Show Me Your Stats!-Chapter 182

Janus smashed, crushed, and tore the Karkal apart.

Red and gray fur scattered in every direction. The ground was soaked with blood, shredded flesh rolled across it. His face drenched in blood, his lips split wide into a savage grin. The dragon rampaged with pure abandon, venting all the stress from his lately aggravated temperament.

The estate’s residents could do nothing but stand frozen, barely able to breathe, as they watched the scene unfold.

If Bloom’s deeds came from noble human will, then Janus’s actions stemmed from nothing more than the primal madness of a beast. It was a realm wholly inhuman, something no person could possibly admire or aspire to.

‘This... this is hopeless.’

Ayra sighed internally. Unlike Bloom, Janus could never become a hero to the people. Her entire plan to implant a positive image of dragons in the minds of the estate’s residents came crashing down — but only briefly. Soon, Ayra found herself too absorbed in the spectacle to feel the cold.

Unlike the terrified residents, Ayra’s heart pounded as she watched the dragon go wild. It wasn’t fear — her heart raced, and her cheeks flushed red from the excitement of witnessing something so rare and incredible.

That said, no matter how she looked at it... this really was just a dogfight. Drenched in feral instincts, Janus bit back when bitten, tearing at snouts, barking when barked at — all while grinning. Though the Karkal were the size of houses, Ayra thought it looked less like a battle between equals and more like someone play-fighting with a tiny mutt.

The Karkal kept rushing at Janus, drawn to his barking. Even while trembling in terror, they seemed hypnotized, unable to stop attacking him. Curious about how this could be, Ayra watched their reactions carefully — until Pebble, who had been flopping lazily on the back of her hand, suddenly jolted and projected a system window.

[Attempted abduction in 3 minutes......]

“Huh?”

Ayra made a confused sound. Attempted abduction in 3 minutes? So someone was trying to kidnap her right now? Instead of looking around wildly, she simply tapped on Pebble and asked:

“Where is it?”

There were already so many people gathered. It wouldn’t help anyone if a kidnapping attempt on the lord were made public. But strangely, Pebble didn’t display the culprit’s location — it simply opened another system window.

[Attempted abduction in 2 minutes......]

[Tip. It is recommended to pre-cast a defensive spell when an abduction attempt is detected.]

What? No — can’t you just tell me where they are? So I can subdue them with magic ahead of time! But Pebble, stubborn and strong-willed as always, continued the countdown instead of offering further help:

[Attempted abduction in 1 minute......]

That’s when Ayra felt a jolt of déjà vu.

‘Pebble has deliberately withheld information from me like this before... when it had to do with Janus’s identity.’

She cast a barrier immediately — and didn’t forget to include Bloom within it. Just then, Janus abruptly stopped slaughtering the Karkal. The few remaining survivors fled with their tails between their legs, whimpering. But Janus’s gaze was now fixed squarely on Ayra.

His expression froze. White teeth bared menacingly between parted lips.

Thunk. Something hit the barrier. Bloom reacted even faster than Ayra, shielding her with his body. As Ayra began to turn around, Janus suddenly appeared on the castle wall behind them. The speed was terrifying — nearly instantaneous. His expression emotionless, his entire body smeared in blood, the dragon reached out behind Ayra.

There was a crack, thud, and a spray of hot blood.

“My lord!”

Bloom shouted in horror and drew his sword with a sharp ching. When Ayra finally turned around, what she saw was Janus — grabbing someone by the neck, flinging them off the watchtower, and leaping down after them. The crowd of residents who had just witnessed a brutal murder screamed.

“Janus!”

Ayra rushed to the edge of the tower and screamed his name. Janus didn’t look back. Without a word, he had torn a person apart just like he had with the assassin who’d once tried to kill her. A groan escaped Ayra’s lips at the sight of such merciless violence. But then — she blinked.

Was she imagining things? The arm of the person — torn to a degree that should’ve killed them instantly — was flailing.

Ayra stared in disbelief at the hand gripping Janus’s neck. Before she could confirm it, Janus plunged his hand into the attacker’s chest.

Through the torn sleeve, Janus’s arm bulged, dark red veins swelling across it. Like yanking out a thick, stubborn root, he gritted his teeth and ripped the heart from their chest. Splatter — a streak of blood hit the castle wall.

Ayra jumped down from the watchtower.

The humanoid figure — trembling violently — began to fade, starting from the fingertips.

Ayra’s eyes widened. Like ma-beasts from which a magic stone had been extracted, a clearly humanoid figure began to vanish into thin air. Even the bloodstains on the wall faded and disappeared without a trace. All that remained were tattered clothes and a pair of shoes.

