the inconvenience of not having a mount countless times, but I have also been happy to measure the scenery of the land with my feet countless times.

She squeezed her way out of the crowded bustling crowd and headed straight for the lord's mansion.

Compared to the city as a whole, the lord's mansion was less solemn than usual, instead exuding a relaxed, free-spirited air. Perhaps because the old lord had been dragged here and killed by Yu Man, leaving both nominal and real power in the hands of the mercenary leader, no one had to pretend to be anything more.

But this kind of loose freedom lies after arriving——

It turned into panic.

Whether it was the yawning guard or the female civilian staff who greeted strangers at the front desk, they all remembered Yu Man's face.

In their eyes, the miraculously beautiful girl was the creator of death and turmoil, and the destroyer who devoured their land and plundered their wealth.

"Lead the way, I want to go into the archive room." Yu Man knocked on the guard's armor and looked at the other's cold sweat.

"I, I'll report it right away—"

"Lead the way." Yu Man repeated.

"I... I don't know the way... I really don't know this..."

Whatever.

Now, after going through the test of many events, the relationship between Yu Man and Lord Shimlabakken's Mansion has reached the most unbreakable level of surrender.

She could forget about all the etiquette and morality; it wouldn't affect the main storyline any more. She walked in as if she were back home, wandering among the civil servants, observing their distraught and fear.

After asking questions again and again, we always find a brave person to lead the way.

Just as Xiaolu had said, it was in the basement. But after arriving in person, I discovered that the upper floors contained stables and guard quarters, while the lower floors housed a dilapidated archive room, long in disrepair. The corridors were even covered in graffiti by the guards... Well, at least the path was accessible.

After opening the double magic doors, the archive room, which was much larger than expected, was dark and cold, as if it were another world.

"I'll be waiting at the door. Please feel free to..."

"No, I'm going to the old Esperanto archives further down."

The civilian woman leading the way looked surprised, but had no choice but to do as she was told.

She was completely unfamiliar with the road, and after wandering around in between huge cabinets, she finally found her way through the magic lamp lit by Yu Man.

"Are you so unfamiliar with each other?" Yu Man was afraid that the atmosphere would become awkward, so she made a joke.

However, this has triggered complaints from civil servants and some women even opened up about their feelings.

"I know shame, too. Logically, as the administrator who took over these things, I should be very familiar with them... But the old lord completely ignored them before. The port was closed, and these archives were never used again... So I didn't come here many times, I just kept the keys."

"I see."

"Apart from you and your companions who came earlier, this place has been closed for a long time."

As she explained her unfamiliarity with the job, her voice gradually emerged through the countless attempts of the key rubbing against the keyhole.

Just as Yu Man was struggling with his thoughts and considering using magic to force the door open, the crisp sound of the door opening finally echoed in the archives, as if to awaken all the silent texts.

The archive room on the next floor was even more dilapidated, but because the magic cast in ancient times was still in effect, there were no animals or insects to disturb it.

The so-called archive room for storing old Esperanto materials is actually just a room the size of an ordinary person's bedroom.

There were cabinets covering several walls inside. Yu Man raised the magic lamp, wanting to see the contents clearly and speak at the same time.

"Is there an index? I'm looking for—"

"you--"

They both stopped talking at the same time, showing the same surprised expressions.

Because all the cabinets are empty.

"What's going on? Has it been moved to a new storage location?"

“How, how could it be… huh?!”

The administrator covered her face, and the key in her hand fell to the ground with a sound like shattering eggshells. But compared to her desperate howl, it sounded no different from fairy music.

Seeing her like this, Yu Man immediately felt disappointed: "You've neglected your duty."

Compared to the administrator's panic, Yu Man was more knowledgeable and experienced, so he immediately moved closer to investigate the traces.

If it was a theft, the door and cabinet would show signs of damage to varying degrees. If it was an internal transfer, perhaps the administrator could find additional records. But Yu Man didn't have high hopes. Since it hadn't been opened for so long, it must have happened quite a while ago.

She wasn't worried about being slandered or framed—for example, accusations that Xiaolu had come to scout and steal, and Yu Man was here to provide cover. If anyone dared to think that, she could prove her innocence with her own strength.

But this time, that didn't happen.

The administrator was more rational than expected: "It's my fault. I mismanaged the place... I'll immediately investigate the people coming in and out and the management trends. I'm afraid this will cost me my life..."

"Good luck to you."

……

Not long after, the administrator returned to the archives with a mixed look of joy and worry on his face.

"How is it? Did you lose your head?" Yu Man asked with a smile.

"Your blessing has taken effect. I don't have to lose my head... But the previous administrator's head has already been lost..." The administrator's expression was quite complicated. "It turns out that it was stolen before..."

According to her, this incident actually happened quite a while ago and was already known.

But because these files are useless, no one has ever thought of opening them.

After a detailed investigation, the old lord executed the administrator and the matter was never mentioned again.

There is only one entry in the administrative archives, and other than that, there is no other substantial trace.

"It's a good thing for me, but for you, it means you can't access the files..."

"Stolen... Oh, is the game administrator blocking me?"

"what did you say?"

"Nothing—are there any files? I want to see who stole these things and why."

To be honest, Yu Man is quite good at being a detective and solving cases, having done a lot of them in Act 1. This theft was probably from decades ago, so it's hard to say whether it can be recovered. But if he doesn't try, he might miss out on some major clues.

Fortunately - she was wrong again.

The administrator's response was more straightforward than expected: "Ah, the rebel leader sent someone to take it after the split. Someone at that time had followed up on this matter. They were very powerful, so they committed the crime openly and even left their name. The situation is very clear."

It’s you again... the first generation rebel leader... Yu Man nodded as if pretending not to know her, motioning her to continue.

"It seems the rebels wanted to investigate overseas, or perhaps uncover some ancient and strange magic. In any case, none of the information was returned to us. Records indicate that some of it has circulated among the people of Himlabakken, making it extremely difficult to recover—see."

The administrator handed over a piece of paper.

It was a brief document compiled during the investigation of the theft, recording some of the information lost among the people.

"...Didn't they say that the information and the matter were unimportant? But they actually investigated it in such detail?" Yu Man was a little surprised.