As the body vanished right before their eyes, the residents’ screams fell silent, mouths agape.

Janus stood up, Karkal blood dripping from him. After rolling his eyes briefly, he grinned and walked toward her.

“Ayra.”

Something wet with blood glinted in his outstretched palm. It shimmered like an opal — sometimes golden, sometimes silver, sometimes like ruby. Ayra couldn’t take her eyes off the item in his hand.

With a sweet voice — not the least bit strained from all the barking he’d done earlier — the dragon said:

“I probably can’t give you mine... but would you like this instead?”

This...

Ayra parted her lips, then swallowed dryly. Her chest rose and fell rapidly.

This was... a dragon’s core.

The thing Janus had just killed had been a dragon.

She suddenly remembered — the last time Pebble had intentionally withheld information from her had been about Janus’s identity. And sure enough, now that she’d figured it out, a new window popped up in the exact spot where the body had been.

[Info: This area still retains the warmth of a dragon.]

Well... I guess I can understand why Pebble would hide that... to a degree. But still, seriously...

Scowling, Ayra reached out to take the core. Pebble, flattened and trembling between her fingers, popped hearts and tears while dutifully displaying a message:

[Janus Rehzedet’s Favorability has increased by 7!]

Current Favorability: 94♡

Ayra’s carefully maintained composure faltered, her lips twitching from emotional confusion. She shut her eyes for a brief moment, took a deep breath—

A dragon core was still a dragon core. For now, she had more pressing matters than Janus’s actions. Turning around, she addressed the still-silent, bewildered townsfolk.

“People of Solar! Fear not the monstrous wolves any longer! This man has just slain a demon sorcerer!”

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Ayra’s gaze drifted to the top of Janus’s head. A new, semi-transparent title had appeared above him.

<Woof woof woof woof woof!>

Ayra sighed softly and rubbed her lower lip and chin. She hadn’t expected much. Not something like Bloom’s “Crimson Knight,” but at least something like “Karkal Slayer” or “Protector of the Estate.” Anything would’ve been better than “The Lord’s Consort.”

But now she wished he’d just kept that.

The new title... was no matter how you looked at it, not something a human should ever be saddled with. <Woof woof woof woof woof!>? That wasn’t a title — that was just barking. Even if you were generous and said it was a wolf howl, that was the best you could do! There’s no way this ridiculous title was fitting for her dragon — no, her lover!

Even her approval rating had dropped — not much, but enough to notice. It had only just now bounced back thanks to her hastily claiming they’d taken down a demon sorcerer...

Still, there was something more important than his title at the moment. Ayra glanced once at the glimmering dragon core on the desk, then again at the yawning dragon nearby.

“...This is a dragon core?”

“Yeah.”

“This is really, really a dragon core? Seriously?”

She’d already asked the same thing several times, but Janus just nodded halfheartedly. Yet Ayra couldn’t bring herself to believe it. First, because the dragon had died so absurdly easily — and second, because it was the first time she’d ever seen a dragon core with her own eyes.

Unlike ordinary, rough, raw magic stones, a dragon core looked like an incredibly refined gem. No gemstone in the world could compare to it. It glittered vividly, almost as if it were alive.

Janus let out another yawn and sprawled out on the sofa, eyes closing like he’d fall asleep any moment. Ayra leapt toward him, abandoning the dragon core for now.

“No! You can’t sleep yet!”

Her mind was on the verge of bursting with questions — she couldn’t let him sleep now. Janus cracked one eye open and casually stretched his arms, catching the charging Ayra in an easy embrace. Her robe fluttered as she landed, draping over his legs. His body, usually warm, felt even hotter than usual where his skin touched her cool cheek.

“Why the hell is there another dragon in my estate?!”

Her voice held no joy at having seen another dragon besides Janus. Of course it didn’t — she hadn’t even gotten a proper look at the thing before Janus tore it apart. And to her astonishment, the territory’s Doomsday counter had [N O V E L I G H T] dropped by two whole days after that.

Ayra had no idea why the countdown had shortened.

Wasn’t the Doomsday attached to the dragon in Sobletz? Frankly, Ayra had expected Janus to struggle when the time came to fight that one — due to the aftereffects of using his core. But judging by today, there hadn’t been any struggle. It had been completely one-sided.

So why did killing that dragon shorten the Doomsday? Was the cause of the territory’s destruction something else entirely? Was Janus still the root cause?

As the undeniable lord of Solar in both body and heart, Ayra could no longer turn a blind eye.